§ Mr. Fatchettasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the total volume of local government spending in England on current and capital expenditure, expressed in constant prices for each year from 1979 to the latest date for which figures are available.
§ Mr. WaldegraveI refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Burnley (Mr. Pike) on 27 January—[Vol. 52, c.726–27]—when I provided information on local authority expenditure in cost terms. The capital expenditure figures shown there overstate the reduction in new capital investment, particularly in recent years, because they are net of local authorities' sale of council houses and surplus assets.