Housing: Local Government Finance

Mr. Austin Mitchell
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate she has made of the amount taken from each local housing revenue account by the Government in each year since 2005-06, indicating in each case the (a) amount taken to pay off historic housing debt, (b) amount redistributed to other housing authorities and (c) gains or losses to each local authority from this redistribution process; and how much she expects to be taken for each in each year until 2009-10.

Caroline Flint
A table that shows each local housing authority's subsidy entitlement for 2005-06 and 2006-07 (the latest year we have figures for) has been deposited in the Library of the House. Negative figures indicate where the authority generated an assumed surplus which was captured and recycled within the system. In both years, all surpluses were redistributed through the subsidy system and the Exchequer contributed £232 million and £150 million in the respective years to make up the overall deficit.

The requirement for local housing authorities to set aside resources to pay off debt ended in 2004. An authority may still pay off debt if it so wishes, but that is a local treasury management decision. Local authorities are, however, required to make a contribution to the cost of servicing housing debt and this is included in the housing revenue account subsidy system as a “cost of capital”.

We do not forecast the subsidy position for individual authorities.