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9 Dec 2008 : Column 57W—continued

Fire Services: Manpower

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many (a) full-time and (b) retained fire officers there were in each year since 1997; and if she will make a statement. [241430]

Mr. Khan: The number of whole-time and retained firefighters in England since 1997, as at 31 March each year, is shown as follows.


9 Dec 2008 : Column 58W
Whole - time and retained duty system firefighters in England

Whole - time Retained Total

1997

32,033

13,016

45,049

1998

31,855

12,847

44,702

1999

31,918

13,022

44,940

2000

31,616

13,021

44,637

2001

31,597

13,097

44,694

2002

31,592

13,013

44,605

2003

31,614

13,044

44,658

2004

31,856

13,015

44,871

2005

31,053

13,543

44,596

2006

30,744

13,927

44,671

2007

30,804

14,212

45,016

2008

30,824

14,166

44,990

Source:
Annual Returns to Communities and Local Government

Fire Services: Training

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many weeks intensive training is required to be undertaken by fire service recruits in each of the fire authority areas in each of the last six years. [241431]

Mr. Khan: The information requested is not held centrally.

Fire Services: Urban Areas

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate she has made of the number of lives saved through the Urban Search and Rescue programme since its inception in February 2008. [240808]

Mr. Khan: Different elements of the urban search and rescue capability are used routinely by Fire and Rescue Services at the local level. The Department does not hold statistics on the number of lives saved through deployment of the urban search and rescue capability.

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how the welfare of dogs involved in the Fire Service’s Urban Search and Rescue programme is monitored; and with whom responsibility for such monitoring lies. [240809]

Mr. Khan: As part of the New Dimension programme, CLG has provided funding for 20 Urban Search and Rescue teams, hosted by Fire and Rescue Services across the country. As part of each of these teams, the Department has made provision for a search and rescue dog and a handler. Responsibility for the welfare of the dogs lies with the host brigades.

Home Information Packs

Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what research her Department has carried out on the effect of home information packs on the housing market; and if she will make a statement. [241212]

Mr. Iain Wright: I refer the right hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Kettering (Mr. Hollobone) on 14 October 2008, Official Report, column 1089W.

Homelessness: Essex

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many homeless (a) children and (b) adults are in temporary accommodation in each local authority area in Essex. [240295]


9 Dec 2008 : Column 59W

Mr. Iain Wright: Information about English local authorities' actions under the homelessness legislation (Part 7 of the Housing Act 1996) is collected quarterly at local authority level, about households rather than individuals.

Data collected include the number of households accepted by local housing authorities as eligible for assistance, unintentionally homeless and in priority need, and therefore owed a main homelessness duty (to secure that suitable accommodation is available). If a settled home is not immediately available, the authority must secure temporary accommodation until a settled home becomes available.

Information on the numbers of households housed in temporary accommodation is reported quarterly by local authorities as at the last day of each quarter. The figures include: those households which have been accepted as owed the main homelessness duty; those for which inquiries are pending; those being accommodated for a limited period because they have been found intentionally homeless and in priority need; those being accommodated pending possible referral to another authority, and those being accommodated pending the outcome of a local authority review or county court appeal.

The number of dependent children (or expected children) in these households is also collected, but data on the number of adults is not. The latest (end June 2008) figures for total households and total children reported by the Essex authorities are shown in Table 1.

Table 1: Households in temporary accommodation, and number of children within these households (as at 30 June 2008)
Local authority Total households in TA arranged by authority Total children (and expected children) within these households

Basildon

315

382

Braintree

67

75

Brentwood

92

139

Castle Point

118

176

Chelmsford

83

57

Colchester

191

265

Epping Forest

79

98

Harlow

233

229

Maldon

38

49

Rochford

34

51

Southend-on-Sea

49

103

Tendring

172

206

Thurrock

66

74

Uttlesford

27

27


Authorities also report the number of households in temporary accommodation arranged by each authority, who have been housed outside the borough. Latest figures reported by the Essex authorities are shown in Table 2. Data specifically on the number of children and adults housed outside the borough are not held centrally.


