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Business Rates

Mr. Worthington: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what is the financial gain to small businesses of his change in policy in 1997-98 regarding business rates; and how much and what share of that benefit accrues to businesses in west Dunbartonshire. [12760]

Mr. Kynoch: The Scottish Office estimates that the benefits to small businesses from the measures on business rates announced in the November 1996 budget total some £8 million in 1996-97. Information is not held centrally on the precise benefits to small businesses in west Dunbarton. The Scottish Office model of the effects of these measures indicate that small businesses in the former Dunbartonshire district will benefit by approximately £90,000 in 1997-98 and businesses in the former Clydebank district will benefit by approximately £40,000. Together these represent a 1.6 per cent. share of the total estimated benefits to small businesses in Scotland.

Local Government Finance

Mr. Worthington: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what percentage and amount of local government income has been uncollected in each year since 1979; and if he will indicate whether rates, community charge or council tax applied in each year. [12764]

Mr. Kynoch: Information is not available centrally on the amount of uncollected domestic and non-domestic rates in the period before 1989-90. Table 1 gives the amount and percentage of community charge income unrecovered for each year between 1989-90 and 1992-93, and the amount and percentage of council tax income unrecovered for each year between 1993-94 and 1995-96.

Between 1989-90 and 1992-93 local government income was not affected by unrecovered non-domestic rate income as any shortfall in non-domestic rate income was made up through revenue support grant. From 1993-94 the operation of non-domestic rate pooling ensures that local authority income is not affected by any unrecovered amounts of non-domestic rates.

Table 2 shows for each year from 1979-80 to 1988-89 the reduction to gross rate income recorded in authorities' accounts arising from rates written off as irrecoverable, the net cost of collection and the repayment of rates paid in error. This is not directly comparable to the figures given in table 1, particularly as it relates to amounts written off rather than amounts uncollected and covers both domestic and non-domestic rates.

Table 1: Amounts of community charge and council tax billed and collected(21)

	Net amount billed(22)	Amount uncollected at 31 October 1996 £000s	Percentage uncollected at 31 October 1996
Community charge
1989-90(23)	860,704	83,520	9.7
1990-91(23)	916,589	123,356	13.5
1991-92(23)	747,606	117,766	15.8
1992-93(23)	878,940	163,721	18.6
Council tax
1993-94	898,866	58,953	6.6
1994-95	971,698	80,837	8.3
1995-96	1,045,577	115,503	11.0

Source:

Community charge and council tax receipts return.:

Notes:

(21) Amounts billed and uncollected include community water charges and council water charges.

(22) Gross amount billed minus rebates granted, as reported by councils at end October 1996.

(23) Excludes information on billed and uncollected amounts for North Lanarkshire, which has, to date, been unable to supply this information.

1. Authorities are asked to exclude surcharges for late payment in amounts billed and amounts collected. Not all authorities are able to do this.

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Table 2: Gross rate income and reductions in rates due: 1979-80 to 1988-89

	Gross rate income(24) £000s	Reduction in rates due(25) £000s	Reduction as percentage of gross income
1979-80	742,608	15,171	2.0
1980-81	961,993	19,918	2.1
1981-82	1,313,022	34,558	2.6
1982-83	1,495,504	24,625	1.6
1983-84	1,500,194	27,560	1.8
1984-85	1,590,861	33,328	2.1
1985-86	1,872,802	44,055	2.4
1986-87	1,978,748	53,812	2.7
1987-88	2,229,246	65,921	3.0
1988-89	2,292,648	67,678	3.0

Source:

Local Financial Returns.

Note:

(24) Gross rate income includes income from domestic and non-domestic rates.

(25) Reduction in rates due includes rates written off as irrecoverable; net cost of collection rates and repayment of rates paid in error.

Mr. Worthington: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the resource planning assumption on capital expenditure advised to West Dunbartonshire council in September 1994; what is the gross capital allocation to west Dunbartonshire for 1997-98; and what factors underlie the differences between the two sums. [12766]

Mr. Raymond S. Robertson: No resource planning assumptions for housing capital expenditure were issued to West Dunbartonshire council in September 1994; nor has the council received a gross capital allocation for 1997-98.

