Local Government (Financial Provisions) (Scotland) Act 1963

3 Reduction of Exchequer Equalisation Grants in respect of low rent income

(1) Where for the year 1963-64 or any subsequent year the actual rent income of a county council or town council is less than the council's notional rent income there shall (notwithstanding anything in section 1 of the Act of 1954 or section 26 of the Act of 1956) be deducted from any Exchequer Equalisation Grant which would, apart from this section, be payable to the council for that year under section 3 of the Act of 1954 ah amount equal to the difference between—

(a) the amount of the grant as calculated for the year in question under the said section 3, and

(b) the amount which would result from that calculation if for the council's actual rent income for that year there were substituted their notional rent income for that year.

(2) Notwithstanding any reductions made in the Equalisation Grant payable to councils consequent on subsection (1) above the total Equalisation Grant disbursed to Scottish local authorities shall not fall below an amount ascertained in accordance with section 1(1)(b) of the Act of 1954.

(3) In this section—

(a) references to a council's actual rent income for any year are references to the income receivable for the year by the council and credited to their housing revenue account for the year under paragraph (a) of section 138(1) of the Housing (Scotland) Act 1950 in respect of the relevant subjects, together with any sums so credited under subsection (2) or (3) of the said section 138, but excluding any such income as aforesaid which by reason of the granting of any rent rebates is not actually received ; and

(b) references to a council's notional rent income for any year are references to such percentage of the aggregate of the gross annual values of the relevant subjects, as shown in the valuation roll for the year in question, as is specified in the second column of the following Table in relation to that year:

Provided that, if he is requested by any council to do so, the Secretary of State shall direct that, in relation to that council and in relation to such year as may be specified in the direction, this section shall have effect as if references therein to the council's notional rent income for that year were references to such percentage of the aggregate of the gross annual values of the relevant subjects, as shown in the valuation roll for the year in question, as is specified in the third column of the said Table in relation to that year, less an amount equal to the aggregate of any rent rebates granted in respect of those subjects by the council for that year in pursuance of any rent rebates scheme approved by the Secretary of State for the purposes of this section.

TABLE

Year	Percentage first referred to above	Percentage second referred to above
1963-64	85 per cent.	90 per cent.
1964-65	90 per cent.	95 per cent.
Any subsequent year	95 per cent.	100 per cent.

(4) In the last foregoing subsection—

(a) references to the relevant subjects, in relation to any council and in relation to any year, are references to any houses, buildings, land or dwellings let by the council and shown in the valuation roll for that year;

(b) references to the aggregate of the gross annual values of the relevant subjects, in relation to any council, are references to that aggregate exclusive of such part of the gross annual value of any house or dwelling comprised in those subjects as may be certified by the assessor to be attributable to any garage provided otherwise than by the council;

(c) the expression " rent rebates " means rebates to which section 73(4) of the Housing (Scotland) Act 1950 or section 29 of the Housing (Scotland) Act 1962 refers;

(d) the expression " rent rebates scheme" includes any scheme for the granting of rent rebates (including so much of any rents scheme made under the said section 29 as relates to rent rebates); and

(e) the expression " valuation roll" does not include " supplementary valuation roll ".

(5) The Secretary of State may by order provide that the Table set out in subsection (3) of this section shall have effect as respects any year of revaluation specified in the order, and in relation to such local authority or local authorities as may be so specified, as if for the percentages specified for that year in the Table there were substituted such lower percentages as may be specified in the order.

(6) An order under the last foregoing subsection shall not have effect unless approved by a resolution of the Commons House of Parliament.