asked Her Majesty's Government:What are the regional average movements in house prices since the establishment of council tax bands in 1991; and whether, without revaluation, such changes are undermining the basis of the council tax. [HL468]
Regional average movements in house prices from the beginning of 1991 to 30 September 2000 are given in the table below.
| ‥ change in DETR annual house price index Q1 1991–2000 Q3 | |
| England | 58.1 |
| London | 80.3 |
| South East | 70.9 |
| South West | 60.2 |
| East | 59.1 |
| North East | 31.8 |
| West Midlands | 44.6 |
| East Midlands | 37.6 |
% change in DETR annual house price index Q1 1991–2000 Q3
| |
| North West | 31.1 |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | 26.4 |
| Merseyside | 19.4 |
In the Green Paper, Modernising Local Government Finance, which we published last September, we invited views on whether there should be a fixed cycle for council tax revaluations.
Properties are revalued for business rates every five years, but there is no fixed revaluation cycle for domestic properties. The Green Paper suggested that revaluations every six, eight or ten years could make the council tax fairer and more predictable. We are currently considering the responses we have received to the Green Paper and will announce our decisions later this year.