
1 
These Regulations may be cited as the Local Government (Promotion of Economic Development) Regulations 1990 and shall come into force on 1st April 1990.
2 

(1) In these Regulations, except where the context otherwise requires—
 “the Act” means the Local Government and Housing Act 1989;
 “economic development powers” means the powers conferred by section 33(1) of the Act or any other enactment by virtue of which a relevant authority may promote the economic development of its area;
 “financial assistance” means assistance of any of the descriptions specified in paragraphs (a) to (f) of section 33(3) of the Act;
 “scheduled authority” means a district council in Wales and an authority specified in Schedule 1 to these Regulations.
(2) For the purposes of these Regulations, a relevant authority shall be regarded as providing financial assistance if, in the exercise of economic development powers, it agrees to provide or joins with any other person in agreeing to provide financial assistance.
3 

(1) Subject to paragraph (2), these Regulations apply—
(a) where the economic development power in question is that conferred by section 33(1) of the Act, to its exercise on or after 1st April 1990;
(b) in any other case, where the power is exercised on or after 1st July 1990.
(2) Nothing in any other provision of these Regulations shall apply to preclude a relevant authority from providing financial assistance in fulfilment of an agreement entered into before 1st April 1990.
4 
The condition specified for the purposes of section 33(3)(f) of the Act is that the property, services or other financial benefit is provided for a consideration that is less than the best that can reasonably be obtained.
5 

(1) Subject to paragraph (2), there are specified for the purposes of section 34(1) of the Act the steps listed in Schedule 2 to these Regulations.
(2) Nothing in paragraph (1) or Schedule 2 shall preclude an authority from—
(a) carrying out or participating in estate agency work—
(i) which consists solely of the publication of information about land; or
(ii) in connection with the acquisition or disposal of land that adjoins land which the authority proposes to acquire or dispose of;
(b) carrying out or participating in insurance broking in connection with policies relating to moveable property in any building or on any land of which the occupier is a tenant of the authority;
(c) publishing a newspaper where the sole or main purpose of such publication is the promotion of the economic development of the authority’s area;
(d) doing anything which is—
(i) incidental to the provision by the authority of any training facility, the construction or maintenance of any building or the management of any land in which the authority has an interest; or
(ii) connected with the promotion of tourism or the provision of information to the public;
(e) doing anything on behalf of a Minister of the Crown or, in pursuance of the Local Authorities (Goods and Services) Act 1970, on behalf of any public body within the meaning of section 1 of that Act.
6 

(1) Subject to paragraph (3), there are specified for the purposes of section 34(1) of the Act the steps mentioned in paragraph (2).
(2) The steps referred to in paragraph (1) are the provision of financial assistance of any of the descriptions specified in paragraphs (a) to (c) of section 33(3) of the Act to a person who conducts a business or undertaking with a view to profit where—
(a) the amount of the assistance is determinable solely by reference to the financial results of that business or undertaking over a period which at the date on which the authority considers the provision of the assistance is not wholly in the past; or
(b) it is intended that the assistance should be applied, either wholly or in part, in or towards the payment of the wages or salary of any employee of that person.
(3) Nothing in paragraph (1) or (2) shall preclude a relevant authority from providing financial assistance by way of grant which—
(a) is made for the purpose of enabling the recipient—
(i) to employ a person who, for the period of at least seven days immediately preceding the commencement of the employment, was unemployed;
(ii) to employ a person for the duration of any period in which he is undergoing training;
(iii) to employ not more than three persons who are qualified to provide some particular knowledge or skill required for the purposes of the business or undertaking; or
(b) is provided as part of a scheme to which contributions are made by a Minister of the Crown or the European Commission.
7 

(1) Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3), a relevant authority that is not a scheduled authority shall not, in the exercise of economic development powers, in any financial year provide financial assistance of any of the descriptions specified in section 33(3)(a) to (e) of the Act or by accepting or purchasing any bill of exchange within the meaning of the Bills of Exchange Act 1882—
(a) to any person whose undertaking or business is conducted with a view to profit; or
(b) to any voluntary organisation for the purposes of enabling that organisation to make a grant or loan or give a guarantee to a person whose business or undertaking is conducted with a view to profit,
where the total value or amount of that assistance in that year exceeds £10,000.
(2) Nothing in paragraph (1) shall preclude an authority from providing such assistance as is mentioned in regulation 6(3).
(3) Nothing in paragraph (1) shall preclude a county council from doing anything if any scheduled authority in the county could do it.
8 

(1) There are specified for the purposes of section 34(1) of the Act the steps mentioned in paragraphs (2) and (3).
(2) The step mentioned in this paragraph is the provision, after 1st April 1991, by a relevant authority which is not a local education authority within the meaning of the Education Act 1944, to a person who is not a member, officer or other employee of the authority, of training or education services other than those included within a programme of such services which the local education authority for the area in which the services are to be provided has approved.
(3) The steps mentioned in this paragraph are—
(a) the acquisition by a relevant authority of any land outside its area; or
(b) the provision of financial assistance for the acquistion or improvement by any other person of any such land, or the acquisition or improvement of plant or machinery in, on or under, any such land,
otherwise than after consultation with such authority for the area in which the land in question is situated as is mentioned in the Table below.

