§ Sir Teddy TaylorTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the occasions since 1979 in which use of the contingencies fund has been allowed in connection with expenditure over £200,000 on the establishment of a new statutory body before the relevant legislation has received Royal Assent.
§ Mr. PortilloIt appears from readily available information that there has been one advance from the contingencies fund since 1979 of more than £200,000 in connection with the establishment of a new statutory body before the relevant legislation has received Royal Assent: this was to the Department for Education in March 1993 in respect of the School Curriculum and Assessment Authority (SCAA). The use of the fund was fully consistent with the criteria concerning expenditure on new services set out in "Government Accounting".