§ Mr. SweeneyTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales what changes he is proposing to make to the cash limits for his Department and the office of Her Majesty's chief inspector of schools in Wales in 1996–97. [2430]
§ Mr. HagueSubject to parliamentary approval of the necessary supplementary estimates, the cash limit on class XIV, vote 1 will be reduced by £3,500,000 from £25,655,000 to £22,155,000; the cash limit on class XIV, vote 2 will be increased by £14,906,000 from £689,272,000 to £704,178,000; the cash limit on class XIV, vote 3 will be increased by £5,961,000 from £518,909,000 to £524,870,000; the cash limit on class296W XIV, vote 4 will be increased by £30,390,000 from £1,879,735,000 to £1,910,125,000; the cash limit on class XIV, vote 5 has been decreased by £150,000 from £2,305,358,000 to £2,305,208,000.
The Department's running costs limit will be increased by £2,511,000 from £72,667,000 to £75,178,000. The running costs limit for Her Majesty's chief inspector of schools in Wales will be increased by £157,000 from £3,150,000 to £3,307,000.
The local authority capital cash limit, WO/LACAP, has been increased by £4,473,000 from £513,733,000 to £518,206,000.
The cash limit decrease in vote 1 results mainly from lower-than-expected claims for agri-environmental and farm conservation schemes.
The cash limit increase in vote 2 results mainly from a net increase in grant in aid to the Welsh Development Agency of £25,313,000—including the transfer of urban investment grant—and the take-up of end-year flexibility entitlement, partly offset by reductions elsewhere in the vote and a transfer of £3,500,000 to class XIV, vote 3.
The net cash limit increase on vote 3 results mainly from an increase in the grant in aid for Cardiff Bay development corporation of £7,599,000, the transfer of £3,882,000 of urban investment grant to the Welsh Development Agency in class XIV, vote 2, and the take-up of end-year flexibility of £1,177,000. The increase in the running costs limit includes extra provision to cover the estimated costs of the north Wales child abuse inquiry and BSE.
The increase in the cash limit for vote 4 results from the take-up of end-year flexibility entitlement of £30,000,000 and transfers from class XI totalling £390,000.
The cash limit decrease on vote 5 results from lower than expected expenditure by the Valuation Office Agency.
The increase in the local authority cash limit, WO/LACAP, results from the take-up of end-year flexibility entitlement.
None of the proposed changes will add to the planned total of public expenditure.