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27 Feb 2006 : Column 181W—continued
Homelessness (Eastern Region)
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many homeless acceptances there have been for each local authority in the Eastern Region in each of the last eight quarters. [51389]
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Yvette Cooper: The following table presents information reported by each local authority in the East of England for the past eight quarters on the number of households under homelessness legislation which were accepted as eligible for assistance, unintentionally homeless and in priority need, and consequently owed a main homelessness duty. The number of acceptances in the region between October 2004 and September 2005 was 9,100, compared with 10,980 in the corresponding period 12 months before, a fall of 17 per cent.
The duty owed by the local authority is to secure suitable accommodation. If a settled home is not immediately available, the authority may secure temporary accommodation until a settled home becomes available. As an alternative to the provision of temporary accommodation some authorities arrange for households to remain in their current accommodation (homeless at home), until a settled solution becomes available.
(61) Households found to be eligible for assistance, unintentionally homeless and in a priority need category and, under 1996 Housing Act provisions, consequently owed a main homelessness duty.
Note:
Data shown as reported.
n/a denotes an authority failed to provide a return for that particular quarter.
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Hospitality
David Simpson: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much was spent on hospitality by his Department in each year since he became Deputy Prime Minister; and what proportion of that was spent on alcohol. [46635]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) was created following the Machinery of Government changes on 29 May 2002. The following table shows departmental expenditure on hospitality in the years 2002–03 to 2005–06.
Hospitality expenditure in the Department is incurred when officials have provided meals/refreshments to ODPM stakeholders.
| Hospitality (£) | |
|---|---|
| 2002–03 | 15,492 |
| 2003–04 | 38,802 |
| 2004–05 | 42,126 |
| 2005–06 spend to date | 38,813 |
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Expenditure on alcohol is not separately identified. This could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
All expenditure on official entertainment is made in accordance with published departmental guidance on financial procedures and propriety, based on principles set out in Government Accounting.
Housing
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many homes have been built in each borough of Greater London under the Key Worker Living initiative; and how many of these are occupied. [38881]
Yvette Cooper:
As at 31 January, 600 homes for key workers have been built in London through the Key Worker Living programme, of which 399 have been sold/let with a further 64 reserved. Of the 137 homes currently not occupied, 55 of these have been completed only in the last three months.
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Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the success of the attempts by the Regeneration Company in East Manchester to reverse housing market failure in the area. [51137]
Yvette Cooper: The New East Manchester (NEM) Urban Regeneration Company (URC) has an explicit role to co-ordinate and integrate regeneration activity across its area, including New Deal Communities and Housing Market Renewal. This has ensured that housing market renewal activity has not only been able to support the growing sub-regional economy but has also aligned with the provision of wider services and facilities which have greatly improved the quality of life of local residents.
The improvement of the existing stock and the development of new high quality homes has extended the range and choice of housing for those living or looking to live in this area. The result has been the growth and stabilisation of a once failed housing market—confidence has returned and prices have risen while numbers of empty homes have fallen significantly.
The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is currently evaluating the investment plans from Manchester Salford Housing Market Renewal Partnership to ensure this positive work continues. In addition, the activity of the URC is currently being evaluated by Professor Michael Parkinson of John Moores University.
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what contribution he expects from (a) local authorities, (b) housing associations and (c) arm's length management organisations in increasing the supply of social rented housing; and how many houses he expects to be built by each category of organisation. [40865]
Yvette Cooper:
The Government set a target of providing 75,000 social rented homes from 2004–05 to 2007–08. Of these it is estimated around 3,000 will be provided through local authorities and at least 60,000
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through registered social landlords. In addition, housing will be provided under the private finance initiative and by planning gain.
When the Government responded to Kate Barker's review of housing supply on 5 December, it announced that social housing would be a priority in the next spending review (which covers the period after 2007–08) and that we would also be piloting new ways for local authorities to support the delivery of more council housing.
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many council-owned homes (a) there were in each local authority in each year since 1997 and (b) are estimated to be held by each local authority in each of the next five years. [40869]
Yvette Cooper: A table containing the number of council-owned homes in each local authority in England, for 1997–2005, has been made available in the Library of the House. Estimates for the next five years are not available.
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister in which housing authorities tenants have voted against transfer to (a) an arm's length organisation and (b) a registered social landlord; how many houses these votes affected; and what help these authorities will be given to reach the decent homes standard. [41147]
Yvette Cooper: The following tables show those local housing authorities in which tenants have, since 1988, voted against (a) establishing an arm's length management organisation (ALMO) to manage council housing, or (b) transferring social housing to a registered social landlord.
The tables also show the number of dwellings covered by each ballot. Tenants in those transfers marked with a * have subsequently voted in favour of transfer.
Local authorities in which tenants have voted against stock transfer or establishing an ALMO are receiving on-going support from the Government Office network and regional community housing task force advisers. Ninety-eight local authorities are able to reach the decent homes standard with the resources they already have received. All local authorities have received significant increases in resources for council housing over the last eight years.
| Local authority | Units |
|---|---|
| London borough of Camden | 24,686 |
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Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much council rents have changed on average in each of the last five years. [50821]
Yvette Cooper:
The average council rent for England and the percentage annual increase is tabled as follows.
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Average rent (£) | Percentage increase over previous year | |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 45.62 | — |
| 2001 | 47.87 | +4.93 |
| 2002 | 49.93 | +4.30 |
| 2003 | 50.96 | +2.06 |
| 2004 | 52.62 | +3.25 |
| 2005 (provisional) | 55.11 | +4.73 |
Council rents are on average 40 per cent. of private sector rents.
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