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4 Feb 2008 : Column 838W—continued
Winter Fuel Payments: Wirral
Stephen Hesford: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people were in receipt of the winter fuel payment in Wirral West constituency in the most recent period for which figures are available. [182924]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: I have been asked to reply:
In winter 2006-07 we made 20,040 winter fuel payments to people in the Wirral, West constituency. We expect the number to be similar for this winter.
Notes:
1. Figures rounded to the nearest 10.
2. Parliamentary constituencies are assigned by matching postcodes against the relevant ONS postcode directory.
Source:
Information directorate 100 per cent. data.
Employment: Enfield
Joan Ryan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people were employed in Enfield borough in (a) 1997 and (b) 2008 as a percentage of the working-age population. [183472]
Angela Eagle: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
Letter from Colin Mowl, dated 4 February 2008:
The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Questions asking how many people were employed in Enfield North constituency and Enfield borough in (a) 1997 and (b) 2007 as a percentage of working age population. I am replying in her absence. (183471, 183472).
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiles employment statistics for local areas from the annual Labour Force Survey (LFS) and the Annual Population Survey (APS) following International Labour Organisation (ILO) definitions.
Table 1 attached shows the number of people aged 16 and over and those of working-age (Males 16-64 years and Females 16-59 years) resident in the Enfield, North constituency and in Enfield borough who were in employment for the 12 months ending in February 1998 from the annual LFS and for the 12 months ending in June 2007 from the APS. The table also shows the corresponding employment rates for the 12 months ending in February 1998 and the 12 months ending in June 2007.
As these estimates are for a subset of the population in small geographical areas they are based on small sample sizes and are therefore subject to large margins of uncertainty. Change in the estimates over time should be treated with particular caution.
| Table 1: Employment in Enfield, North constituency and Enfield borough | ||||||
| Enfield, North | Enfield borough | |||||
| 16+ | Working age | 16+ | Working age | |||
| 12 months ending | Level (000) | Level (000) | Rate (%) | Level (000) | Level (000) | Rate (%) |
| Note: Estimates are subject to sampling variability. Changes in the estimates over time should be treated with particular caution. Source: Annual Population Survey and Annual Labour Force Survey | ||||||
Communities and Local Government
Antisocial Behaviour
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps are being taken to (a) implement and (b) promote community calls to action by local authorities introduced under the Police and Justice Act 2006. [183239]
Mr. McNulty: I have been asked to reply.
The Home Office and the Department for Communities and Local Government are working together to agree implementation plans—including agreeing a timetable for implementation.
In particular the Home Office is keen to ensure that this work complements wider developments on local accountability. Sir Ronnie Flanagan's Independent Review of Policing, which will publish its final report soon, and the Policing Green Paper, to be published later this year, will have more to say on this issue.
Centre for Spatial Economic Research: Finance
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much she has allocated to the Centre for Spatial Economic Research for 2007-08. [183247]
Mr. Dhanda: The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government has allocated £43,750 to the Centre on Spatial Economic Research for 2007-08.
Christmas
Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much her Department's agencies spent on (a) Christmas cards and (b) postage of Christmas cards in each year since 1997. [182449]
Mr. Dhanda: Agencies could only answer this question in full at disproportionate cost, but the following information is available for the total spend on Christmas cards in 2007:
| £ | |
| Spend | |
Community Centres: Valuation
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many village halls and community centres were recorded on the Valuation Office Agency's ratings list in England in the most recent period for which figures are available. [178619]
John Healey: The Valuation Office Agency does not separately describe village halls or community centres in the rating lists.
Community Relations: Religion
Mr. Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much she has allocated to the (a) Preventing Violent Extremism pathfinder fund and (b) Preventing Violent Extremism community leadership fund for (i) 2008-09, (ii) 2009-10 and (iii) 2010-11. [183580]
Mr. Dhanda [holding answer 31 January 2008]: We will announce the funding allocations for local authorities and for the Preventing Violent Extremism Community Leadership fund for 2008-09 in the near future.
