Government Expenditure (Hansard, 11 April 1968)

§ Mr. Diamond

The following list covers those items which can readily be identified as falling within the scope of the hon. Gentleman's Question in the period ending 31st March, 1968. For a more comprehensive analysis of Supply expenditure in 1968–69, I refer the hon. Gentleman to the Memorandum on the Estimates, 1968–69, by the Financial Secretary to the Treasury (Cmnd. 3583). For details of the reductions announced on 18th November and 16th January I refer him to the Devaluation Statement "Public Expenditure in 1968–69 and 1969–70" (Cmnd. 3515) and the reply given to the hon. Member for Worthing on 30th January 1968.—[Vol. 754, c. 951–2; Vol. 757, c.271–272.]

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	Cost
Roads
Roads, Caernarvon	…	…	…	…	…	£0.4 million.
Reductions announced on 16th January (Cmnd. 3515)	-£53 million in 1968–69,-£69 million in 1969–70.
Other Transport
Heavy goods vehicle testing (fees will be paid and stations should recoup capital expenditure and interest).	About £8.5 million over several years.
Transport Bill:
New bus grants	…	…	…	…	…	£5.7 million in the first full year.
Increased fuel grants	…	…	…	…	£7 million in 1969–70.
Rural bus and ferry grants	…	…	…	…	£1 million in the first full year.
Infrastructure grants	…	…	…	…	£7 million in the first full year.
Vehicle Registration computer centre, Swansea	…	£5.5 million.
Reductions announced on 16th January (Cmnd. 3515)	-£2 million in 1968–69,-£5 million in 1969–70.
Home Department Services (excluding Home Defence)
Prisons: implementation of the Mountbatten Report^*	£2.1 million in 1967–68 as a first instalment.
Gaming Board, as proposed under the Gaming Bill	…	£62,000 in 1968–69 (it is expected that in future years the cost will be covered by fees received).
Immigration Appeals Tribunal	…	…	…	…	About £0.5 million a year.
Reductions announced on 16th January (Cmnd. 3515)	-£6 million in 1968–69,-£12 million in 1969–70.
Home Defence
Reductions announced on 16th January (Cmnd. 3515)	-£14 million in 1968–69,-£20 million in 1969–70.
Civil Technology
The aircraft industry:
Launching aid for the R.B.211 aero-engine	…	Subject to negotiation.
The first stage of the joint development, with France and Germany, of a European Airbus.	Up to £6 million.
Loan to Short Bros. and Harland to enable the Company to maintain its programme.	£3.35 million.
Loan to Britten-Norman towards the production of the Islander (an extension of the loan of £0.25 million announced in 1966).	£0.3 million.
Machine tools: purchase of pre-production models^*	…	Increased from £1 million to £6 million.
Fairfields (Glasgow) Ltd., which now forms part of Upper Clyde Shipbuilders Ltd.^*	The provision previously made for working capital will not be needed.
The Industrial Expansion Bill provides for the following expenditure:
Financial support in various forms, up to a limit of £100 million extensible by Order to £150 million for approved industrial investment schemes. The Minister of Technology proposes to use these powers, if enacted, to support a merger in the computer industry.	£17 million over four years.
Loans to Cunard Steamship Company Limited and Cunard Line Limited.	£24 million (of which £17.6 million was previously to be provided under the Shipbuilding Credit Act 1964).
Further grants to assist the re-organisation of shipyards.	£15 million.
Increase in the limit on outstanding advances to the National Research Development Corporation.	£25 million.
Loans and guarantees for Concorde production finance (amount oustanding is not to exceed £100 million—extensible by Order to £125 million).	£100 million to £125 million up to 1979.
Underwriting risk of loss of Concorde production	No expenditure can at present be foreseen.
Micro-electronics: The Ministry of Technology are prepared to participate in the financing of worthwhile projects aimed at improving micro-electronic technology.	Depends on specific proposals from industry.
Atomic Energy Authority: reduction in planned investment programme on research and development.	-£3 million in 1968–69.
Reductions announced on 16th January (Cmnd. 3515)	-£10 million in 1968–69,-£15 million in 1969–70 (there will also be savings of £3 million in 1968–69 on defence research and development expenditure).

