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4 Dec 2006 : Column 184W—continued
| Number of appeals received against (a) retrospective planning applications and (b) total appeals received 2001 to 31 October 2006 | ||
| (a) Number of appeals received against retrospective applications | (b) Total appeals received | |
Renewable Energy
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much energy consumed by her Department is acquired from renewable sources. [106147]
Angela E. Smith: Renewable energy is obtainedby the Department for Communities and Local Government by procuring electricity from renewable sources. For the year 2005-06 the amount of renewable energy used by the Department is as follows:
| Renewable energy consumed (kWh) | |
These figures have yet to undergo independent verification and so must be regarded as provisional.
This answer does not include the buildings occupied by Government offices, which carry out functions on behalf of 10 Government Departments.
Rent Assessment Committees
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) what percentage of requests to increase rent was granted in rent assessment committees in each of the last five years for which records are available; [103955]
(2) in what percentage of cases heard before a rent assessment committee the rent (a) stayed the same and (b) decreased in each of the last five years for which figures are available; [103956]
(3) what the average percentage change in rents assessed by rent assessment committees was in each of the last five years for which records are available. [103957]
Yvette Cooper: The information requested is notheld centrally, and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Tobacco: Fire Prevention
David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the Government's policy is on reduced ignition propensity cigarettes. [107425]
Angela E. Smith: I refer my hon. Friend to the written ministerial statement I gave on 24 July 2006, Official Report, column 67WS, which sets out the Government's position on reduced ignition propensity (REP) cigarettes.
Unitary Councils
Mr. Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether she plans to set a minimum population for district authorities assuming unitary status. [107042]
Mr. Woolas: We have no plans to set a minimum population for future unitary authorities. Effective local government capable of strategic leadership and the delivery of efficient and effective local services is not dependent on size alone.
However, the research report “Population size and Local Authority Performance” which we published alongside the White Paper, makes it clear that while the picture is complex, there is evidence for potential economies of scale to be realised by larger local authorities in the delivery of key county and district services.
Wharves
Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what planning policy guidance her Department has issued which is applicable to wharves; and if she will make a statement. [105802]
Yvette Cooper: The Government have published two relevant statements of national planning policy which are applicable to wharves.
“Planning Policy Guidance note 13: Transport” asks local authorities to promote the role of ports in sustainable distribution by encouraging good access by rail, shipping and waterways as well as road where possible, and by promoting interchange facilities and wharves and harbours where viable. It also asks local authorities, when they prepare their development plans and when determining planning applications, to re-use disused wharves and basins, to retain boatyards and other services used in connection with water-based recreation, and to protect and enhance the waterway environment, where these are viable options.
In the context of planning for minerals, “Minerals Policy Statement 1: Planning and Minerals” asks planning authorities to safeguard existing, planned and potential rail heads, wharfage and associated storage, and handling and processing facilities for the bulk transport by rail, sea or inland waterways of minerals. Mineral planning authorities in two-tier planning areas are also asked to identify future sites to accommodate such facilities and to reflect any allocations in local development documents. The policy advises that district councils in such areas should not normally permit other development proposals near such safeguarded sites where they might constrain future use for these purposes.
Wirral Council: Finance
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much Wirral council would have received in the 2006-07 settlement if the new formula for calculating the cost of social services had been implemented in full. [107046]
Mr. Woolas: It is not possible to give a definitive answer.
This is because the amount of formula grant for any authority is based on a calculation that, as well as including the relative needs formulae (i.e. the socio-economic and demographic characteristics of the authority) also includes a floors damping mechanism that ensures that every authority receives at least a certain percentage increase (the “floor”). In order to pay for the cost of the floor we scale back authorities' formula grant increase above the floor.
It is possible that, had the Government not decided to phase in the introduction of the new relative needs formulae for children's social care and social services for younger adults, we might have chosen to set different grant floor levels.
Duchy of Lancaster
Departmental Accommodation
Mr. Heald: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what the total floor space is of the Ripley building in Whitehall. [102719]
Hilary Armstrong: The Ripley Building, 26 Whitehall, has a net internal area of 4,200 sq m. The Ripley Building accommodates Cabinet Office staff, staff from the Cabinet Office’s facilities management contractor, the Department for Communities and Local Government, and the Deputy Prime Minister’s Office.
Departmental Bodies
Mr. Heald: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many projects have been undertakenby the Better Regulation Executive since it was established; how much each project cost; and what assessment she has made of the effect of each project. [102763]
Hilary Armstrong: The Better Regulation Executive has undertaken a number of projects since its creation, including:
The measurement of administrative burdens;
The Macrory Review of penalties;
The Legislative and Regulatory Reform Bill;
The Davidson Review of implementation of European legislation;
Creation of a portal for business and the third sector to directly submit simplification ideas;
Revision of regulatory impact assessments;
Support for the delivery of departmental simplification plans; and
Contribution to the Employment Law Simplification Review.
