§ Mr. Alfred Morrisasked the Minister of Housing and Local Government what was the cost of the Government's publicity campaigns in respect of the claiming of rate rebates; how much of the cost was spent on different methods of advertising, such as Press, television and other media; and if he will estimate the increased uptake of rate rebates resulting from the publicity campaigns.
§ Mr. SkeffingtonGovernment publicity for rate rebates has been continuous since 1966 and has so far cost £50,600. Of this total £42,600 has been spent on advertising in national and provincial newspapers, £1,000 on a T.V. filler and £7,000 on the production of leaflets, 16 million of which have been distributed through Post 23W Offices, local authorities and Citizens' Advice Bureaux. In addition much valuable publicity has been obtained without payment through news columns, television and radio. Voluntary organisations and local authorities have helped greatly by giving verbal advice and in other ways and I am very grateful to them for all that they have done.
The number of persons claiming rate rebates is affected by many factors, including changing levels of incomes and benefits, and it is impossible to estimate the contribution made by publicity towards increasing the number of claimants.