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29 Oct 2007 : Column 645W—continued
Coalfields Regeneration Trust: Finance
Dr. Tony Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will make a statement on the future funding of the Coalfields Regeneration Trust. [158691]
Yvette Cooper: The Coalfields Regeneration Trust's current funding agreement for England continues until March 2008. A recent independent evaluation of the CLG coalfield programmes provided strong evidence of the trust's positive impact on our former coalfield communities. In view of the trust's continued good performance, provision is to be made for the continuation of the trust's funding for a further three years. The details of this will be announced shortly.
Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what plans she has to conduct a review of the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE); and what changes are planned for the design and building standards on which CABE advises. [157650]
Margaret Hodge: I have been asked to reply.
In order to ensure that CABE continues to deliver effectively and in line with our Departmental priorities, DCMS (CABE’s sponsor department) and CLG (CABE’s co-funder) have agreed with CABE that it is timely to carry out a light touch review of this important independent NDPB. A commitment to carry out this review was included in CLG’s recent Housing Green Paper. Terms of reference for the review are being finalised.
The design and building standards on which CABE advises are outside the scope of the review. We have recently made reforms to the planning policy framework and building regulations which has put good design at the heart of decision making and the future housing growth agenda. We will continue to monitor progress to see if any further changes are needed in the future.
Community Development: Expenditure
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove) of 26 March 2007, Official Report, column 1321W, on community development: expenditure, what the public expenditure has been on the Millennium Communities programme excluding the Greenwich Peninsula site. [145482]
Yvette Cooper: Pursuant to my answer to the hon. Member for Surrey Heath of 26 March 2007, Official Report, column 1321W, to date, public expenditure related to the Millennium Communities programme, excluding the Greenwich Peninsula site amounts to a total of £86,561,250.
This amount relates to a wide range of start-up expenditure that is necessary to regenerate difficult brownfield sites and create thriving new communities, such as providing essential infrastructure, sustainable urban drainage systems, community facilities and so on. The Millennium Communities programme as a whole is bringing forward seven new schools and colleges, five new health centres, 10 new public parks and play areas, and eight new community buildings. In addition, over 70,000 sq m of commercial and retail accommodation will be created. As an example, at the New Islington Millennium Community in Manchester the public investment is creating a new canal network, roads and infrastructure, a new primary school, a state of the art health centre, car club, child care facilities, an energy centre and 6,000 sq m of employment floorspace in addition to the 1,400 new homes.
It is anticipated that some 75 per cent. of this public investment will be recouped in due course through receipts. The precise final figure will be known when the sites have been completed and developments sold. In addition, a significant amount of private sector
investment has been levered in to these seven regeneration areas. This is currently some £749 million, which represents a private:public ratio of 8:1.
Council Housing: Property Transfer
Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many council houses have been transferred to housing association ownership under the large scale voluntary transfer programme; how many were non-decent on the date of transfer; and how many are now non-decent. [157359]
Mr. Iain Wright: Since 1997, 127 local authorities have completed 198 transfers involving 831,481 homes. Since 2001 the number of non-decent homes on the date of transfer has totalled 246,781; numbers of non-decent homes transferring were not recorded prior to this date but we estimate between 1997 and 2001 there were around 155,000 non-decent homes that were transferred. Nearly 139,000 of transferred dwellings have been tackled since 2001 according to RSL data returns, representing a 56 per cent. reduction in the number of non-decent homes.
Council Tax
Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the percentage change in Band D council tax has been in (a) England and (b) St. Albans since 1997-98. [158580]
John Healey:
Details of the percentage change in B and D council tax in (a) England and (b) St. Albans
since 1997-98 are available on the Communities and Local Government website at:
Council Tax: East Midlands
Mr. Skinner: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the annual change was in the level of council tax in each district council in the East Midlands in each year since 1996-97; and if she will make a statement. [161438]
John Healey: Details of the percentage change in council tax in each district council in the East Midlands from 1996-97 are available on the Communities and Local Government website at:
Council Tax: Eastern Region
Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will list the counties in the East of England according to the level of council tax rises (a) in each year since 1997, (b) between 1997 and 2001, (c) between 1997 and 2005, (d) between 1997 and 2007 and (e) between 2005 and 2007. [159212]
John Healey: Details of the percentage changes in council tax for counties in the East of England in (a) each year since 1997-98, (b) between 1997-98 and 2001-02, (c) between 1997-98 and 2005-06, (d) between 1997-98 and 2007-08 and (e) between 2005-06 and 2007-08 are shown as follows.
| Bedfordshire | Cambridgeshire | Essex | Hertfordshire | Norfolk | Suffolk | |
These data are taken from the Budget Requirement forms completed annually by all precepting authorities. The information shown only relates to the precept levied by the county council on a Band D two-adult property and does not include council tax levied by shire district, fire or police authorities.
Data between years and authorities are not strictly comparable due to changes in methods of funding and responsibility. In particular, the funding of some fire authorities changed in 2004-05 from being financed by a levy on the county council to the fire authority becoming a precepting authority in their own right. This affected the figures for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Essex.
Council Tax: Emergency Services
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the average police and fire levy on Band D council tax in London was in each year from 1997-98 to the creation of the Greater London Authority. [157485]
John Healey: Details of the police and fire levy on Band D two-adult council tax in London from 1997-98 to the creation of the Greater London Authority in 2000-01 are shown in the following table:
| £ | ||
| London Fire | Metropolitan Police | |
The data are collected on Budget Requirement returns submitted annually by all billing authorities in England.
Council Tax: Fire Services
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the average precept was for (a) metropolitan councils, (b) county councils, (c) district councils, (d) unitary councils and (e) London boroughs excluding Greater London Authority police and fire on Band D council tax in England in each year from 1997-98 to 2007-08. [157484]
John Healey: District councils, unitary councils and London boroughs are not precepting authorities. Details of the average police and fire authority precept for Band D two-adult properties in England since 1997-98 are shown in the following table:
| £ | ||||
| Metropolitan fire authorities | Combined fire and rescue authorities | Metropolitan police authorities | Shire police authorities | |
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