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6 May 2004 : Column 1687W—continued

Departmental Expenditure (Entertainment)

Mr. Laws: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what his latest estimate is of the amount spent by his Department on official entertainment in each year from 1996–97 to 2004–05. [169010]

Yvette Cooper: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister was created following the machinery of Government changes on 29 May 2002. The figures in the following table show how much the Office spent on official entertainment in 2002–3 and 2003–4. Details of the planned expenditure for 2004–5 are not yet available, but are expected to be on similar lines to earlier years.
Entertainment

	£
2002–03	3,350
2003–04	1,869

All expenditure on official entertainment is made in accordance with published departmental guidance on financial procedures and propriety, based on the principles set out in "Government Accounting".

The expenditure figures for the Government Offices and the Office's executive agencies for official entertainment are not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost

Elected Regional Assemblies

Mr. Jenkin: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will give the (a) total and (b) individual costs of the public hearings on elected regional assemblies held in (i) Sheffield, (ii) Newcastle, (iii) Hull, (iv) Liverpool, (v) Kendal, (vi) Halifax and (vii) Middlesbrough. [170097]

Mr. Raynsford: The total cost of the seven hearings mentioned is £66,800. The latest costs of the individual hearings are in the following table:

Location	£
Sheffield	11,600
Newcastle	10,900
Hull	7,600
Liverpool	13,800
Kendal	6,500
Halifax	5,100
Middlesbrough	11,300

Energy Efficiency Grants

Mr. Wiggin: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much was spent on grants to aid energy efficiency in each year since 1997. [160875]

Mr. Morley: I have been asked to reply.

Defra currently provides grants to aid energy efficiency through four main routes:

The Carbon Trust—to support and promote energy efficiency and low carbon innovation for business and public sector;

 
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The Energy Saving Trust—to support and promote energy efficiency in the domestic sector;

The Community Energy programme—capital and development funding to refurbish existing and install new community heating schemes;

The Warm Front programme—to provide energy efficiency measures to the vulnerable.

The funding made available by my Department and its predecessors to support and promote efficiency measures in each year since 1997 (including the Energy Saving Trust and the Carbon Trust) is of the scale set out in the following table.

	£ million
1997–98	110.5
1998–99	109.0
1999–2000	112.0
2000–01	119.0
2001–02	256
2002–03	225
2003–04	(4)243

⁽⁴⁾ Budget.

These figures include the Energy Efficiency Best Practice programme, support for the Energy Saving Trust (from 1996), Fuel Poverty and for the Carbon Trust (from 1 April 2001). Energy Saving Trust funding for Scotland was devolved from 1 July 1999. The new Home Energy Efficiency Scheme (now marketed as the Warm Front Team) was launched in England in June 2000. Between 1991–1999, the Home Energy Efficiency Scheme covered the whole of Great Britain. Funding was devolved to Scotland in July 1999 and to Wales in April 2000.

Houses in Multiple Occupation

Jon Trickett: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what estimate he has made of the percentage of houses in multiple occupation in England and Wales which will fall within the scope of the mandatory licensing scheme in the Housing Bill. [171220]

Keith Hill: The 1996 English House Condition Survey estimates that there were approximately 543,000 Houses in Multiple Occupation in England and the National Assembly for Wales estimates that there are approximately 20,000 HMOs in Wales. It is estimated that about 120,000 HMOs in England and 5,000 in Wales will be subject to licensing under the mandatory scheme proposed in the Housing Bill. This will represent approximately 22.2 per cent. of the total HMO stock in England and Wales.

Local Authority Funding

Ann Winterton: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much central funding was provided to local authorities in the (a) North West, (b) North East and (c) Yorkshire and the Humber regions in 2002–03. [171497]

 
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Mr. Raynsford: Central Government grant (a) provided to local authorities in the North West, North East and Yorkshire and the Humber regions in 2002–03 is tabled as follows:

	Amount (£ million)
North West	7,237
North East	2,765
Yorkshire and the Humber	5,031

Source:
2002–03 RS forms.

(a) Includes Specific and special grants inside 'Aggregate External Finance', Police grant, Revenue support grant, Redistributed non-domestic rates.

Planning

Bob Russell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether there is a time period after which a temporary structure is deemed to be permanent in respect of (a) planning legislation and (b) commencement of enforcement proceedings; and if he will make a statement. [171737]

Keith Hill: The rules governing temporary structures provided in connection with temporary uses of land are set out in Part 4 of Schedule 2 to the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) Order 1995. If such a structure were to remain on site after the temporary use had ended, it would be unlawful and could be the subject of enforcement action.

Mrs. Helen Clark: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much the planning inspectorate has spent on external consultants, not including consultant inspectors, since 2002. [170043]

Keith Hill: Information is provided for financial years 2002–03 and 2003–04.
£

	2002–03	2003–04
Consultants—non IT	477,206.65	541,424.91
IT consultants	512,586.01	375,231.00
E-business consultants	2,785,132.94	1,720,815.83
Total	3,774,925.60	2,637,471.74

Mrs. Helen Clark: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what mechanisms are in place to assess the effectiveness of the contribution made by external consultants, not including consultant inspectors, to the planning inspectorate. [170044]

Keith Hill: External consultants are engaged by The Planning Inspectorate when it is not possible to provide the required expertise from in-house resources. All consultants are contracted to undertake tasks relevant to the particular requirement and to deliver specific products.

The effectiveness of the contribution made by external consultants is assessed through an ongoing process of performance measurement and sound contract management. This seeks to ensure that contractual obligations are met as efficiently and effectively as possible, quality products delivered to time, business objectives met and benefits realised.
 
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All projects are subject to Office of Government Commerce gateway Reviews.

Regional Assemblies

Mr. Jenkin: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many copies of (a) Your Say: A New Opportunity for the North East, (b) "Your Say: a New Opportunity for the North West", (c) "Your Say: A New Opportunity for Yorkshire and the Humber", (d) "Your Say: Business and Jobs", (e) "Your Say: Assembly Powers and Responsibilities" and (f) "Your Say: Housing, Planning and Transport" have been requested by members of the public in (i) the North East, (ii) the North West and (iii) Yorkshire and the Humber. [169258]

Mr. Raynsford: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's free leaflet distributor has issued 6201 "A New Opportunity for the North East" leaflet, 6603 "A New Opportunity for the North West" and 2132 "A New Opportunity for Yorkshire and the Humber" to members of the public and organisations who have requested them.

620 copies of "A New Opportunity for the North East" leaflet and of each individual fact sheet were given to attendees of the regional hearings in the North East.

628 copies of "A New Opportunity for the North West" leaflet and of each individual fact sheet were given to attendees of the regional hearings in the North West.

605 copies of "A New Opportunity for Yorkshire and the Humber" leaflet and of each individual fact sheet were given to attendees of the regional hearings in Yorkshire and the Humber.

Copies of all this literature are also available upon request from the three northern Government Offices. However, requests for leaflets are not logged by Government Offices on an individual basis.

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