§ 29. Mr. BayleyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many appeals he expects against council tax valuations; and how many appeals he expects will be heard before 1 April 1993.
§ Mr. RedwoodIt is fruitless to try to predict the number of appeals. As the final banding lists are not compiled until 1 April 1993, appeals are not possible before that date. However, anyone who wishes to correct a factual error in a draft list may approach the local listing officer, who will make any necessary amendments before 1 April.
§ 31. Mr. CarringtonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what proposals he has to ensure that local authorities set their council tax at an affordable level.
§ Mr. RedwoodI am confident that the vast majority of local authorities will play their part in setting affordable council taxes by setting sensible budgets. I have made clear that I shall not hesitate to use my capping powers to protect council tax payers if authorities fail to do so.
§ 34. Mr. HuttonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will introduce measures to reduce the level of council tax in those areas with an above-average proportion of houses in bands D and E.
§ Mr. RedwoodNo. The council tax is a fair tax, which will take account of different individual circumstances and will be applied consistently across the country. The transitional reduction scheme will ensure that households in bands D and E will not face an increase of more than £2.50 and £2.75 a week respectively, if their councils spend at a reasonable level and have a good record on tax collection.
§ 22. Mr. EasthamTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what Government support is being provided to reduce the impact of the new council tax.
§ Mr. Robin SquireWe will be providing £340 million in transitional relief in 1993–94 to limit the initial increase between household community charge bills and the council tax.