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6 Oct 2008 : Column 302W—continued
Mr. Khan: The following table gives details of how much was spent with the listed bodies in 2007-08 financial year. A brief description of the purpose is also included.
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar of 23 June 2008, Official Report, column 24W, on departmental procurement, and 28 April 2008, Official Report, column 139W, on departmental records, if she will place in the Library a copy of the list of names and addresses of each organisation that supplied goods or services to the Deputy Prime Minister's Office during the period it existed as a Government department from purchase order data held in the appropriate departmental financial system. [222639]
Mr. Iain Wright: The information requested has been deposited in the Library of the House.
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar of 23 June 2008, Official Report, column 24W, on departmental procurement, what the aggregate amount paid to date has been to each organisation on the list supplied in 2007-08, according to purchase order data held in her Department's financial system. [222944]
Mr. Khan: This information could be supplied only at disproportionate cost.
Mrs. Lait:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar of 23 June 2008, Official Report, column 24W, on departmental procurement, what payments her Department and its predecessor have made to Dave Collier's Only Murder Company since the
establishment of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister; on what dates; and at what cost. [222945]
Mr. Khan: Only one payment has been made to Dave Collier's Only Murder Company for £915 on 7 August 2008.
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar of 23 June 2008, Official Report, column 24W, on departmental procurement, how much was paid to menspeakers.co.uk of Ibstock in 2007-08; what the purpose of the expenditure was; and who was hired to provide services. [222946]
Mr. Khan: The Department paid £4,784 to Menspeakers for Rageh Omarr to speak as part of a series of joint Department/network events in connection with its commemoration of the bicentenary of the Abolition of the Slave Trade Act 1807 in March 2007.
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar of 23 June 2008, Official Report, column 24W, on departmental procurement, how much was paid to (a) the Political Skills Forum, London, (b) Mysalepack plc, (c) Majestic Wine Warehouse Ltd, London, (d) Info Terra Limited, (e) Roll on Friday, Hatfield, (f) Fancyapint Limited, (g) Fancy a Nibble, (h) Financial Dynamics, (i) Il Cappuccino Catering, London, (j) Inn on the Lake Limited and (h) LLM Communications; and what the purpose of each payment was. [223065]
Mr. Iain Wright: The following payments were made to the listed companies in the financial year 2007-08;
| Company | Paid (£) |
Departmental Public Relations
James Duddridge: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much (a) her Department and its predecessors and (b) its agencies spent on each of the external public relations and marketing companies included in the Central Office of Information's Public Relations Framework in each of the last 36 months. [221980]
Mr. Khan: I can confirm the spend of the Department and its predecessors on communications agencies included in the Public Relations framework of the Central Office of Information is as laid out in the following table:
| Department | Activity | Total (£) | |
In addition, the Department conducts some public relations activity, notably for the Fire Kills fire safety campaign, through the COI’s in-house PR unit. For information on this and other communications activity I refer the hon. Member to the Department's annual reports.
Government policies and programmes affect the lives of millions of people and may save lives, as with Fire Safety. They must be communicated effectively to meet our duty to inform and in order for policies to be successful. There are strict rules to ensure value for money on Government communications.
Information on the spend of the Department's agencies could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental Surveillance
James Duddridge: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many applications (a) her Department and its predecessor and (b) its agencies have made under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 to (i) undertake directed surveillance, (ii) use covert human intelligence sources, (iii) acquire communications data and (iv) undertake intrusive surveillance in the last 24 months. [221985]
Mr. Khan: The Department for Communities and Local Government was created in May 2006. There have been no applications made by (a) the Department for Communities and Local Government or (b) any of its Agencies under the Regulatory of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 to (i) undertake directed surveillance, (ii) use covert human intelligence sources, (iii) acquire communications data and (iv) undertake intrusive surveillance in the last 24 months.
This answer does not include the Government Offices who carry out functions on behalf of 10 Government Departments.
