asked the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what was the total money provided for the Essex County Council by way of the rate support grant for each financial year since 1973–74; and what percentage this represents of the council's annual expenditure in each case;(2) what total money will be provided to the Essex County Council by way of the rate support grant in the next financial year; and what percentage of the council's total expenditure he estimates this will constitute, on the assumption that the council's expenditure remains the same in real terms as in the current financial year.

Percentages of this sort can be misleading; they reflect changes in the level of expenditure as well as changes in entitlement to grant.In the period 1973–74—1977–78, Essex County Council's budgeted expenditure almost tripled. Of the rising budgeted expenditure, needs element met the following proportions:

	Per cent.
1973–74	66·2
1974–75	56·9
1975–76	42·3
1976–77	38·2
1977–78	33·7

Neither the resources element nor the domestic element of rate support grant is payable to county councils. Details of the grant payable to individual local authorities for 1978–79 are not yet available.To the extent that county expenditure was not met by grant, there will have been an increase—which cannot be quantified—in resources element payment to most district authorities in Essex.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received about the rate support grant for Cheshire in 1978–79; by whom these representations were made; and what replies he has sent.

My right hon. Friend has received representations on behalf of Cheshire County Council and the Cheshire district councils from the hon. Members for Warrington (Sir T. Williams) and City of Chester (Mr. Morrison). I shall send the hon. Member copies of his replies.