§ Mr. Dobsonasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the total education element in the rate support grant for 1983–84 announced by the Secretary of State for the Environment on Thursday 16 December; and how this compares in real terms with the totals provided in 1979–80, 1980–81, 1981–82 and 1982–83.
§ Sir Keith JosephAs rate support grant is not hypothecated between individual local services there is no separately identifiable education element. However, the level of local authority relevant expenditure to be taken into account for the purposes of rate support grant in 1983–84 includes £9,155 million for current expenditure on education (excluding meals and milk). There is also £904 million which is unallocated between services: some of this sum will be spent of education.
It is not possible to make a comparison in real terms of the provision for current expenditure on education within the RSG settlement over the period 1979–80 to 1983–84 as the level of service that could be provided within each year depends on pay and price changes. For example in 1983–84 the level of service that can be afforded will depend crucially on the extent to which local authorities can contain their cost increases and, in particular, on the level of pay increases over the coming months.