§ Lord Sefton of Garstonasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether SSA take into account any unique features such as tourism and degrees of commuting when grants are determined, and whether this was one of the factors that enabled Westminster and Wandsworth to levy low charges on their residents.
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of the Environment (The Earl of Arran)The SSA calculated for each local authority in England includes allowances for the costs associated with tourism and commuters.
Revenue support grant is distributed to authorities such that if each authority were to budget at the level of its SSA then they could all set broadly the same council tax. It is not the case, therefore, that the tourism and commuting factors have enabled Westminster and Wandsworth to levy low charges. Actual levels of the council tax are a matter for the authorities concerned.