§ Sir John StanleyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will state the 1990–91 revenue support grant entitlements of all local authorities in Kent in the same format as in the reply given to the right hon. Member for Tonbridge and Mailing by the Secretary of State for Wales on 22 February,Official Report, columns 862–3.
§ Mr. David HuntThe entitlements for revenue support grant (ie after allowing for safety net adjustments) for the local authorities in Kent are listed in the following table:
Name Revenue support grant entitlement £ Ashford 11,426,620 Canterbury 16,979,259 Dartford 12,254,297 Dover 14,848,572 Gillingham 13,255,746 Gravesham 12,357,886 Maidstone 16,868,067 Rochester Upon Medway 20,461,365 Sevenoaks 11,966,395 Shepway 11,640,754 Swale 16,228,029 Thanet 18,493,602 Tonbridge and Mailing 13,492,043 Tunbridge Wells 12,060,160 Total for all districts 202,332,795 My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales in his reply on 22 February gave figures for the revenue support grant entitlements for Welsh county councils. It is not possible to calculate such figures for English county councils as although revenue support grant is paid to district councils in support of services provided by both the district and county council, there is no amount separately identified as being attributable to the county council.
§ Mr. Austin MitchellTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, further to his written reply dated 14 February,Official Report, column 222, concerning the amount of poll tax payable in 1990–91 per adult for each region and so on, (1) whether he will provide in each case the amount of the average rate bill per adult as a percentage of the median full-time adult male earnings;
(2) whether he will provide in each case the amount of the long-run community charge per head as a percentage of the median full-time adult male earnings.
§ Mr. Chope[holding answer 28 February 1990]: I have no information on median full-time adult male earnings in 1990–91.
§ Mr. GouldTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list in theOfficial Report the relevant notional amount for each charging and precepting authority which is the amount which would have been calculated by each charging and precepting authority in relation to the financial year 1989–90 on the assumption that 1989–90 was a chargeable year; and if he will show what other assumptions he has made in arriving 388W at the relevant notional amount, using his powers under part VIII of the Local Government and Finance Act 1988 for community charge capping.
§ Mr. Chris Patten[holding answer 1 March 1990]: I have made it clear that I shall not hesitate to cap authorities which insist on budgeting excessively for 1990–91, but it would not be right for me to speculate on any aspects of the operation of any capping scheme which might be needed.
§ Mr. BurnsTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what percentage of non-domestic properties in each English region and in Wales will be treated as small properties for the purposes of the business rate transitional arrangements.
§ Mr. ChopeThe percentage of non-domestic properties in each English region and in Wales with a rateable value in the draft local rating lists which are to take effect on 1 April 1990 of £500 or more which have a value below the thresholds of £15,000 in Greater London and £10,000 elsewhere is as follows:
Percentage Northern 80 Yorkshire and Humberside 79 East Midlands 77 East Anglia 73 Inner London 62 Outer London 74 Rest of the South East 65 South West 76 West Midlands 76 North West 79 Welsh Valleys 83 Wales, except Valleys 82 All properties 74
§ Sir John StanleyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will provide the fullest breakdown available to him of the 1990–91 standard spending assessment figures for Tonbridge and Mailing of £5.364 million and £0.466 million in his reply to the right hon. Member for Tonbridge and Mailing of 26 February,Official Report, column 22.
§ Mr. David HuntThe sub-components of the service elements of the standard spending assessment for Tonbridge and Malling are:
£ million Other services—district level 5.328367 Other services—county level 0.060166 Flood defence 0.133639 Interest receipts -0.158585 Total other services 5.363586 Debt charges 0.696891 Capital expenditure charge to revenue account 0.043102 Interest on capital receipts -0.273607 Total capital financing 0.466386
§ Sir John StanleyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the 1990–91 standard spending assessments per head of population, before safety net. adjustments, for each borough and district council in Kent in descending order of magnitude.
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§ Mr. David HuntThere is no safety net adjustment to standard spending assessments. The standard spending assessment per adult for each charging authority in Kent is shown in the table:
1990–91 Standard Spending Assessments per Adult SSA per adult £/ adult Thanet 106 Rochester upon Medway 105 Gillingham 99 Dover 95 Shepway 94 Canterbury 92 Gravesham 92 Ashford 90 Swale 90 Maidstone 88 Tunbridge Wells 88 Dartford 84 Tonbridge and Malling 76 Sevenoaks 73
§ Sir John StanleyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what would be the approximate public expenditure cost in 1990–91 of limiting the amount that ratepayers and ratepayer couples in England need pay in community charge to £3 a week over their 1989–90 rates bill, through the transitional relief scheme to individuals that he announced in October 1989, if local authorities in England spend(a) not more than 10 per cent. above their standard spending assessment and (b) not more than 15 per cent. above their standard spending assessment.
§ Mr. David HuntThe transitional relief scheme gives relief based on the lower of the assumed charge or the actual charge. If the scheme operated in the way described, relief in many authorities would therefore be based on actual charges rather than assumed charges. I have no firm information on planned spending in most authorities and I am therefore unable to estimate the cost of the schemes described.