§ MR. RIDSDALE (Brighton)To ask the President of the Local Government Board what was the aggregate debt of the various local authorities of the United Kingdom at the close of the following financial years: 1870, 1880, 1890, 1900, 1904, 1905, 1906, 1907.
(Answered by Mr. John Burns.) The following tables, which give as far as possible for the under-mentioned years the information desired by my hon. friend, have been compiled as regards England and Wales from the Annual Local Taxation Returns (England and Wales), and, as regards Scotland and Ireland, from particulars furnished by the Secretary for Scotland and the Local Government Board (Ireland). Information cannot be given for the year 1869–70, and complete information for the United Kingdom for the years 1905–6 and 1906–7 is not yet available.
| Local authorities in | Total amount of the outstanding balances of loans. | |||||
| 1873–4. | 1879–80. | 1889–90. | 1899–1900. | 1903–4. | 1904–5. | |
| £ | £ | £ | £ | £ | £ | |
| England and Wales | 84,194,956 | 136,934,070 | 198,671,312 | 293,864,224 | 393,882,146 | 466,459,269 |
| Scotland* | * | * | 25,380,723* | 47,705,830 | 59,314,968 | 61,338,728 |
| Ireland† | 3,068,863† | 4,374,453† | 6,542,137† | 11,493,914† | 16,008,311 | 16,917,091 |
| Totals | — | — | 230,594,172*† | 353,063,968† | 469,205,425 | 544,715,088 |
| The amounts given in the table are stated in gross, i.e., no deduction has been made in respect of the sums remaining in sinking funds or other similar funds towards the repayment of so much of the debt as may have been repayable by means of such funds. |
§ MR. RIDSDALETo ask the President of the Local Government Board what is the number of local authorities in the United Kingdom which have in any manner the power to utilise sinking funds set aside to meet existing debts for the purposes of fresh capital expenditure.
To ask the President of the Local Government Board if he will state in what year the power to use sinking funds for the purpose of fresh capital expenditure was first exercised by a local authority, the name of the local authority which first exercised it, and the number of times that power has been exercised since.
(Answered by Mr. John Burns.) I will answer these two Questions together. I only have information with regard to the matter to which they relate so far as England and Wales are concerned. The number of local authorities in them who have in any manner the power referred to is 105. So far as I am aware, the first year in which the power was given was 1892, when it was conferred on the Town Council of Birmingham by Section 72 of the Birmingham Corporation Water Act. The power was used to a considerable extent in the years 1893 to 1900, when the section was repealed and replaced by a provision in Section 4 of the Birmingham Corporation (Stock) Act, giving the power in an altered form. I am unable to state the number of times in which the power has been exercised.