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24 Oct 2007 : Column 370W—continued
Thames Gateway Development Corporation;
Thurrock Development Corporation;
Urban Regeneration Agency;
Valuation Tribunal Service;
West Northamptonshire Development Corporation.
Departments: Correspondence
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance her Department follows on the maximum time taken to respond to hon. Members' correspondence; and what performance against that target was in the most recent period for which figures are available. [158599]
Mr. Dhanda: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster on 22 October 2007, Official Report, column 45W.
Departments: Manpower
Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many and what percentage of employees in (a) her Department and (b) each (i) executive agency and (ii) non-departmental public body funded by her Department are above state retirement age. [158935]
Mr. Dhanda: On 30 September 2006 there were: 40 members of staff (1.2 per cent.) in the Department for Communities and Local Government (CLG) Centre and CLG staff in the Government Office Network; fewer than five (less than 1 per cent.) in the Planning Inspectorate; and 10 (0.7 per cent.) in Ordnance Survey who were over the state retirement age.
The information requested is not available for the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre, the Fire Service College or non-departmental public bodies.
Departments: Official Hospitality
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much was spent by her Department on official hospitality in the last 12 months. [158932]
Mr. Dhanda: The Department spent £307,845 on hospitality in the last 12 months from l October 2006 to 30 September 2007.
All expenditure on hospitality is made in accordance with published departmental guidance on financial procedures and propriety, based on principles set out in Government Accounting and the Treasury handbook on Regularity and Propriety.
Departments: Policy
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what policy changes her Department has implemented since 27 June 2007. [159286]
Mr. Dhanda: The Department has implemented a number of new policies since 27 June 2007. Parliament has been kept fully informed of these changes. Some key examples are as follows:
On 19 October 2007, Official Report, column 59WS, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State announced the publication of an ‘empowerment action plan’ which sets out how the Government will deliver on their commitment to bring about greater devolution and empower communities;
On 15 October 2007, Official Report, column 47WS, my hon. Friend the Minister for Housing, announced a new regulator for social housing following the Cave review;
On 9 October 2007, Official Report, column 25WS, my hon. Friend the Minister for Housing, issued a written ministerial statement on planning charges and the planning gain supplement;
On 25 July 2007, Official Report, column 68WS, my hon. Friend the Minister for Local Government, made a written ministerial statement on unitary local government;
On 23 July 2007, Official Report, columns 580-3, my hon. Friend the Minister for Housing made an announcement in the House about the publication of the Green Paper on Housing;
On 17 July 2007, Official Report, columns 161-2, my hon. Friend the Minister for Local Government, made an announcement in the House on the conclusions of the review of sub-national economic development and regeneration.
Departments: Redundancy
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the cost was of redundancies in the Department in the 12 months preceding (a) 30 June 2004, (b) 30 June 2005 and (c) 30 June 2006. [159872]
Mr. Dhanda: The Department for Communities and Local Government (CLG) was created following the machinery of government changes on 5 May 2006.
The following table sets out the total expenditure on early severance or early retirement for CLG and its predecessor Department the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM).
| Early severance/early retirement costs | ||
| Department | Year ending 30 June | Cost (£ million) |
The costs shown reflect the demands of resource accounting, so, as well as payments made in the 12 months' period, also include the liability cost for payments due in later years until those leavers aged over 50 at departure, reach pension age.
Departments: Redundancy Pay
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 8 October 2007, Official Report, column 24W, on departments: redundancy pay, what the (a) average, (b) highest and (c) lowest redundancy payment was; what the budget was for redundancies in that period; and how many redundancies were (i) voluntary and (ii) involuntary. [159868]
Mr. Dhanda: Pursuant to the answer of 8 October 2007, Official Report, column 24W, on departments: redundancy pay, for the central part of the Department for Communities and Local Government, during the 12 months to 30 June 2007:
(a) average redundancy payment was £107,000;
(b) highest redundancy payment was £479,000; and
(c) lowest redundancy payment was £3,000.
The costs reflect the demands of resource accounting, so, as well as payments made in the 12 months’ period, also include the liability cost for payments due in later years until those leavers aged over 50 at departure, reach pension age.
The budget for redundancies in that period was £21.8 million.
The redundancies comprised (i) 190 voluntary cases and (ii) 13 involuntary cases.
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 8 October 2007, Official Report, column 24W, on departments: redundancy pay, what the reasons were for the level of redundancy payments; and if she will make a statement. [160295]
Mr. Dhanda: The reasons for these redundancy payments were the work the individuals were doing was no longer required and it was not possible to redeploy them, and to achieve staffing reductions in order to keep future spending within budgets.
Fire Safety Order 2006
Dan Rogerson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment she has made of the impact of the Fire Safety Order 2006 on the intended outcome of the integrated risk management policy introduced in 2003. [159028]
Mr. Dhanda: The risk-based approach to fire safety in non-domestic premises required by the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 supports and complements the wider risk-based approach that has been taken with the development of Integrated Risk Management Plans. The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order reflects the risk based approach established by the Fire Precautions (Workplace) Regulations 1997 (as amended), which implemented two European directives in respect of health and safety at work.
The Department will, as a matter of good practice, evaluate the impact of its policy relating to fire safety.
Fire Services
Dan Rogerson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment she has made of the effects of introducing regional call handling centres for fire emergencies; and if she will make a statement. [159029]
Mr. Dhanda: FiReControl will deliver a resilient national network of control centres that will back each other up during large scale emergencies. It will also provide more information to firefighters to enable them to better deal with incidents.
In terms of call handling, the system will be designed to match or exceed current performance levels. Extensive modelling has been done to ensure proposed staffing levels will be sufficient for this to be achieved. We are reviewing recent flooding events to ensure that all lessons learned are fully incorporated into the new control centres.
First Time Buyers: Mortgages
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what proportion of the average (a) buyer’s income and (b) first time buyer’s income went into mortgage payments in (i) 1996-97 and (ii) the latest year for which figures are available. [157469]
Mr. Iain Wright: Data on the average proportion of a household’s declared income that is used for their mortgage payment for the UK is available from the Regulated Mortgage Survey and is shown in following table.
| Mortgage payments as percentage of household income, England | ||
| First time buyers | All buyers | |
| Source: Regulated Mortgage Survey | ||
Housing Market
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the most recent (a) actual and (b) estimated outputs are for (i) demolitions, (ii) repairs, improvements and refurbishments and (iii) new builds in each of the housing market renewal pathfinder areas in (A) 2004-05, (B) 2005-06, (C) 2006-07, (D) 2007-08 and (E) 2008-09. [157678]
Mr. Iain Wright: The following table provides information on the number of demolitions, refurbishments and new builds funded in full or in part by housing market renewal funding (HMRF) as part of the local programmes led by councils and partners to address housing problems in their areas. The figures for 2004-05, 2005-06 and 2006-07 are actual. Estimated figures for 2007-08 are derived from the targets in the pathfinders’ funding agreements for this year. It is not yet possible to estimate outputs for 2008-09.
The variation in outputs between pathfinders is partly explained by the different sizes of the programmes and how long they have been running. There is also a wide variety in approaches taken depending on the particular problems faced in each area and the wishes of each individual community affected.
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