§ Mr. Norman Hoggasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer why Her Majesty's Treasury presents the profits from privatisation and the sale of council houses as negative spending rather than asset sales.
§ Mr. Peter Rees[pursuant to his reply, 11 March 1985, c. 59]: Receipts from privatisation and the sale of council houses are classified as asset sales. Receipts from asset 395W sales, have always been treated as negative public expenditure in the national accounts and there is no reason to treat sales of council houses or shares differently from other sales of public assets. This treatment, which accords with international guidelines, is also followed in the definition of the public expenditure planning total. Major central Government asset sales are brought together in the special sales of assets programme (see Cmnd. 9428, table 2.14) for easy identification. Council house sales are undertaken by local authorities and are included in the housing programme (see Cmnd. 9428, table 3.7).