Asked by: Chris Philp (Conservative - Croydon South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has made an assessment of the effect on local authority budgets of the Government's no recourse to public funds policy.
Answered by Elizabeth Truss
I have regular discussions with the Home Secretary and the Communities Secretary about their budgets, including the impact of any government policy that may affect local authority finances.
We need to make sure our immigration system is fair, while also protecting the taxpayer. There are already exemptions to the ‘no recourse to public funds’ condition for those in genuine need, such as those facing destitution or to protect the welfare of a child. I would expect the relevant departments to raise any issues at the Spending Review, where we can consider how we fund our priorities across government.
Local Government Core Spending Power is increasing in real terms this year. We have provided an additional £650m for social care in 2019-20.
Asked by: Chris Philp (Conservative - Croydon South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the number of loan applications declined by the Public Loans Work Board in each local authority in each of the last 12 months.
Answered by Elizabeth Truss
The Public Works Loan Board is a non-discretionary lender and does not refuse an application if satisfied that it conforms to the policy framework governing its lending arrangements. There have been no instances of refusal in the last 12 months.
Asked by: Chris Philp (Conservative - Croydon South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the average maturity is of the loans made by the Public Works Loan Board in the last 12 months.
Answered by Elizabeth Truss
The Debt Management Office carry out the day to day lending functions of the Public Works Loan Board (PWLB). They publish information monthly on their website on loans which have been issued, and annual updates on outstanding loans, including the dates when loans are due to mature.
The weighted average period to maturity of PWLB fixed rate loans advanced in the 12 months between April 2018 and March 2019 was 34 years.
Asked by: Chris Philp (Conservative - Croydon South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many loans made by the Public Works Loan Board reached their maturity in the last 12 months; and what value of those loans was (a) repaid from local authority resources, (b) repaid using a new loan and (c) not repaid and have defaulted.
Answered by Elizabeth Truss
The Debt Management Office carry out the day to day lending functions of the Public Works Loan Board (PWLB). They publish information monthly on their website on loans which have been issued, and annual updates on outstanding loans, including the dates when loans are due to mature.
631 loans totalling £1.7bn reached maturity in the 2018-19 financial year. All loans that were due for repayment in this period were repaid in full. The PWLB does not have any details of the source of the funds used by borrowers to repay the loans.
Asked by: Chris Philp (Conservative - Croydon South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the value of the loans from the Public Loans Work Board that were annuitised over their lifetime; and what proportion of those loans were repayable only on maturity.
Answered by Elizabeth Truss
A breakdown of Public Works Loan Board (PWLB) loans by repayment type is published annually in the PWLB Report and Accounts which is available on the UK Debt Management Office’s website at: www.dmo.gov.uk/publications/?offset=0&itemsPerPage=20&parentFilter=1438&childFilter=1438|1466&startMonth=1&startYear=1998.
As at end March 2019 the breakdown of all outstanding PWLB loans by repayment type was as follows: £3.6bn (4.7%) were Annuity loans; £3.3bn (4.3%) were advanced as Equal Instalments of Principal loans; and £70.6bn (91%) were Maturity repayment loans.
Asked by: Chris Philp (Conservative - Croydon South)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what the process for councils to dispose of property assets is; whether councils must demonstrate best value; and what the obligations of the council where a property is being transferred to a wholly owned subsidiary of that same council are.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
Public bodies should generally dispose of surplus land (including property assets built on that land) at the best possible price reasonably obtainable. However, the Government recognises that disposing of such land at less than best consideration can sometimes create wider public benefits.
With regards to land (and property assets) held in the General Fund, a general consent issued under section 123 of the Local Government Act 1972 allows local authorities to dispose of land held for purposes other than housing or planning at an undervalue of less than £2 million, without seeking a specific consent from the Secretary of State where they consider it will help secure improvement of the economic, social or environmental well-being of the area. Secretary of State consent is required for disposals of such land at an undervalue of more than £2 million. Specific Secretary of State consent is required for disposals of land held for planning purposes regardless of the sale value.
Specific rules also apply to housing land (including property assets). The 2013 General Consent under section 32 of the Local Government Act 1988, permits a local authority to dispose of such land at market value subject to condition that:
(a) the disposal the property asset is not subject to a secure, introductory or demoted tenancy to occupy from the local authority to a landlord who is not another local authority;
(b) the disposal of land where there is Reversionary Interests in Houses and Flats; or
(c) the disposal of land to a body in which the local authority owns an interest except:
(i) where the local authority has no housing revenue account; or
(ii) in the case of a local authority with a housing revenue account, the first 5 disposals in a financial year.
Secretary of State consent is required if a local authority wishes to dispose of housing land (including any property assets built on that land) at less than best value, including disposal to a local authority housing company.
Asked by: Chris Philp (Conservative - Croydon South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the repayment terms are for loans made to local authorities through the Public Works Loan Board.
Answered by Elizabeth Truss
The repayment terms for loans provided by Public Works Loan Board (PWLB) depend on the type of loan taken out by the local authority. Two types of loan are available from the Board: fixed rate and variable rate loans. Full details of the repayment terms of PWLB loans are available in the PWLB’s lending arrangements circular: https://www.dmo.gov.uk/media/15841/circular-160.pdf.Asked by: Chris Philp (Conservative - Croydon South)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
What steps he is taking to strengthen the Union.
Answered by David Lidington
We remain fully committed to the constitutional integrity of the United Kingdom. As the minister responsible for constitutional issues, I am working with Ministerial colleagues to ensure that this Government delivers for people in every part of the UK.
Asked by: Chris Philp (Conservative - Croydon South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much school funding for Croydon there has been in each of the previous 10 years; how many pupils there have been in such schools in each of those years; and what estimate his Department has made of the (a) funding and (b) pupil numbers for schools in Croydon in 2019-2020.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The revenue funding allocated for schools for each financial year from 2009 to 2019 for Croydon local authority are shown in the attached table. For financial year 2019-20, only the dedicated schools grant (DSG) has been allocated at this time, though this makes up the bulk of schools funding. The DSG for Croydon this year is £339.3 million. Other grants will be allocated at later points in the year.
Asked by: Chris Philp (Conservative - Croydon South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 4 March 2019 to Question 225566 on Public Works Loan Board, what the purpose was of each loan since 2010; and if his Department will include that information as part of the monthly loans report.
Answered by Elizabeth Truss
Information about the purpose of Public Works Loan Board loans is not centrally held. The Public Works Loan Board operates as a non-discretionary lender, and it is not therefore part of its arrangements to require information on the reasons for, or circumstances surrounding, loan applications or borrowing activity.
Responsibility for local authority spending and borrowing decisions lies with locally-elected council Members, who are democratically accountable to their electorates. Local authorities are required to have regard to the Prudential Code and statutory guidance when they borrow from the PWLB or from any other lender, these are published by The Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and form the Prudential Framework. The main objective of the Prudential Framework is to ensure that the capital investment plans of local authorities are affordable, prudent and sustainable.