Area in which land is situated Authority exercising powers Authority to be consulted
A London borough Any relevant authority The council of the London borough
A metropolitan district Any relevant authority The council of the metropolitan district
A non-metropolitan county Any county council The county council
 Any non-metropolitan district council The district council
 Any London borough council or council of a metropolitan district The county council and the council of the non-metropolitan district
9 

(1) Where a relevant authority in the exercise of economic development powers provides financial assistance in the form of a loan and the rate of interest in respect of that loan is more favourable than that reasonably obtainable on the open market, the accounts of that authority for each financial year in which an amount of principal is outstanding as respects any such loan, shall include a separate account of—
(a) the amount of any such loan;
(b) the difference between the amount of interest payable in that year in respect of that loan and the amount which would have been payable in that year if interest on that loan had been payable at the rate prevailing in the market for a loan of that nature.
(2) A copy of a statement of the account required to be kept in accordance with paragraph (1) shall be deposited with the proper officer of the authority at the time that a statement of the authority’s accounts is published in accordance with regulations under section 23 of the Local Government Finance Act 1982.
Chris Patten
Secretary of State for the Environment
27th March 1990Peter Walker
Secretary of State for Wales
27th March 1990
SCHEDULE 1
Regulation 2(1)


 In the county of Avon
 Bristol City Council
 Woodspring District Council
 In the county of Cambridgeshire
 East Cambridgeshire District Council
 Fenland District Council
 Huntingdonshire District Council
 In the county of Cheshire
 Chester City Council
 Congleton Borough Council
 Crewe and Nantwich Borough Council
 Ellesmere Port and Neston Borough Council
 Halton Borough Council
 Macclesfield Borough Council
 Vale Royal Borough Council
 Warrington Borough Council
 In the county of Cleveland
 Hartlepool Borough Council
 Langbaurgh-on-Tees Borough Council
 Middlesbrough Borough Council
 Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council
 In the county of Cornwall
 Caradon District Council
 Carrick District Council
 Kerrier District Council
 North Cornwall District Council
 Penwith District Council
 Restormel District Council
 In the county of Cumbria
 Allerdale District Council
 Barrow-in-Furness Borough Council
 Carlisle City Council
 Copeland Borough Council
 Eden District Council
 South Lakeland District Council
 In the county of Derbyshire
 Amber Valley Borough Council
 Bolsover District Council
 Chesterfield Borough Council
 Derby City Council
 Derbyshire Dales District Council
 Erewash Borough Council
 High Peak Borough Council
 North East Derbyshire District Council
 South Derbyshire District Council
 In the county of Devon
 East Devon District Council
 Exeter City Council
 Mid-Devon District Council
 North Devon District Council
 Plymouth City Council
 South Hams District Council
 Teignbridge District Council
 Torbay Borough Council
 Torridge District Council
 West Devon Borough Council
 In the county of Dorset
 West Dorset District Council
 In the county of Durham
 Chester-le-Street District Council
 Darlington Borough Council
 Derwentside District Council
 Durham City Council
 Easington District Council
 Sedgefield District Council
 Teesdale District Council
 Wear Valley District Council
 In the county of East Sussex
 Rother District Council
 In the county of Essex
 Tendring District Council
 In the county of Gloucestershire
 Forest of Dean District Council
 In Greater London
 The council of the—
 London Borough of Brent
 London Borough of Ealing
 London Borough of Greenwich
 London Borough of Hackney
 London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham
 London Borough of Haringey
 London Borough of Islington
 Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea
 London Borough of Lambeth
 London Borough of Lewisham
 London Borough of Newham
 London Borough of Southwark
 London Borough of Tower Hamlets
 London Borough of Wandsworth
 In the county of Greater Manchester
 Bolton Borough Council
 Bury Borough Council
 Manchester City Council
 Oldham Borough Council
 Rochdale Borough Council
 Salford City Council
 Stockport Borough Council
 Tameside Borough Council
 Trafford Borough Council
 Wigan Borough Council
 In the county of Hereford and Worcester
 Bromsgrove District Council
 Hereford City Council
 Leominster District Council
 Malvern Hills District Council
 Redditch Borough Council
 South Herefordshire District Council
 Worcester City Council
 Wychavon District Council
 Wyre Forest District Council
 In the county of Humberside
 Boothferry Borough Council
 Cleethorpes Borough Council
 East Yorkshire Borough of Beverley Borough Council
 East Yorkshire Borough Council
 Glanford Borough Council
 Great Grimsby Borough Council
 Holderness Borough Council
 Kingston upon Hull City Council
 Scunthorpe Borough Council
 In the county of Isle of Wight
 Medina Borough Council
 South Wight Borough Council
 In the Isles of Scilly
 The Council of the Isles of Scilly
 In the county of Kent
 Ashford Borough Council
 Shepway District Council
