§ 10. Mr. NellistTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received concerning his latest estimate of the level of poll tax that would be payable in Coventry under the terms of the Local Government Finance Bill; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. HowardNone, Sir.
§ Mr. NellistCould that possibly be because people in Coventry are only just becoming aware that were this the first year of the operation of poll tax every adult would be paying £267; that 70 per cent. of all adults would be paying more; that of the 18 electoral wards in Coventry, residents would be paying more in 14 of them; and that those wards that will be hit the worst, such as St. Michael's, and Foleshill, are also those that have the highest unemployment, the worst housing, and the most overcrowding? Finally, may I give the Minister due notice—[HON. MEMBERS: "Question."] Could I give the Minister due notice that it is solidarity—[HON. MEMBERS: "Question."] Could I give the Minister due notice——
§ Mr. Deputy Speaker (Mr. Harold Walker)Order. The hon. Member for Langbaurgh (Mr. Holt)—[Interruption.] It sounded as if the hon. Gentleman used an interrogative term.
§ Mr. Deputy SpeakerOrder. The hon. Gentleman knows that points of order are taken after Question Time.
§ Mr. Deputy SpeakerOrder. The hon. Gentleman must resume his seat. I hope that he will not persist. He knows that, following the practice laid down——
§ Mr. Deputy SpeakerThe hon. Gentleman must not persist in challenging my ruling or I shall have no alternative—[Interruption.] Order. This is a serious matter and I hope that hon. Members will recognise it as such. If the hon. Gentleman wishes to raise a point of order, he must do so at the end of Question Time.
§ Mr. NellistMay I give the Minister due notice that, irrespective of what happens in today's deliberations, in solidarity with the mass campaign of non-payment, which has begun in Scotland and which will develop in England, Wales and Coventry——
§ Mr. Deputy SpeakerOrder. The hon. Gentleman has gone far enough. I call the Minister to answer.
§ Mr. NellistI will not pay the poll tax and I will advise my constituents not to do so.
§ Mr. Deputy SpeakerOrder. Hon. Members must resume their seats——
§ Mr. Nellistrose——
§ Mr. Deputy SpeakerOrder. When I am on my feet, the hon. Gentleman must resume his seat.
§ Mr. HowardI hope that the hon. Gentleman is not misleading his constituents. The report on which his assertions are based left rebates out of account. Even that report disclosed that two out of three households in Coventry will pay less in community charge than they presently pay in rates. Are those the benefits that the hon. Gentleman seeks to deny his constituents?
§ Mr. OppenheimIs it not true that Coventry is in a similar position to Derbyshire, in that the projected community charge is far higher than it needs to be because of the profligacy of the local authority?
§ Mr. HowardMy hon. Friend is absolutely right. When that profligacy is brought home to all the community charge payers of Derbyshire they will no doubt make full use of the remedies available to them at the ballot box.
§ Mr. RookerDid not the same report, so gleefully quoted by the Minister, point out that 51 per cent. of adults in Coventry will lose, before the £20 a head surcharge?
§ Mr. HowardSince the report left rebates out of account, that finding is completely valueless.