Written Answers to Questions
Friday 16 May 2008
Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform
Ethnic Minority Business Task Force
John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what recent meetings he has held with the Ethnic Minority Business Task Force. [204292]
Mr. McFadden: My right hon. Friend the Member for East Ham (Mr. Timms) when Minister for Competitiveness and the Regions, attended the second meeting of the Ethnic Minority Business Task Force on 16 January 2008. Senior officials from my Department attended the third meeting of the Ethnic Minority Business Task Force on 10 April 2008.
In addition to the Task Force meetings, the Government have recently consulted with over 600 businesses and business leaders to develop a better understanding of the challenges of building an enterprise economy in preparation for the development of the Enterprise Strategy. As part of this my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State met with representatives from the Ethnic Minority Business Forum North West in Manchester on 18 October 2007 and my right hon. Friend the Member for East Ham (Mr. Timms) attended an event for ethnic minority businesses on 12 December 2007, hosted by the British Council in London.
London Airports
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many times his Department hired VIP facilities at (a) Heathrow, (b) Gatwick, (c) Luton and (d) Stansted airports in each month since May 2006; and what the expenditure on VIP facilities at each was in each of those months. [205143]
Mr. Thomas: Based on the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform’s (BERR) records since May 2006, there were five official BERR bookings at a cost of £1,428.70.
A monthly breakdown of official usage is given as follows:
| Bookings from May 2006 to March 2008 | |||
| Number of bookings | Total cost (£) | ||
Post Offices: Finance
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform which local authorities in Gloucestershire made submissions to the recent restructuring review of post offices proposing funding one or more branches in their area. [205751]
Mr. McFadden: This is an operational matter for Post Office Ltd. (POL). I have therefore asked Alan Cook, Managing Director of POL, to reply direct to the hon. Member.
Copies of the letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
Post Offices: Halifax
Mrs. Riordan: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many post offices in Halifax were closed between 1979 and 1992. [206087]
Mr. McFadden: This is an operational matter for Post Office Ltd. (POL). I have therefore asked Alan Cook, managing director of POL, to reply direct to the hon. Member.
Copies of the letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
Postal Services: Competition
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what steps he is taking to ensure fair competition in the provision of postal services. [204757]
Mr. McFadden: Under the Postal Services Act 2000, Parliament established Postcomm as the independent regulator for postal services. Postcomm's primary statutory duty is to ensure provision of a universal postal service. Subject to this, Postcomm will exercise its functions in the manner which it considers is best calculated to further the interests of users of postal services, wherever appropriate by promoting effective competition between postal operators.
Postcomm has wide-ranging powers to gather information and investigate complaints about anti-competitive behaviour in the mail market. A Memorandum of Understanding between Postcomm and the Office of Fair Trading ensures co-operation and co-ordination on cases of anti-competitive behaviour.
Royal Mail: Business
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what the level was of business use of the Post Office/Royal Mail in (a) the most recent year for which figures are available and (b) the previous year to that period. [205782]
Mr. McFadden: These are operational matters for Post Office Ltd. and Royal Mail. I have therefore asked Adam Crozier, chief executive of Royal Mail, to reply on both issues direct to the hon. Member.
Copies of the letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
Children, Schools and Families
Children: Day Care
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families pursuant to the answer of 8 May 2008, Official Report, columns 1136-7W, on Children: Day Care, how many and what proportion of nursery pupils travelled to and from nursery (a) by car, (b) by public transport, (c) on foot and (d) by bicycle in each year since records are available. [206094]
Beverley Hughes: Information on pupils’ mode of travel to school was collected for the first time in spring 2007, and was compulsory only for those schools with an approved Travel Plan.
The available information was provided in my answer of 8 May 2008, Official Report, columns 1136-7W.
Updated information relating to spring 2008 is expected to be available by the end of June 2008.
Children: Disabled
Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families whether the Aiming High for Disabled Children programme's core offer will include provision to increase assistance given by medical professionals in applying for aids, adaptations and benefits. [203690]
Ann Keen: I have been asked to reply.
The national Core Offer, which was published on 15 May 2008, is a national statement of what parents of disabled children can expect from public services. These expectations are based on the five areas of information, transparency, participation, feedback and assessment. The services, which are developed locally will vary according to the needs of the disabled child and what parents want.
