Lord INGLEWOODMy Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.
§ The Question was as follows:
§ To ask Her Majesty's Government on what grounds they would justify local authorities' (such as the Greater London Council) contributing from public funds to the mounting of partisan exhibitions such as that which is to commemorate the 1926 General Strike, at a time when there are more pressing claims on all Councils' resources.
§ Baroness STEDMANMy Lords, it is not for the Government to justify individual acts by local authorities. We have made clear the constraints that exist at present on local authority expenditure, but within those constraints each authority is responsible to its own electorate for its own expenditure.
Lord INGLEWOODMy Lords, is the noble Baroness aware that that is really only half an answer? Against the background of the Environment Secretary's recent stern exhortation to local authorities when he made it clear there would be no hailing out of " defaulters ", is it not irresponsible for any local authority to give several thousands of pounds to projects of this sort and provide them with premises rent free?
§ Baroness STEDMANMy Lords, my honourable friend the Secretary of State has made his views known to all local authorities. It is for the local authorities to decide what constraints they have on their expenditure, not for the Government.
Lord CAMPBELL of CROYMy Lords, as the Secretary of State for the 1252 Environment appears to have indicated that any overspending in future must be entirely borne by the local ratepayers, will the Government, in certain circumstances, intervene to advise against expenditure which is proposed and has nothing whatever to do with local authority function?
§ Baroness STEDMANMy Lords, we have issued guide lines to local authorities; we hope that local authorities will heed them. They know the consequences if they are not constraining their expenditure as requested.