HL Deb 03 March 1982 vol 427 cc1281-2

2.48 p.m.

Lord Gainford

My 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 whether they are satisfied with the contribution made by the work of partnership committees in the field of housing and industry.

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of the Environment (Lord Bellwin)

My Lords, the partnerships have supported a wide range of industrial and commercial projects, and we are looking for an increase in the proportion of urban programme resources devoted to economic regeneration in future years. Most local authority housing activity is financed under their main programmes, although the partnerships have used UP resources to support a number of innovative housing projects.

Lord Gainford

My Lords, I thank my noble friend the Minister for that encouraging Answer. May I ask him whether he has any information about the Borough of Lambeth—the industrial training scheme for young persons with little or no qualifications and the site development scheme to assist small industries?

Lord Bellwin

My Lords, the list of such projects is very long and to help my noble friend I should have to send him the details of the ones in Lambeth. However, I am glad to confirm that there are such projects taking place there. Indeed, in most of the other partnership authorities throughout the country it is very much Government policy to encourage precisely that type of project in those areas.

Baroness Birk

My Lords, is it not true that partnership authorities lost £390 million in rate support grant during the current financial year compared with last, which is a 25 per cent. reduction in one year? Was this not largely because the Government reduced the partnership authority share of the rate support grant? Can the Minister tell me how this squares with the Government's stated concern over the grave problems of the inner cities?

Lord Bellwin

My Lords, I do not confirm the figures which the noble Baroness mentioned. Certainly I am not aware of them. If she wants to pursue the matter, she can do so on another occasion. The fact that the Government have increased by some 29 per cent. this year the amount of money going to the urban programme, which is concentrating that type of resource where it ought to be, is indicative of the point which I made in answering the original Question.

Baroness Birk

My Lords, if the Minister cannot give me the answer now, may I ask him to write to me about it? It is very much on the point of Government help to the partnership areas. I do not think that this point can be brushed aside as though it is not relevant to the Question.

Lord Bellwin

My Lords, I have no wish to brush the point aside but the fact is that under the system as it now is rate support grant is given on the basis of assessment of need. It so happens that the type of authorities to which the noble Baroness refers and to which the first supplementary from my noble friend referred are those authorities which have benefited most from the rate support grant settlement, so they are getting an advantage out of a finite sum of money which is distributed in this way.

Baroness Sharples

My Lords, can my noble friend say whether there are cities such as Birmingham, where for every £6 required they have managed to raise £5 from the private sector? Have any other cities been so successful?

Lord Bellwin

My Lords, I should need to know the specific schemes to which my noble friend refers. I am grateful that she raises this point because one of the prime objectives of this whole exercise is to encourage or, as the Americans say, lever private sector funds so that the total amount of resources going into these areas is many times what the Government themselves are putting in. When we have achieved that everywhere, as in the case which my noble friend has mentioned, one can really feel that one is making major progress.

Lord Byers

My Lords, would the noble Lord the Minister not agree that there have been tremendous advances in the past year or two in co-operation between the private sector and the public sector, both local and central, in inner city regeneration, and that that is to be welcomed?

Lord Bellwin

My Lords, I am most grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Byers. I confirm that and, as the noble Lord says, it is one of the most encouraging developments taking place today.