9 Dec 2008 : Column 60W
Table 2: Households in temporary accommodation, and of which those housed outside the borough (as at 30 June 2008)
Local authority Total households in TA arranged by authority of which the number housed outside borough

Basildon

315

0

Braintree

67

0

Brentwood

92

0

Castle Point

118

10

Chelmsford

83

0

Colchester

191

6

Epping Forest

79

7

Harlow

233

0

Maldon

38

4

Rochford

34

15

Southend-on-Sea

49

0

Tendring

172

0

Thurrock

66

3

Uttlesford

27

0


Housing Revenue Accounts

Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what figures were included within the formula to account for provision for debt servicing for those authorities that received positive subsidy under the Housing Revenue Account subsidy system for 2008-09. [241485]

Mr. Iain Wright: Out of 204 local authorities with a Housing Revenue Account, 178 have the servicing of a notional level of debt, the Subsidy Capital Financing Requirement (SCFR) supported by the HRA subsidy system. The remaining 26 are considered to be debt free and have a zero or negative SCFR. Of the 178 local authorities that have a level of debt supported by the HRA subsidy system 43 are in positive subsidy. In addition those authorities in Rounds 1 and 2 of the ALMO (Arms Length Management Organisation) programme receive an ALMO allowance to support the associated borrowing. For all other ALMOs the support for the associated borrowing is included within the SCFR. The support for debt servicing is then offset against other elements of the subsidy system to determine net subsidy entitlement.

The following table lists the SCFR and ALMO allowance for authorities likely to be in receipt of subsidy for 2008-09.


9 Dec 2008 : Column 61W
£

SCFR ALMO allowance (Round 1 and 2 only( 1) )

Ashfield

34,093,939

4,425,600

Barnsley

132,249,400

11,328,000

Blackpool

33,850,983

0

Blyth Valley

34,843,948

3,868,640

Bolton

131,156,102

12,604,800

Braintree

7,356,989

0

Brent

343,290,867

4,320,000

Camden

523,110,271

0

City of London

13,990,928

0

Derby

111,264,305

7,774,080

Doncaster

219,278,605

0

Ealing

314,717,560

0

Easington

68,691,319

0

Eastbourne

45,731,010

0

Gateshead

266,985,653

0

Greenwich

418,654,476

0

Hackney

702,774,111

0

Hammersmith

384,753,640

0

Haringey

445,710,700

0

Hounslow

164,486,906

7,972,000

Islington

777,567,091

0

Kensington

150,637,763

3,475,120

Kingston-upon-Hull

225,648,897

0

Kirklees

127,168,814

11,984,000

Lambeth

566,740,126

0

Leeds

400,860,237

32,811,124

Leicester

209,008,128

0

Lewisham

372,292,767

0

Liverpool

564,864,169

0

Manchester

693,928,643

0

Newcastle-upon-Tyne

542,135,600

0

Newham

601,918,159

0

Nottingham

272,639,181

0

Oldham

127,656,709

6,912,000

Rochdale

134,476,958

8,504,000

Salford

269,162,203

0

Sheffield

746,430,799

0

South Norfolk(2)

0

0

Southwark

743,772,141

0

Stockton

85,651,501

5,040,000

Tower Hamlets

427,383,831

0

Waltham Forest

254,266,667

0

Westminster

183,093,347

5,920,000

Wigan

116,422,575

10,984,000

Wansbeck(2)

0

0

(1) A Borrowing associated with later ALMO rounds is incorporated within the SCFR.
(2) South Norfolk and Wansbeck have undertaken Large Scale Voluntary Transfer (LSVT) and are likely to receive very small amounts of residual subsidy in 2008-09.
Note:
All these figures are provisional and subject to change later in the financial year.

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