GLC: PAYMENTS TO BOROUGHS (Hansard, 18 December 1985)

§ Lord Elton

My right honourable friend the Secretary of State for the Environment has today written to the GLC to indicate that his consent has been given under Section 91 of the Local Government Act 1985 to some payments which the council propose to make to certain London boroughs. My right honourable friend has also considered the information that the council has provided about assistance that it has given during the 1985–6 financial year without his consent under Section 91. The department's letter indicates those individual payments where my right honourable friend has decided that he would not wish to exercise his discretion to direct the London residuary body to recover the value of the assistance from the authority concerned, together with those cases to which he will give further consideration in the light of any additional information provided by the GLC and the London boroughs. My right honourable friend is awaiting further information from the GLC in respect of payments made in 1984–5.

In issuing these decisions, my right honourable friend has made it clear that he is concerned about the continuing financial assistance proposed to be given by the GLC to individual boroughs on a selective basis, particularly where this involves funding activities continuing beyond abolition. He takes the view that, with the approach of abolition, there is in general little justification for the GLC/MCC seeking at this stage to fund post-abolition activities from ratepayers' money. Decisions as to such funding are primarily the province of successor authorities. My right honourable friend will therefore wish to look very closely at any further applications for his consent to such assistance under Section 91 of the Local Government Act 1985. He wishes to make it clear beyond doubt that if payments are made henceforth to selected borough or district councils without his consent, or if his consent is refused, he will not hesitate to direct the appropriate residuary body to seek recovery of the money in every case where this appears to be justified.