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13 Mar 2008 : Column 580W—continued
Home Information Packs: Eco-Towns
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether home information packs will apply to the sale of houses built in eco-towns. [190513]
Housing: Low Incomes
Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps she is taking to monitor the proportion of affordable housing to be delivered on sites which have recently been granted planning permission by local authorities bidding to be housing growth points; and if she will ensure that account is taken of this proportion when decisions are made on the bids. [192483]
Mr. Iain Wright [holding answer 7 March 2008]: Data for sites granted planning permission for affordable housing are not collected centrally although statistics which show the numbers of affordable dwellings built are available. Affordability is a key emerging priority for many areas and we would expect this to inform local authority proposals for growth point status.
Mr. Pickles:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Welwyn Hatfield, of 31 January 2008, Official Report, column 583W, on housing: low incomes, what the current average annual percentage rate (APR) equivalent interest rate on the non-shared equity element of the Yorkshire Building Society Expanded Open Market Homebuy scheme is; whether the APR varies according to the size of the
borrower's deposit; and whether the APR is variable, capped or fixed; [193775]
(2) whether there is a (a) mortgage indemnity guarantee and (b) arrangement fee charged on the Yorkshire Building Society Expanded Open Market Homebuy scheme; [193776]
(3) on what multiple of (a) a single person's income and (b) a couple's discount, the maximum amount that may be lent is calculated under the Yorkshire Building Society Expanded Open Market Homebuy scheme; [193778]
(4) how much the early redemption penalty for the Yorkshire Building Society Expanded Open Market Homebuy scheme is; and in what circumstances the penalty applies. [193779]
Caroline Flint: The questions do not relate to our low cost home ownership policy. They are in relation to loans offered by a mortgage lender.
The Yorkshire Building Society should be contacted for the detailed information requested.
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Welwyn Hatfield, of 31 January 2008, Official Report, column 583W, on housing: low incomes, what (a) minimum borrowers' deposit is required and (b) maximum loan to value is allowed under the Yorkshire Building Society Expanded Open Market Homebuy scheme. [193777]
Caroline Flint: No borrower's deposit is required under the Yorkshire Building Society Expanded Open Market Homebuy scheme. The maximum loan to value allowed under the scheme is 100 per cent.
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many completed purchases there have been under the Open Market Homebuy Government Loan Only scheme to date. [193785]
Caroline Flint: Since the Open Market HomeBuy scheme was launched in April 2006, we have helped over 4,600 householders into home ownership.
Since July 2007, there have been 861 completed sales under the Open Market HomeBuy Government Loan Only scheme, to the end of February 2008.
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the maximum loan to value ratio is, including the shared equity borrowing permitted, in (a) Open Market Homebuy and (b) Extended Open Market Homebuy. [193940]
Caroline Flint: The maximum loan to value ratio permitted under all the Open Market HomeBuy products, including the shared equity element, is 100 per cent.
Housing: Standards
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much is expected to be spent on bringing homes up to the decent homes standard in the next three years. [191768]
Mr. Iain Wright: It is for local authorities and registered social landlords to determine what they spend on making homes decent using all the resources available to them. The Government make available funding for capital investment purposes.
The resources made available for the next three years from the comprehensive spending review 2007 that local authorities can use to deliver decent homes are in the following table. Final allocations for each year have yet to be determined.
| Funding | |
|
Regional housing pot: local authority improvements to, and regeneration of, existing stock (both local authority owned and in the private sector) |
In addition local authorities will make use of the allowances for major repairs that are provided through the annual housing revenue account subsidy determination. In 2008-09 this is £1,317 million.
Local authorities have powers to assist vulnerable households living in the very worst conditions by developing flexible approaches to respond to locally specific conditions, and to find ways to make their resources go further through the use of loans and equity release schemes.
Housing: Sustainable Development
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what proportion of new homes built since 2003 meet the Government’s targets for sustainability on (a) energy use and (b) water use. [191191]
Mr. Iain Wright: Building Control is a devolved service undertaken by local authorities and other building control bodies. Independent data on the levels of compliance achieved by individual homes that have been signed off by building control bodies is not kept centrally and it is not therefore possible to verify the absolute levels of compliance.
In relation to regulatory requirements on energy use, an implementation review of the 2006 amendments to part L of the building regulations will be undertaken shortly and will help to inform future amendments to the building regulations in this respect.
There are currently no requirements in building regulations for water efficiency, but the Government have committed to bringing new requirements into force for new homes during 2009. In December 2006, CLG and DEFRA issued a consultation on introducing minimum requirements for water efficiency in new buildings. The consultation gave a strong endorsement for the adoption of a performance standard for new homes to be administered through the building regulations. The standard will be set at 125 litres per person per day.
The code for sustainable homes sets out standards, above the regulatory minimum, for the sustainability of new homes including energy and water. The code provides a means for house builders to differentiate their products, however, there is no national obligation for privately funded developments to be built to the code. Publicly funded homes must be built to code level 3. There are currently 395 registered developments that are building to the code, covering around 30,000 homes.
