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20 Jul 2005 : Column 1769W—continued
Council Tax/Business Rates
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister under what circumstances Travellers in unauthorised developments may be liable for business rates; and if he will make a statement. [11390]
Mr. Woolas: Liability for non-domestic rates falls on a person—the ratepayer—who is in occupation of all or part of a hereditament that is shown in a local non-domestic rating list, whether or not the hereditament forms part of an unauthorised development. Whether Travellers are liable for non-domestic rates will depend on the facts of the particular case.
Departmental Purchasing
Chris Grayling: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list the companies from which his Department has purchased goods and services of a total value above £1 million in each of the last three years; and how much was spent in respect of each company. [11734]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister was formed in May 2002. For financial year 2002–03 it is not possible to provide an accurate list of companies with whom the Department has purchased goods and services with a value above £1,000,000 as expenditure in 2002–03 for ODPM suppliers cannot be separately identified from expenditure incurred by the Department for Transport on their suppliers. For 2003–04 and 2004–05 a table of those companies with whom the Department has purchased goods and services with a value above £1,000,000 has been provided as follows.
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Fire Service
Mr. Lidington: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister on what evidence the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, the hon. Member for Poplar and Canning Town (Jim Fitzpatrick), based the comment in his letter of 1 July to all hon. Members that (a) the Chief Fire Officers' Association and (b) the Local Government Association support the Government's plans to regionalise fire control rooms; and if he will make a statement. [12441]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The Chief Fire Officers' Association policy document, CFOA Position on Regional Control Centres" of April 2005 expresses the organisation's support for the project (on http://www.cfoa.org.uk/cfoa_public). CFOA and the Local Government Association have expressed their support as critical friends" of the project through membership of the project board, when briefing Regional Management Boards, and at other meetings.
Mr. Fallon: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what estimate he has made of the total cost of establishing the proposed regional Fire Control Centre for south-east England. [4934]
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Jim Fitzpatrick: Figures for the south-east only are not currently available, as the business case for the FiReControl project currently exists only at a national level. The estimated total net cost of setting up the new control centres across England is about £72 million. RCCs, once fully operational, should reduce running costs by 30 per cent.
The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is working closely with Fire and Rescue Authorities to provide more detailed information on both costs and benefits at local level.
Mr. Galloway: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister (1) what assessment he has made of the impact of the recent cuts in the number of fire engines at Euston and Bethnal Green and the closure of Manchester Square fire station on the ability of the fire service to respond to the events of 7 July; and if he will make a statement; [12868]
(2) if he will reverse the recent reductions in fire cover in central London following the events of 7 July; and if he will make a statement. [12869]
Jim Fitzpatrick: I discussed these matters with the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority (LFEPA) on Friday 8 July. I am advised that the London Fire Brigade's Integrated Risk Management Plan (the London Safety Plan) specifically addresses the question of maintaining resilience to deal with major acts of terrorism or other catastrophic emergencies. Fire engines are being redeployed to other stations rather than withdrawn from service and they remain available to provide support on incidents such as those on 7 July.
The authority assured both my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister and me that their planning—including recent changes to the location of fire engines and the significant Government investment in new specialist vehicles, equipment and training—have proved up to the task.
Each fire and rescue authority's arrangements are the responsibility of the elected members of the authority concerned. It is, therefore, for LFEPA to determine appropriate fire cover for its area.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when he expects to conclude the procurement process for Firelink. [13653]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister expects to award the Firelink contract in November 2005.
Mr. Drew: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list representations he has received on the Firelink Project. [11596]
Jim Fitzpatrick:
Various members have written with questions about the Firelink procurement. Responses to these questions have been recorded in the Official Report. Since the National competition was announced my predecessors and I have received representations from hon. Members of this House on behalf of constituents and from a number of potential suppliers. The Government are committed to run a fair and open competition for Firelink in accordance with EU requirements. The decision as to which company will be awarded the contract will be made within the rules of the competition.
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