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	Cost
Overseas Aid
The basic aid programme will be held at £205 million in 1968–69 and 1969–70. Assistance to Singapore and Malaysia related to defence charges, increased replenishment of the International Development Association and Kennedy Round food aid are additional to the basic programme.	The cost of the additional three item cannot yet be given.
Overseas Students Fees Award Scheme	…	…	£0.5 million in a full year.
Service Overseas
Scheme for ex-gratia compensation to dependants of U.K.-based Crown employees injured or killed by terrorist activity overseas.	Unlikely to average more than £10,000 year.
Investment Grants
Deferment of the planned acceleration in the rate of payment of investment grants (announced on 16th January—Cmnd. 3515).	-£80 million in 1968–69.
Agriculture
1968 Annual Farm Price Review	…	…	…	£31 million added to the Exchequer cost [...] 1969–68.
Bacon industry stablisation scheme	…	…	…	£7.6 million payments in 1967–68 (further payments will be necessary in 1968–69 but ultimately the scheme is expected to be self-balancing by a levy on the industry).
Foot and mouth disease supplementary schemes:
Special ploughing grant	…	…	…	£0.25 million.
Dairy herd alternative enterprise scheme	…	…	£0.25 million.
New grant scheme and other measures for re-organisation of local authority smallholdings.	£0.7 million spread over five years, offset by the ending of fresh Exchequer commitments under existing smallholding legislation.
Forestry
Increase in planting programme in Scotland	…	…	£0.2 million in 1970, rising to £0.8 million in 1976.
Environmental Services
Reductions announced on 16th January (Cmnd. 3515)	-£26 million in 1968–69,-£27 million in 1969–70.
Special Assistance to Local Authorities
Repair of storm damage in Scotland	…	…	…	Cannot yet be determined.
Industrial Training
Further improvements in assistance for training in new and expanding firms in the Development Areas.	Reaching £1.5 million in 1970–71.
Grants to the Industrial Training Boards towards the training of apprentices and the semi-skilled training of adults in the Development Areas.	£0.8 million in a full year.
Further expansion of Government Training Centres to provide 3,500 more training places for adults:
Initial equipment costs	…	…	…	£2.5 million over 1968–71.
Premises and running costs	…	…	…	£3.9 million.
Continuing costs	…	…	…	Rising to £3.2 million in 1970–71.
Provision of vocational training for civilians in Ministry of Defence establishments.	£90,000 in a full year.
Improved scales of maintenance for trainees and rehabilitees.	£230,000 in a full year.
National Parks
Acquisition of land in Snowdonia	…	…	…	£140,000 in 1967–68.
Promotion of Trade and Exports
Further grant to the British Institute of Management over the next few years to improve and extend their services.	£98,000 in 1968–69.
Grant to the Textile Council towards the cost of the Council's Productivity and Efficiency Study.	£35,500.
Grant for three years to the Institute of Marketing in support of their Export Marketing Partnership Scheme.	Up to £20,000 in any one year.
Grant for five years to the Centre for Inter-firm Comparison.	£210,800 over the five year period.
Provision of loan capital for the Overseas Marketing Corporation, with a guarantee for five years of capital from other sources.	Loans up to a maximum of £0.4 million over five years.
Grants towards the cost incurred by firms participating in an experimental scheme for the employment of management consultants.	£10,000 for a pilot scheme.

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	Cost
Promotion of Trade and Exports (continued)
Grant to the British Export Houses Association to meet the preliminary costs of research for a directory of export houses.	£15,000.
The provision (from 1st April, 1968) of funds to finance the whole of the normal expenditure of the British National Export Council (previously the Board have met about 50 per cent. of the normal expenditure).	An additional cost of about £450,000 in 1968–69.
Hotel Industry
Grants and loans to stimulate the development of additional accommodation and the improvement of existing accommodation in hotels having, or extending to, at least 10 bedrooms (25 bedrooms in the G.L.C. area).	The cost will depend on the number of eligible projects coming forward. No additional expenditure is likely in 1968–69.
Development Areas
Creation of Special Development Areas within existing Development Areas, where increased Local Employment Act assistance is available.	The cost will depend on the number of eligible projects coming forward.
Development Commission: Loans for the provision of tourist accommodation in rural parts of Development Areas.	About £0.9 million in a full year.
Winter works programme: Minor works amounting to about £27 million were brought forward into the winter months of 1967–68 to relieve unemployment in the Development Areas of Great Britain. A further £1½ million was made available for the same purpose to the Northern Ireland Government by reducing their Imperial Contribution by that amount.
S.E.T. and R.E.P.
Refund of half S.E.T. for part-time workers (1967 Budget).	£9.5 million a year.
Refund of S.E.T. for employees working overseas (1967 Budget).	£0.5 million a year.
Regional Employment Premium	…	…	…	£100 million a year.
Withdrawal of S.E.T. additional payments to manufacturers outside the Development Areas.	-£100 million a year.
Refund of two-thirds of S.E.T. for part-time workers (1968 Budget).	£3 million a year.
Refund of two-thirds of S.E.T. for employees aged 65 and over.	£9 million a year.
Export Rebate
Now abolished	…	…	…	-£100 million in a full year.
Export Credit
Further extension of the facilities offered by the Export Credits Guarantee Department.	Nil.
Productivity, Prices and Incomes Policy
Administration of dividend restraint	…	…	…	About £10,000 a year.
Civil Service Manpower
Stabilisation of the size of the Civil Service (see Cmnd. 3515).	-£12 million in 1968–69.
Other Expenditure (see Cmnd. 3515)	…	…	…	-£2 million in 1968–69,-£14 million in 1969–70.
Nationalised Industries
Coal Industry:
Contribution towards the social benefits paid by the N.C.B. to assist redeployment, etc.	£45 million over several years.
Supplementation of the earnings scheme for over 55s, followed by early mineworkers' pension.	£35 million over several years.
Compensation to the N.C.B. for deferment of pit closures.	£8 million over several years.
Compensation to the Gas and Electricity Industries for increasing coal consumption.	£45 million over several years.
British Railways and National Freight Corporation:
Capital reconstruction following the Transport Bill: reduction in the interest-bearing debt of the B.R.B. (£557 million) and of the interest-free suspended debt (£705 million) offset by the creation of the commencing capital debt of the N.F.C. in respect of former railway assets (estimated at about £40 million).	£30 million a year.

