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8 Oct 2007 : Column 27W—continued
Floods: EC Grants and Loans
John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) what European Union assistance is available to help rebuild communities damaged by floodwater; and if she will make a statement; [153309]
(2) what plans the Government have to apply for EU funding assistance to help communities rebuild after the recent flooding; and what the deadline is for applying for any such assistance. [153310]
John Healey: On 20 August 2007, UK submitted an application to the European Commission for support from the European Union Solidarity Fund (EUSF) to help recovery from the recent flooding.
Greenbelt: Databases
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government for what reason the Green Belt Boundary Layer was removed from her Department's Maps On Tap database March 2007 data update. [153907]
Mr. Iain Wright: The green belt boundary data held by the Maps on Tap database was removed as the license to use this commercial product has been cancelled.
Home Information Packs
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove) of 25 June 2007, Official Report, column 164W, on home information packs, what payments her Department and its predecessor have made to (a) Rightmove and (b) Countrywide for advice, research or consultancy on home information packs. [152541]
Yvette Cooper: The Department has not made any such payments to Rightmove or Countrywide.
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove) of 25 June 2007, Official Report, column 164W, on home information packs, what payments her Department and its predecessor made to (a) Rightmove and (b) Countryside for pilot schemes relating to home information packs. [152675]
Yvette Cooper: The Department has not made any such payments to Rightmove or Countrywide.
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what meetings Ministers from her Department have had with the Association of Home Information Pack Providers in the last 12 months. [152833]
Yvette Cooper: I have met with the Association of Home Information Pack Providers (AHIPP) on a number of occasions, most recently on 6 September 2007. I have also had similar meetings with other representative bodies and we are continuing to work closely with all key stakeholders on HIPs and EPCs.
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what representations her Department has received from (a) Flint Bishop solicitors and (b) Labour Legal Services in the last 12 months on home information packs. [153525]
Yvette Cooper: The Department for Communities and Local Government has no record of representations received from Flint Bishop solicitors or Labour Legal Services in the last 12 months on home information packs.
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether (a) home information packs and (b) energy performance certificates may include the unique property reference number or a BS7666-compliant address of the domestic dwelling. [153795]
Yvette Cooper: Energy performance certificates include a unique property reference number, which is generated by the Register Operator. Neither this nor a BS7666-compliant address is included in a HIP.
Home Information Packs: Valuation Office
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government for what reasons the Valuation Office Agency has not been granted access to the home condition report database. [152516]
Yvette Cooper: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 22 May 2006, Official Report, column 1400W to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickles) regarding access to home condition reports.
Homelessness: Cambridgeshire
Mr. Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many households in (a) South Cambridgeshire and (b) East Cambridgeshire were accepted as homeless in each year since 1997. [153763]
Mr. Iain Wright: Information about local authorities’ actions under homelessness legislation is collected quarterly at local authority level, in respect of households rather than people.
Information reported each quarter by local authorities about their activities under homelessness legislation includes the number of households accepted by local authorities as eligible for assistance, unintentionally homeless and in priority need, and therefore owed a main homelessness duty. The duty owed to an accepted household is to secure suitable accommodation.
This data is published in our quarterly statistical release on Statutory Homelessness, which includes a Supplementary Table showing the breakdown of key data, including acceptances, by each local authority. This table is published on our website and placed in the Library each quarter. The latest release was published on 10 September 2007 and contains data for the period April to June 2007:
A summary table showing the total number of households accepted as owed the main homelessness duty for East and South Cambridgeshire is as follows.
Homelessness: Greater London
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many and what percentage of people were (a) homeless and (b) on the council housing waiting list in each London borough in each of the last 10 years. [154806]
Mr. Iain Wright: The first table shows (i) the number of households accepted as owed the main homelessness duty, and (ii) this number as a percentage of total households in the area, for each London borough for the last 10 financial years (from 1997-98 to 2006-07).
Information on numbers of households, rather than people, is reported each quarter by local authorities about their activities under homelessness legislation, and includes the number of households accepted by local authorities as eligible for assistance, unintentionally homeless and in priority need, and therefore owed a main homelessness duty. The duty owed to an accepted household is to secure suitable accommodation.
The second table shows (i) the total number of households on local authorities’ housing waiting lists (i.e. not just those that are homeless), and (ii) this number as a percentage of total households in the area, for each London borough for the last 10 calendar years (from 1997 to 2006).
Local authorities in England report the numbers of households on their housing waiting list as at 1 April in their annual Housing Strategy Statistical Appendix returns. Not everyone on the waiting list is necessarily in urgent housing need. The waiting list includes those who consider social housing as their preferred or one of a number of housing options, and those who decide to get onto the waiting list ladder before they need or want to move house—particularly where the priority system is heavily based on waiting time. Note that the figures include all households on the waiting list, and not only those that are homeless.
| Table (a): Number and percentage of households accepted as owed the main homelessness duty in each London borough | ||||||||||
| (i) Number of households accepted( 1) as owed a main homeles sness duty during the year, 1997-98 to 2006- 07 | ||||||||||
| 1997-98 | 1998-99 | 1999-2000 | 2000-01 | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | |
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