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East End of London (Development)

Mr. Rosindell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much will be spent on the development of east end areas in London in 2004–05. [184286]

Keith Hill: Through projects approved to date under the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister Thames Gateway Programme it is expected that some
 
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£40 million will be spent in the east end of London during 2004–5. This funding will help to regenerate existing communities and open up new opportunities for housing and employment.

In addition to this there will be further investment by the Housing Corporation. I have asked, the Chief Executive, Jon Rouse to write to the hon. Member separately on this.

Homelessness

Mr. Tony Clarke: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many homelessness applications have been accepted in Northampton in each of the last five years. [184842]

Phil Hope: Information about English local authorities' activities under homelessness legislation is reported to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister on quarterly P1E housing activity returns. The total number of decisions made and the number of these accepted as unintentionally homeless and in priority need, as reported by Northampton borough council during the past five years, is tabled as follows.
Decisions taken by Northampton borough council in respect of applications by homeless households

	Decisions	Acceptances(18)
1999–2000	1,146	369
2000–01	1,120	430
2001–02	849	286
2002–03	1,066	414
2003–04	1,028	420

⁽¹⁸⁾ Acceptances refer to eligible households found to be unintentionally homeless and in a priority need category
Source:
ODPM quarterly P1E homelessness returns

Mr. Hancock: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many homelessness applications have been accepted in Portsmouth in each of the last five years. [184315]

Phil Hope: Information about English local authorities' activities under homelessness legislation is reported to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister on quarterly P1E housing activity returns. The total number of decisions made and the number of these accepted as unintentionally homeless and in priority need, as reported by Portsmouth City Council during the past five years, is tabled.
Decisions taken by Portsmouth City Council in respect of applications by homeless households

	Decisions	Acceptances (19)
1999–2000	1,871	547
2000–01	1,906	529
2001–02	2,500	655
2002–03	2,826	804
2003–04	2,040	760
Notes

⁽¹⁹⁾ Acceptances refer to eligible households found to be unintentionally homeless and in a priority need category
Source:
ODPM quarterly P1E homelessness returns




 
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House Prices/Incomes Ratio

Mr. Gray: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the house price to incomes ratio is in each region; and what plans he has to boost affordable housing investment in the South West. [185182]

Keith Hill: The latest data on property prices to earnings ratios are set out in the following table. The substantially increased funding for affordable housing announced in the Spending Review will, along with significant improvements in efficiency, provide 10,000 (50 per cent.) more social rented homes a year by 2007–08. More than 40,000 homes will also be provided in the next three years for essential public sector workers and through other low cost home ownership schemes. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is looking at how funding will be split between regions to reflect housing needs and our national housing priorities and targets.

	Average property price(£) 1	Average annual earnings(£) 2	Ratio of property prices to earnings
East of England	166,103	26,545	6.26
East Midlands	117,228	22,932	5.11
London	242,782	31,532	7.70
North East	85,702	21,017	4.08
North West	96,405	22,964	4.20
South East	196,027	28,037	6.99
South West	162,587	23,400	6.95
West Midlands	123,313	22,879	5.39
Yorkshire and the Humber	98,109	22,304	4.40
England	150,947	25,297	5.97

⁽²⁰⁾ January–June 2003.
⁽²¹⁾ April 2003.
Sources:
Property prices: Land Registry Earnings: Office for National Statistics, New Earnings Survey

Housing Corporation Rural Programme

Mr. Gray: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether he plans to retain the ring-fenced rural programme of the Housing Corporation available to new starts in settlements of fewer than 3,000 people. [185194]

Keith Hill: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister current target—to provide at least 3,500 new affordable homes in communities with fewer than 3,000 people—covers the period 2004–06 (and early indications show that this is likely to be exceeded). From 2006–07 targets will be determined regionally based on advice from the Regional Housing Boards.

Housing Stock Transfers

Dr. Iddon: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what evidence his Department has collated to support its conclusions that (a) it is more cost effective to improve a house when the improvements are conducted by a housing association or an arm's length management organisation rather than by a local housing authority and (b) the transfer of local authority housing stock into alternative management and/or ownership results in higher levels of tenant satisfaction. [184121]

 
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Keith Hill: The information is as follows.

(a) The Public Accounts Committee's 40th report: Improving Social Housing through Transfer published in July 2003 contains supplementary evidence provided by the office on the value for money of stock transfer. This assessment carried out in April 2003 used guidance in the 2003 Treasury Green Book "Appraisal and Evaluation in Central Government" which took effect on 1 April 2003. As stated in our response to ODPM: Housing, Planning, Local Government and the Regions Committee's Report on Decent Homes, evidence is also available on inspection ratings of ALMOs following their first six months of operation compared with their previous inspections as local authority managed housing departments.

