Records of Finance and Local Government Divisions

Records relating to the creating bodies' responsibilities for local government finance.

Registered files:

• Finance (Local Government and Development) Directorate (FLGD series), AT 30.
• Finance, Local Taxation Division (FLT series), AT 47.
• Local Authority Finance (FLA series), AT 44.
• Local Authority Rate Support Grants (FLG series), AT 53.
• Local Government Superannuation (LGS series), AT 40.
• Local Government and Revenue Division (FLGR series), AT 83.
• Local Government Finance Studies (LGFS series), AT 106.
• Local Government Directorate, Local Government Review Team (LGRT series), AT 208.
• Local Government Re-Organisation Directorate (LGR Series), AT 113.
• Finance Local Authority Expenditure Division, and Finance Local Authority Expenditure and Revenue Division (FLE and FLER Series), AT 146.
• Local Government Capital Finance Division (FLC Series), AT 147.

Records of the Committee of Inquiry into Local Government Finance (Layfield Committee), AT 10

Department of the Environment: Finance, Housing and General Division: Registered Files (FHG Series): AT 45

Topics

Government finances

Taxation

Local Government

In 1971, the Finance (Local Government and Development) Directorate was first established after the financial divisions, inherited by the newly created Department of the Environment, had been reorganised into more efficient units. A range of issues relating to local government finance were dealt with by the divisions which made up the directorate.

In 1974 the directorate was abolished after a reorganisation of the bodies dealing with local government financial affairs. Two new directorates were created: (1) Local Government Finance Policy Directorate, which, among other duties, inherited responsibility for the rate support grants. Responsibility for grant policy was retained by the Local Authority Division but the distribution of grants was overseen by the Local Authority Grants Division (previously the Local Government and Development Division). In 1975 a Local Government Grants and Rates Division was also established to provide economic and statistical support for the distribution of rate support grants.(2) Local Authority Expenditure Directorate, to which the Highways Division was transferred. A Local Public Transport Division was also established, but the creation of a separate Department of Transport moved these divisions out of the Department of the Environment's sphere of responsibility in 1976.

The finance organisation underwent a number of changes following the establishment of the Department of the Environment in 1970. In 1974 a committee (the Layfield Committee) was appointed to inquire specifically into local government finance and its report was published in 1976. As a result, in the same year, the two Local Government Finance Directorates established in 1974 were dissolved and replaced with a single Local Government Finance Policy Directorate.