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Compulsory Purchase Orders

Mr. Hancock: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans he has to amend the law regarding compulsory purchase orders. [130987]

Keith Hill: Part 7 of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Bill, currently before Parliament, includes provisions to amend the planning compulsory purchase power at section 226 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 and to introduce a new loss payment to enhance compulsory purchase compensation. A further six amendments to the Bill were tabled on 17 September 2003 to provide for improvements to compulsory purchase procedures and compensation arrangements. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister will consult shortly on the details of a further proposed amendment to the Bill relating to advance payments of compensation for land subject to mortgage.

The Law Commission is also considering how best to codify, consolidate and modernise the existing complex and convoluted legislative base, and is expected to produce its final recommendations in January 2004.

Consultancy Contracts

Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list the five highest value consultancy contracts relating to (a) council house privatisation

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and (b) stock transfer for proposals; and what payments have been in each case in each of the last three years. [130895]

Keith Hill: Information on costs relating to Best Value studies, decent home delivery option appraisals or housing transfer advice is not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether his Department maintains a recommended list of consultants to carry out (a) Best Value studies and (b) council house privatisation studies. [130946]

Keith Hill: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister does not maintain lists of consultants to carry out Best Value studies, decent home delivery option appraisals or housing transfer advice.

Domestic Violence

Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what action his Department is taking to help victims of domestic violence. [129449]

Yvette Cooper: Tackling domestic violence, and supporting those who are victims of domestic violence, is taken very seriously across Government.

The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister announced at the end of last year a £7 million capital investment programme through the Housing Corporation to extend and renovate the national network of women's refuges in England. Initial allocations for 2003–04 were agreed in conjunction with the Housing Corporation in March this year and it is hoped that further schemes will be supported in the next two years.

The Supporting People programme, which begins on 1 April, will put in place a new integrated policy and funding framework for housing-related support services, including those for people experiencing domestic violence. Current annual expenditure is £34 million for a total of 5,000 places. Local authorities have now submitted their shadow Supporting People strategies. These are currently being analysed and will provide valuable data on the supply of refuge and support services for people experiencing domestic violence, so helping to inform and direct future action.

Supporting People guides have also been issued on addressing the accommodation and support needs of households experiencing domestic violence; and two dedicated co-ordinators are working with providers and local authorities to ensure that the sector is prepared for the new programme.

In July 2002, the main homelessness provisions of the Homelessness Act 2002 and the Homelessness (Priority Need for Accommodation) (England) Order 2002 were brought into force. These required local housing authorities to take a more strategic approach to preventing and tackling homelessness, placed stronger duties on authorities to help homeless people, and extended the groups of homeless applicants who have a priority need for accommodation, including, among others, people vulnerable as a result of fleeing their home because of violence. The Homelessness Directorate has allocated £70 million in 2003–04 to local authorities and other agencies to help them address

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homelessness. This will include some support for domestic violence schemes where local authorities have identified this as a priority.

The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister in partnership with Comic Relief, plans to support the introduction of a national freephone helpline, linked to a 'refuges online' database to assist victims of domestic violence which it is hoped will be operational before the end of the year.

Euro

Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what cumulative spending by all local authorities has been in each year in preparing for United Kingdom entry to the euro; how much he plans to allocate for spending by all local authorities on preparations for United Kingdom entry to the euro for each year from the current financial year up to and including 2005–06; and what estimates he has made of the cumulative total costs to all local authorities of changeover to the European Single Currency. [131605]

Mr. Raynsford: Details of public sector expenditure to date on changeover planning were included in the third outline National Changeover Plan, published on 9 June 2003. Copies of the document are available in the Library of the House.

The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister expects no significant costs to local authorities at this stage and there are no plans for additional allocation of funds. The guidance to local authorities, which was released on 17 June, advises them to undertake sensible risk management and business planning for the possibility of a euro changeover. All the evidence from the euro area suggests that such early planning can significantly reduce costs of any changeover.

In the event of any changeover, the total cost to local authorities will depend upon the circumstances and approach taken by individual councils. The Government would look with local authorities at the pressures they face.

High Hedges

Mr. Damian Green: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans he has to propose legislation to deal with fast-growing high hedges; and if he will make a statement. [130881]

Keith Hill: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister on 17 September 2003, Official Report, columns 859–60.

Homelessness

Mr. Hepburn: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister (1) how many families have claimed to be homeless in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) England, in each year since 1997; [128711]

(2) how many people were homeless in (a) the Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) England, in each year since 1997. [128714]

Yvette Cooper: Information collected is in respect of households, rather than persons, and is not available below local authority level. The available information

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reported by South Tyneside MBC, and all councils comprising the North East region and nationally is presented as follows. The term "homelessness acceptances" means those applicants whom a local housing authority have accepted as being eligible for assistance, homeless through no fault of their own and who have a priority need for accommodation. The priority need categories were extended by Order in July 2002 to broaden the safety net available for homeless people.

	Homelessness Decisions			Homelessness Acceptances
	South Tyneside	North East Region	England	South Tyneside	North East Region	England
1997	144	12,800	246,170	126	4,420	102,000
1998	(6)206	11,730	250,960	(6)166	4,370	104,630
1999	266	12,440	249,110	212	4,830	105,370
2000	246	12,100	252,290	201	5,060	111,340
2001	370	12,320	260,170	306	5,470	118,560
2002	430	14,210	273,480	364	6,420	124,880

⁽⁶⁾ South Tyneside reported in only three quarters of 1998.

Notes:

1. Decisions include those where applicant household was found to be ineligible for assistance under the homelessness provisions of housing legislation.

2. Figures for the North East and England include estimates for missing data, and have been rounded to the nearest 10.

3. Acceptances refers to households found to be eligible, unintentionally homeless and in priority need.

Source:

Office of the Deputy Prime Minister P1(E) quarterly housing activity returns

Housing

Bob Russell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister pursuant to his answer of 15 September, ref 129306, for what reasons the allocation of additional funds for additional investment in local authority housing stock under the Sustainable Communities Plan did not include the option for a local authority to retain ownership and democratic control. [131012]

Keith Hill: The Government believes that the benefit from additional resources will be maximised if the landlord function is separated from the authorities broader strategic functions. The three options offering additional investment—stock transfer, Private Finance Initiative (PFI) and Arms Length Management Organisation (ALMOs)—all provide this.

They also ensure that tenants have a greater role in the future management of their homes.

Mr. Viggers: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will grant the Rowner housing estate in Gosport eligibility for his schemes for special support. [128156]

Keith Hill: The Government Office for the South East is currently working with Gosport's Local Strategic Partnership and Hampshire county council to help resolve the key issues around the Rowner estate. At present the partnership is in its infancy and as such is debating proposals to tackle the root causes of the problems surrounding the Rowner estate. The Government Office is in a position to provide advice during this process to the Local Strategic Partnership and Hampshire county council on any schemes that the Rowner estate may be eligible for.

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