§ Sir Hector MonroTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he proposes to make any changes to the cash limits and running cost limits for 1989–90 within his responsibility.
§ Mr. RifkindYes. I intend to make changes to four of the cash limits within my responsibility.
Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary Supplementary Estimates, the cash limit for class XVI, vote 14—prisons, hospitals and community health services, etc, Scotland—will be increased by £15,758,000 from £1,987,631,000 to £2,003,389,000. Most of the increase, £16,000,000, follows the decision to implement the recommendations on pay of the review bodies in respect of doctors, dentists, nurses, midwives and health visitors, and professions allied to medicine as announced on 16 February 1989. This is partially offset by a reduction of £322,000 following the transfer of responsibility for radiography training from Greater Glasgow health board to Queens college, Glasgow. A corresponding increase will be made to class XVI, vote 15. In addition £80,000 has been transferred from class XVI, vote 17 to cover the cost of appointing dental practice advisers.
Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary Supplementary Estimate, the cash limit for class XVI, vote 15 education, arts, libraries and social work, Scotland—will be increased by £322,000 from £215,327,000 to £215,649,000 to meet the costs of running the Glasgow school of Radiography following transfer of responsibility from Greater Glasgow health board to Queen's college, Glasgow. This is being offset by a corresponding reduction in class XVI, vote 14.
Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary Supplementary Estimate the cash limit for the Scottish Office administration vote, class XVI, vote 21 will be increased by £148,000 from £120,210,000 to £120,358,000 to meet the cost of processing data for England and Wales in connection with the beef special premium scheme. As a consequence the running costs limit for the Scottish Office will be increased by £148,000 from £205,717,000 to £205,865,000. This increase will be offset by corresponding reductions in the cash limits and running cost limits of the Ministry of Agriculture Fisheries and Food and the Intervention Board for Agricultural Produce, class IV, votes 5 and 2.
Cashblock SO/LA2, which covers mainly housing capital expenditure by local authorities and capital expenditure by new towns and presently stands at £327,500,000, is to be decreased by £600,000 to £326,900,000. Subject to parliamentary approval of the Supplementary Estimate for class XVI, vote 9 (new towns and the urban programme), this amount will be used to meet increased requirements for the urban partnership initiatives.
These changes represent a net charge on the Reserve of £15,678,000 and will not therefore add to the planned total of public expenditure.