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12 Mar 2009 : Column 743W—continued
51 New North Road
Exeter
EX4 4EP
St. George's House
Kingsway
Team Valley
Gateshead
NE11 ONA
2nd Floor
Lateral House
8 City Walk
Leeds
LS11 9AT
Attenborough House
109-119 Charles Street
Leicester
LEI 1FQ
10th Floor
2 Exchange Tower
Harbour Exchange Square
London
E14 9GS
4th Floor
One Piccadilly Gardens
Manchester
M1 1RG
Central Business Exchange II
414-428 Midsummer Boulevard
Central Milton Keynes
MK9 2EA
The Belgrave Centre
Stanley Place
Talbot Street
Nottingham
NG15GG
Jordan House West
Hall Court
Hall Park Way
Telford
TF3 4NN
Arpley House
110 Birchwood Boulevard
Birchwood
Warrington
WA3 7QH
31 Waterloo Road
Wolverhampton
WV1 4DJ
Of the current offices, Leeds, Birmingham and Nottingham are co-located with Government offices. No HCA regional office is co-located with a regional assembly.
Following the recent merger HCA is at present undertaking a review of the regional accommodation it has inherited, including consulting with staff. Given the current status of the restructuring process it is not possible, at this stage, to specify the future location of HCA regional offices. The yet to be agreed future structure will reflect business need and will unlock as many efficiency savings as possible.
Homes and Communities Agency: Public Relations
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many press, media and communications personnel the Homes and Communities Agency plans to employ. [262000]
Margaret Beckett: Given the current status of the HCA's restructuring process it is not possible, at this stage, to specify the number of staff that the HCA will employ in the press, media and communications functions when it is at full complement.
The HCA currently employ 30 full-time equivalent posts within its communications team which covers a broad range of national and regional functions including marketing, public relations, event management, stakeholder relations, internal communications, and community engagement and digital communications across the locations listed in the answer given today to PQ262682. At present four members of the 30 full-time posts are predominantly involved in press and media relations.
These figures do not include HCA Academy staff whose job functions include elements of communications. HCA Academy staff were inherited from predecessor bodies and are part of the HCA's current review of its corporate and regional structures.
Housing: Construction
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Meriden of 23 February 2009, Official Report, column 107W, on Design for Manufacture Programme, if she will place in the Library a copy of the report commissioned by the Homes and Communities Agency analysing the cost data from the various developers. [262213]
Margaret Beckett: The first stage assessment work produced at the beginning of the competition process has been placed in the House Library—‘Designed for Manufacture—Lessons learnt’. Research analysing the cost data is ongoing, and is due to be completed during the next financial year. A copy will be placed in the Library upon publication. It will also be made available on the Homes and Communities Agency website.
Joint Waste Authorities: Complaints
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether complaints about (a) joint waste authorities and (b) safety camera partnerships fall within the remit of the Local Government Ombudsman. [261983]
John Healey: Since 1 April 2008 complaints about the actions of joint waste authorities fall within the remit of the local government ombudsman.
Complaints about safety camera partnerships do not fall within the local government ombudsman remit, however, where a local authority is part of such a partnership, its actions, including in connection with the work of the partnership, are within the local government ombudsman remit.
Listed Buildings: Energy Performance Certificates
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what requirements there are on (a) listed buildings and (b) places of worship to (i) obtain and (ii) show a display energy certificate. [262318]
Margaret Beckett: A display energy certificate (DEC) is required for listed buildings where they are larger than 1,000m(2 )and are occupied by a public body or by institutions providing public services to a large number of persons. A DEC is not required for places of worship.
LLM Communications
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the Answer to the hon. Member for Meriden of 11 February 2009, Official Report, column 2064W, on departmental procurement, what type of work was undertaken by LLM Communications to support regional housing debates; which such debates they were engaged to support; and how much was paid to the company for this work. [262216]
Mr. Iain Wright: LLM Communications were paid £38,200 between 2006 and 2007 to support the delivery of regional housing debates to help raise public awareness of the need for, and benefits of, housing growth; and stimulate debates on the future of house building. The debates involved members of the public, MPs, environmentalists, housing and homelessness experts.
