PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
Public Works Loan Board: Housing Revenue Accounts (2 March 2021)

In the financial year 2019-20, 65 local authorities in England borrowed £657 million to finance Housing Revenue Accounts (HRAs). As local authorities borrow from the PWLB to fund their capital programmes as a whole, it is difficult to know for certain how much of this borrowing was from the PWLB.

Between 12 March and 25 November 2020, the PWLB offered a separate HRA rate, which was 100 basis points lower than the Certainty rate at which local authorities could borrow for all other capital expenditure. During this time 50 local authorities borrowed £1.146 billion from the PWLB at the HRA rate.

The HRA rate was discontinued after the Certainty rate was reduced by 100 basis points, which equalised the costs of borrowing for all types of capital expenditure.