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Hybrid Wolves

Mr. William O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what advice his Department has issued to local authorities on the subject of hybrid

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wolves; what plans he has to issue further advice; and what requests his Department has received for such guidance; [3652]

(2) if he will make a statement on his Department's definition of a hybrid wolf for the purposes of licensing. [3653]

Mr. Clappison: The Department has received requests for guidance on hybrid wolves from the following local authorities: Bassetlaw district council, Birmingham city council, Broxtowe borough council, Newark and Sherwood district council; Rotherham metropolitan borough council; South Cambridgeshire district council, the City of Wakefield metropolitan district council and Wolverhampton metropolitan borough council.

Under the Dangerous Wild Animals Act 1976, a licence to keep a wolf is required from the local authority. A licence is also required to keep any hybrid where one parent is--or both parents are--of a kind specified in the schedule to the Act. The Department has so advised those local authorities seeking guidance. There are no plans to issue any further central guidance to local authorities.

Rents

Mr. Pike: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what assessment he has made of the level of rent paid by (a) private tenants and (b) recipients of housing benefit; and if he will make a statement. [3809]

Mr. Clappison: The 1995-96 survey of English housing estimated the average weekly rent of private tenants to be £70 per week. The average weekly rent for private tenants on housing benefit was the same. Assured tenants on benefit paid an average of £8 per week less than those who were not receiving benefit, but there were more benefit recipients in this sector. The table gives full details.

Rents and proportions of private tenants by type of tenancy: HB and non-HB

	Regulated	Assured and assured shorthold	Not accessible to the public (e.g. employer)	Resident landlord	All
Average rent					(£ a week)
HB recipients	39	79	--	45	70
Non-HB	40	87	34	44	69
All	39	84	34	44	70
Proportion in tenancy type						Per cent.
HB recipients	18	75	0	7	100
Non-HB	10	52	27	12	100
All	12	59	19	10	100

These figures are supported by other research for the Department, which found that when all other factors are held constant, private tenants receiving housing benefit do not pay significantly different rents from tenants who are not on housing benefit.

Mr. Pike: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received about unfair rents and rent capping in the last 12 months. [3810]

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Mr. Clappison: We have received a wide range of representations. For example, landlords of regulated tenants argue that they should be freed from the controls of the Rent Act 1977 and allowed to charge market rents; tenants in the deregulated sector argue that full housing benefit should be available to support above average rents. We believe that the current legislation provides the right balance between the interests of landlords, tenants and the taxpayer.

Housing Corporation

Mr. Pike: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he last met representatives of the Housing Corporation; and what was discussed. [3768]

Mr. Clappison: My right hon. Friend the Minister for Local Government, Housing and Urban Regeneration last met the chairman of Housing Corporation on 16 October to discuss various matters, including finances and board membership.

Housing Starts

Mr. Pike: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many new housing starts there were in each year since 1976, broken down into (a) local authority housing, (b) housing association housing and (c) private housing; and if he will make a statement. [3808]

Mr. Clappison: Estimates of house building are shown in the publication "Housing and Construction Statistics". Figures for 1976 to 1992 are in tables 6.1 of the annual editions covering the period from 1976 to 1986 through to the annual edition covering 1983 to 1993. The latest figures for 1993, 1994, 1995 and the first six months of 1996 are in the quarterly publication "Housing and Construction Statistics, Part 1--June 1996".

Copies of these publications are in the Library.

Housing Associations

Mr. Pike: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he last met representatives of housing associations; and what was discussed. [3767]

Mr. Clappison: My right hon. Friend the Minister for Local Government, Housing and Urban Regeneration last met the chairman and chief executive of the National Housing Federation on 18 September at a reception to mark the raising of £10 billion of private finance for housing associations since the Housing Act 1988.

Homelessness

Mr. Pike: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he last met representatives of homelessness charities to discuss projects for the homeless. [3769]

Mr. Clappison: On 31 October, my right hon. Friend the Minister for Local Government, Housing and Urban Regeneration met representatives from CHAR, Crisis, Homeless Network and Shelter to discuss the Government's proposals to provide further help to tackle rough sleeping, building on the success of the rough sleepers initiative. Those proposals were set out in my right hon. Friend's answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Beckenham (Mr. Merchant) on 31 October, Official

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Report, column 187. These voluntary sector agencies, and Centrepoint, have indicated their willingness to work nationally with Government Departments, local authorities and other agencies to help ensure that there is no necessity for people to sleep rough.

British Waterways

Mr. Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on the privatisation of British Waterways. [3870]

Mr. Robert B. Jones: We have no plans to privatise British Waterways.

Business Rates

Mr. Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his Department's estimate of the number of sports clubs which pay business rates on their premises. [4142]

Mr. Curry: My Department estimates that about 10,000 sports clubs are liable for rates in England. Many will have their bills reduced or remitted in full by local authorities using their discretionary powers.

Mr. Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what proportion of business rates paid in the last year for which figures are available on sporting rights relate to (a) shooting, (b) fly fishing and (c) coarse fishing. [4141]

Mr. Curry: The information requested is not held centrally.

Mr. Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) if he will list the representations he received asking for the abolition of the business rate on sporting rights showing the name of the organisation or individual requesting such abolition and the date such representations were received by his Department; [4143]

(2) if he will list the representations he received asking for the abolition or reduction of the business rate on sports club premises, showing the name of the organisation or individual requesting such abolition and the date such representations were received by his Deaprtmetn. [4144]

Mr. Curry: I have received a number of representations over the past three years. I will write to the hon. Member with further details in due course.

Mr. Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will place in the Library a list indicating for each local authority area the amount received from business rates on sporting rights. [4140]

Mr. Curry: The information requested is not held centrally. There are about 6,000 sporting rights in England. We estimate that local authorities receive less than £5 million in respect of rates on those hereditaments.

Development Land, Bedfordshire

Mr. Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he called in proposals for development of land near the village of Henlow, Bedfordshire. [4210]

Mr. Robert B. Jones: We have decided to call in this proposal for industrial and commercial development on a former sand and gravel pit. The decision was issued today.

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Environment Agency

Mr. Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what assessment he has made of the annual report and accounts of the Environment Agency 1995-96. [4080]

Mr. Clappison: The financial statements in the Environment Agency's annual report and accounts for 1995-96 were audited by auditors appointed by the Secretary of State. We are satisfied from the auditors' report that the funds of the agency were properly and well managed. The Secretary of State laid the annual report and accounts before Parliament in July 1996.

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