 Thanet District Council
 In the county of Lancashire
 Blackburn Borough Council
 Blackpool Borough Council
 Burnley Borough Council
 Chorley Borough Council
 Fylde Borough Council
 Hyndburn Borough Council
 Lancaster City Council
 Pendle Borough Council
 Preston Borough Council
 Ribble Valley Borough Council
 Rossendale Borough Council
 South Ribble Borough Council
 West Lancashire District Council
 Wyre Borough Council
 In the county of Leicestershire
 Blaby District Council
 Harborough District Council
 Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council
 Leicester City Council
 North West Leicestershire District Council
 Rutland District Council
 In the county of Lincolnshire
 Boston Borough Council
 East Lindsey District Council
 Lincoln City Council
 North Kesteven District Council
 South Holland District Council
 South Kesteven District Council
 West Lindsey District Council
 In the county of Merseyside
 Knowsley Borough Council
 Liverpool City Council
 St. Helens Borough Council
 Sefton Borough Council
 Wirral Borough Council
 In the county of Norfolk
 Breckland District Council
 Broadland District Council
 Great Yarmouth Borough Council
 King’s Lynn and West Norfolk Borough Council
 North Norfolk District Council
 In the county of Northamptonshire
 Corby District Council
 East Northamptonshire District Council
 In the county of Northumberland
 Alnwick District Council
 Berwick-upon-Tweed Borough Council
 Blyth Valley Borough Council
 Castle Morpeth Borough Council
 Tynedale District Council
 Wansbeck District Council
 In the county of North Yorkshire
 Craven District Council
 Hambleton District Council
 Harrogate Borough Council
 York City Council
 Richmondshire District Council
 Ryedale District Council
 Scarborough Borough Council
 Selby District Council
 In the county of Nottinghamshire
 Ashfield District Council
 Bassetlaw District Council
 Broxtowe Borough Council
 Gedling Borough Council
 Mansfield District Council
 Newark and Sherwood District Council
 Nottingham City Council
 Rushcliffe Borough Council
 In the county of Shropshire
 Bridgnorth District Council
 North Shropshire District Council
 Oswestry Borough Council
 Shrewsbury and Atcham Borough Council
 South Shropshire District Council
 The Wrekin District Council
 In the county of Somerset
 Sedgemoor District Council
 South Somerset District Council
 Taunton Deane Borough Council
 West Somerset District Council
 In the county of South Yorkshire
 Barnsley Borough Council
 Doncaster Borough Council
 Rotherham Borough Council
 Sheffield City Council
 In the county of Staffordshire
 Cannock Chase District Council
 East Staffordshire District Council
 Lichfield District Council
 Newcastle-under-Lyme District Council
 South Staffordshire District Council
 Stafford Borough Council
 Staffordshire Moorlands District Council
 Stoke-on-Trent City Council
 Tamworth Borough Council
 In the county of Suffolk
 Mid-Suffolk District Council
 Suffolk Coastal District Council
 Waveney District Council
 In the county of Tyne and Wear
 Gateshead Metropolitan Borough Council
 Newcastle upon Tyne City Council
 North Tyneside Borough Council
 South Tyneside Borough Council
 Sunderland Borough Council
 In the county of Warwickshire
 North Warwickshire Borough Council
 Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council
 Rugby Borough Council
 Stratford-on-Avon District Council
 Warwick District Council
 In the county of West Midlands
 Birmingham City Council
 Coventry City Council
 Dudley Borough Council
 Sandwell Borough Council
 Solihull Borough Council
 Walsall Borough Council
 Wolverhampton Borough Council
 In the county of West Yorkshire
 Bradford City Council
 Calderdale Borough Council
 Kirklees Borough Council
 Leeds City Council
 Wakefield City Council

SCHEDULE 2
Regulation 5(1)

For the purposes of regulation 5(1) of these Regulations, the steps are—
(a) the carrying out of, or participation in—
(i) deposit-taking business within the meaning of the Banking Act 1987;
(ii) investment business within the meaning of the Financial Services Act 1986;
(iii) insurance business that is long term business or general business within the meaning of the Insurance Companies Act 1982;
(iv) insurance broking in relation to any matter in respect of which no relevant authority has an insurable interest;
(v) estate agency work within the meaning of the Estate Agents Act 1979;
(b) the audit of, or report on, a company’s accounts pursuant to sections 236 and 237 of the Companies Act 1985;
(c) the preparation for reward of any document which effects or is instrumental in effecting the transfer of land in respect of which no relevant authority has an interest;
(d) the giving for reward of any opinion in writing as to the value of any land in which no relevant authority has an interest;
(e) the acquisition of an interest in any undertaking which publishes any matter by television, radio transmission or by means of any newspaper as defined in section 1 of the Newspaper Libel and Registration Act 1881; and the publication of any newspaper as so defined;
(f) the purchase of goods for resale or hiring;
(g) the sale or hiring out of goods as the agent of another person;
(h) the acquisition of services for supply to others;
(i) he supply of services as the agent of another person;
(j) the purchase of goods or the employment of persons for the purpose of the manufacture of goods.