Local Government: Reorganisation
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what further plans her Department has for allowing further areas where two-tier local authorities exist to convert to unitary authorities. [188320]
John Healey: We have no plans for any further programme of invitations to councils to submit unitary proposals. However, we recognise that in some specific cases in the future there might be areas where circumstances are such as to warrant a focused and targeted invitation to the councils concerned, and the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 allows for this.
Local Strategic Partnerships: Chorley
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) if she will meet Chorley borough council and the hon. Member for Chorley to discuss the local strategic partnership; [192422]
(2) if she will take steps to ensure that (a) Chorley borough council and (b) the Chorley local strategic partnership consults the hon. Member for Chorley on future activities of the local strategic partnership. [192423]
John Healey: I have asked my officials to meet with my hon. Friend to discuss Chorley’s local strategic partnership (LSP) and its contribution to the successful targeting and co-ordination of services.
The Government’s consultation on the future of LSPs (2005-06) emphasised the key role hon. Members could play in LSPs. It stated that:
‘MPs have substantial democratic legitimacy in the local area and the ability to bring a wide range of partners to the table to produce genuinely collaborative working. There is no set way to do this and current practice varies between the MP chairing the LSP to receiving papers and attending an annual event. Each area will need to consider the most appropriate mechanism for them’.
London Development Agency
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Audit Commission's scrutiny of (a) the London Development Agency and (b) the Greater London Authority. [191648]
John Healey: It is the responsibility of the district auditor to consider whether financial and accounting matters relating to the GLA and LDA need investigation and action.
Non-Domestic Rates: Public Lavatories
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Meriden of 5 December 2005, Official Report, column 963W, how many public conveniences were registered for business rates by the Valuation Office Agency in each Government region at the most recent date for which figures are available. [193929]
John Healey: As at 30 January 2008, there were 5,084 public conveniences included in the 2005 rating lists for England and Wales.
| Government region | Number of public conveniences |
The figures do not include certain public conveniences, for instance those that are ancillary to public parks.
Planning Permission: Housing
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps she is taking to monitor the proportion of affordable housing planned for sites recently granted planning permission by local authorities bidding to be housing growth points; and if she will ensure that account is taken of this proportion when decisions are made on the bids. [192445]
Mr. Iain Wright: Data for sites granted planning permission for affordable housing are not collected centrally although statistics which show the numbers of affordable dwellings built are available. Affordability is a key emerging priority for many areas and we would expect this to inform local authority proposals for growth point status.
Prisons: Construction
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what planning policy (a) statements and (b) guidance have been issued by her Department and its predecessors on the construction of new prisons since May 1997. [193831]
Mr. Iain Wright: Since May 1997, three extant publications have specifically referred to prison development. These are:
Circular 03/98 (DETR): ‘Planning for Future Prison Development’ includes the effect on local and unitary development plans, site selection, security and economic and other benefits.
Circular 02/06 (Communities and Local Government): ‘Crown Application of the Planning Acts’ describes how the planning Acts apply to the Crown with the ending of Crown immunity in the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004. Prisons are mentioned as part of the operational land of the Home Office (now Ministry of Justice) in the context of new Crown permitted development rights.
Planning Policy Statement 25: ‘Development and Flood Risk’ (Communities and Local Government), published in 2006. This classes prisons as more vulnerable to flood risk, which means that the PPS25 exception test should be applied if a prison is essential in an area of high flood risk to ensure it is safe.
Although prison development is not specifically mentioned elsewhere, since the removal of Crown immunity in 2006, prison development should be considered in the context of the national planning policy framework.
Private Sector: Thames Gateway
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what methods she plans to use in future to assess the efficacy of private sector investment in the Thames Gateway area; and if she will make a statement. [191593]
Caroline Flint: The Government are not in a position to directly regulate private sector investment in the Thames Gateway except where the investment is part of a project being supported by the public sector. In these cases we would expect projects to have a clear fit with the Thames Gateway strategy and priorities in the Thames Gateway delivery plan, and be subject to a proper investment appraisal in line with the Treasury Green Book. Where appropriate, private sector development is subject to the normal land use planning regime.
Regional Planning and Development: Thames Gateway
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what progress has been made on the Guarantee of Assured Progression in respect of further education in the Pan Gateway Skills Plan in the Thames Gateway area; if she will make a statement. [191948]
Caroline Flint [holding answer 6 March 2008]: All universities and colleges in the Thames Gateway are committed to participation in the Gateway Guarantee of Assured Progression scheme. We expect to launch across Departments the second stage of a feasibility study this spring which will look at progression from level 2 to level 3.
Our aim is that every course in the Thames Gateway, particularly but not exclusively at vocational level 3, will lead directly to a place on an appropriate level 4 course.
Already a number of these progression agreements exist formally and informally but using Lifelong Learning Networks and other relevant partner networks our aim is to roll out a series of comprehensive transparent progression pathway options for every student achieving level 2 and above.
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will attend future meetings of the Thames Gateway parliamentary group; and if she will make a statement. [191949]
Caroline Flint [holding answer 6 March 2008]: In my new role as Minister with responsibility for Thames Gateway I am looking forward to engaging with hon. Members who have constituencies within the Thames Gateway boundary. This will include attendance at future meetings of the Thames Gateway parliamentary group.
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