Cash Limits (Hansard, 1 November 1994)

§ Mr. Redwood

Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary supplementary estimates, the cash limit on class XV, vote 2 will be reduced by £14,867,000 from £175,198,000 to £160,331,000; the cash limit on class XV, vote 4 will be increased by £4,734,000, from £565,419,000 to £570,153,000; the cash limit on class XV, vote 5 will be increased by £10,133,000, from £492,775,000 to £502,908,000; the cash limit on class XV, vote 8 will be increased by £10,409,000 from £1,501,032,000 to £1,511,441,000; the cash limit on class XV, vote 9 will be increased by £819,000 from £65,977,000 to £66,796,000; and the cash limit on class XV, vote 12 will be increased by £203,000 from £7,034,000 to £7,237,000.

Running costs provision for the Welsh Office and the office of Her Majesty's chief inspector of schools in Wales, which was not spent in 1993£94 has been carried forward, under the normal end-year flexibility arrangements, into 1994£95, increasing the running costs limits by £915,000 from £77,094,000 to £78,009,000 and £172,000 from £3,273,000 to £3,445,000 respectively. This is required to cover additional costs in administering agricultural grants following the reform of the common 1057W agricultural policy. The local authority capital limit—WO/LACAP—will be increased by £10,996,000 from £465,469,000 to £476,465,000.

The decrease in the cash limit for vote 2 is the result mainly of a lower than expected demand—£14,400,000—for regional selective assistance, a transfer of £1 million of the Welsh Development Agency's grant in aid to their public expenditure provision for advances from the national loan fund following the introduction of a simplified loan fund scheme, a transfer of £687,000 to WO/LACAP to reflect the transfer of responsibility for rural development grants from the WDA and DBRW to local authorities, a transfer of £1,194,000 from class IV, vote 1 for the SMART and SPUR programmes and a transfer of £25,000 from class III, vote 4 for payments to the Central Science Laboratory.

The increase in the cash limit for vote 4 provides mainly for an additional £2,000,000 for equipment in respect of the "modern apprenticeship" scheme, £2,000,000 extra for the Further Education Funding Council for equipment and building maintenance, £465,000 to fund the transfer of responsibility to the Higher Education Funding Council from the Department for Education and the Home Office for the diplomas in social work and courses in social work and an additional £300,000 for grant-maintained schools for essential maintenance work.

The increase in the cash limit for vote 5 allows mainly for an additional £2,400,000 grant in aid for Cardiff Bay development corporation, £6,532,000 or central Government roads, including the take-up of £3,532,000 end-year flexibility entitlement and the take-up of £1,200,000 end-year flexibility entitlement for the urban investment grant scheme.

The increase in the cash limit for vote 8 results from an additional £4,000,000 for health authorities to help to reduce waiting list times, the take-up of the £10,735,000 of end-year flexibility entitlement for NHS trusts and capital, the transfer of £904,000 from class XII, vote 1 in respect of the purchasing of special health authorities' patient care services from the London postgraduate teaching hospitals and a reduction of £5,230,000 in NHS trusts' investments.

The increase in the cash limit for vote 9 is mainly in respect of the take-up of end-year flexibility entitlement of £948,000 as a result of underspending in 1993–94, a

Estimated increase or decrease in rate bills in Wales between 1994–95 and 1995–96 as a result of the 1995 revaluation, in the absence of transitional relief
	Small Properties	Large Properties	Total
1995–96 bills as a percentage of 1994–95 bills	No. (1000s)	Change in bills (£m)	No. (000s)	Change in bills (£m)	No. (000s)	Change in bills bills (£m)
Less than 50	—	—	—	—	—	—
50–80	—	—	—	—	—	—
80–120	20	—	5	5	25	—
120–200	55	45	10	60	65	110
200–500	10	15	—	20	10	35
Greater than 500	—	—	—	5	—	5
Total	85	65	15	80	100	145

Source: Inland Revenue.

1. Figures are rounded to nearest 5 units (— means less than 3 units).
2. Totals may not sum due to rounding.
3. Small properties have a 1 April 1990 rateable value less than £10,000.

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transfer of £77,000 to class XV, vote 12 and increased appropriations in aid. Welsh Office running costs expenditure will be lower in 1995–96 in cash and real terms than in 1993–94 or 1994–95.

The increase in the cash limit for vote 12 results mainly from the take-up of £95,000 end-year flexibility entitlement and a transfer of £77,000 from class XV, vote 9 for the repayment costs for services provided to the office of Her Majesty's inspector of schools in Wales by the Welsh Office.

There is also a increase to a non-voted cash limit, WO/LACAP, resulting from the take-up of £10,309,000 end-year flexibility entitlement and the switch of £687,000 from class XV, vote 2 in respect of the transfer of responsibility to local authorities for the rural development grant scheme.

None of the proposed changes will add to the planned total of public expenditure.