In addition, the Executive has undertaken a large number of smaller activities and projects. Separate cost figures are not maintained for these projects, which are covered by the Executive's budget of £6.3 million.
Departmental Websites
Mr. Heald: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what the forecast costs are for maintaining websites within the Cabinet Office's responsibility in the 2006-07 financial year. [102765]
Mr. McFadden: The forecast cost for the 2006-07 financial year for Cabinet Office websites is £690,000 (including VAT). This includes:
web hosting and infrastructure leasing;
security auditing and software;
domain name registration and renewal;
application development and maintenance;
software licences and renewals; and
telecommunications rental and usage.
The cost of maintaining Directgov, which covers services across government, for 2006-07 is forecast as £5,300,000.
The figures shown are based on actual costs up to the end of October, and cost estimates for the remainder of the financial year. Final costs for 2006-07 will be available from April 2007.
As the primary electronic channel to citizens for government, Directgov aims to be the one place citizens turn to for the latest and widest range of public services. Directgov supports services on the web via www.direct.gov.uk, digital television (DTV) via Sky, ntl: and Telewest, and is available via mobile phones. Independent research has shown high levels of customer satisfaction, far exceeding the average rating for a government on-line service and on a par with the commercial sector.
Eunomia
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what projects run by the consultancy Eunomia the Cabinet Office has funded in each of the last five years; and what the (a) cost and (b) objective was of each project. [104219]
Hilary Armstrong: The Cabinet Office has not funded any projects run by the consultancy Eunomia for the period in question. Though the Cabinet Office has not funded any projects run by the consultancy Eunomia, the Department has employed the consultancy to contribute to the “Waste Management Programme” review during the period 2001-06.
European and UK Law
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (1) by what mechanism draft UK legislation implementing European legislation is checked for gold plating; and if she will make a statement; [107070]
(2) by what mechanism draft UK legislation is checked to verify whether it complies with European law; and if she will make a statement. [107071]
Mr. McFadden: The Government’s policy on implementing EU directives, and the procedures which Departments are required to follow, are contained in the Cabinet Office publication “Transposition Guide: how to implement European directives effectively”. This guide states that it is Government policy not to go beyond the minimum requirements of EU directives, unless there are exceptional circumstances justified by a cost-benefit analysis and extensive consultation with business. Instances of gold-plating must be explained in the Regulatory Impact Assessment and approved by the Panel for Regulatory Accountability. Furthermore, since March 2005, there has been a requirement that Transposition Notes, which accompany UK legislation enacting EU legislation when it is laid before Parliament, should include a statement on any over-implementation that is being proposed.
The Transposition Guide will be updated in line with the relevant recommendations contained in the Davidson Report, published on 28 November 2006, in order to strengthen further mechanisms to avoid gold-plating.
Copies of the Transposition Guide are available in the Library for the reference of Members. It is also available on the Cabinet Office’s website at:
www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/regulation/documents/pdf/tpguide.pdf
Religious Buildings: Registration
Mr. Paul Goodman: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what estimate she has made of the number of mosques that (a) were and (b) were not registered as (i) charities and (ii) trusts in each year since 2001. [107575]
Edward Miliband: I have been asked to reply asthe Minister for the third sector. The Charity Commission, the independent regulator of charities, is responsible for deciding whether or not any particular mosque is eligible to register as a charity, and for keeping the register of charities. I have therefore asked the Commission’s Chief Executive to write to the hon. Member. A copy of this letter will be placed in the Library for the reference of Members.
Renewable Energy
Charles Hendry: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how much energy consumed by her Department is acquired from renewable sources. [106159]
Hilary Armstrong: 69 per cent. of energy consumed by the Cabinet Office is from renewable sources.
Retirement Age
Mr. Marsden: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster which Government Departments have mandatory retirement ages. [102397]
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster which Government Departments have decided not to adopt the National Default Retirement Age for its civil servants. [103108]
Mr. McFadden: Responsibility for the setting of retirement ages for staff below the senior civil service is delegated to individual Departments under the Civil Service (Management Functions) Act 1992. The Cabinet Office does not maintain a central record of this information.
Retirement age for members of the senior civil service is not delegated to Departments to decide on and is 65, which is in line with the National Default.
Special Advisers
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many of her Department’s civil servants work full-time to support departmental special advisers; and what the salary is of each such civil servant. [106513]
Hilary Armstrong: One civil servant supports the special advisers in my office, and one civil servant supports the special advisers in the Minister without Portfolio’s office. Both provide administrative support of a non-political nature in accordance with the Code of Conduct for Special Advisers. They also provide support to the private offices.
Individual civil servants’ salary details are not disclosed in order to protect the privacy of the individual concerned.
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