Funding allocations for local authorities and for the Preventing Violent Extremism Community Leadership Fund for 2009-11 will be announced in due course.
Council Housing: Energy
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 29 November 2007, Official Report, column 680W, on council housing: energy, if she will make it her policy to issue guidance on sustainable ways of replacing windows in local authority-owned homes. [181239]
Mr. Iain Wright: The BRE Green Guide currently provides advice on the sustainability of building materials including windows. Our Code for Sustainable (new) Homes draws on the assessments in that guide. This information is available to local authorities in making their own investment decisions on improving their housing stock.
Existing guidance on the decent homes standard states landlords may also want to consider other factors when carrying out work to makes homes decent including carrying out works in an environmentally sustainable way. It refers landlords to Green Street, a web-based tool for sustainable refurbishment developed by Sustainable Homes and the Housing Corporation (www.greenstreet.org.uk).
We do not believe it is necessary to issue further advice on this issue to local authorities.
Government Departments: Kent
Dr. Ladyman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much total funding via (a) revenue support, (b) capital grant and (c) supported borrowing was provided from all central Government Departments to (i) Kent county council, (ii) Thanet district council and (iii) Dover district council in each year since 1992. [183093]
John Healey: The central Government revenue funding to Kent county council, Thanet district council and Dover district council in each year since 1993 is as follows:
| £000 | |||
| Kent county council | Dover district council | Thanet district council | |
| Source: Communities and Local Government Revenue Outturn (RO) returns. | |||
The large differences between 1994-95 and 1995-96 and between 1997-98 and 1998-99 for Kent county council are as a result of local authority re-organisation.
Central Government revenue funding is defined here as the sum of formula grant (revenue support grant, police grant and redistributed non-domestic rates) and specific grants inside Aggregate External Finance (AEF), i.e. revenue grants paid for councils' core services. In past years, it also includes the SSA reduction grant, central support protection grant, council tax benefit subsidy limitation scheme.
Figures exclude grants outside AEF (i.e. where funding is not for authorities' core services, but is passed to a third party, for example, rent allowances and rebates), capital grants, funding for the local authorities' housing management responsibilities and those grant programmes (such as European funding) where authorities are simply one of the recipients of funding paid towards an area.
Comparisons across years may not be valid due to changing local authority responsibilities.
The amount of capital grants provided to local authorities by central Government is not available. Funding of supported borrowing is included indistinguishably in revenue funding given in the table.
Greater London Authority: Audit
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what work the (a) District Auditor and (b) Audit Commission have undertaken on recent claims of impropriety in the allocation of grants by the London Development Agency and the Greater London Authority. [183092]
John Healey: It would be inappropriate for me to comment as the District Auditor and Audit Commission are both independent of Government and the District Auditor’s investigations are ongoing. This is an operational matter for the Audit commission and I have asked the Chief Executive of the Audit Commission to write to the hon. Member directly.
Letter from Steve Bundred , dated 4 February 2008:
Your parliamentary question on whether the district auditor has oversight over the (a) London Development Agency and (b) Greater London Authority has been passed to me for reply.
I think it would be helpful at the outset to clarify the role and responsibilities of the Audit Commission and the appointed auditor, before turning to the work being undertaken by the District Auditor for the Greater London Authority (GLA) and London Development Agency (LDA).
The role of the Audit Commission
The Audit Commission (the Commission) is an independent body with statutory responsibilities to regulate the audit of local government and NHS bodies in England. The Commission's statutory responsibilities in relation to audit are set out in the Audit Commission Act 1998 (the Act). They are to:
appoint auditors to local government and NHS bodies;
prescribe how auditors should carry out their functions through a statutory Code of Audit Practice, which is approved by Parliament at five-yearly intervals;
set scales of fees for audit work; and
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