Mr. Worthington: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what percentage of West Dunbartonshire council's budget for 1996-97 was met by Scottish Office grant and business rates; and how much cash, in real and constant price terms, was allocated by him to west Dunbartonshire for (a) 1996-97 and (b) 1997-98. [12759]

Mr. Kynoch: Around 83 per cent. of west Dunbartonshire council's planned level of revenue expenditure in the current year is being supported by a

28 Jan 1997 : Column: 183

combination of (a) basic aggregate external finance--AEF--(b) additional AEF from the self-financed mismatch scheme, (c) supplementary mismatch scheme grant and (d) district equalisation scheme grant.

The following table shows the level of support to the council from these four sources for 1996-97 and 1997-98 in both cash and real terms.

Year	Cash	Real terms
	£ million	£ million
		(1997-98 Prices)
1996-97
(a) Basic AEF(26)	111.3	113.5
(b) Additional AEF from self-financed mismatch scheme	2.4	2.4
(c) Supplementary mismatch scheme	1.2	1.2
(d) District equalisation scheme	0.3	0.3
1997-98
(a) Basic AEF(26)	109.2	109.2
(b) Additional AEF from self-financed mismatch scheme	1.9	1.9
(c) Supplementary mismatch scheme	0.9	0.9
(d) District equalisation scheme	0.15	0.15

(26) Adjusted to take account of phasing-out of local government re-organisation costs and the introduction of nursery vouchers.

Both the self-financed mismatch scheme which COSLA proposed and the supplementary mismatch scheme which is funded by the Exchequer were introduced on a transitional basis in order to give the councils concerned time to bring their expenditure levels more closely in line with their levels of Government support. In 1997-98, the councils will receive 50 per cent. of the assistance which they are receiving from these two schemes in the current year. The district equalisation scheme is being phased-out on the same basis.

Mr. Worthington: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what percentage share of the total Scottish Office grant was allocated to each council in Scotland in (a) 1996-97 and (b) 1997-98. [12761]

Mr. Kynoch: The percentage share of total Government support, comprising aggregate external finance, supplementary mismatch scheme grant and district equalisation grant, allocated to each council in Scotland in 1996-97 and 1997-98 is shown in the table.

		Percentage
Council	1996-94	1997-98
City of Aberdeen	3.72	3.61
Aberdeenshire	3.74	3.81
Angus	1.87	1.92
Argyll and Bute	2.09	2.06
Clackmannanshire	0.88	0.88
Dumfries and Galloway	2.83	2.85
City of Dundee	3.23	3.19
East Ayrshire	2.31	2.33
East Dunbartonshire	1.76	1.77
East Lothian	1.47	1.49
East Renfrewshire	1.34	1.39
City of Edinburgh	7.47	7.66
Falkirk	2.44	2.45
Fife	6.24	6.20
City of Glasgow	15.74	15.34
Highland	4.53	4.48
Inverclyde	1.91	1.91
Midlothian	1.48	1.44
Moray	1.61	1.61
North Ayrshire	2.58	2.65
North Lanarkshire	6.25	6.21
Orkney	0.71	0.72
Perth and Kinross	2.15	2.18
Renfrewshire	3.28	3.29
Scottish Borders	2.06	2.06
Shetland	0.90	1.05
South Ayrshire	2.00	2.05
South Lanarkshire	5.64	5.66
Stirling	1.57	1.61
West Dunbartonshire	2.17	2.10
West Lothian	2.79	2.78
Western Isles	1.25	1.26
Scotland	100	100

28 Jan 1997 : Column: 184

Mr. Worthington: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the expenditure by councils in Scotland, in (a) real and (b) constant price terms, in each year since 1979 on recovery of local government rates, community charge or council tax through sheriff officers; and if he will indicate for each of those years the amount recovered by sheriff officers. [12765]

Mr. Kynoch: My Department obtains information from local authorities about their total expenditure on collection of local taxation. However, data are not held centrally about either (a) expenditure on collection through sheriff officers or (b) amounts recovered by sheriff officers.

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