§ Mr. TraceyTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether any changes will be made to his Department's cash limit and running costs limit for 1991–92.
§ Mr. LilleySubject to parliamentary approval of the necessary supplementary estimate, the cash limit for class IV, vote 2 (support for industry, international trade, statutory and regulatory work, consumer protection, and administration) will be reduced by £5,000,000 from £763,019,000 to £758,019,000. The running costs limit for the Department of Trade and Industry will be reduced by £2,238,000 from £258,236,000 to £255,998,000.
The supplementary estimate covers a rise of £9,245,000 in gross provision for the consultancy initiatives, reflecting higher than expected demand for the scheme, and a rise of £1,587,000 in gross provision for consumer and investor protection, reflecting increased expenditure on companies investigations. These increases are wholly offset by reductions in gross provision and increases in appropriations in aid elsewhere on the vote, including an increase of £2,147,000 in receipts appropriated in aid of the consultancy initiatives.
There is an increase of £4,346,000 in departmental capital expenditure and research establishments' major building works and capital expenditure as a result of the end-year flexibility arrangements for capital announced by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 17 July 1991, Official Report, columns 183-88.
There are reductions of £2,828,000 in voted provision for long term loans to the Patent Office Executive Agency trading fund and of £2,000,000 for long term loans to Companies House Executive Agency trading fund, reflecting a lower requirement for such loans than originally forecast. There are also reductions in net provision of £520,000 for the Patent Office and £561,000 for Companies House in respect of the period before they became trading funds, 1 April to 30 September 1991.
There are transfers within provision for Radiocommunications, Warren Spring Laboratory and the National Physical Laboratory executive agencies. These transfers have no effect on the net total for each agency.
There are also a number of other minor changes to the vote, as shown in the supplementary estimate, to reflect the latest forecasts of expenditure and receipts.
The reduction in the running cost limit mostly reflects the transfer of funds for routine maintenance and rent to capital.
As supplementary estimates cannot reduce total voted provision, the supplementary estimate gives effect to these changes through an increase of a net token £1,000 in class IV, vote 2. The accompanying cash limit reduction of £5,000,000 for trading funds and greater Insolvency Service receipts than shown in the supplementary estimate itself.