To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received from local authorities on the need for supplementary credit allocations to deal with the possible roll-out of previous swaps deals; and what replies he has made.

Two local authorities have asked my Department for supplementary credit approvals in respect of potential restitution payments on interest rate swaps. They have been told that it would be premature to consider such requests until the amounts involved can be estimated with reasonable certainty. They have also been told that, while requests for SCAs will be carefully considered, we do not have a reserve of resources for this purpose, so any additional allocations to one authority would be at the expense of others, or would require an increase in capital expenditure.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what will be the sum of the precepts of the spending authorities on the collecting authorities in England in 1992–93, on the assumption that local authorities spend at their standard spending assessment; and if he will make a statement.

The sum of standard spending assessments for precepting authorities in England for 1992–93, on the basis of the reports laid before the House on 24 January, is £20,444·1 million.