§ Mr. Gowasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whose authority or consent is required before the public sector debt is increased; and what is the procedure for granting such authority or consent.
§ Mr. Joel Barnett, pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 6th May 1976; Vol. 910, c. 475.], gave the following information:
Borrowing by central Government, on their own account or for on-lending, is carried out under the authority of the National Loans Act 1968. In part it is applied to the Government's own expenditure, in so far as this is not met by revenue: Parliament controls that expenditure, and also prescribes the rates of Government taxation. In part the Government's borrowing is on-lent to public corporations and local authorities. Borrowing by the public corporations, whether from the National Loans Fund or from other sources, is carried out under the authority of, and within limits prescribed by, the individual statutes under which the corporations operate. Borrowing by the local authorities, whether from the Public Works Loan Board or from other sources, is carried out in England and Wales under the authority of the Local Government Act 1972 and the London Government Act 1963, and is subject to the consent of the appropriate Secretary of State or the limits prescribed in the annual Greater London Council (Money) Acts; in Scotland the local authorities' borrowing is carried out under the authority of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1975 and is subject to the power to control capital expenditure conferred by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973.