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28 Jan 2003 : Column 784Wcontinued
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make it his policy to ensure that technical craft skills for trades are available to young people in south-east Essex. [92781]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Government and the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) are wholly committed to Modern Apprenticeships (MA) as a quality work-based learning route to craft, supervisory and technician skills for young people in England. We have adopted a challenging Public Service Agreement (PSA) target for MA entrants by 200428 per cent. of young people to begin an MA by the age of 22. MA is one of the wide range of specialist pathways that will be available to young people under a transformed 1419 phase of learning.
The Chancellor, the Secretary of State for Education and Skills and the Chairman of the Learning and Skills Council have announced a new Modern Apprenticeship
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Task Force which will take a key role in promoting MA to employers and thereby contributing to increased take-upin south-east Essex and elsewhere.
All parties involved in the initiative are working together to increase the take-up of MA. The LSC in England works through its 47 local offices (one of which covers Essex) and with key partners to identify and meet local skills needs by promoting and funding the delivery of work-based learning programmes, including MA and college-based provision. Connexions Partnerships are delivering improved advice and guidance to young people on the opportunities available in their communities. New and developing Sector Skills Councils also play a key role by supporting promotion to employers in their sectors.
In addition, the Government will be publishing a national skills strategy in June, setting out how we will further boost numbers of young people acquiring technical and craft skills across the economy.
Mr. Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much the Learning and Skills Council spent on training allowances for young people in 200102. [90917]
Margaret Hodge: This is a matter for the Learning and Skills Council. John Harwood, the council's chief executive will write to the hon. Member with the information requested and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Libraries.
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many homes were owned by the council in Coventry in each of the last five years. [93140]
Mr. McNulty: Local authorities report their number of council homes as at 1 April on their annual Housing Investment Programme (HIP) returns. Based on Coventry City Council's recent returns the reported numbers of council homes were:
As at 1 April | Number |
---|---|
1998 | 20,359 |
1999 | 20,175 |
2000 | 19,886 |
The Council ceased to have any council housing in September 2000, following the transfer of the council stock under the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's Large Scale Voluntary Transfer Programme (LSVT) to new Registered Social LandlordsWhitefriars North and Whitefriars South, within the Whitefriars Housing Group.
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the level of housing need has been in Coventry in each of the last five years. [93141]
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Mr. McNulty: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given on 7 January 2003, Official Report, column 115W. Local authorities in England report the numbers of households on their housing register (excluding tenants awaiting transfers) as at 1 April in their annual Housing Investment Programme (HIP) returns. Based on Coventry City Council's recent returns the reported numbers in the last five years are:
As at 1 April | Number |
---|---|
1998 | 7,767 |
1999 | 8,915 |
2000 | 8,458 |
2001 | 6,295 |
2002 | 7,104 |
Bob Russell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many council dwellings were sold in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available. [91142]
Mr. McNulty: Information on total numbers of sales and transfers of local authority and New Town dwellings in England since 199293 is in the table.
All owner/occupier sales (including right to buy) | Transfers to registered social landlords/other | |
---|---|---|
199293 | 42,289 | 27,289 |
199394 | 50,510 | 33,643 |
199495 | 46,236 | 41,120 |
199596 | 33,165 | 45,900 |
199697 | 35,206 | 22,534 |
199798 | 42,078 | 35,701 |
199899 | 41,087 | 76,543 |
19992000 | 54,957 | 96,755 |
200001 | 53,005 | 132,462 |
200102(33) | 52,459 | 35,687 |
(33) Provisional
Source:
DOE/DETR/DTLR/ODPM Housing Activity return P1B/New Town returns
Bob Russell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many council dwellings were built in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available. [91145]
Mr. McNulty: The numbers of local authority dwellings built in England in each of the last 10 years is in the following table. The numbers have declined as social housing has increasingly been delivered by Registered Social Landlords.
