HC Deb 18 February 1991 vol 186 cc4-5W
Mr. Gould

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list for each authority in England his estimate of the numbers who will benefit from the community charge reduction scheme.

Mr. Heseltine

[holding answer 8 February 1991]: My Department does not hold community charge registers for individual authorities and I am not, therefore, at present able to make detailed estimates by local authority area. On the basis of information from the family expenditure survey, I estimate that more than 18 million charge payers in England should receive some reduction in 1991–92. Estimates for individual local authority areas will become available once local authorities make their grant claims in respect of 1991–92.

I have today placed in the Library a table showing the percentage of the average rateable value for an area below which a two-adult household will benefit from the community charge reduction scheme, provided that they have not moved since 1 April 1990. This shows that, in most areas, couples with rateable values of less than 75 per cent. of the average for their local authority will have a reduction. In many areas, couples with rateable values well above the average for their area will benefit.

Mr. Blunkett

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish his best estimates of the amount actually paid out in poll tax transitional relief in 1990–91.

Mr. Portillo

[holding answer 14 February 1991]: My best estimate, given in the Chancellor's autumn statement, is that charge payers will benefit from transitional relief by £320 million in 1990–91. I shall be in a position to publish a final figure for the amount of relief given when local authorities submit their final grant claims later this year.