HL Deb 16 April 1991 vol 527 cc84-5WA
Lord Mulley

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether in fixing the sums due to charging authorities under the Community Charges (General Reduction) Bill, full allowance will be given for interest payments incurred in the borrowing of funds necessary to meet current expenditure, pending the later date for receipt of community charge revenue.

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of the Environment (Baroness Blatch):

Grants will be paid under the Community Charges (General Reduction) Act 1991 to compensate charging authorities for the community charge income forgone and the reasonable additional administrative costs resulting from the provisions of the Act. As a separate measure, payments from the non-domestic rate pool are being advanced to offset the cash-flow losses which authorities would otherwise incur as a consequence of the unavoidable delays in receipt of community charge income.

Lord Mulley

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they will arrange that the precepts on charging authorities by county councils and other bodies are not due for payment until the latest date that community charges become payable as a result of recent legislation.

Baroness Blatch:

As was notified to authorities on 28th March, my right honourable friend the Secretary of State intends to compensate charging authorities for the temporary reduction in community charge cash flow, which they may experience at the start of 1991/92 as a result of the Community Charges (General Reduction) Act 1991, by increasing the proportion of the distributable amount of non-domestic rates which is paid to them in the early months of that year. Accordingly, the finances of both charging and precepting authorities will be secured without any need for amending the regulations which prescribe how precepts are to be paid.