Together with the Housing Corporation, we are currently considering the most appropriate approach for future monitoring and evaluating the transfer programme, and parallel work is underway for the ALMO programme. Each monitoring/evaluation system will be tailored to the particular circumstances of each programme, but will also collect consistent data so that it is possible, in the longer term, to provide a comparative assessment of decent homes delivery, value for money, and tenant satisfaction across the different programmes.

(b) Housemark's January 2004 report showed 79 per cent. of transfer tenants were satisfied with their landlord compared to 74 per cent. for council tenants.

As the ALMO programme did not start until 2002, there are no reliable data available to demonstrate whether levels of participation and satisfaction are improving.

Housing Investment

Dr. Naysmith: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when he expects to meet Regional Planning Guidance targets of 6,000 to 10,000 new affordable homes per year established in 2001 for the South West. [183990]

Keith Hill: Policy of the Office Deputy Prime Minister—as set out in Planning Policy Guidance Note 3—is not to set region-wide targets or quotas for affordable housing. Targets are more appropriately set at the local level as they are, necessarily, derived from local circumstances and assessments. The figures set out in Regional Planning Guidance for the South West (RPG10) are, therefore, not a target but an indicator against which the provision of affordable housing can be monitored. Better quality information than currently available is needed to assess how we are progressing against this indicator. However, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister does know that we are not yet providing sufficient affordable homes. That is why the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has accepted Kate Barker's recommendation that there should be a step-change in housing supply. Over the coming months, we will be consulting on a package of proposals designed to achieve this, including the provision of independent advice to the Regions, which should improve significantly our ability to deliver and monitor the provision of affordable homes. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is also committing more resources to the
 
20 Jul 2004 : Column 206W
 
delivery of affordable homes—the 2004 Spending Review will allow us to increase new social house building by 50 per cent.

Mr. Edward Davey: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the departmental expenditure limit for housing was in 2003–04. [184124]

Phil Hope: Housing programmes, including the growth areas, comprised £4.022 billion of the Office of the Deputy prime Minister's final departmental expenditure limit for 2003–04.

Mr. Drew: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans he has to allow arm's length management organisations access to borrowing to meet the decent homes standard. [184568]

Keith Hill: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has no current plans to change the current arrangements under which local authorities carry out the borrowing necessary for their Arms Length Management Organisations (ALMOs) to meet the decent homes standard. ALMOs are unable to borrow direct because, as managers of the local authority's stock, they have no assets on which to secure a loan.

Mr. Flook: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much funding has been made available in each of the last three years under the Supporting People programme to each of the housing authorities in Somerset. [184636]

Phil Hope: The Supporting People programme went live in April 2003. Prior to this date the Government contributed towards the administration costs of administering authorities in establishing the programme.

For 2003–04 and 2004–05 Supporting People grants have been given for both administration and programme costs. Budgets for 2005–06 to 2007–08 have not yet been finalised. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister plans to announce individual allocations to administering authorities for 2005–06 to 2007–08 in the autumn. Supporting People grants are paid direct to county councils and unitary authorities not district authorities.

The following table sets out the Supporting People grant funding over the last three years for each of the housing authorities in Somerset:
£

Grants	Bath and North East Somerset	North Somerset District	Somerset
2002–03
Administration	190,412	170,885	369,694
Programme	—	—	—
2003–04
Administration	211,383	198,798	455,878
Programme	4,389,642	6,437,692	21,430,845
2004–05
Allocated Administration	185,000	174,217	472,697
Programme	4,299,069	6,294,582	21,133,324

Mr. Flook: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many (a) affordable homes and (b) homes for rent have been built by (i) Taunton Deane borough council and (ii) housing associations in Taunton Deane in each of the last seven years. [184639]

 
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Keith Hill: Figures for affordable homes built are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Based on data reported by Taunton Deane council and the National House-Building Council, the number of council and registered social landlord dwellings that have been built within Taunton Deane in the last seven financial years are shown in the following table:

	(i) Taunton Deane	(ii) Registered Social Landlords
1997–98	0	20
1998–99	0	111
1999–2000	0	79
2000–01	0	44
2001–02	0	34
2002–03	4	51
2003–04	0	23

Ms Keeble: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister (1) how many social housing units he expects to be built in the south Midlands growth area as a result of the extra finance for housing announced as part of the Government's three-year spending plans; [184696]

(2) what proportion of funds for affordable housing announced as part of the spending review will go to the south Midlands growth area. [184697]

Keith Hill: The additional funding provided in the Spending Review will, along with efficiency improvements, produce 10,000 extra social rented homes a year by 2007–08. Decisions have not yet been taken on how Regional Housing Pot funding for 2006–07 and 2007–08, including the additional funding for affordable housing, is split between regions. This needs to reflect the different pattern of needs across regions and the Government's national housing priorities, including development of the growth areas, and targets. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is aiming to complete this work, which raises some complex issues, by the end of the year. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister will announce decisions on allocation of funding within regions next summer in the light of recommendations from Regional Housing Boards, which are due in May next year.

