Supplementary Memorandum by the Office
of the Deputy Prime Minister (LGR 01(a))
PASSPORTING AND RING FENCING
1. In giving oral evidence to the Committee
on 27 April 2004 ODPM officials undertook to provide a note in
response to the following question from Mr Brady:
"If the total percentage of local government
expenditure which is ring fenced is going to come down to ten
per cent could you give us an indication of what the percentage
would be of those funds which are ring-fenced and passported added
together?"
2. Strictly speaking, ODPM calculates the
percentage of ring fencing as a percentage of Government funding,
whereas passporting is expressed in terms of increases in spending.
Obviously, local authority spending is financed through council
tax income as well as through grant from central Government.
3. The figures for 2004-05 are as follows:
| £ million |
| Budgeted Revenue Expenditure(a) | 77,061
|
| Partly financed by Government grant | 56,183
|
| —Of which ring fenced(b) | 6,220
|
Schools spending: 2003-04 base spending for passporting
| 22,499 |
| 2003-04 passporting target | 90
|
| |
(a) excluding parish precepts
(b) represents 11.1% of Government grant in 2004-05, on present
plans will reduce to below 10% by 2005-06
So:
— ring fenced grant plus passporting target increased
spending = £7,510 million, which is 13.4% of total Government
funding or 9.7% of total budgeted revenue spending; and
— ring fenced grant plus schools spending after
passporting = £30,009 million, which is 53.4% of total Government
funding or 38.9% of total budgeted revenue spending.
Local Government Finance Directorate
Office of the Deputy Prime Minister
June 2004
|
