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25 Mar 2009 : Column 478W—continued
Housing: Overcrowding
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether she plans to re-assess her Department's definition of overcrowding in relation to housing; and if she will make a statement. [266476]
Mr. Iain Wright: The Government are committed to addressing overcrowding and to updating the statutory standards. We have invested over £4 million in 38 local authorities this year to enable them to develop strategies and action plans to tackle overcrowding. Part of this funding has been used to collect more robust data on overcrowding which will enable us to assess the cost and impact of updating the statutory standards. We expect to have further evidence from the pathfinders in late spring. In 2009-10, we are investing a further £5 million in these 38 pathfinders and expanding the programme to include a further 17 local authority areas.
Housing: Repairs and Maintenance
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what expenditure her Department incurred on the major repairs allowance in each year since 2001; and if she will make a statement. [266316]
Mr. Iain Wright: The total annual allowances for the major repairs allowance since 2001 in England are given in the attached table:
| £ billion | |
The allowances are calculated by and implemented through the HRA subsidy system for each local authority. The total allowance has decreased as large scale voluntary transfer has transferred councils housing to registered social landlords.
Housing: Standards
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when she expects the next English House Condition Survey to be published. [266484]
Mr. Iain Wright: The 2007 English House Condition Annual Report will be published in summer 2009.
Infrastructure Planning Commission
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when she expects the information transparency plan for the Infrastructure Planning Commission to be published. [266135]
Mr. Iain Wright: The Infrastructure Planning Commission (IPC) will to be subject to the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act and all FOI requirements. Once the IPC is established it will develop a publication scheme in accordance with the FOI Act, and this will be published in due course.
Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate she has made of the Infrastructure Planning Commission's administration costs in 2009. [266521]
Mr. Iain Wright: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to her on 17 March 2009, Official Report, column 1108W.
Local Government Finance: Chorley
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what information her Department holds on the programmes to which the (a) Local Authority Business Grant Incentive funding and (b) Area-based Grant made to Chorley Borough Council for the years 2009-10 to 2011-12 will be allocated. [264871]
John Healey:
I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave him on 18 March 2009, Official Report, columns 1178-79W, where I explained that the Department does not require authorities to make returns detailing how
they have spent their ABG allocation, or to make reports on performance other than those required under the new local performance framework.
LAGBI is also a non-ringfenced grant; we do not therefore collect and hold any specific information on the programmes to which local authorities allocate their funds.
Mortgages: Government Assistance
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) how much her Department has spent on publicising its Mortgage Rescue Scheme to date; and how much has been allocated for such expenditure in each of the next two financial years; [265956]
(2) how much her Department has spent on publicising its Homeowners Mortgage Support Scheme; and how much has been allocated for such expenditure in each of the next two financial years. [265957]
Margaret Beckett: The Department is conducting a public information campaign to publicise a wide range of support available to homeowners, including the Mortgage Rescue Scheme and the Homeowner Mortgage Support Scheme. This campaign is currently underway, and spend figures part way through the campaign are not available. Details of the Department's expenditure on this campaign will be made available in the Department's forthcoming annual report.
There are no current allocations made for such expenditure in the next two financial years.
Neighbourhood Renewal Fund
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) if she will place in the Library a copy of the qualifying criteria for the Neighbourhood Renewal Fund; [264979]
(2) if she will place in the Library a copy of the formula by which her Department calculates Neighbourhood Renewal Fund allocations for local authorities. [264980]
John Healey: The Working Neighbourhoods Fund (WNF) was launched in December 2007 by the Department for Communities and Local Government and the Department for Work and Pensions. The Neighbourhood Renewal Fund and DWP’s Deprived Areas Fund were brought together in the WNF to create a single fund at the local level.
The criteria for qualification were published in the “The Working Neighbourhoods—Revising the Third Criteria—Consultation”, published in November 2008 as clarified in “The Working Neighbourhoods Fund 2009 to 2011: Revising the Third Criterion consultation—Government Response” published in February 2009. I have placed both documents in the Library. Both documents are also available from the Communities and Local website at:
Eligible authorities needed to meet the following qualifying criteria:
Have 20 per cent. or more of their lower super output areas in the most deprived 10 per cent. on the employment domain of the Index of Multiple Deprivation 2007;
Have 20 per cent. or more of their lower super output areas in the most deprived 10 per cent. on the overall Index of Multiple Deprivation 2007; or
Are ranked among the top 50 districts with the highest combined benefit/non- employment rate.
Local areas were only required to meet one of the above criteria to qualify for the fund.
