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10.46 pm
Mr. Tim Smith (Beaconsfield): I am grateful to my hon. Friend the Member for Aylesbury (Mr. Lidington) for allowing me to say a few words in the important debate that he has secured.
I felt that, in the context of a pretty tough spending round, we had a very fair settlement in Buckinghamshire, particularly in regard to education. I think that we all attach the highest importance to the education budget. As my hon. Friend said, we have an extremely well-managed county council, and as long as it ensures that as much money as possible is pushed down to the schools, I believe that there will be sufficient cash for those schools to run effectively during the next financial year.
I congratulate my hon. Friend on obtaining the debate.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Environment (Sir Paul Beresford):
I congratulate my hon. Friends the Members for Aylesbury (Mr. Lidington) and for Beaconsfield (Mr. Smith) on their contributions to the debate. I shall reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Beaconsfield first, as that is simplest. I thank him for his recognition of the efforts that have been made. On the basis of past evenings, I waited for a "but", but it did not come, which was bound to be rather pleasant.
I think that we all recognise that Buckinghamshire--with a Conservative county council--has a well-established reputation for tight and effective budgeting. In setting its budget it has taken an even-handed approach, responding to the priorities highlighted most frequently by its electorate and favouring education and social services. Spending has been well targeted, and services have been delivered effectively and efficiently.
I recognise the challenge that the county faces as it approaches reorganisation. Milton Keynes's move to unitary status later this year, and the disaggregation of the county's budget that that has necessitated, have brought their own difficulties. Recently--this, I think, is accepted by my hon. Friend the Member for Aylesbury--it has been a credit to both authorities that they have been able to reach a considerable measure of agreement on disaggregation. They are proceeding with encouragement from some of my right hon. and hon. Friends in the Department.
The authorities are, I think, recognising that the time has come when they must act, and do so by agreement, because if they do not we will have to step in and have a say. It is much better if the matter is sorted out simply and straightforwardly between them, and that is happening. I am sure that Buckinghamshire will continue to meet the challenges of reorganisation in the same constructive manner.
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My hon. Friend raises a point about some of the data. If he could imagine the volume of data that has to be gone through for each local authority and for all the standard spending assessment needs and calculations, he would recognise that, occasionally, the data are a little awry. We will consider not only his points and those of both local authorities in their representations to the Department, but, in particular, the data anomalies.
My hon. Friend recognises the need to control public expenditure. Local government accounts for about a quarter of general government expenditure and authorities must play their part. That was spelt out to them when it was explained that the public, in effect, expect lower expenditure, lower taxation and lower council taxation but better services. The phrase, "More and better for less" has been used.
We have responded to frequent requests from local authority associations that they should be allowed to raise a greater proportion of their expenditure locally. However, the moment we offer them that opportunity, they scream, as the Labour Front-Bench team has, that that moves taxation from central to local government. The setting of it is, however, largely down to local authorities and they have the opportunity to reduce expenditure if they are willing--many are.
Although this is a tight settlement, we have ensured that the authorities will again be able to concentrate their increases in education, personal social services, the fire service and the police. Every year, there are shifts and changes. This year, as was mentioned, the review of the area cost adjustment, and research on the effects of sparsity and density of population on the costs of local authorities were again considered. Research was carried out by the Department of Health into social services for children and residential social services for the elderly. All research and the review of the area cost adjustment were discussed fully with individual authorities and the local authority associations.
On the sparsity factor, we finally came to a decision that was accepted fairly well by both local authority associations and the Government side of the discussion. If my hon. Friend's authority wishes to continue that discussion, I hope that it will move to do so because I am certainly willing to listen.
On the area cost adjustment, the only unanimous thing on which the local authority associations agreed was to disagree. That happened across the local associations and it is the same in the House, so we have accepted that the position is difficult and that we must consider it. We are conducting a review and we will consult and discuss further on the matter.
We need to accept--there is good reason for this--that forward-thinking authorities such as Buckinghamshire county council will continue not only to deliver the best value for money to their local residents and council tax payers, but to look for new and better ways of providing services and reducing expenditure. In particular they will accept that disaggregation offers a chance to move forward towards the millennium, with a Conservative council showing us the way throughout Britain.
Question put and agreed to.
10.47 pm
Adjourned accordingly at eight minutes to Eleven o'clock.
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