PART 7Housing
CHAPTER 3Housing finance
171Limits on indebtedness
(1)
The Secretary of State may from time to time make a determination providing for the calculation in relation to each local housing authority in England that keeps a Housing Revenue Account of—
(a)
the amount of housing debt that, at such time and on such assumptions as the Secretary of State may determine, is to be treated as held by the authority, and
(b)
the maximum amount of such housing debt that the authority may hold.
(2)
A determination under this section may, in particular, provide for all or part of an amount to be calculated in accordance with a formula or formulae.
(3)
A determination under this section may provide for assumptions to be made in making a calculation whether or not those assumption are, or are likely to be, borne out by events.
(4)
A determination under this section may be varied or revoked by a subsequent determination.
(5)
A local housing authority may not hold debt in contravention of a determination under this section.
(6)
In this section “housing debt”, in relation to a local housing authority, means debt—
(a)
which is held by the authority in connection with the exercise of its functions relating to houses and other property within its Housing Revenue Account, and
(b)
interest and other charges in respect of which are required to be carried to the debit of that account.