| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
4 Dec 2007 : Column 1155W—continued
Housing: Low Incomes
Helen Southworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will take steps to ensure that provision of new affordable housing matches housing needs analysis in relation to the need for affordable family homes in (a) Warrington and (b) other Northwest housing hotspots. [170272]
Mr. Iain Wright [holding answer 3 December 2007]: Funding for housing is distributed between the regions on the basis of an analysis of relative need which takes account of local authority need. North-west housing hotspots would be reflected in this analysis. Announcements as to the levels of funding to be made available in the north-west over the next three years for affordable housing will be made shortly.
The funding is being made available to bids from both housing associations, developers and local authorities through the Housing Corporation's bidding round for the National Affordable Housing Programme. Investment in 2008-11 and completions in particular locations will depend on the bids received by the Housing Corporation.
Housing: Overcrowding
Mr. Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what criteria her Department uses to determine whether a (a) one, (b) two and (c) three bedroom property is overcrowded. [171553]
Mr. Iain Wright: The existing statutory overcrowding standards are set out in Part 1 of the Housing Act 1985—a dwelling is overcrowded when the number of people sleeping in the dwelling contravenes either the room standard or the space standard:
The room standard is breached if the number of people sleeping in a dwelling, and the number of rooms available as sleeping accommodation, are such that two people of opposite sexes who are not living together as husband and wife must sleep in the same room. Children under 10 do not count.
The space standard specifies the maximum number of people who may sleep in a dwelling, and in the available rooms within it, having regard to (i) the number of available rooms of 50 square feet or more and (ii) the floor area in each room. Two calculations are required and the lower number applies. Babies under one year old do not count, and children between one and 10 count as half.
For the purposes of these standards, a room is considered to be “available as sleeping accommodation” if it is “of a type normally used in the locality either as a bedroom or a living room”.
Hutchinson
Mr. Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what meetings (a) she and (b) her officials have had with (i) Hutchinson Ports and (ii) lobbyists engaged by Hutchinson Ports in the last 12 months. [166983]
Mr. Iain Wright: My right hon. Friend has held no meetings with Hutchinson Ports UK Ltd. or their lobbyists in the last 12 months, nor have officials from Communities and Local Government and Government Office East of England. However, representatives from Hutchinson Ports UK Ltd. have been present at some routine meetings between officials and the Haven Gateway Partnership.
Independent Infrastructure Planning Commission
Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many members the proposed independent Infrastructure Planning Commission will have; and how many of them will be appointed by (a) the Welsh Assembly Government and (b) the Scottish Executive. [169634]
John Healey: The White Paper “Planning for a Sustainable Future” (CM7120) outlined that the number of Commissioners would depend on the Commission’s workload, but that we expect that the Commission might require between 20-30 Commissioners. All of the Commissioners would be appointed by the Secretary of State. The Secretary of State will ask Welsh Ministers for nominations for 2-3 of these posts, reflecting the role of the Commission in determining nationally significant energy infrastructure projects in Wales. The Infrastructure Planning Commission will have no role in determining projects in Scotland, and so no nominations will be sought from Scottish Ministers.
Licensing Laws
Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what representations have been made to her Department on the use of temporary events notices; what assessment her Department has made of the use of temporary events notices instead of regular licensing; and how many temporary event notices have been (a) applied for and (b) granted in each London borough in each of the last three years. [163749]
Mr. Sutcliffe: I have been asked to reply.
We have received a number of representations on the use of temporary event notices (TENs). These have included some calls for an increase to the number that can be given in one year, with others calling for a decrease. My right hon. Friend the Member for St. Helens, South (Mr. Woodward) made a ministerial written statement on 5 July 2006, Official Report, column 39WS, which stated that the Government had no plans to change limits. The Government also stated in their Memorandum on Re-licensing, sent to the Select Committee on Communities and Local Government on 10 January 2007, that while there had been some representations about licensed premises using TENs to operate additional hours or activities which have not been included on the full licence, the Government believed that the existing limit was sufficient. In the Report of the Independent Fees Review Panel, chaired by Sir Les Elton, the Panel recommended that the TENs limit be increased from 12 to 15 each year. The Government will respond to the Panel’s report in due course.
It is not possible to provide the information in the format requested as TENs did not exist until 24 November 2005, when the Licensing Act 2003 came into force, and there is no data held centrally that shows figures prior to 1 April 2006. The following table shows how many TENs were given during the 12 month period to 31 March 2007 across the licensing authorities in London which cover London borough areas.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |