§ Mr. SwireTo ask the Deputy Prime Minister what percentage of central government funding allocated to Devon County Council has been ring-fenced for environmental policy implementation in each of the last five years. [109645]
§ Mr. RaynsfordThe majority of what local authorities spend on the environment comes in unring-fenced form from general grant. In the last five years Devon received one ring-fenced revenue grant for the environment of £1.159 million for waste in 2002–03. This represented less than 0.5 per cent. of the total revenue grant from central Government in that year1. The waste fund also provided Devon with £0.375 million of capital funding in 2002–03. In addition Devon County Council was awarded the Supplementary Credit Approvals (SCAs) related to environment to the value set out in the following table.
SCAs £000 Land fill gas/contaminated land Flood defence 1999–2000 734 0 2000–01 261 231 2001–02 1,648 0 2002–03 1,764 28 2003–04 0 0 1The total of general grant and specific and special grants for Devon in that year was £418.909 million. The grant of £1.159 million for waste is attended to cover work by the country council and the districts.