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26 Mar 2008 : Column 309W—continued
Government Offices for the Regions: Finance
Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which of her Department's programme budgets were administered by the Government Offices of the Regions in each of the last five years. [195172]
Mr. Dhanda [holding answer 18 March 2008]: The Government offices have directly administered the European Regional Development Fund, the New Ventures Fund and the new deal for communities programme throughout the last five years.
Housing Low Incomes
David Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many new homes were completed by registered social landlords in (a) Telford and Wrekin and (b) the West Midlands in each of the last 10 years. [193905]
Mr. Iain Wright: The following table shows the new build figures for registered social landlords in Telford and Wrekin district, West Midlands region and England from 1996-97 to 2005-06:
| Telford and Wrekin | West Midlands | England | |
| Source: Housing Corporation and Housing Strategy Statistical Appendix return from local authorities | |||
The table excludes acquisitions of existing stock and new build affordable housing provided by local authorities. For example, in 2005-06, total supply including acquisitions and local authority figures was 44,923 in England, 4,487 in West Midlands region, and 88 in Telford and the Wrekin district.
Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when her Department will publish the findings of Brian Pomeroy’s review of the shared equity market; and if she will make a statement. [196629]
Mr. Iain Wright [holding answer 25 March 2008]: The Government appointed Brian Pomeroy to help it follow up on the Shared Equity Task Force report and advise us on ways to develop the private sector shared equity market. This work is expected to finish shortly and we will make a statement when it is complete.
Housing: Thames Gateway
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when she expects to receive figures for the number of dwellings built on brownfield land in the Thames Gateway area in 2007. [189390]
Caroline Flint: The Government have a target that 80 per cent. of new housing in the Thames Gateway should be built on previously developed 'brownfield' land. The Thames Gateway Delivery Plan, published in November 2007, confirms that, since the inception of the Sustainable Communities Plan in 2003, that target has been exceeded and the Government are committed to keeping to the target over the next three years at least. Figures for the number of dwellings built on brownfield land in Thames Gateway for 2007 as a whole will not be available until later in 2008.
Intimidation
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what her most recent assessment is of (a) levels of staff concern over and (b) the level of (i) bullying, (ii) harassment and (iii) discrimination in her Department. [193835]
Mr. Dhanda: We take this issue very seriously. Our most recent assessment is set out in the Government Response to the Select Committee’s Report on the Department for Communities and Local Government’s Annual Report 2007 (Cm 7335), a copy of which can be found on the Department’s website at:
The results of the Department’s 2007 staff survey are also on the website.
Local Authorities: Standards
Mr. Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance she issues to local authorities on best practice in (a) the management of public money and (b) the liabilities of elected councillors in respect of joint venture partnerships. [195955]
John Healey: Local authorities are independent bodies responsible for the proper administration of their financial affairs within the framework set by legislation and codes of practice issued by professional bodies, such as the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy. Communities and Local Government and its predecessor Departments have issued guidance to authorities under statutory powers on specific aspects of financial management, including their power of investment and the new powers of trading and charging introduced in the Local Government Act 2003. These are available on the Department's website at:
Communities and Local Government has issued no guidance on the liabilities of elected councillors in respect of joint venture partnerships.
Mayor of London
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the Answers to the hon. Member for Beckenham of 9 October 2007, Official Report, column 569W, and to the hon. Member for Meriden of 11 December 2006, Official Report, column 898W, on the Mayor of London, what the final cost to the public purse of the Standards Board case in relation to Mr Ken Livingstone was, including the costs to (a) the Standards Board, (b) the Adjudication Panel, (c) her Department and (d) the Government Office for London, including legal fees, advice, staff time and costs payable to the Mayor. [193915]
John Healey: The Standards Board’s own costs in respect of the case against the London Mayor amount to £64,000. The costs payable by the board to the Mayor in connection with the case are £130,000. The cost to the adjudication panel in respect of the case is £14,000. Neither the Department nor the Government office for London were parties to the case, so that no costs were incurred by them on legal representation in respect of it.
