Valuation Tribunal Offices (Hansard, 16 December 1992)

§ Mr. David Hunt

I have considered carefully the responses to my consultation paper, "Review of Valuation Tribunal Offices" and the representations made by the Valuation Tribunals Consultative Committee for Wales when my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State met the committee on 11 December. I have concluded that the valuation tribunal service in Wales must improve its efficiency and that this is best achieved by reorganising the present offices so that one office serves two county valuation tribunals. I propose that:

(a) the Mid and South Glamorgan valuation tribunals should continue to operate from their joint office in Cardiff;
(b) the Powys and Gwent valuation tribunals should be administered from a joint office in Newport;
(c) the West Glamorgan and Dyfed valuation tribunals should be administered from a joint office in Carmarthen;
(d) the Gwynedd and Clwyd valuation tribunal should be administered from a joint office in Prestatyn or another agreed location in north Wales.

I propose to set an overall staffing complement of 20 compared with the present complement of 24.6 staff. These arrangements are estimated to yield savings of £250,000 in a full year. The offices will provide a service in the Welsh language where required and tribunal hearings will continue to be held at locations convenient to appellants.

I am setting out my decisions in a letter to representatives of the valuation tribunal service. This letter and a list of those who responded to the consultation will be placed in the Library of the House.

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I intend that the detailed timetable for establishing the new joint offices, arrangements for staff, and the office location in north Wales, should be settled through consultation with the valuation tribunals concerned.

My hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State will shortly meet the presidents of the tribunals affected to discuss implementation.