§ Dr. Cunninghamasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the estimated cost to his Department of computer time devoted to the implementation or monitoring of policy in relation to rate support grant, including targets and penalties, and rate limitation in each year from 1981–82 to 1986–87; what proportion of this work was undertaken outside the United Kingdom; and what proportion of the total costs this represented.
§ Mr. Kenneth BakerThe estimated cost to this Department of bought-in computer time devoted to rate support grant including targets and penalties, and rate limitation in each year from 1981–82 to 1986–87 is as follows:
Annual expenditure including VAT £'000 1981–82 606.4 1982–83 615.2 1983–84 606.6 1984–85 547.5 *1985–86 536.0 †1986–87 513.0 * Estimated outturn. † Projected. All this expenditure is now incurred with computer bureaux in the United Kingdom. The Department uses its own internal computing facilities to process and monitor statistical data on local authority financial matters. The MINIS 6 report shows that for 1984–85 total computing costs accounted for about 30 per cent. of all current expenditure in the local government and finance policy directorate.