§ Mr. LIDDALLasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer the figures showing the Government's share of the financial burden of the able-bodied unemployed in Lincoln and the proportion left to be borne by the Lincoln city corporation?
§ Sir K. WOODI have been asked to reply. The following statement gives the desired information, the figures being estimates of the annual amounts of the different items:1536W
£ (1) Expenditure of the Council on relief to the able-bodied unemployed to be transferred to the Unemployment Assistance Board (or until the second appointed day, met by the grant under the Unemployment Assistance (Temporary Provisions) (No. 2) Act, 1935) 26,000 (2) Unemployment Assistance to persons already transferred to the Board 135,000 £161,000 (3) Contribution by the Council under Section 45 of the Unemployment Assistance Act. 1934 6,800 (4) Amount of the block grant under the Local Government Act, 1929, appropriate to the £26,000 of expenditure to be transferred to the Board 5,000 (5) Net charge to the Council—difference between (3) and (4) 1,800 (6) Charge to the Exchequer— (a) Unemployment Assistance 135,000 (b) Transferred expenditure less Council's contribution 19,200 (c) Block grant appropriate to transferred expenditure 5,000 Total of item (6) £159,200 (7) £159,200 = 98.9 per cent. of £161,000. 1,800 = 1.1 per cent. of £161,000. The cost of relieving able-bodied persons who are outside the scope of the Unemployment Assistance Act, 1934, is not included in the above calculations. Actual figures are not available, but returns made by the council in 1934 indicate that approximately £3,400 per annum was expended by the council in respect of persons relieved on account of unemployment who would not be transferred to the board. The proportion of the block grant appropriate to the £3,400 is £640, giving a net figure of £2,760. If this figure of £2,760 be added to the £1,800 shown above, the total future charge to the ratepayers would be £4,560, and the relative proportions of the expenditure to be borne by the Exchequer and by the council would then be as follow:
Per cent. Exchequer … … … 97.2 Council … … … 2.8