Housing Act 1985

PART IV Town Development Subsidy

(s. 9 of the Housing Finance Act 1972; s. 5 of the Housing Rents and Subsidies Act 1975) Transitional town development subsidy.

1 (1) Transitional town development subsidy is payable each year, subject to the following provisions of this Part of this Schedule, to a sending authority to whom town development subsidy under section 9 of the [1972 c. 47.] Housing Finance Act 1972 was payable for the year 1974-75; and the amount of the subsidy, subject to the following provisions of this Schedule, is the amount of town development subsidy payable to the authority for the year 1974-75.

(2) The subsidy is payable for the credit of the sending authority’s general rate fund.

2 (1) The subsidy is payable by the Secretary of State at such times and in such manner as the Treasury may direct, and subject to such conditions as to records, certificates, audit or otherwise as the Secretary of State may, with the approval of the Treasury, impose.

(2) The payment of subsidy is subject to the making of a claim for it in such form and containing such particulars as the Secretary of State may from time to time determine.

(3) The amount of the subsidy for any year shall be calculated to the nearest pound, by disregarding an odd amount of £0·50, or less, and by treating an odd amount exceeding £0·50 as a whole pound.

(4) A direction or determination under this paragraph may contain supplementary or incidental provisions and may be made to apply to a specified description of authorities or to a specified authority.

Reduction or discontinuance of subsidy.

3 (1) The Secretary of State may reduce or discontinue a sending authority’s transitional town development subsidy if a dwelling in respect of which it is payable—

(a) has been demolished,

(b) has been disposed of by the receiving authority,

(c) is not fit to be used, or is not being used, for letting as a dwelling, or

(d) in any other circumstances he considers relevant.

(2) The Secretary of State may from time to time determine for the purposes of sub-paragraph (1)—

(a) the circumstances in which a dwelling is to be treated as having been demolished or disposed of,

(b) the circumstances in which a dwelling is to be treated as not fit to be used, or as not being used, for letting as a dwelling,

(c) in which circumstances other than those mentioned in sub-paragraph (1)(a) to (c) an authority’s transitional town development subsidy is to be reduced or discontinued, and

(d) the method by which any calculation is to be made;

and the power conferred by paragraph (b) above also includes power to determine what constitutes letting as a dwelling.

(3) A determination under this paragraph may contain supplementary or incidental provisions and may be made to apply to a specified description of authorities or dwellings or to a specified authority.

Payments to receiving authority.

4 (1) Where transitional town development subsidy is payable, the sending authority shall for each year pay to the receiving authority four times the amount of the sending authority’s transitional town development subsidy attributable to dwellings of the receiving authority which are available in that year for tenants from the sending authority.

(2) The payments are for the credit of the receiving authority’s general rate fund.

Communication of subsidy and payments to receiving authority.

5 (1) The Secretary of State may, with the agreement of the sending authority and the receiving authority, determine—

(a) to commute further payments of transitional town development subsidy into a single payment of an amount to be determined by him or calculated in a manner determined by him, and

(b) to commute the corresponding payments by the sending authority to the receiving authority under paragraph 4 into a single payment of four times that payable under paragraph (a).

(2) In making a determination the Secretary of State shall make such allowance, if any, as appears to him appropriate for circumstances in which, if there were no commutation, his power under paragraph 3 to reduce or discontinue the sending authority’s transitional town development subsidy might be exercised.

Meaning of “receiving authority”.

6 In this part of this Schedule “receiving authority” means the council of a receiving district within the meaning of the [1952 c. 54.] Town Development Act 1952.