HL Deb 26 July 1994 vol 557 c84WA
The Earl of Kimberley

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether, under local government legislation, it is legal for a county council to use council tax moneys to subsidise another county council's legal costs.

The Minister of State, Department of the Environment (Viscount Ullswater)

Depending on the precise circumstances, local authorities may be able to subsidise another county council's legal costs; in particular, they may do so under Section 137 of the Local Government Act 1972, which provides for the incurring of expenditure in certain cases where no other specific powers are available to the authority concerned.