(2) whether it is Government policy that increases in landfill tax rates will be revenue-neutral for local authorities;
(3) if he will bring forward proposals to adjust local authority funding in line with changes to the rate of landfill tax in order to fund extensions to recycling services;
(4) what percentage of revenue raised through the landfill tax was reallocated directly to local authorities in each of the last five years.
[holding answers 3 March and 6 March 2009]: The Government worked closely with local government in CSR07 to identify the overall pressure on waste management services, including the increase in landfill tax, along with the extent to which those pressures can be mitigated. Over the CSR07 period, the overall Government grant will increase by £8.9 billion which takes into account local government’s landfill tax liability, including the increased costs resulting from the rise in the standard rate escalator from 2008-09, and allows local authorities to deliver effective services including in the area of waste management.
DEFRA is also supporting local authorities to develop alternatives to landfill through the Private Finance Initiative (PFI). To date £2.02 billion PFI Credits have been committed to 33 projects which will divert waste from landfill. There are a further 11 projects in the application process, for the remaining £1.18 billion PFI Credits currently available.
In addition the Waste Infrastructure Capital Grant provides direct funding to help local authorities put in place the front-end infrastructure needed to help them meet their landfill diversion targets.