§ Mr. Maplesasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what were the figures for total public expenditure, including debt interest and before deducting the proceeds of asset sales, for each of the years from 1978–79 to 1983–84, with the estimated figures for 1984–85 and 1985–86, all at 1980 prices.
§ Mr. Peter ReesThe figures requested are:
£ billion (1980 cost terms) 1979–80 101.0 1980–81 102.0 1981–82 105.3 1982–83 107.6 1983–84 109.2 1984–85 111.4 1985–86 110.6 These figures represent the public expenditure planning total and general government gross debt interest with receipts from the sales of special and fixed assets added back, deflated to 1980 cost terms. Figures for 1978–79 are not available on a consistent definition.
§ Mr. Maplesasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give the figures at constant prices for total gross public capital expenditure, before deducting the proceeds of asset sales, for each of the years 1973–74, 1978–79 to 1983–84, and the latest estimates for 1984–85 and 1985–86.
§ Mr. Peter ReesThe latest available figures for total gross public sector capital spending were published in table 1.13 of "The Government's Expenditure Plans 1984–85 to 1986–87" (Cmnd. 9143). In 1982–83 cost terms they were:
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£ billion 1978–79 21.8 1979–80 22.0 1980–81 21.6 1981–82 20.7
£ billion 1982–83 21.4 1983–84 22.2 1984–85 21.7 These figures are expressed before deducting the proceeds of asset sales and also include other adjustments to the public expenditure planning total as explained in the footnotes to the published table.
Figures for 1973–74 and 1985–86 are not available on consistent definitions. Revised figures for recent years to 1985–86 will be published in the next public expenditure White Paper.
§ Mr. Maplesasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer, in considering the job creation effects of various forms of public expenditure, what estimate he uses of (a) the gross cost in public expenditure terms and (b) the net cost in public sector borrowing requirement terms of the job creation effects of home improvement grants.
§ Mr. Peter ReesThere are a number of technical difficulties in making a precise estimate of the cost per job resulting from various public expenditure programmes. However, in broad terms, the net cost per net person off the employment register of public expenditure on home improvement grants is estimated to be more than 10 times that of the average such net cost for special employment measures.