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20 Apr 2009 : Column 428W—continued
Fire Services
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what her estimate is of the number of fires prevented in each (a) region and (b) fire authority area in the most recent year for which figures are available. [268797]
Mr. Khan: There is no mechanism that allows Communities and Local Government to access how many fires have been prevented. However the latest provisional figures show that in 2007-08, fire and rescue services in England attended a total of 293,900 fires, a 32 per cent. reduction on the 2001-02 figure of 431,800.
Fire Services: Manpower
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many fire stations in each fire and rescue authority area were staffed in (a) whole and (b) part by retained fire fighters in the latest period for which figures are available. [268922]
Mr. Khan: The number of fire stations in England by type of staffing system is set out as follows.
As at 31 March 2008 there were 774 fire stations staffed wholly by retained duty firefighters in England. Stations with the Day-crew, Nucleus and ‘Wholetime-other duty’ system staffing typically use both whole-time and retained firefighters.
| Fire stations in England as at 31 March 2008 | |
| Type of fire station | Number |
Fire Services: Pay
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the average cost was of employing a full-time equivalent (a) fire fighter and (b) retained fire fighter in the latest period for which figures are available. [268921]
Mr. Khan: The latest available data for average costs of employing fire fighters are for 2007-08 and are shown in the table.
| Average costs of employing fire fighters( 1) , England, 2007-08 | ||
| Whole-time | Retained | |
| n/a = Not applicable (1) Costs are collected as totals covering all roles from Fire Fighter to Brigade Manager. (2) Pay, employer pension contributions and employer national insurance contributions. Source: Annual returns to Communities and Local Government | ||
Homes and Communities Agency
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much the Homes and Communities Agency and its predecessor bodies spent on staff in each year since 1997. [266191]
Margaret Beckett: The predecessor bodies of the HCA were English Partnerships, the investment arm of the Housing Corporation, and the Academy for Sustainable Communities. A range of programmes previously delivered by Communities and Local Government (CLG) also transferred to the Agency.
The last 10 years spending on staff for English Partnerships and the Housing Corporation can be found in their published Annual Report and Accounts. The spend for the Academy was consolidated within the Annual Report and Accounts of its parent organisation, Yorkshire Forward. The salary costs for ASC staff were £42,000 in 2005-06, the year of its establishment, £972,000 in 2006-07 and £1.28 million 2007-08. The costs of CLG staff that transferred to the Agency were included within Departmental Annual Reports and could be disaggregated only at disproportionate cost.
The HCA is responsible to Parliament for ensuring public funds are properly used. The Agency is also subject to scrutiny by the National Audit Office. Information on staff costs for the year ending 31 March 2009 will be published in the HCA's Annual Report and Accounts which will be laid before Parliament later this year.
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much the (a) the Homes and Communities Agency and (b) Tenants Service Authority have spent on IT since their inception. [266193]
Margaret Beckett: Since their establishment the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) has spent approximately £0.8 million on IT for former English Partnerships, Academy for Sustainable Communities and transferred CLG staff. The spend for the Tenants Services Authority (TSA) is £0.9 million which covers the costs of IT relating to former Housing Corporation staff. This cannot be disaggregated between those staff that transferred to the HCA and those that transferred to the TSA.
Housing: Construction
Mr. Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent assessment she has made of the social effect on communities of the Government's target of building 3 million new homes by 2020 not being met. [268745]
Mr. Iain Wright: The Housing Green Paper “Homes for the future: more affordable, more sustainable” published in July 2007 set out the Government’s ambition to increase housing supply. This step-change in housing delivery is necessary to ensure adequate housing supply that is crucial in order to improve housing affordability, ease the pressure on social housing waiting lists and improve economic productivity.
Mr. Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many new units of social housing have been built in (a) Stafford constituency, (b) the West Midlands and (c) England in the last 12 months. [269725]
Mr. Iain Wright: Information on new build social housing by constituency is not available. The following table shows the number of new build for social rent in Stafford local authority, the West Midlands region, and England in 2007-08.
| Area | 2007-08 |
The social rent new build figures are from the Homes and Communities Agency Investment Management System (IMS), and Housing Strategy Statistical Appendix (HSSA) returns and P2 house building returns submitted to CLG by local authorities and the National House-Building Council (NHBC).
