§ Mr. ButterfillTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the funding for maintained schools for each county in England; and what is the allowance made in each case for(a) the provision of new schools to meet basic need and (b) the replacement of schools that have outlived their useful lives.
§ Mr. DunnI have assumed that my hon. Friend's question refers to capital funding and would refer him to the answer which my right hon. Friend gave my hon. Friend the Member for Skipton and Ripon (Mr. Curry) on 18 December 1987 at column765. Allocations in respect of prescribed expenditure are not grants—they represent limits on the capital spending which local authorities may undertake. Authorities may supplement their allocations by using spending power from receipts and other flexibility under the capital control system. Since the allocations are unhypothecated, authorities may use them as they wish. Information on the funding which individual local authorities devote to specific categories of capital expenditure is not, therefore, available centrally.
Capital works at aided and special agreement schools are directly assisted by grant aid from my Department. It is not possible, however, to identify the specific sums devoted to the categories of work mentioned in the question because individual projects often meet a mixture of needs.
§ Mr. ButterfillTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many maintained schools have been replaced after reaching the end of their useful life in Dorset since 1979; and if he will make a statement.