§ Mr. Tom Benyonasked the Secretary of State for the Environment how many local authorities' budgeted expenditure in the current year is in excess of the target as laid down by his Department; and by how much.
§ Mr. KingOn the basis of local authorities' revised 1980–81 budgets—and some amendments—249 authorities in England have budgeted for current expenditure in excess of their volume "targets" for 1980–81, by a total of £317 million—at November 1979 prices. This figure takes no account of the shortfall by those authorities that have recorded budgeted volumes at or below target. On the basis of experience, the actual outturn for local authority current expenditure volume in 1980–81 is likely to be less than the budgeted expenditure.
§ Mr. Allan Robertsasked the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) if he will publish a list of housing 170W authorities in England showing for each the sum included in its grant-related expenditure assessment as published in The Rate Support Grant Report (England) 1980 for factor E7 notional housing revenue account deficit, as notified to each authority and the average rent per dwelling in 1980–81 for each authority, or, if that figure is not available, the exclusive rent income for 1980–81 divided by the average housing revenue account dwelling stock as notified to authorities, together with the comparable figure as estimated by him for factor E7 for the regional average rent as applied to each authority;
(2) if he will publish a list of local authorities in England showing for each the amount of its grant-related expenditure assessment at November 1980 and estimated outturn prices 1981–82, or whichever price basis is available, and how much of it in each case is attributable to current expenditure, revenue contributions to capital outlay, loan charges, rate fund contributions to the housing revenue account, and interest receipts; and how the total of each of these categories relates to the figures given in annex A of The Rate Support Grant Report (England) 1980;
(3) if he will publish a list of local authorities in England showing for each the amount included in its grant-related expenditure assessment in respect of concessionary fares at November 1980 and estimated 1981–82 outturn prices, or whichever basis is available;
(4) if he will publish a list of education authorities in England showing for each the amount included in its grant-related expenditure assessment in respect of school meals and milk at November 1980 and estimated 1981–82 outturn prices, or whichever basis is available;
(5) if he will publish a list of local authorities in England showing for each the amount assumed in its grant-related expenditure assessment in respect of capital allocations for other services gross before making the weighting adjustment prescribed in appendix 1 to annex J of the Rate Support Grant Report (England) 1980, and the actual allocation as notified by his Department; and what effect upon the authority's notional rate poundage there will be if its grant-related expenditure assessment is adjusted in his first supplementary report to take account of any difference between the assumed and actual allocations.
§ Mr. KingTables showing the service breakdown of GREs for all authorities in such detail as is currently available were deposited in the Library on 26 February 1981.
I am placing in the Library of the House information about rent levels in 1980–81 and about average regional rents which was requested.
No calculations have been made of the effect of substituting actual capital allocations for estimated capital allocations in the GRE formulae at supplementary report; but the possibility of making such a change will shortly be discussed with the local authority associations.