Deprivation Indicators
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar of 23 June 2008, Official Report, columns 24-25W, on deprivation indicators, if she will seek permission to publish the underlying indicators for each of the sub-domains of the 2004 Index of Deprivation. [222887]
John Healey: The indicators underpinning the 2004 Index of Multiple Deprivation were published in 2005-06 by the Office for National Statistics. The indicators can be accessed at
Eco-towns
Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) whether planning policies for eco-towns will (a) include the provision of a community heating system and (b) include mitigation measures to reduce the impact on surrounding areas; and what provisions there are in areas of (i) outstanding natural beauty and (ii) green belt in relation to minimum standards of green space and tree retention; [222476]
(2) whether planning policies for eco-towns will contain measures to (a) prevent or mitigate building on flood plains, (b) deal with any instances of contaminated land and (c) regulate the provision of car parking spaces and reduce car usage; [222583]
(3) whether her Department’s planning policies for eco-towns will (a) be site specific, (b) specify a minimum number of affordable houses and their size and (c) specify the required level of transport infrastructure and public service provision. [222507]
Mr. Iain Wright: Our thinking on the standards that eco-towns will need to meet, including on affordable homes, flood risk, green belt, green infrastructure and transport are set out in “Eco-towns—living a greener future: progress report”, published on 24 July 2008. In terms of affordable housing we have said that a minimum of 30 per cent., of homes should be affordable.
All eco-towns must comply with existing national policies and legislation, as well as meeting tough and stretching standards. More details about this will be set out in the draft planning policy statement that we will be publishing shortly for consultation.
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what minimum level of the Code for Sustainable Homes homes in eco-towns will have to meet. [222562]
Mr. Iain Wright: In “Eco-towns—living a greener future: progress report” we have set out current thinking on the standards for eco-towns. In the draft planning policy statement we will be setting out a range of standards for homes in eco-towns concerning zero-carbon, waste, water and climate change, and we will publish this shortly.
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the estimated timetable is for (a) outline and (b) final planning permission to be granted for the successful eco-town bidders. [222563]
Mr. Iain Wright: We propose to announce the successful locations for eco-towns next year. Following this announcement local authorities will work closely with developers to bring forward schemes through the planning process culminating in a planning application or series of planning applications. Each application will be different and have different issues.
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the latest timetable is for the decision to be made on selecting the final 10 eco-town bids. [222564]
Mr. Iain Wright: We will shortly be publishing the draft eco-towns planning policy statement and sustainability appraisal for consultation. We then expect to publish the final planning policy statement and a final list of locations with the potential to be an eco-town early in 2009. Individual schemes will then need to submit planning applications, which will be for local authorities to determine through the local planning process.
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment she has made of whether local authorities may purchase land compulsorily for eco-towns to provide the land for the whole development. [222570]
Mr. Iain Wright: Local authorities have numerous powers under which they may purchase land compulsorily if authorised to do so by the Secretary of State. Land for schemes such as town centre redevelopments is generally purchased using the power in section 226(1)(a) of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (as amended). The compulsory purchase order may include all the land required for the development, although it is usual to omit plots already owned by the local authority or its developer partner.
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether the proposed Planning Policy Statement on eco-towns will be (a) locationally specific and (b) binding on local planning authorities. [222590]
Mr. Iain Wright: The Planning Policy Statement (PPS) will set out the environmental and other standards for eco-towns that will help inform decisions on whether particular eco-towns will proceed. In the new year, following consultation on the PPS we will then publish the final Planning Policy Statement and a final list of locations with potential to be an eco-town.
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether supporting infrastructure for new eco-town developments will be considered to be of nationally significant importance. [222592]
John Healey: Under the provisions of the Planning Bill, projects will be considered to be “nationally significant infrastructure projects” and dealt with by the Infrastructure Planning Commission where they meet specific thresholds; these are defined in clauses 15-29 of the Bill.
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