Year | Number of local authority dwellings built |
---|---|
199293 | 2,579 |
199394 | 1,451 |
199495 | 853 |
199596 | 757 |
199697 | 451 |
199798 | 323 |
199899 | 194 |
19992000 | 102 |
200001 | 389 |
200102 | 105 |
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Mr. Edward Davey: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when he will announce his decision on the revision of Crossrail safeguarding directions to prevent inappropriate development; and if he will make a statement. [93142]
Mr. Jamieson: I have been asked to reply.
Cross London Rail Links Limited have been asked to put to Ministers in February advice on route options and a worked-up business case for Crossrail. Current safeguarding directions will be reviewed as and when a route may be determined.
David Davis: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when he will announce the level of funding to the East Riding of Yorkshire Council for nursery school places for the next financial year. [93847]
Mr. Raynsford: Funding for nursery school places will be within local government formula grant from 200304. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister will announce our final proposals for the 200304 local government finance settlement on Monday 3 February; the House will have the chance to debate these on Wednesday 5 February. It will, of course, be for the authority to decide what allocation to make to specific services.
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Mr. Wilkinson: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will introduce measures to prevent the speculative purchase of agricultural land in designated green belt, its sub-division into building plots and sale on the basis of an anticipated relaxation of planning controls. [92832]
Mr. McNulty: The Government reaffirmed their commitment to the protection and enhancement of the Green Belt in my righ. hon. Friend, the Deputy Prime Minister's statement on Sustainable Communities, Housing and Planning in the House of Commons on 18 July 2002, Official Report, column 438 Since 1997 over 30,000 hectares have been added to the Green Belt, or earmarked for addition.
However, it is not generally the role of the planning system to place control on land ownership.
Andrew George: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the average turnaround time was for unused housing stock in (a) England and (b) local authorities, defined as rural, by region, in each year since 1978. [90833]
Mr. McNulty: Local authorities in England have been asked to provide estimates of the average time taken to re-let their housing stock on their annual Housing Investment Programme (HIP) returns since 1994. Because of variations in the way local authorities maintain lettings records and compile these estimates, the figures quoted, and any comparisons between authorities, should be treated with caution. Comparable information in respect of re-lettings by registered social landlords is only available from 199697.
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n/a = not applicable, figures to the nearest day.
DOE/DETR/DTLR/ODPM annual Housing Investment Programme (HIP) returns.
200102 | 200001 | 19992000 | 199899 | 199798 | 199697 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
North East | ||||||
All LAs | 33 | 41 | 41 | 40 | 40 | 33 |
Rural LAs | 33 | 41 | 45 | 39 | 35 | 29 |
North West | ||||||
All LAs | 52 | 53 | 41 | 36 | 34 | 30 |
Rural LAs | 44 | 41 | 38 | 29 | 27 | 22 |
Yorkshire and Humberside | ||||||
All LAs | 34 | 37 | 37 | 38 | 35 | 26 |
Rural LAs | 22 | 22 | 22 | 27 | 19 | 14 |
East Midlands | ||||||
All LAs | 39 | 43 | 39 | 36 | 33 | 29 |
Rural LAs | 38 | 40 | 33 | 29 | 24 | 20 |
West Midlands | ||||||
All LAs | 30 | 37 | 31 | 31 | 31 | 27 |
Rural LAs | 30 | 32 | 25 | 26 | 25 | 20 |
East of England | ||||||
All LAs | 26 | 28 | 29 | 26 | 28 | 24 |
Rural LAs | 21 | 24 | 23 | 21 | 21 | 21 |
London | ||||||
All LAs | 36 | 37 | 40 | 40 | 40 | 41 |
Rural LAs | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a |
South East | ||||||
All LAs | 27 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 31 | 28 |
Rural LAs | 24 | 27 | 27 | 27 | 28 | 26 |
South West | ||||||
All LAs | 29 | 32 | 32 | 27 | 24 | 21 |
Rural LAs | 23 | 24 | 27 | 24 | 21 | 16 |
England | ||||||
All LAs | 36 | 38 | 35 | 33 | 33 | 29 |
Rural LAs | 29 | 30 | 29 | 26 | 24 | 21 |
n/a = not applicable, figures to the nearest day.
Housing Corporation's continuous CORE survey data.
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