Clause 41 - Payments towards local authority indebtedness
Local Government Bill
11:00 am
Mr Nick Raynsford (Minister of State (Local and Regional Government), Office of the Deputy Prime Minister; Greenwich and Woolwich, Labour)
I am sorry that the hon. Gentleman did not listen more closely to earlier debates, because if he had done so he would know that authorities in areas of low capital value will not have the same opportunity as those in the southern areas to raise large capital sums through the sale of assets. That problem will be compounded if they have also incurred substantial debt that they are still servicing through the need to invest in housing over the years. That is of no relevance to the quality of the management of the stock. Those matters are to do with the market and the cost of providing housing. In some cases, individual authorities have not managed their stock well, and that may be an added reason why they wish to transfer to another body. In other cases, they will have done that very well, but cannot counter the market factors that I have described and which make it impossible for them to gain sufficient sums from the disposal of the asset to write off the outstanding debt.
We have made proper provision to ensure that there is fair treatment for authorities in all parts of the country, irrespective of the capital values that apply in
their areas and of whether the housing stock has been managed well or badly. I hope that the hon. Gentleman will recognise that his anxieties and fears are groundless. This is a sensible provision and I hope that he and other hon. Members will agree that clause 41 should stand part of the Bill.
Question put and agreed to.
Clause 41 ordered to stand part of the Bill.