§ LIEUTENANT-COLONEL PRYCE-JONES (Montgomery Boroughs)I beg to ask the Secretary to the Treasury whether he can say upon what grounds the application of the Newtown Urban District Council was refused for a loan of between £30,000 and £40,000 from the Public Works Loan Board to enable that body to purchase the existing gas works, and can he state when such application may be renewed with a prospect of success, what was the balance standing to the account of such Public Works Loan Board at the end of the past financial year, and what are its commitments for the present year.
§ MR. AUSTEN CHAMBERLAINIt is not anticipated that the money (£7,000,000) placed at the disposal of the Public Works Loan Board by the Public Works Loans Act, 1900, will be more than sufficient to meet the applications. during the period covered by the Act, for the classes of loans which have the first claim on the Board—namely, loans for works which Parliament has expressly intended to be encouraged, and loans to those local authorities whose powers of borrowing in the open market are comparatively limited. In these circumstances, the Commissioners are obliged to refuse applications for loans for commercial undertakings, such as gas-works. The Commissioners will probably find it necessary to maintain this refusal until the conditions become more favourable for the raising by the State of large sums of money for the purpose of local loans. On the 31st March last the amount still unissued of the £7,000,000 sanctioned for the Board's loans by last year's Loans Act was £2,531,206. The amount now unissued is £1,303,114. The Board's commitments in respect of loans which they have granted but not yet issued amount to £4,764,627, the bulk of which, however, will not fall to be issued during the currency of the present Act.