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Equitable Life
Mr. Chope: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he expects the Penrose Inquiry into Equitable Life to be published in 2002; and if he will make a statement. [71613]
Ruth Kelly: Arrangements for publication will be considered once the report of the Penrose Inquiry has been received. No firm date has been specified for the completion of the Inquiry, though Lord Penrose is keen to ensure that the Inquiry proceeds as quickly as possible consistent with producing a thorough and authoritative account.
UK Citizens
Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what percentage of UK citizens were born abroad; and what the corresponding figure was in each of the past 30 years. [71132]
Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Barry Sheerman, dated 19 July 2002:
As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your question concerning what percentage of UK citizens were from abroad; and what the corresponding figure was in each of the past 30 years. (71132)
The information you have requested is not available. Information on the citizenship of residents in the UK is derived from the Labour Force Survey. This identifies the number of British citizens resident in the UK, however, it is not possible to separately identify how many of these UK citizens arrived in the UK from abroad.
Devolution
Angus Robertson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the EU Contact Committee on certain schemes for collective investment in securities is next due to meet; whether representatives of the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if he will make a statement. [70902]
Ruth Kelly: The EU Contact Committee on certain schemes for collective investment in transferable securities is next due to meet in autumn 2002. A precise date has not yet been fixed.
19 Jul 2002 : Column 637W
The UK is represented on the Committee by officials from HM Treasury and the Financial Services Authority. Financial regulation is not a devolved matter. Representatives of the Scottish Executive do not attend the Committee.
Employment Statistics
Mr. Challen: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people were (a) in employment and (b) in unemployment expressed as a percentage of the total population in (i) Leeds, (ii) Yorkshire and the Humber and (iii) London in each of the past 10 years. [69939]
Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Colin Challen, dated 19 July 2002:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question about employment and unemployment in Leeds, Yorkshire and the Humber, and London. (69939)
The table overleaf gives estimates of the employment and unemployment rates in spring (March to May) of each year from 1992 to 2001. These estimates are from the Labour Force Survey.
| Per cent | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom(7) | Leeds(8) | Yorkshire & the Humber(7) | London(7) | |
| 1993 | 70.4 | 73.2 | 71.0 | 67.6 |
| 1994 | 70.8 | 73.0 | 70.2 | 66.3 |
| 1995 | 71.3 | 72.2 | 71.7 | 67.5 |
| 1996 | 71.9 | 75.4 | 71.8 | 68.2 |
| 1997 | 72.9 | 74.3 | 70.9 | 70.5 |
| 1998 | 73.4 | 75.9 | 72.4 | 69.9 |
| 1999 | 73.9 | 74.7 | 72.9 | 71.7 |
| 2000 | 74.6 | 77.3 | 73.9 | 71.5 |
| 2001 | 74.9 | 80.2 | 73.8 | 71.3 |
| 2002 | 74.7 | 76.9 | 73.4 | 71.0 |
Source:
ONS Labour Force Survey
(5)People in employment as a percentage of the relevant population
(6)Men aged 16–64 and women aged 16–59
(7)Seasonally adjusted data for March to May
(8)Not seasonally adjusted data; 4 quarter average ending May
19 Jul 2002 : Column 638W
DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER
Offshore Fire-fighters
Mr. David Stewart: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what research his Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on the level of risk to which staff fire-fighting on offshore facilities are exposed. [67329]
Mr. Jamieson [holding answer 8 July 2002]: I have been asked to reply.
The Health & Safety Executive (HSE) has not commissioned any research into these matters However, duty holders of offshore installations are required to demonstrate to HSE they have evaluated the risks to which their personnel could be exposed during fire-fighting activities and that those risks are effectively controlled.
Empty Homes
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister which Government Departments and agencies have (a) adopted and (b) not adopted the revised guidance on securing the better use of empty homes published by the DETR in 1999; and if he will make a statement. [70261]
Mr. McNulty: This information is not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
Unfit Dwellings
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many (a) houses, (b) houses in multiple occupation and (c) other dwellings were declared unfit for human habitation, broken down by (i) failure of gas appliance, (ii) failure of kitchen amenities, (iii) failure of bathroom and drainage facilities, (iv) structural failure and (v) other failures, in each of the last five years. [66676]
Mr. McNulty: The most recent information available is for private sector dwellings and houses in multiple occupation in 1997–98. This is shown in the table below. Private sector dwellings and houses in multiple occupation declared unfit: in 1997–98
| Total of which those declared unfit under Section 604 of the Housing Act 1985 (1) | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Serious disrepair | Structural stability | Damp- ness | Venti- lation | Heating | Lighting | Water supply | Prep./ Cooking Food | Bath/Shower Hand basin H&C/WC | Drainage | |
| 48.0 | 22.2 | 3.8 | 11.2 | 3.0 | 3.5 | 2.3 | 2.1 | 5.4 | 3.7 | 1.8 |
| Total | Thousands | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Declared unfit under | Reasons for unfitness under section 352(2) | |||||
| Section 604 | Section 352 | Total | Storage/Prep. Cooking Food | |||
| WC | Baths/Basins showers HC | Escape nfrom fire/fire precautions | ||||
| 2.0 | 8.0 | 8.9 | 1.0 | 0.4 | 1.0 | 6.1 |
(1) The number of reasons is greater than the numbers of dwellings identified because a dwelling or HMO can be unfit for more than one reason
(2) A HMO can be unfit under both sections 352 and 604, therefore the total is less than the sum of the components
19 Jul 2002 : Column 639W
Housing Improvement Grants
Mr. Laurence Robertson: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what funding he is providing to local councils for housing improvement grants in (a) England and (b) Gloucestershire; and if he will make a statement. [64443]
Mr. McNulty: The Government no longer allocates specific funding to local authorities for housing improvement grants. Each housing authority must decide how much it will allocate towards this purpose from the total capital funding provided to it by the Government each year.
Total capital resources made available for housing purposes for all authorities in England for 2002–03 is £2.5 billion. For Gloucestershire the figure for 2002–03 is £16.6 million, an increase of 85 per cent on 1997–98.
Planning Decisions
Mr. Wiggin: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what recent steps have been taken to speed up planning decisions. [71022]
Mr. McNulty: The comprehensive package of planning reforms announced by my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister on 18 July 2002, Official Report, columns 438–442W includes measures to speed up planning decisions. These include extra resources for central and local government, tough targets for delivery of plans and development control decisions, and proposals to improve the efficiency of the planning system and raise the quality of outputs.
Urban Renewal
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much private investment there has been in urban renewal in each of the last five years. [69380]
Mr. McNulty: Information on all the private investment that contributes to urban renewal is not collected by Government.
Traveller Encampments
Tim Loughton: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether he plans to revise regulations regarding traveller encampments. [71096]
Mr. McNulty: On 5 July, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister in conjunction with the Home Office, issued a joint news release outlining the Government's new approach to tackling unauthorised Traveller camps.
The new procedures include stricter powers for the police to move on unauthorised Traveller encampments, provided the local authority have made adequate provision for sites in the area; producing new guidance on managing unauthorised camping and improved local Gypsy site provision.
A copy of the news release has been placed in the Library of the House.
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