Not all social rented housing is provided by new build completions, as some supply can come from acquisitions. An additional 3,980 social rented homes were acquired in England in 2007-08; these are not included in the table. The social rent figures differ from the number of affordable homes provided, because the affordable housing figures also include intermediate rent and low-cost home ownership, as well as social rent.
Housing: Low Incomes
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) what the difference was between (a) the actual rate of (i) inflation, (ii) wage inflation, (iii) discount rate for scheme liabilities and (iv) increase for pensions and (b) the assumptions of each made by the Homes and Communities Agency and its predecessors in each of the last three years; [264985]
(2) what assumptions about (a) inflation, (b) wage inflation, (c) discount rate for scheme liabilities and (d) rate of increase for pensions were made by the Homes and Communities Agency and its predecessors in each of the last three years. [264986]
Margaret Beckett: Homes and Communities Agency employees are covered by three pension schemes. The English Partnerships Pension scheme was renamed the Homes and Communities Agency Pension scheme with effect from 1 December 2008, when the Homes and Communities Agency replaced English Partnerships as the Principal Employer. It was adopted as the scheme of choice for the Homes and Communities Agency and is used to provide benefits for new employees of the Agency. Due to legacy arrangements on the formation of the Agency, some employees are covered by the Westminster Pension Fund or the West Sussex Pension Fund, both Local Government Pension schemes.
An actuarial valuation of each of the schemes is carried out every three years to assess the value of liabilities and future funding requirements. The assumptions used for the valuation are set by the Trustees or Administering Authority after taking actuarial advice. As part of the valuation, an analysis of the experience over the previous three years is carried out. The assumptions used to value each Scheme's liabilities are long term assumptions and are intended to reflect experience over the lifetime of the scheme. Details of the most recent available actuarial valuation for each of the schemes are as follows:
The experience for the three years following the valuation of the Homes and Communities Agency Pension scheme as at 31 March 2005 was as follows (the Trustees’ long-term assumptions at 31 March 2005 are shown in brackets):
| Percentage p.a | |
| (1) This figure is a weighted average, assuming a return of 6.7 per cent, on assets backing pre-retirement liabilities and 5.2 per cent. on assets backing post-retirement liabilities. | |
The approximate impact on the Scheme's ongoing liabilities due to actual experience differing from the assumptions over the three years to 31 March 2008 is as follows:
| Increase/decrease | |
|
(a) average inflation higher than assumed (includes impact on pension increases) | |
The next actuarial valuation has an effective date of 31 March 2008 and is currently being finalised.
The experience for the three years following the valuation of the Westminster Pension Fund as at 31 March 2004 was as follows (the long-term assumptions at 31 March 2004 are shown in brackets):
| Percentage p.a | |
The financial impact for the (then) Housing Corporation over the three years to 31 March 2007 is as follows:
(a) change in financial assumptions: reduced funding position by approximately £2.5 million.
(b) investment returns greater than expected: improved funding position by approximately £16.9 million.
The assumptions used to determine the value of the ongoing liabilities of the Westminster Pension Fund for the triennial actuarial valuation of the Fund as at 31 March 2007 were as follows:
| Percentage p.a | |
An analysis of the experience over the three years following the valuation is not yet available. The next actuarial valuation will have an effective date of 31 March 2010.
The experience for the three years following the valuation of the West Sussex County Council Pension Fund as at 31 March 2004 was as follows (the long-term assumptions at 31 March 2004 are shown in brackets):
| Percentage p.a | |
| (1) This is an average figure for the Fund as a whole, based on average pensionable salaries at 31 March 2004 and 31 March 2007. | |
A breakdown of the impact on the Fund's ongoing liabilities due to actual experience differing from the assumptions is not disclosed in the actuarial valuation report. However at a high level the financial impact for the whole fund over the three years to 31 March 2007 is as follows:
(a) change in financial assumptions: reduced funding position by £156 million.
(b) investment returns greater than expected: improved funding position by £278 million.
The assumptions used to determine the value of the ongoing liabilities of the West Sussex county council pension fund for the triennial actuarial valuation of the fund as at 31 March 2007 were as follows:
| Percentage p.a | |
| (1 )Plus allowances for promotional increases | |
An analysis of the experience over the three years following the valuation is not yet available. The next actuarial valuation will have an effective date of 31 March 2010.
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