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	Cost
Nationalised Industries (continued)
Deficit and other grants: Deficit grant of £150 million a year to cease at 31st December, 1968 and to be replaced in part by specific grants:
Unremunerative passenger services	About £55 million a year.
Grant towards cost of surplus track	Up to £50 million over five years.
Grant to the N.F.C. for Freight Sundries	Up to £60 million over five years.
Transport Holding Company:
Purchase of interests in the B.E.T. group of companies not previously owned.	About £45 million.
London Transport:
Write-off of 90 per cent. of the capital debt to the Exchequer as part of the transfer to the G.L.C. This is in substitution for the current deficit grant.
Waterways Board:
Grants for maintaining amenity waterways	£1 million a year.
Reductions in the nationalised industries' investment programmes (for details see Hansard, 21st December, 1967, Written Answer c. 488).	-£68 million in 1968–69.
^* Adjustments to the previous list given on 23rd March, 1967 (Hansard Written Answer c. 355–8).

Note: The figures given for the reductions announced on 16th January are at 1967 Survey prices.

	Cost
Defence
The Government's intentions were announced in the "Supplementary Statement on Defence Policy 1967" (Cmnd. 3357) and the "Statement on Defence Estimates 1968" (Cmnd. 3540).
Reductions in the Defence Budget were announced on 18th November, 1967 and on 16th January, 1968 (Cmnd. 3515).	Over-£100 million in 1968–69,-£110 million in 1969–70, with larger savings in subsequent years.
Social Security
Increased benefit rates	…	…	…	…	£220 million a year.
Increased family allowances	…	…	…	…	£170 million a year (of which over £120 million a year will be recouped in extra taxation).
Education
School building starts for Educational Priority Areas and comprehensive re-organisation.	£16 million starts in each of the years 1968–69 and 1969–70.
Government contribution towards the Sports Centre at Edinburgh for the Commonwealth Games.	£0.75 million over 1968–69 and 1969–70.
Open university	…	…	…	…	£0.4 million in 1968–69, £2 million in 1969–70 and £3.5 million in each succeeding year.
Teacher training (Scotland)^*: admission of men to the College of Education Diploma courses for primary teachers from October, 1967.	£0.6 million.
Reductions announced on 16th January (Cmnd. 3515)	-£39 million in 1968–69,-£58 million in 1969–70.
Museums and Art Galleries
Special Government contribution towards the cost of housing the Henry Moore collection in the proposed Tate Gallery extension.	£0.2 million.
Health and Welfare
Establishment of the Health Education Council	…	£0.2 million.
Introduction of measles vaccination	…	…	…	£0.5 million (net). The cost will diminish in subsequent years.
Reductions announced on 16th January (Cmnd. 3515)	-£29 million in 1968–69,-£31 million in 1969–70.
Increase in Health Stamp announced on 16th January (treated as revenue in the national accounts).	-£25 million in each of the years 1968–69 and 1969–70.
Housing
Assistance to owner-occupiers—option mortgage scheme^*.	Now estimated to cost about £7¼ million in the first full year (1968–69).
Reductions announced on 16th January (Cmnd. 3515)	-£27 million in 1968–69,-£55 million in 1969–70.