Is it true that the survey will not reveal any substantial financial savings for local authorities? Will the report outline the position before and after compulsory competitive tendering? I put it to the Minister that a substantial number of local authorities spend a great deal of time and money on drawing up tenders, only to find that the private sector is simply not interested in tendering.

Will the report also give comparisons relating to the quality and the full value of the service provided for poll tax payers and will it mention the decline in the proper training of personnel? I suggest that CCT represents a further failure of the Government's local government policies.