§ Mr. Tony Lloydasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will give details of recent approved changes in the rules governing section 11 moneys.
§ Mr. WaddingtonThere have been no recent changes in the arrangements under which applications for grant under section 11 of the Local Government Act 1966 are considered. However, the Home Office is currently consulting local authority associations and some other organisations on the terms of a draft circular which would introduce certain changes in these arrangements. The principal effect of the changes now proposed would be to improve the targeting of the grant so that it will in future be more effective in meeting the special needs of Commonwealth immigrants and their immediate descendants; but the proposed new arrangements will also require local authorities to pay explicit attention to value for money considerations, and to ensure that there is effective consultation with those who are intended to benefit from the grant before any application is made. The consultation period will last until the end of June and it intended that the new arrangements will be brought into force as soon as possible after that. In the meantime, new applications for grant are being considered under the existing criteria only in exceptional circumstances.