Mr. Chris Smith: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what funding was made available to the London Borough of Islington for each year since 1997 for housing capital work, broken down by (a) housing capital authorisation, (b) authority to use capital receipts for housing capital work, (c) authority for stock-transferred estates to undertake capital work, (d) allocations to housing associations for work within the borough, (e) authority for work to be carried out by the arm's length management organisation; and (f) what projected funding in future years is in each of these categories. [184725]

Keith Hill: The information is as follows:

(a) is comprised of a number of different elements as shown in the following table.
 
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£000

	Housing Supported Capital Expenditure(22)	Major Repairs Allowance	Disabled Facilities Grant	Cash Incentive Scheme
1997–98	12,708	—	136	2,240
1998–99	17,214	—	124	1,524
1999–2000	18,019	—	131	—
2000–01	28,415	—	142	—
2001–02	12,651	25,434	212	—
2002–03	14,970	25,030	237	—
2003–04	13,607	25,477	360	—
2004–05	13,843	23,966	389	—

⁽²²⁾ Previously known as Annual Capital Guideline, includes private sector renewal and capital receipts initiative allocations; figures up to 2002–03 include an allowance for spending financed from the authorities' capital receipts.

(b) As a with-debt authority, Islington were allowed to use the useable part of the capital receipts they generated for any capital purpose they saw fit, including housing capital work.

(c) Islington received £22.69 million of Estates Renewal Challenge Fund funding after the transfer of two schemes in September 1999.

(d) is comprised of three different elements, as detailed in the following table.
£000

	Approved Development Programme	Starter Home Initiative	Local Authority Social Housing Grant
1997–98	9,130	—	9,192
1998–99	14,318	—	200
1999–2000	5,800	—	223
2000–01	9,815	—	l,048
2001–02	10,313	—	2,761
2002–03	24,906	597	l,541
2003–04	34,187	3,183	(23)—
2004–05	(24)56,696	(25)—	—

⁽²³⁾ Local Authority Social Housing Grant abolished with effect from 1 April 2003.
⁽²⁴⁾ 1997–98 to 2003–04 is spend, 2004–05 is allocation.
⁽²⁵⁾ No figures for 2004–05 available yet.

(e) Islington has been awarded provisional ALMO funding of £24.9 million for 2004–06. Release of this funding is conditional on the ALMO achieving at least a two star rating from the Housing Inspectorate when it is inspected later this year.

(f) A provisional allocation of £16,273,000 has been made for 2005–2006. No other indications for projected funding in future years exist at this time.

Llew Smith: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans he has to order an environmental impact assessment of the additional home construction he announced on 13 July 2004. [184821]

Keith Hill: Proposals for new housing development projects are subject to the requirements of the planning system. Decisions on the need for environmental impact assessment for such proposals will be taken at the appropriate by the relevant local planning authority in accordance with the requirements of Directive 85/337/EEC (as amended) on the effects on the environment of certain public and private project which is given
 
20 Jul 2004 : Column 209W
 
effect in England by the Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations (England and Wales) 1999.

Mr. Tony Clarke: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many (a) affordable homes and (b) homes for rent have been built in Northampton in each of the last five years. [184865]

Keith Hill: Figures for affordable homes built and homes for rent built are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Based on data reported by Northampton council and the National House-Building Council, the number of registered social landlord and council dwellings that have been built within Northampton in the last five financial years are shown in the following table:

	Number
1999–2000	26
2000–01	51
2001–02	0
2002–03	0
2003–04	83

Dr. Naysmith: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what account he will take of the information on housing in the South West in the National Housing Federation's booklet, "The Evidence Update", when making future housing investment decisions about the South West region. [185387]

Keith Hill: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister welcomes the work that the National Housing Federation (NHF) have done for their recent reports on housing needs in the South East and South West. The general picture on housing pressures and the affordability of home ownership is in line with our analysis which under-pinned discussions of funding for affordable housing in the 2004 Spending Review. Officials from the Office of the Deputy Prime will be meeting with the NHF shortly to discuss these reports.

The NHF South West is represented on the South West Housing Body Steering Group and as such they will play a key role in the development of the region's new Regional Housing Strategy (RHS) due for publication in early 2005. The RHS will reflect all relevant evidence from a variety of sources and will form the basis for the housing body's recommendations to Minister's on the distribution of housing resources within the region.

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