HC Deb 14 February 1991 vol 185 cc541-2W
Mr. Richard Shepherd

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish the credit approvals of each local authority in England for 1990–91 and 1991–92, showing the percentage change between the two years.

Mr. Portillo

A list of the basic credit approvals issued to local authorities in England for 1991–92 was placed in the House of Commons Library on 4 January 1991. I am arranging for a further list to be placed in the Library giving, for each authority, basic credit approvals for 1990–91 and 1991–92 and showing the percentage changes between the two years.

Mr. Richard Shepherd

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish the annual capital guideline of each local authority in England for 1990–91 and 1991–92, showing the percentage change between the two years.

Mr. Portillo

Annual capital guidelines—ACGs—for local authorities in England are issued by the Secretary of State responsible for each service block. My Department is responsible for issuing ACGs in respect of the housing and other services blocks—OSB. I am arranging for two lists to be placed in the Library giving, for each authority, the 1990–91 and 1991–92 ACGs for housing and OSB respectively and showing the percentage change between the two years.

Mr. Wigley

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations his Department has received from the Audit Commission concerning the pursuit of non-payers of poll tax through the courts; and whether he has any plans to offer additional moneys to magistrates courts to cover such cases.

Mr. Key

The Audit Commission produced a report in November 1990 on the administration of the community charge. Among other things, it suggested to authorities that they should liaise closely with clerks to magistrates courts in order to ensure that community charge cases are handled satisfactorily and in appropriate numbers. We have warmly welcomed this report and strongly commended its findings to local authorities. In January the Audit Commission's paper for the local government review suggested that authorities are now able to issue more summonses but court time remains inadequate in most authorities. On the question of magistrates courts funding I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Minister of State, Home Department, my right hon. Friend the Member for Oxford, West and Abingdon (Mr. Patten), to the hon. Member for Caernarfon (Mr. Wigley) on 13 February, Official Report, column 492.

Mr. Ken Hargreaves

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how much of the £1.7 billion funding available for the community charge reduction scheme is to be allocated to(a) Blackburn, (b) Hyndburn and (c) Burnley; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Key

This information is not yet available. The amount of reduction scheme grant a charging authority receives will depend on the personal community charge that it sets for 1991–92 and the number of eligible people in its area. Claims for community charge reduction scheme grant will be requested shortly.

Mr. Cohen

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his Department's latest estimate of local authority spending on collecting the poll tax.

Mr. Key

The English local authorities budgeted to spend £440.2 million on collecting the community charge in 1990–91.