§ Mr. Tom ClarkeTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, pursuant to his oral answer to the hon. Member for North-East Derbyshire (Mr. Barnes) of 4 June,Official Report, column 394, what powers he has under the Local Government Finance Act 1992 to alter the valuation list bands for dwellings; and if he will use those powers to alter the council tax liability of residents of mobile homes. [33070]
§ Sir Paul BeresfordMy right hon. Friend has powers under section 5 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 to alter the number of, the ranges of values ascribed to, and the proportion of council tax payable in respect of the existing valuation bands, by order subject to affirmative resolution of the House of Commons.
My right hon. Friend has, however, no plans to make such an order. He sees no grounds for reducing the contributions which residents of mobile homes make towards the cost of local services. This would, besides, entail increasing the liability of other council tax payers and would necessitate a massive, and expensive, re-banding exercise: there are over 5 million dwellings in band A alone.