§ 11. Mr. Llew SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with the First Secretary regarding the consultation over the local government settlement for Wales. [130887]
§ Mr. HansonThe Secretary of State had regular meetings with the First Secretary in the run-up to the 2000 Spending Review. The settlement we have secured for Wales includes amounts consequential on allocations to the Department for Environment, Transport and the Regions for local government. It will of course be for the National Assembly to decide how the consequential amounts will be allocated in Wales, and it is currently consulting on its joint review of the standard spending assessment formula for distribution of grant to local authorities in Wales.