§ Mr. Higginsasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will carry out consultations with a view to making adjustments in the rate support grant to ensure that the burden on the rates of giving concessionary bus fares to retirement pensioners is put on an equitable basis whatever the age structure of the population.
§ Mr. Guy BarnettThe rate support grant is a block grant calculated on the basis of local authority expenditure across all services, and it would not be appropriate to single out a particular service for special treatment.