§ Mr. McTaggartTo ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he plans to review the level of funding of bodies offering debt counselling particularly in relation to short-term programmes; and if he will make a statement on the level of debt counselling available in Scotland.
§ Mr. Maude[holding answer 21 April 1988]: I have been asked to reply.
Most debt counselling in Scotland is provided by citizens advice bureaux. The Scottish Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux, which provides the central support services for local bureaux, is almost entirely funded by the Government. Its grant-in-aid for the current financial year is £926,000 and this is reviewed each year. The running costs of local bureaux are a matter for local funding, however, I understand that citizens advice bureaux dealt with over 42,000 debt counselling cases in 1986–87 from their 82 offices throughout Scotland.