The formula for WNF allocations can be found in paragraph 40 of ‘The Working Neighbourhoods Fund 2009 to 2011—Revising the Third Criterion’ document, published in February 2009, a copy of which I have also placed in the Library of the House. This document is also available on the Communities and Local Government website at
Non-Domestic Rates
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) what the average change in rateable value as a result of transitional rate relief in England was in (a) 2005-06, (b) 2006-07, (c) 2007-08 and (d) 2008-09; [265024]
(2) what the average monetary value of transitional rate relief in England was in (a) 2005-06, (b) 2006-07, (c) 2007-08 and (d) 2008-09. [265153]
John Healey: Outturn data for the net value of transitional relief granted in 2005-06 to 2007-08 can be found in the Statistical Release “National non-domestic rates collected by local authorities in England 2007-08” that was published on 17 September 2008. It is contained in table 1 at
These data are taken from NNDR3 forms submitted annually by all 354 billing authorities in England.
Budget estimate data on transitional relief to be granted in 2008-09 can be found in the Statistical Release “National non-domestic rates to be collected by local authorities in England 2008-09” that was published on 8 May 2008. It is contained in table 1 at
These data are taken from NNDR1 forms submitted annually by all 354 billing authorities in England.
Non-Domestic Rates: Business
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the average change in business rate liability for firms previously receiving revaluation transitional rate relief will be as a consequence of the end of transitional relief in 2009-10. [265044]
John Healey: Data on individual hereditaments’ bills are not held centrally.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many businesses in England were eligible for transitional rate relief in 2008-09 but will no longer be eligible in 2009-10. [265045]
John Healey: This information is not held centrally.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate she has made of the cost of making the small business rate relief scheme automatic; and if she will make a statement. [265157]
John Healey: A business is eligible for small business rate relief if its sole or main property has a rateable value of less than £15,000 (or £21,500 in Greater London); and each additional property it occupies, if any, has a rateable value of no more than £2,200; and the total rateable value of all of its properties is less than £15,000 (£21,500 in Greater London).
While the Government hold information on the rateable value of individual properties, they do not currently hold information on the rateable value of all properties held by each individual business. It is not therefore currently possible to establish the number of businesses that meet the eligibility criteria for small business rate relief. That is why currently ratepayers must declare to the relevant billing authority that they meet the criteria for the relief. Without the declaration it is not possible to establish whether a ratepayer occupies more than one property.
Non-Domestic Rates: Small Businesses
Mr. Cawsey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what her most recent estimate is of the number of businesses in each local authority area eligible for rate relief under the small business rate relief scheme. [265936]
John Healey: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Rutland and Melton (Alan Duncan) on 29 April 2008, Official Report, column 319W.
Performing Arts
John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether her Department has engaged any (a) actors, (b) musicians and (c) other performers to support its initiatives over the last five years. [264064]
Mr. Khan: The information requested could be supplied only at disproportionate cost.
Planning Permission
Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate she has made of the number of planning applications submitted to local authorities in (a) 2005, (b) 2006, (c) 2007 and (d) 2008. [266522]
Mr. Iain Wright: The number of planning applications received by local planning authorities in England since 2005 are shown in the following table:
| Number of planning applications received | |
| (1)Quarter 1 to Quarter 3 2008 Source: Communities and Local Government Development Control returns | |
Data for 2008 are for the first three quarters of the year. Information on October to December 2008 will be published on 27 March 2009.
Planning: Horticulture
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will make it her policy that local planning officers should undertake mandatory training in horticulture; and if she will make a statement. [265902]
Mr. Iain Wright:
As well as technical skills local planning officers need to have an understanding of a wide range of social, economic and environmental issues that impact on the planning system. These are covered in professional training through planning schools, continuing professional development and training and experience provided by employers. It is not Government policy to mandate particular training requirements for local authority planning staff. Local authorities have
considerable autonomy in determining their recruitment policies and training programmes.
Property Transfer
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much was paid per home to each local authority which has opted for large-scale voluntary transfer of their housing stock in each year since 1997. [264996]
Mr. Khan: The following table incorporates information the Department holds on gross transfer values and dwelling numbers where local authorities received payment from the receiving local authority following the transfer of social housing under large scale voluntary transfer arrangements since 1997. Exact information on payments received by a local authority from the registered social landlord for a particular transfer would need to be ascertained from the local authority.
The values shown in the table are in respect of the gross transfer price for all positive value stock transfer where local authorities should have received a payment. In arriving at such values the Department and local authorities use a model agreed with HM Treasury to establish a 30 year tenanted market value (TMV) of the dwellings to be transferred. The TMV reflects the intended continued use of the properties for social housing: it is always less than the open market value. The TMV is calculated as the net present value of the RSL’s projected stream of income from renting out the transferred stock, less its planned expenditure (including investment) stream. The precise details of payments received by LAs would need to be requested from LAS themselves.
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