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22 Apr 2008 : Column 1900W—continued
Housing: Planning
Bob Spink:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance she has issued to local authorities on (a) setting local development frameworks on the use of (i) Green Belt
land, (ii) urban fringes and (iii) intensification of urban areas for residential construction and (b) balancing the use of these land categories; and if she will make a statement. [199370]
Mr. Iain Wright: Guidance to local planning authorities on the process and general content of local development frameworks (LDFs) is set out in Planning Policy Statement 12. Government have also published a number of national planning policy statements (PPSs) and planning policy guidance notes (PPGs) on different matters which should be taken into account by local planning authorities in preparing their LDFs.
PPG2 sets out national policy on green belts. This makes clear that there should be a presumption against inappropriate development in designated green belt land. Such development should not be approved, except in very special circumstances. PPS3 on ‘Housing’ sets out national planning policies for achieving high quality housing which make the most efficient and effective use of land to meet identified needs for new housing. PPS3 is not prescriptive in terms of directing housing to particular areas but asks local planning authorities to identify, through the preparation of strategic housing land availability assessments, specific, suitable sites in their plans which may include sites within the urban fringes and existing urban areas. A site is suitable if it offers a suitable location for housing development and would contribute to the creation of sustainable, mixed communities.
It is for local planning authorities to assess a site's suitability for housing, taking into account factors such as policy restrictions, such as designations or protected areas; physical problems of restrictions, such as access, infrastructure, and flood risk; potential impacts, including effect upon landscape features and conservation; and the environmental conditions which would be experienced by prospective residents.
Housing: Renewable Energy
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what definition of (a) off-site and (b) on-site her Department uses for the purposes of requiring a set amount of renewable energy to be produced in relation to residential developments. [198881]
Mr. Iain Wright: The Department does not require a set amount of renewable energy to be produced in relation to residential developments.
From 2016, all new homes will have to reach the zero carbon standard which will be set out in building regulations. The current definition of zero carbon homes as set out in the policy statement ‘Building a Greener Future’ means that over a year, the net carbon emissions from all energy use in the home are zero. The policy statement suggests that the zero carbon standard should be achieved through measures on the site of the dwelling or development, or through a low or zero carbon energy source connected to the development using a private wire. However, this will be the subject of a consultation process in the summer when we will be consulting on how the zero carbon 2016 standard should be achieved with a view to finalising the definition by the end of 2008.
Planning: Tendring
Mr. Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what percentage of total planning applications in Tendring district were for development on garden sites classified as brownfield land in the most recent period for which figures are available. [200213]
Mr. Iain Wright: The information requested is not held centrally. Communities and Local Government collects quarterly aggregate statistics on development control from all local planning authorities in England. However, we do not collect information on individual planning applications.
Planning: Travelling People
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what planning aid funding has been given to Traveller groups by her Department in each of the last three years. [198870]
Mr. Iain Wright: No funding was provided for this purpose in 2005 or 2006. Communities and Local Government provided £9,011 to Planning Aid in 2007 to enable them to deliver training to Gypsies and Travellers on the planning system.
Property: Database
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Bromley and Chislehurst (Robert Neill) of 18 February 2008, Official Report, column 49W, on property: database, what central funding London Connects (a) has received and (b) is receiving for Valuebill. [194367]
John Healey: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Meriden (Mrs. Spelman) on 17 April 2007, Official Report, column 525W. No further funding will be provided in the next 12 months.
Squatting: Advisory Services
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether her Department and its agencies have provided funding to organisations which give advice on squatting in the last three years. [198919]
Mr. Iain Wright: This Department does not fund any organisation specifically to provide advice on squatting.
Supporting People Programme: Learning Disability
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much and what proportion of the Supporting People budget was spent on people with a learning disability in each of the last four years. [197422]
Mr. Iain Wright:
The Supporting People programme is administered at the local level by the relevant administering authority. It is for the authority to decide
which services to fund, informed by the local needs and priorities identified in their five year Supporting People Strategies. The following table sets out the amount spent on Supporting People services for people with a learning disability, as reported to the Department by administering authorities. It will not identify all funding spent on people with a learning disability who access Supporting People services: some may have a different service classification (for example, people with a learning disability may access support from Supporting People services that help them move on from domestic violence or homelessness).
| Spend reported on services for people with a learning disability (£) | Proportion of the total reported spend (%) | |
Information for 2007-08 is not yet available.
Travelling People: Council Tax
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance has been given to local authorities on whether Traveller camps which occupy land which they do not own or have permission from the landowner to reside on or which do not have planning permission should (a) be charged council tax and (b) receive rubbish collection services. [198927]
Mr. Iain Wright: No guidance has been given to local authorities on whether Gypsy and Travellers on unauthorised sites should be charged council tax.
Gypsies and Travellers on authorised sites are required to pay council tax and should receive rubbish collection services.
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Angling: Expenditure
Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will provide a detailed breakdown of his Department's expenditure on fisheries improvements for anglers in the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [199272]
Jonathan Shaw: The Environment Agency receives fisheries-specific funding from the Government amounting to £9.5 million per annum. The Environment Agency also receives income from the sale of licences from anglers and netsmen amounting to nearly £21.5 million per annum.
This income funds a range of activities and fisheries improvements at regional and national level, which are of benefit to anglers. This includes the monitoring of fish stocks, investigation and remediation of incidents affecting fish such as disease, drought, pollution and floods; provision of advice on the development and improvement of fisheries, as well as the regulation of fishing through a licensing system which helps protect the resource for the future.
The Environment Agency fisheries budget specifically allocates a national improvement and development project budget to fund projects that improve fisheries habitat, facilities and access for anglers. Many of these projects are undertaken in partnership with other organisations, usually leading to relatively highly-geared expenditure by partners on fisheries improvements.
The following table provides overall expenditure on fisheries over the past five years together with the national improvement and development project budget.
| £ million | |||||
| 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | |
The national improvement and development project budget in the overall total is part of the regional expenditure on fisheries.
Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what his Department's expenditure was on angling in each of the last five years, broken down by (a) region and (b) local authority area; and if he will make a statement. [199274]
Jonathan Shaw: The following table shows the expenditure broken down by each Environment Agency region. The Environment Agency does not break down expenditure by local authority area.
| Regional fisheries expenditure | |||||
| £000 | |||||
| 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | |
The following table shows National Fisheries expenditure. This includes operational activities which have been centralised as part of the Environment Agency's efficiency programme. The Environment Agency's technical team supports the Fisheries Policy and Process team in setting the targets and delivery mechanisms for the regional activities and expenditure. Contributions to Head Office support service costs and IS development and maintenance are also included.
| National fisheries expenditure | |||||
| £000 | |||||
| 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | |
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