§ Mr. RathboneTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, pursuant to the answer to the private notice question from the hon. Member for Dewsbury (Mrs. Taylor) on 22 February, what steps he will take to ensure that no charge capping will be applied to any authority incurring extra costs of tackling recent serious pollution on Sussex beaches, if those costs lead to higher than planned community charge.
§ Mr. Chope[holding answer 26 February 1990]: My right hon. Friend has made it clear that he will not hesitate to cap authorities which insist on spending excessively. It would not be right for me to speculate on how any capping scheme might operate if my right hon. Friend needed to use his capping powers next year.