§ Mr. Warbeyasked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs what was the total amount of interest charges payable by local authorities in each of the past five years; and what is the estimated amount for 1962–63.
Dr. HillThe total payments of interest by local authorities in England and Wales for the years 1957–58, 1958–59 and 1959–60 were £192.6 million, £211.2 million and £225.7 million respectively. I estimate that the figures for 1960–61 and 1961–62 are about £256 million and £290 million. The forecast for 1962–63 is still provisional but I expect an increase over the previous year of the order of 7 per cent.