HC Deb 04 February 1994 vol 236 cc934-6W
Mr. Waterson

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what changes he proposes to make to the cash limits on the two PSA services votes in 1993–94.

Mr. Curry

Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary supplementary estimate, the cash limit for class VII, vote 13—sale of the PSA businesses—will be increased by £4,540,000 from £39,351,000 to £43,891,000. The increase will not constitute a claim on the reserve as it will be netted off the proceeds from the Government's privatisation programme.

The provision is sought mainly to fund a payment to the purchaser of PSA projects, as provided for in the sale agreement, to adjust the consideration payment one year after completion of the sale depending on the numbers of transferred staff still employed by the business.

In addition, the cash limits for class VII, vote 11—PSA services—will be reduced by £43,535,000 from £163,760,000 to £120,225,000. This takes account of earlier recoveries of works expenditure from customer departments and a reduction in forecast severance expenditure. The net running cost limit on this vote will reduce by £7,512,000 from £103,596,000 to £96,084,000.

Mr. Congdon

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what changes he has to announce to his Department's cash limits and running costs limits for 1993–94.

Mr. Gummer

Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary supplementary estimates, the following changes will be made:

  1. (i) the cash limit for class VII, vote 5—central environmental services, etcetera—will be reduced by £6,300,000 from £391,336,000 to £385,036,000. This change reflects a saving of £6,300,000 in forecast expenditure on grant in aid to the National Rivers Authority;
  2. (ii) the cash limit for class VII, vote 6—Property Holdings and other services to government—will be increased by £1,000 to £2,000. This reflects the token supplementary estimate taken for this vote. The gross running cost limit will be increased by £614,000 from £20,062,000 to £20,676,000 to meet early retirement costs and consultancy fees, and is partly funded by take up of running cost end-year flexibility entitlement—covered by the increase in the running costs limit announced by my right hon. Friend the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 14 July 1993, Official Report, columns 512–17. The net running cost limit for the Security Facilities Executive agency will be reduced by £271,000 from £1,101,000 to £830,000. This reflects changing levels of business within SAFE. The net running cost limit for the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre will be increased by £5,624,000 from £1,200,000 to £6,824,000. This reflects increased 935 business for the QEIICC and the introduction of an accommodation charge for the centre itself. This increase will be offset by increased receipts;
  3. (iii) the cash limit for class VII, vote 7—DOE administration—will be increased by £357,000 from £225,544,000 to £225,901,000. This change reflects a number of small transfers to and from other votes, the most significant being an increase of £353,000 from Property Holdings—class VII, vote 6—in respect of maintenance charges. The Department of the Environment's gross running cost limit on class VII, vote 7 will be reduced by £2,864,000 from £226,578,000 to £223,714,000. In the main, this reduction is necessary to match the projected shortfall in Planning Inspectorate executive agency receipts;
  4. (iv) the cash limit for class VII, vote 8—revenue support grant, payments of non domestic rates, Valuation Office services, etcetera, England—will be reduced by £666,000 from £28,808,799,000 to £28,808,113,000. This reflects the transfer of £155,000 in manpower savings from valuation tribunals to class VII, vote 12, for disabled persons' rate relief, emergency financial assistance to local authorities and rate rebates in enterprise zones, and a saving of £511,000;
  5. (v) the DOE/Housing Corporation non-voted cash limit will be increased by £9,113,000 from £1,786,093,000 to £1,795,206,000, to reflect the transfer of £14,404,000 from the city challenge programme—to fund housing associations in city challenge areas—and an increase of £741,000 following the full take-up of end-year flexibility entitlement—announced by my right hon. Friend the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 14 July 1993, Official Report, columns 512–17. It included the switching of £6,032,000 from capital to revenue to cover increased costs in demand-driven revenue programmes for which the Housing Corporation is responsible;
  6. (vi) the DOE/urban aid non-voted cash limit will be reduced by £18,380,000 from £996,672,000 to £978,292,000. The change reflects a transfer of £14,404,000 to the housing vote—vote VII, 1—to meet an equivalent increase in city challenge housing association expenditure. A transfer of £1,376,000 to the Department of Transport is necessary in order to refund resources originally transferred to DOE for the London Docklands development corporation, but which are now no longer required. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport will announce an equivalent increase in his cash limit today. The London Docklands development corporation's external financing limit for 1993–94 will be correspondingly reduced to £105,388,000. A further reduction of £2,600,000 will be made to reflect an excess carry-over of resources by the docklands light railway in 1992–93. The docklands light railway external financing limit for 1993–94 will be correspondingly reduced to £32,017,000.
  7. (vii) the DOE/local authority capital non-voted cash limit will be reduced by £3,677,000 from £2,461,475,000 to £2,457,808,000. This change reflects reductions in provision for minor current expenditure grants for private sector renewal which have been partly offset by full take-up of end-year flexibility entitlement of £1,470,000. The original entitlement of £61,000 announced by my right hon. Friend the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 14 July 1993, Official Report, columns 512–17, has been increased following revision of the forecast outturn figures;
  8. (viii) the DOE/new towns non-voted cash limit will be increased by £20,613,000 from minus £116,938,000 to minus £96,325,000. This change reflects a shortfall in receipts of £39,607,000 and a reduction in expenditure of £17,912,000. The external financing limit for Letchworth Garden City development corporation will be reduced from zero to minus £1,082,000; and
  9. (ix) the housing action trusts external financing limit will be reduced by £8,678,000 from £86,779,000 to £78,101,000. This change reflects a reduced borrowing requirement by housing action trusts.
Any cash limit increases will be offset by savings within the DOE, or transfers within DOE or from other Departments and will not therefore add to the planned total of public expenditure.