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16 July 2007 : Column 77W—continued
Floods: Northern Region
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many of the residential properties affected in the recent flooding in the north of England were built in the last 10 years. [149174]
Yvette Cooper: The information requested is not held centrally.
Homelessness: North East region
Bill Etherington: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what progress is being made towards tackling homelessness on Wearside; and if she will make a statement. [148529]
Mr. Iain Wright: Local authorities on Wearside have made good progress in tackling homelessness since 2003. Collectively they have already met the 2010 temporary accommodation reduction target and homeless acceptances have dropped by over 30 per cent. during that period.
| Local authority | Homelessness acceptances | Temporary accommodation |
Housing: Bournemouth
Mr. Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what plans her Department has to increase targets for future house building in Bournemouth. [149981]
Mr. Dhanda: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 11 July 2007, Official Report, columns 1471-72W. The draft South West Regional Spatial Strategy, which recently completed its examination in public, states a range for 2006-26 of between 680 and 780 dwellings per annum for Bournemouth.
Future housing targets for Bournemouth will be set out in the Local Development Framework for the district, and will need to be in accordance with the Regional Spatial Strategy when finalised.
Housing: Essex
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) how many vulnerable households lived in non-decent homes in Essex in the latest period for which figures are available; [147371]
(2) how many vulnerable households in non-decent homes there are in Essex. [147961]
Mr. Iain Wright:
Information on the number of vulnerable households living in non-decent homes in each local authority district is not available centrally. A
Decent Home: Definition and guidance for implementation (June 2006-Update) advises local authorities, as part of their strategic management of housing in their area, to carry out periodic surveys to, amongst other things, assess the number of vulnerable households living in non-decent homes who own or privately rent their accommodation. Individual local authorities are best placed to advise on their latest assessment. The guidance referred to above is available on the Communities and Local Government website at:
Housing: Low Incomes
Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many affordable homes were built in Windsor in each year since 1997. [148786]
Mr. Iain Wright [holding answer 12 July 2007]: The number of affordable homes provided through new build and acquisitions on behalf of Windsor and Maidenhead local authority are in the following table. These figures include ‘social for rent’ and ‘low cost home ownership’.
| Number of affordable housing dwellings provided | |
| Source: Housing Corporation and returns from local authorities | |
Housing: Multiple Occupation
Mr. Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate she has made of the number of domestic residential properties in multiple occupation as a percentage of the total number of individual properties in each local authority area. [148887]
Mr. Iain Wright: A table detailing the latest estimates of the number of all houses in multiple occupation (HMOs) as a percentage of the total number of dwellings in each local authority area has been placed in the Library of the House. The data were provided by local authorities to the Department as part of their Annual Housing Strategy Statistical Appendix.
Northern Ireland
Abortion
Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will take steps to seek the views of the Northern Ireland Assembly before any legislation is brought forward at Westminster which would change the law relating to abortion in Northern Ireland. [148566]
Paul Goggins: The Government have no plans to amend the law on abortion in Northern Ireland. We believe the best forum for discussion of these questions is the Northern Ireland Assembly, once it has assumed responsibility for the criminal law.
Mr. Donaldson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what powers Parliament retains to legislate on abortion in Northern Ireland. [149805]
Paul Goggins: The legislation governing abortion in Northern Ireland falls within the field of criminal law and, as such, remains a reserved matter in Northern Ireland under the terms of paragraph 9(a) of Schedule 3 to the Northern Ireland Act 1998. This means that any legislation on it would fall to Parliament at Westminster to take forward, although, as with all reserved matters, under the terms of section 8(b) of the 1998 Act, the Northern Ireland Assembly may legislate on this matter with the consent of the Secretary of State.
Community Policing
Mr. McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what progress has been made on community policing in Northern Ireland. [149418]
Paul Goggins: My Department continues to work closely with PSNI in relation to the development of community policing. In September 2006, PSNI set up a dedicated branch to develop its approach to policing with the community. A review- of neighbourhood policing was also undertaken, drawing on best practice from other police services.
In his final report of 19 May 2007, the Oversight Commissioner for Police Reform indicated that five of the eight recommendations on policing with the community were complete and that substantial progress had been made on the remaining three.
On 18 June 2007 the chief constable and his senior staff approved the corporate framework for neighbourhood policing. The 25 recommendations contained therein will now begin to be implemented throughout all police districts. Workshops to inform officers about the 25 recommendations and the way ahead are currently being held within the eight police districts and will be completed by 27 July 2007.
A Corporate Implementation Team (whose role it will be to deliver the recommendations) has been selected. A project plan is being prepared; however all eight districts are already implementing those recommendations that can be implemented now.
Departments: Official Hospitality
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland pursuant to the answer of 6 June 2007, Official Report, column 515W, on Departments: official hospitality, if he will provide a breakdown by main budget heading of his Department's (a) agencies and (b) NDPBs expenditure on official hospitality for each of the last three years. [146803]
Paul Goggins: The following table indicates how much the Northern Ireland Office's agencies and executive NDPBs spent on official hospitality for each of the last three years:
| £ | ||
| (a) Hospitality spend—agencie s | (b) Hospitality spend—executive NDPB s | |
Departments: Racial Harassment
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many complaints of racial abuse relating to staff for which his Department is responsible have been (a) investigated and (b) upheld in the last 12 months. [149246]
Paul Goggins: During the last 12 months the NIO has not received any official complaints of racial abuse. All staff joining the NIO undergo mandatory equal opportunities awareness training as part of their induction, which includes guidance on appropriate behaviour in the workplace. A new diversity course, which concentrates on treating others with dignity, is due to be rolled out to the whole Department in the coming months.
Police: County Armagh
Mr. Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what recent discussions he has had with the Police Service of Northern Ireland on (a) policing and (b) the security situation in South Armagh; and if he will make a statement. [149524]
Paul Goggins: My Department has regular discussions with the PSNI on a variety of topics related to policing and security, including matters relating to South Armagh. For security reasons, it would not be appropriate to comment further on the exact nature of such discussions.
Prisoners Release
Mr. Donaldson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much has been paid to prisoners who were released early from prison under the terms of the Belfast Agreement. [149807]
Paul Goggins: Each prisoner released under the terms of the Northern Ireland Sentence Act (1998) were given a discharge grant, maximum £103.81, in line with that given to all persons released from prison. There was no special provision for these prisoners.
Mr. Donaldson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much has been paid to prisoners under the provisions for the resettlement of offenders since 1998. [149808]
Paul Goggins: Under the provisions for the resettlement of offenders, there was no special provision made for individual prisoners released under the terms of the Northern Ireland Sentence Act (1998). On their release these prisoners were given a discharge grant in line with that given to all persons released from prison. In addition, various Northern Ireland Departments and the Northern Ireland Office made funding available to ex-prisoner groups. This included Peace and Gap funding.
Proscribed Organisations
Mr. Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many paramilitary-style assaults took place in Northern Ireland in each of the last 12 months for which figures are available, broken down by group deemed responsible; and if he will make a statement. [149522]
Paul Goggins: The information requested is shown in the following tables.
| Casualties as result of paramilitary-style assaults | |||
| Perceived attribution( 1) | |||
| Loyalists | Republicans | Total | |
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