Mobile Homes
Mr. Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the legal status of mobile homes is; what legislation governs the occupying of such homes; what definition she uses of a mobile home; whether she plans to bring forward measures to change this status; and if she will make a statement. [196715]
Mr. Iain Wright [holding answer 25 March 2008]: The status of a mobile home is that of a personal moveable property. Occupation of mobile homes is governed by the Mobile Homes Act 1983 (as amended) and the Caravan Sites Act 1968. Such homes have by virtue of section 5 (1) of that Act the same definition as a caravan under Part 1 of the Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960. There are no plans to change the status of mobile homes.
Playing Fields: Planning
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) with reference to the answer of 17 July 2007, Official Report, column 226W, on playing fields: planning, for what reason the consultation paper on the review of statutory consultees was not published in 2007; when it was (a) commissioned and (b) originally due for publication; and when it is expected to be published; [194944]
(2) with reference to the answer of 17 July 2007, Official Report, column 226W, on playing fields: planning, how many members of staff in her Department are working on the consultation paper on the review of statutory consultees. [194943]
(3) what progress has been made in bringing forward the changes to the Town and Country Planning (General Development Procedure) Order 1995 announced in her Department’s press release, “Planning to Safeguard Open Spaces and Playing Fields”, of July 2002. [Official Report, 24 April 2008, Vol. 474, c. 11MC.][194925]
Mr. Iain Wright: We announced in the Planning white paper “Planning for Sustainable Communities” that we would review arrangements for statutory consultees on planning applications and would consult on proposals in due course. This work is being taken forward, our aim is to publish a consultation paper shortly. Meanwhile, as I mentioned in the reply I gave to the hon. Member on 17 July, we are committed to reducing the threshold for statutory consultation on the sale of playing fields from 0.4 ha to 0.2 ha and we will seek an opportunity to make the necessary amendment to the Town and Country Planning (General Development Procedure) Order 1995.
Press
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many press office staff were employed by (a) her Department, (b) its agencies and (c) its non-departmental public bodies (i) in each year since 1996-97 and (ii) at the latest date for which information is available. [189670]
Mr. Dhanda: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Taunton (Mr. Browne) on 18 February 2007, Official Report, column 14W.
Information on agencies and non-departmental bodies is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Sewage: Energy
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 10 March 2008, Official Report, column 48W, on sewage: energy, if she will make it her policy to make urine separation systems mandatory in all new developments where discrete sewerage infrastructure is possible. [195241]
Mr. Iain Wright: The Government do not currently propose to make the use of urine separation systems mandatory in all new developments where discrete sewerage infrastructure is possible.
Part H (drainage and waste disposal) of the Building Regulations currently requires an adequate system of drainage to be provided to carry foul water from appliances within the building to a suitable sewer, septic tank, waste water treatment system or cesspool.
This means that where mains drainage cannot be provided and an applicant wishes to use an appliance such as a composting toilet there may be benefits in using urine separation as this can improve overall efficiency. However, there is a risk that urine separation and the subsequent discharge of a mixture of urine and water from washing appliances to the ground may
cause pollution and damage water resources. People who plan to use urine separation and subsequently discharge direct to ground should undertake a robust site investigation and consult the appropriate authorities such as Building Control or the Environment Agency before finalising plans.
Guidance of the provision of toilets is contained in the Approved Document G (Hygiene) of the Building Regulations. This guidance is under review and we expect to consult on the proposals shortly. It will include improved guidance on the location and use of composting toilets.
Social Services: Inspections
Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the cost of Commission for Social Care inspection was in each of the last three years. [187329]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: I have been asked to reply.
We have been informed by the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) that the information requested is not available in the form requested. CSCI is funded via a combination of registration fees charged to providers of care and grant in aid from the Department. It is not possible to specify the source of funds spent on inspection activities. The available information on CSCI funding is shown in the following table.
| £ thousand | |||||
| Source of funding | Departmental revenue | Departmental capital charges | Other income | Total budget | Departmental capital |
| Notes: 1. CSCI was being set up in 2003-04. Its predecessor organisation was National Care Standards Commission. 2. Figures for revenue and capital are grant-in-aid issued by the Department and are the start of year figures. Figures for income are derived from CSCI annual accounts. 3. ‘Other income’ represents income largely from regulatory fees. 4. Figures for CSCI up to 2006-07 include the cost of children’s social services functions transferred to Ofsted on 1 April 2007. Source: Department of Health. | |||||
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