§ Mr. Gordon PrenticeTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what estimates he has made of the number of village halls in England(a) in 1979 and (b) at present.[3947]
§ Mr. ClappisonI understand from Action with Communities in Rural England that the number of village halls in England was(a) 8,350 in 1979 and (b) 8,600 at present.
§ Mr. PrenticeTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what steps he is taking to increase the resources available to fund capital projects for charitable village halls. [3946]
§ Sir Paul BeresfordThe White Paper on Rural England published by my Department and the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food in October recognised the important role village halls play in small communities. My Department has recently agreed that the Rural Development Commission should increase to £1.15 million the amount it will make available to communities for the construction, renovation or improvement of village halls and community centres during 1995–96.
In many cases, funding for capital spending on village halls is administered by the local parish or town council. To fund capital spending a council may use any revenue funds or capital receipts that are available to it or may choose to borrow. The Local Government Act 1972 requires parish and town councils to apply for a specific borrowing approval from the Secretary of State. Borrowing approvals are subject to an overall national limit for each financial year. The national limit for England in 1995–96 was increased to £6.195 million. The national limit for 1996–97 will be announced next February.