§ Mr. KeenTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list(a) the total external support including revenue support and non-domestic rates and (b) the allowable budget requirement for the London borough of Hounslow in (i) 1997–98, (ii) 1996–97 and (iii) 1995–96; and if he will indicate for each the changes between 1995–96 and 1996–97; and the changes between 1996–97 and 1997–98, in cash and percentage terms allowing for proper year-on-year, like-for-like comparisons, and allowing for the transfer of responsibility for care in the community from central Government to local authorities. [14271]
§ Sir Paul BeresfordThe available information is as follows:
Maximum budget allowed under capping criteria Increase on adjusted budget for previous year1 External support2 £ million £ million Per cent. £ million 1995–96 182.511 140.421 1996–97 190.948 5.406 2.91 146.096 1997–98 194.2943 3.914 2.06 147.188 1 For comparisons with the following year, the 1995–96 budget has been adjusted for community care special grant. The 1996–97 budget has been adjusted for the introduction of nursery vouchers, for community care special grant and for capital limits for residential accommodation charges grant. 2 External support comprises revenue support grant and the redistributed amount from the non-domestic rates pool. No estimates of external support are available on a year-on-year, like-for-like basis for comparing 1995–96 with 1996–97. Adjusted figures for external support for 1996–97 were placed in the Library in my reply to the hon. Member for North-West Durham (Mrs. Armstrong) on 13 January 1997. The adjusted external support for 1996–97 for the London borough of Hounslow was shown as £145.5 million. This figure did not take into account any changes in the estimated aggregates of SSA reduction grant or police grants that would need to be made in order to bring the figure for 1996–97 on to a fully consistent basis. 3 Provisional.