Appendix A:
Authority background

Background

Fig. A.1: Dundee unemployment rate - Feb 1999

Source: Tayside Economic Review 1998

Dundee City Council is one of 32 LAs formed in April 1996 as a result of the reorganisation of local government in Scotland. This restructuring resulted in the new unitary authority covering a reduced catchment area because large areas which previously fell within the catchment area of the former City of Dundee District Council were transferred to the neighbouring authorities of Perth & Kinross and Angus. Following reorganisation, Dundee City Council took over responsibility for functions such as collection of council tax and administration of CTB from the former Tayside Regional Council.

Unemployment

At the time of our inspection, Dundee had a higher level of unemployment (8%) than the Scottish average (6.5%). This is illustrated in Fig. A.1 and reflects structural changes in the local economy which have resulted in a marked decline in the traditional manufacturing sector. In an effort to improve local employment prospects, the LA is presently implementing a 3-year Economic Development Plan in partnership with other bodies such as Scottish Enterprise Tayside, ES and Scottish Homes. With a workforce of just over 8,000, the LA is the largest employer in the city of Dundee.

Deprivation

The deprivation indices provided by the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions as part of their analysis of local government grant distribution do not cover the Scottish unitary authorities. The Scottish Office does not provide such data either. However, a comparison of data from the 1981 and 1991 censuses reveals a trend of increasing deprivation based upon factors such as:

• unemployment rates
• low-income households
• number of lone parents.

There is little evidence that this trend is being reversed. In 1996, figures produced by the Dundee Partnership in its publication Dundee: regenerating our communities, reshaping our city indicated that, within Scotland, Dundee had the fourth largest number of electoral wards classified as deprived.

Benefits caseload

According to DSS figures, Dundee City Council paid out just over £52.5 million in HB/CTB payments during 1996/97. In contrast with the national trend, the LA has told us that expenditure on HB/CTB increased to just under £61 million in 1997/98.

During 1996/97, rent rebate payments made by Dundee City Council accounted for just below 66% of its total expenditure on HB. This high incidence of rent rebate expenditure, relative to the GB average of 49%, reflects the high proportion of housing stock in Dundee still in the public sector despite the increasing trend of transferring council properties to HAs. A breakdown of the LA's HB/CTB caseload during 1997/98 is given at Figs. A.2 and A.3.

Source: DSS (from returns made by LAs)

Source: DSS (from returns made by LAs)

Intake of new claims

Contrary to the national trend, the overall number of HB/CTB new claims received by Dundee City Council increased between 1996/97 and 1997/98. This can probably be attributed to a combination of the growing structural unemployment in Dundee referred to earlier, and the results of a benefit take-up campaign run by the LA's Social Work Department during 1997/98. Examination of the relevant figures up until the period ended 30 September 1998 revealed that the increase in new HB claims had continued into the first half of 1998/99. The figures for 1996/97 and 1997/98 are illustrated in Fig. A.4.

Source: Dundee City Council