§ MR. STANLEY LEIGHTON (Shropshire, Oswestry)I beg to ask the President of the Local Government Board whether, in view of the importance of keeping Parliament informed of the total amount of the burdens imposed by Local as well as Imperial Authority, before the Estimates are passed, the 1361 Government will make arrangements for a Statement to be delivered on Local Taxation and Indebtedness as soon as possible after the annual Budget Statement of the Chancellor of the Exchequer?
§ *THE PRESIDENT OF THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT BOARD (Mr. H. H. FOWLER,) Wolverhampton, E.A somewhat similar question was asked by the hon. Member last year, and the reply of the then First Lord of the Treasury was that the great complexity of local expenditure, the very large number (28,000) of the Local Authorities from whom accounts had to be obtained, and the length of time necessarily occupied in the audit of those accounts made it impossible to present to the House, in connection with or shortly after the Budget Statement, a statement of the expenditure and indebtedness of Local Authorities similar to that furnished with regard to Imperial finance. In that opinion I quite concur. Very full and detailed statements as to local expenditure and indebtedness are furnished by the Local Taxation Returns presented to the House.