§ Mr. Peter BradleyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions in which years between 1979 and 1999 the Government's revenue support grant for Shropshire County Council increased by double the rate of inflation or more. [102137]
§ Ms Beverley HughesRevenue Support Grant (RSG) was introduced in 1990. Between 1990–91 and 1992–93, Shropshire County Council received no RSG directly; the grant was paid into the collection funds operated by billing authorities, and thus supported expenditure by all tiers of authorities.
Only in 1994–95 was the increase in RSG of 11.06 per cent. more than twice the rate of inflation of 1.43 per cent., as measured by the GDP deflator. The increase in 1999–2000 in RSG and the county's share of national non-domestic rates of 6.01 per cent. was also more than twice the rate of inflation of 2.25 per cent. The change in RSG was affected in 1995–96 by the transfer of the RSG for police service to West Mercia Police Authority and in 1998–99 by the creation of Telford and the Wrekin as a separate unitary authority, thus precluding meaningful comparisons for those years.