HC Deb 11 March 1993 vol 220 cc653-4W
Mr. William O'Brien

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) how many local authorities show a negative housing entitlement under the Government's housing subsidy scheme;

(2) how many local authorities receive no Government housing subsidies and made contributions from their housing revenue to the general fund for their local authority for the years (a) 1991–92, (b) 1992–93 and (c) for 1993–94.

Mr. Baldry

Housing revenue account (HRA) subsidy is distributed on the basis of each local housing authority's need to spend relative to other authorities. This involves making sensible assumptions about each authority's income and expenditure, with HRA subsidy making up any shortfall between those assumptions. If an authority's rental and other income is assumed to exceed its housing expenditure, it is required to make a contribution towards its rent rebate expenditure. If an authority's assumed income exceeds all of its housing expenditure and its rent rebate expenditure, it must transfer the surplus to its general fund.

On the basis of provisional claim forms from authorities in respect of the current financial year, 273 authorities are assumed to have a negative housing entitlement, and therefore make contributions to their rent rebates expenditure; 22 of those authorities are not claiming HRA subsidy and anticipate making contributions to their general funds. On the basis of final claim forms received for 1991–92, 18 authorities received no HRA subsidy and made contributions to their general funds. Information for 1993–94 is not yet available.

Mr. William O'Brien

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the average rent for a three-bedroomed council house in(a) an authority that does not receive housing subsidy and (b) in an area where housing subsidy is paid.

Mr. Baldry

The Department does not collect information on rents for local authority dwellings of different sizes.

The average weekly unrebated rent for all English authorities is £30.70. There are considerable variations in local authority rents in different areas due to the varying nature of the dwelling stock and its age. In the current financial year, 1992–93, the average weekly unrebated rent for all council dwellings in those authorities which make a contribution towards rent rebate expenditure is £30.37. The average rent in the authorities which receive full HRA subsidy is £31.03.