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Public Consultations

Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list the public consultations undertaken by his Department since 1997, indicating for each consultation (a) if copies were available online, (b) if copies were available in print (c) the date the time period given for responses opened and (d) the date the time period given for responses closed. [66041]

Mr. Leslie: A full list of the public consultations undertaken by the Office or its predecessors since 1997 has been placed in the Library, including the dates for which the period for responses opened and closed. The list is based on central records and reflects the public consultations undertaken within the areas for which the Office is currently responsible. The Office does not, however, keep central historical records relating to the availability of consultation documents online or in printed form.

Rural Housing

Mr. Breed: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, pursuant to the answer of the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions of 2 May 2002, Official Report, column 902W, on rural housing, how many households were identified as being in priority need for housing in each year since 1996 in local authorities defined as rural, broken down by region. [61191]

Mr. McNulty: Summary information on activity under the statutory homeless provisions of the 1996 Housing Act is reported to the Department by local authorities in England. This includes the number of households accepted as being eligible for assistance, unintentionally homeless and in priority need. The numbers of these households in authorities classified as either "mixed rural" or "deep rural" are as follows:

Households accepted as unintentionally homeless and in priority need: rural authorities in England

	Financial year totals
	2000–01	1999–2000	1998–99	1997–98	1996–97
North East	1,200	900	900	1,000	1,200
Yorkshire and The Humber	1,200	1,100	1,100	1,000	1,000
East Midlands	1,900	1,700	1,700	1,900	2,000
Eastern	3,000	2,600	2,600	2,700	2,700
London	0	0	0	0	0
South East	2,900	2,500	2,400	2,400	2,600
South West	4,800	4,300	3,900	3,800	3,800
West Midlands	1,000	900	900	800	1,000
North West	1,100	1,000	900	800	1,000
All rural local authorities	17,200	15,100	14,400	14,500	15,200

9 Jul 2002 : Column 881W

Notes:

Includes estimates for any non-responding local authorities.

Numbers are rounded to the nearest 100.

Source:

DTLR P1(E) housing activity returns.

Consultation Papers

Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list the White, Green and consultation papers his Department plans to issue within the next year. [61615]

The Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister will issue whatever White, Green and consultation papers are necessary for the conduct of its business.

Queen's Jubilee Medal (Fire Service)

Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many firemen will receive the Queen's Jubilee Medal; and how many fire controllers will not receive the Queen's Jubilee Medal. [61920]

9 Jul 2002 : Column 882W

Mr. Leslie: Records are currently being checked by brigades to ascertain how many firefighters meet the detailed eligibility criteria for receipt of the Jubilee Medal. While there are 33,200 whole-time firefighters and 15,000 retained, we estimate that around 6,000 of these will not meet the criteria. There are approximately 1,500 control room staff none of whom will qualify for the award under the eligibility criteria set up by the Inter-departmental Steering Group established for this purpose.

Housing Investment

Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what was the cash value of Government investment in housing, excluding (a) housing benefit, (b) mortgage tax relief and (c) council tax relief in each year since 1997. [64370]

Mr. McNulty: The following table shows housing capital resources allocated to local authorities in each year since 1997.

Housing capital resources⁽⁷⁾£ million

	Allocations to local authorities(8)
	HIP(9)	Capital receipts initiative	Other(10)	Total	Housing corp. ADP(11)	Other(12)	Total
1997–98	692	174	60	926	727	—	1,653
1998–99	612	569	30	1,211	732	—	1,943
1999–2000	682	570	—	1,252	816	—	2,068
2000–01	770	—	1,622	2,392	808	70	3,270
2002–03	881	—	1,704	2,585	941	140	3,666

⁽⁷⁾ Figures exclude extra resources for housing PFI schemes (£760 million for 2001–02 to 2003–04).

⁽⁸⁾ Estate Action allocations, which were treated as housing allocations up to 1994–95 but now come under regeneration, are excluded. Capital grants for gypsy sites are also not included.

⁽⁹⁾ The Housing Investment Programme (HIP) figures exclude the element for expenditure financed from authorities' capital receipts included in allocations to individual authorities.

⁽¹⁰⁾ Other allocations cover: Major Repairs Allowance (from 2001–02), Arms Length Companies (from 2003–03), and Cash Incentive Schemes (1997–98 to 1998–99).

⁽¹¹⁾ The Housing Corporation ADP figures are net figures and include support for City Challenge(1997–98 to 1998–99), Rough Sleepers Initiative, ERCF schemes, Major Repairs Initiative (from 1999–2000), and remodelling works (from 1999–2000).

⁽¹²⁾ This covers the Starter Homes Initiative and the Safer Communities Supported Housing Fund.

House Building

Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many houses have been built in (a) London, and (b) each county in the south of England in each year since 1997. [64372]

Mr. McNulty: The figures for the number of permanent dwellings completed since 1997 are given in the table. They are shown in the county structure of 1997 prior to local government restructure.

House building: permanent dwellings completedNumber of dwellings

Region	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001
London	13,074	12,898	12,704	12,962	14,564
South East
Berkshire	2,207	2,604	2,292	2,564	2,288
Buckinghamshire	3,322	2,870	2,670	2,655	2,465
East Sussex	2,002	1,779	1,814	1,724	1,992
Hampshire	6,272	4,854	4,596	4,189	3,858
Isle of Wight	665	394	398	365	358
Kent	3,935	4,098	4,239	4,564	4,511
Oxfordshire	1,797	2,526	2,448	2,113	1,850
Surrey	2,673	2,462	2,439	2,310	2,607
West Sussex	2,776	2,533	2,015	1,763	1,506
South West
Avon	5,444	3,523	2,899	2,351	2,190
Cornwall	1,424	1,935	1,923	2,108	2,150
Devon	3,567	3,099	3,668	3,114	3,187
Dorset	2,215	1,819	2,082	1,968	2,014
Gloucestershire	1,773	1,902	1,665	1,687	1,683
Somerset	1,443	1,490	1,806	1,826	1,775
Wiltshire	2,839	2,684	2,019	2,240	2,329

Station Houses

Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many station houses have been provided for key workers in London in each year since 1997. [64371]

9 Jul 2002 : Column 883W

Mr. Raynsford: The Fire Service has single person quarters in four dwellings in London. Each provides accommodation for four fire fighters, let on a non-secure tenant basis.

Mayoral Management

Mr. Pickles: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister for what reasons he decided to end the practice of compulsory referendums for mayoral management of local authorities. [65997]

Mr. Raynsford: I set out the reasons behind the Government's approach to the use of the Secretary of State's powers to direct councils to hold mayoral referendums in the answer given to my hon. Friend the Member for Leicester, East (Keith Vaz) on 25 June 2002, Official Report, columns 812–13W. Within the framework of freedoms and flexibilities that we are introducing for councils, we believe it is more appropriate for councils themselves to make and justify to local people their own judgments on the outcome of any consultation about proposals for a new constitution.

It continues to be the case that where 5 per cent. or more of a local authority's electorate sign a petition calling for a mayoral referendum to be held, the council will be required to hold such a referendum.

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