§ Lord FERRIERasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether, in cases where an applicant for a grant under the Homes Insulation Act 1978 is either refused an application form or the application is rejected because the local authority concerned has no funds, they will provide the requisite finance under Section 2(3) of the Act in the interests of the conservation of energy.
§ Lord MOWBRAY and STOURTONNo. Local authorities are not empowered to prevent applications from being made, to turn down duly made applications or to delay them unreasonably. There are, however, limited funds available to my right honourable friend the Secretary of State for the Environment for this programme and, therefore, not all grant claims can be met in this financial year.