Clause 1 - Civil defence: grants

Part of Civil Defence (Grant) Bill – in a Public Bill Committee at 10:45 am on 11 December 2001.

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Photo of Chris Leslie Chris Leslie Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office) 10:45, 11 December 2001

As a prerequisite to the hon. Gentleman's request, we need to enact the Bill. If we do not have the power to institute a formula, it will be difficult to discuss how much will be paid and how that will be done, especially if we stay with a demand-led system in which, under a distorted and haphazard arrangement, authorities are able to bid individually. The comprehensive spending review process aims to give greater surety about sums over three years. As I mentioned on Second Reading, we have already pencilled in sums for the next financial year, although we need to renegotiate those sums in the light of recent events. The formula powers are necessary in order to move on to discussions about how we would institute a national strategic budget available to all civil defence authorities.