Local Government: Fixed Penalties
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what powers to levy fines have been conferred on local authorities in the last 18 months. [261993]
John Healey: The Government do not hold a central register of powers introduced in the area. Departments are responsible for new legislative proposals affecting local government in those policy area for which they have responsibility. All new legislative proposals will need to go through the parliamentary scrutiny process.
Local Authority Business Growth Incentives Scheme
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much funding under the local authority business growth incentive scheme has been allocated to each local authority in each of the last four years. [263070]
John Healey: I have placed in the Library of the House, a table showing the funding allocations from the local authority business growth incentives (LABGI) scheme to each local authority for each of the financial years 2005-06, 2006-07, 2007-08 and 2008-09.
Local Government
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will place in the Library a copy of the latest version of the Handbook for the Joint Negotiating Committee for local authority chief executives. [262522]
John Healey: Copies of these agreements are obtainable from the Local Government Employers which, as part of the Joint Negotiating Committee, helps to determine the pay of local authority chief executives.
Local Government Finance
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what proportion of local authority funding (a) including and (b) excluding direct schools grant will be ring-fenced in (i) 2008-09 and (ii) 2009-10. [262445]
John Healey: Including Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG), the level of ring-fencing of local authority funding is 52.3 per cent. in 2008-09, and will be 50.2 per cent. in 2009-10
On a comparable basis, if DSG is excluded, the level of ring-fencing of local authority funding is 17.5 per cent. in 2008-09, and will be 14.6 per cent. in 2009-10.
Local Government: Pay
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what timetable she has established to bring forward legislative proposals to require greater public accountability on remuneration for senior staff in local government. [262002]
John Healey: I will publish shortly a statutory consultation of 12 weeks to bring about legislative changes which will require greater transparency on remuneration for senior staff in local government.
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will place in the Library a copy of the local authority chief executives' pay agreement for (a) 2008 and (b) 2009. [262625]
John Healey: Central Government does not participate in local government pay negotiations. A copy of each agreement can be obtained from the Local Government Employers, which is part of the National Joint Committee which determines the pay agreement for chief executives.
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what her policy is on wage inflation among local authority chief executives. [262680]
John Healey: A statutory consultation exercise of 12 weeks to bring about legislative changes and requiring greater transparency on remuneration for senior staff in Local Government, including pay, pensions, and severance costs, will be begin shortly.
The intention is that remuneration for senior staff will be included in annual accounts from 2009-10 onwards.
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what obligations there are on local authorities to publish details of the (a) salary, (b) pension and (c) severance packages of their chief executives. [262688]
John Healey: Local Government is currently required to report details relating to salary, pensions and severance for all staff as required by the Code of Practice on Local authority Accounting in the United Kingdom Statement of Recommended Practice by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accounting.
Local Government: Pensions
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what percentage of total accrued liabilities in each fund within the local government pension scheme was represented by total assets; and what the monetary value of the deficit or surplus in each fund was in the most recent period for which figures are available. [262317]
John Healey: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 2 February 2009, Official Report, column 946W.
Local Government: Reorganisation
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the timetable for unitary restructuring is in each local authority area in which unitary restructuring is being considered by the Boundary Committee. [262241]
John Healey: The Secretary of State has extended the deadline for the Boundary Committee to provide advice on unitary proposals in Devon, Norfolk and Suffolk from 13 February to 15 July 2009. The statute provides that the Secretary of State may not make a decision about any unitary proposals put to her before the end of six weeks beginning on the date by which the committee has been requested to provide advice. On this basis, any orders to implement unitary proposals in Devon, Norfolk or Suffolk would be considered by Parliament in the autumn. If the orders are approved, new unitary authorities in these areas may be implemented on 1 April 2010 or, if this date proves to be impractical, on 1 April 2011.
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