HC Deb 03 March 1966 vol 725 cc1488-9
Q8. Mr. Boyd-Carpenter

asked the Prime Minister whether he will recommend the appointment of a Royal Commission on the system of local rates.

The Prime Minister

No, Sir.

Mr. Boyd-Carpenter

Is the Prime Minister aware that the Minister of Housing and Local Government spends a great deal of time denouncing the rates as vicious and regressive and that if he wants to be taken seriously it would be a good idea to have an investigation of some alternative form of local revenue?

The Prime Minister

When addressing the Conservative Party Conference on 10th October, 1963, the right hon. Gentleman the Member for Kingston-upon-Thames (Mr. Boyd-Carpenter) rejected the idea of a Royal Commission and said that this issue raised matters of Government responsibility and would take a considerable time. He said that the then Government considered the matter urgent, but they did nothing about it, as we know. Because of the very criticisms made both by my right hon. Friend and myself, however, the Royal Commission which has been set up will obviously have to consider questions of local finance and rating.

Mr. Boyd-Carpenter

Is the Prime Minister aware that the need for a Royal Commission is now very much greater, as there then was what there is not now—a competent Government?

The Prime Minister

I am aware of the fact that the right hon. Gentleman went on to say: We think, therefore, that this is a review which we should undertake ourselves as a Government. But they forgot to do it. The only difference between that time and this is that we now have two major parties interested in the ratepayers. At that time, it was only the Labour Party, because the Conservatives discovered the existence of ratepayers and mortgage owners only after they got into opposition.

Mr. Lubbock

Is the Prime Minister aware that now that the Minister of Housing and Local Government has announced the abandonment of the 1968 revaluation, it would take far too long for a Royal Commission to produce results? Will the Minister of Housing and Local Government, or the Prime Minister, condescend to tell us what the policy on rating is, before the General Election?

The Prime Minister

Yes, Sir. I do not accept at all that the cancellation of the revaluation has the effect suggested by my hon. Friend—[Laughter.]

Hon. Members

Withdraw.

The Prime Minister

I must apologise and withdraw. [Laughter.]

Mr. Speaker

Order. The House is getting almost too happy.

The Prime Minister

I must sincerely apologise, since the hon. Gentleman has led his party into the Division Lobby against us twice for every time that he has voted with us. As for our policy on rating, in addition to the Rating Relief Act, we announced last week our new proposals for relieving local authority finance. We have also announced successive proposals in the form of a Bill and there has been the further announcement about housing finance. In 16 months we have done quite a lot about this matter.