§ Mr. Heddleasked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will provide an estimate of the amount by which the rate settlement grant for England and Wales would be reduced by the transfer of the total cost of wages and salaries of the police, the fire service and local authority teaching staff to the Exchequer.
§ Mr. KingAggregate exchequer grant in the 1981–82 settlement for England would have been reduced by about £4,100 million if the cost of wages and salaries of the police, the fire service, and local authority teaching staff had been transferred to the Exchequer, and if the grant percentage on the estimated residual relevant expenditure had remained at 59.1 per cent. For 1981–82 there was a separate settlement for Wales, and questions relating to this settlement are a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales.