§ Dr. Cunninghamasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish in the Official Report a table showing (a) the percentage increase in domestic water rates for each year since 1979–80 for each English regional water authority and the overall average, (b) the cumulative percentage increase since 1979–80 for each English water authority and the overall average and (c) the average domestic water rates bill per household for each year since 1979 for each English regional water authority arid the overall average.
§ Mr. RidleyThe information requested is shown in the table. The average household bills are taken from charges returns made annually to DOE.
increase in each on an annual and cumulative basis, showing also the movement of the retail price index over that same period.
§ Mr. RidleyThe figures on local authority rents, the average rents registered by rent officers and the movements in the retail prices index are as follows:
47W3 England and Wales.
4 Provisional estimate.
5 Not available.
The mix of properties for which rents are registered varies from year to year for a number of reasons: for example, extension of decontrol in 1981; the reduction from three to two years in the minimum period for re-registration which led to re-registrations in 1983 of rents previously registered in 1980 and 1981. Therefore, comparisons of averages for consecutive years do not properly reflect rent movements. Better estimates of rent movements are derived from previous and new registered rents for tenancies where there has been no material change in terms or in the physical condition. For properties with rents fixed in the second halves of 1979, 1982, 1984 and 1986, the estimated increases are:
per cent, increase in period annualised per cent. increase 1979 to 1982 47 14 1982 to 1984 18 9 1984 to 1986 17 8
§ Mr. Battleasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what assessment he has made of the impact on local authority rents in Leeds for the current financial year of proposals to prevent rate contribution to the local authority's housing revenue account.
§ Mr. WaldegraveWe have no proposals to end rate fund contributions to housing revenue accounts in the current financial year.