Sure Start Programme: Voluntary Organisations
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of (a) local Sure Start centres and (b) children’s centres are run by voluntary organisations. [206104]
Beverley Hughes: Local authorities working with their partners in children's trusts are responsible for the overall delivery of the Sure Start Children’s Centres programme in England, building on the early Sure Start Local Programmes and other provision, including planning, securing value for money and ensuring overall quality in children’s centres. We encourage them to involve voluntary, private and independent organisations both in managing children’s centres and as service providers in order to harness the best of all sectors in delivering quality services for children. Reliable information on how many Sure Start Children’s Centres are run by voluntary organisations is not available centrally. A survey of around 1,100 children’s centres last year showed around 58 per cent. of child care provision in children’s centres is provided by the private, voluntary and independent (PVI) sector and that 74 per cent. of children’s centres are using voluntary organisations to deliver other services.
Communities and Local Government
Council Tax: Valuation
Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government under what circumstances a revaluation of a home for the purposes of council tax may be triggered. [206051]
John Healey: Listing Officers of the Valuation Office Agency have a statutory responsibility to compile and maintain council tax valuation lists. They will look to review a list entry if information is brought to their attention to suggest that the banding is not correct. The most common instance is where a property which has been improved, is then sold, and the extent of the improvements is sufficient to move it into the next band. In such cases, it is only when the property is sold that any revision of council tax band is made.
Eco-Towns
Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will place in the Library a copy of the transcript of the telephone conference of 3 April 2008 between the Minister for Housing and Planning and hon. Members whose constituencies contain short-listed eco-town locations. [203460]
Caroline Flint: There is no transcript of the telephone conference of 3 April 2008 between myself and the hon. Members where constituencies contain short listed eco-town locations. However, I wrote to hon. Members where constituencies contain short-listed eco-town locations on 3 April 2008, setting out what I relayed during the conference call and provided some further background about the process for taking eco-towns forward. A copy of this letter has been placed in the Library of the House.
Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what percentage of housing in eco-towns is planned to be zero-carbon. [203461]
Caroline Flint: As we have set out in the consultation document, “Eco-towns—Living a greener future”, the development as a whole, not just housing, should reach zero carbon standards.
Eco-Towns: Greenbelt
Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many of the short-listed proposed eco-town locations contain green belt land; and what the percentage of green belt land each contains. [203462]
Caroline Flint: In terms of development on the green belt I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickles) on 7 May, Official Report, column 1037W. All the shortlisted locations for eco-towns are subject to consultation and further assessment.
Eco-Towns: Low Incomes
Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what percentage of housing in eco-towns she plans to be affordable. [203458]
Caroline Flint: As set out in the consultation document, “Eco-towns—Living a greener future”, affordable housing should make up between 30 and 50 per cent. of the total housing.
Eco-Towns: Planning
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether the new Planning Policy Statement on eco-towns will be location-specific. [202589]
Caroline Flint: Yes, the eco-towns policy statement will be place specific, and will be an important material consideration in the determination of any planning application for an eco-town, particularly where the development plan is silent or out of date.
Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether planning guidance for eco-towns will be site-specific. [203459]
Caroline Flint: Yes, the eco-towns policy statement will be place specific, and will be an important material consideration in the determination of any planning application for an eco-town, particularly where the development plan is silent or out of date.
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether the approach in the draft planning policy statement on eco-towns will follow the approach to national policy statements envisaged in the Planning Bill, with particular reference to local publicity, consultation and parliamentary scrutiny. [204672]
Caroline Flint: The draft eco-towns policy statement will not be a national policy statement for the purpose of the Planning Bill, and therefore will not be covered by the provisions on consultation set out in it. However I can assure you that we will be publicly consulting on the draft eco-towns policy statement, which we expect to publish in July.
Energy: EU Law
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on how many occasions officials in her Department discussed the proposed labelling of heating systems in the energy-using products directive with representatives of the European Commission in each of the last two years. [205440]
Joan Ruddock: I have been asked to reply.
To date, my officials have held four discussions on this subject with representatives of the European Commission. These consisted of a bilateral on 31 January
2008, two energy-using products consultation forums on 18 December 2007 and 29 February 2008 and a conference call on 24 April 2007.
Additionally, an informal meeting with the European Commission and other member states has been arranged for 22 May.
Housing: Derelict Land
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 6 May 2008, Official Report, column 740W, on Housing: Derelict Land, what proportion of new dwellings built in 2006 were built on previously residential land, broken down by (a) county and (b) local authority area, presenting the data in a manner consistent with that of her answer of 24 May 2007, Official Report, column 1524W, on brownfield development. [204749]
Mr. Iain Wright: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 6 May 2008, Official Report, columns 740-41W.
This information was taken from the Department’s Land Use Change Statistics (LUCS). Because of the way that LUCS data are collected, the statistics are variable from year to year. At spatial scales below the regional level investigation has shown that annual figures are highly volatile and not robust. Information for local authorities and counties were therefore given as multi-year averages.
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