§ Dr. CunninghamTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, pursuant to his answer of 3 May,Official Report, column 390, what information on the investing by local authorities of balances and so on in companies is available to him (a) from the quarterly borrowing and lending inquiry, (b) from the quarterly return of rates, interest receipts and payments, wages and salaries and (c) CIPFA capital expenditure and debt-financing statistics; and if he will make a statement on recent trends in this area of local authority activity.
§ Mr. Ridley[holding answer 11 May 1988]Information on the level of investment by local authorities in companies is not available from the returns specified, apart from the level of short-term investments of less than 12 months in industrial and commercial companies, which is collected on the quarterly borrowing and lending inquiry. The level of such investment was £50 million at 31 March 1988.