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10 July 2008 : Column 1738W—continued
Public Expenditure
Mr. Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what recent discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the factual paper being prepared on the Barnett formula. [216898]
David Cairns: The Treasury's forthcoming Barnett formula paper will be factual in nature, reflecting experience of the operation of the Barnett formula since the formula was introduced.
Communities and Local Government
Allotments
Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) if she will introduce measures to require local authorities to increase the provision of allotments in their areas; [217560]
(2) whether it is her policy to increase the overall acreage of allotments. [217562]
Mr. Iain Wright: It is the Department's policy that allotments should be provided in relation to local need.
Section 23 of the Small Holdings and Allotments Act 1908 places a duty on local authorities (except for inner London boroughs) to provide a sufficient number of allotments where they consider that there is a demand for them in their area.
Local authorities are best placed to determine the level of provision of allotments and all types of open space within their area, based on detailed audits and assessments of community needs in accordance with ‘Planning Policy Guidance Note 17: Planning for Open Space, Sport and Recreation, 2002’.
Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will consider introducing measures requiring local authorities (a) to keep figures on (i) the number of allotment sites in their areas and (ii) the length of waiting lists for an allotment and (b) to provide an annual return to Parliament incorporating such data. [217561]
Mr. Iain Wright: Local authorities are already responsible for maintaining information about their allotment sites, including figures on the number of sites available and the length of waiting lists.
The Secretary of State does not have any plans to ask local authorities to provide an annual return to Parliament on the number of allotments sites and the length of allotment waiting lists in their area. This would run counter to the commitment the Government have made in the 2006 Local Government White Paper, ‘Strong and Prosperous Communities’, to reduce the number of performance indicators against which local authorities must report to central Government under 200.
We are however currently developing a green space database which will provide us with a more comprehensive information base on green spaces, including allotments. The green space database will be available later this month.
Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will consider initiating an allotment survey with mandatory participation on the part of local authorities. [217563]
Mr. Iain Wright: There are no plans to initiate an allotment survey.
The Department is developing a green space database which will provide us with a more comprehensive information base on green spaces, including allotments. This will be an interactive mapping tool which will bring together several datasets and provide the opportunity for local authorities, and other users, to access and input information on quality and provision of green space, including allotments. We believe that this is a better approach for local authorities than asking for mandatory participation in a survey. The green space database will be available later this month.
Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether she plans to review the formula which determines the number of allotments which local councils are required to provide for the use of local residents. [217564]
Mr. Iain Wright: There is no precise formula to determine the number of allotments which local authorities provide for their residents. Instead, section 23 of the Small Holdings and Allotments Act 1908 places a duty on local authorities (except for inner London boroughs) to provide a sufficient number of allotments where they consider that there is a demand for them in their area.
Furthermore ‘Planning Policy Guidance Note 17: Planning for Open Space, Sport and Recreation, 2002’ encourages local authorities to make provision for all types of open space including allotments, and undertake robust assessments of local needs and audits of existing open space and to establish standards for new provision and ascertain what is sufficient for their local area.
Given this framework, provided by statute and guidance, we do not have any plans to review how local authorities determine the number of allotments they provide for their residents.
Council House Transfers
Ms Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many households lacking (a) one bedroom and (b) two or more bedrooms were registered for a housing transfer in each London local authority in 2007-08. [216666]
Mr. Iain Wright: The information requested is not available. However information is available on the bedroom requirement of households on local authorities’ waiting lists, excluding existing local authority tenants seeking a transfer. This information is presented in the following table.
| Households on the housing waiting list at 1 April 2007: London | |||||
| Number of households | |||||
| Bedroom requirement of household | |||||
| Local authority | One | Two | Three | More than three | All households( 1) |
| (1) Includes households with unspecified bedroom requirements. | |||||
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