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2 Feb 2010 : Column 251W—continued
Non-Domestic Rates
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much and what proportion of business rate revenue was raised from the (a) local and (b) central rating list in each the last three years. [314990]
Barbara Follett: The amount, in £ billion, and the proportion of the total non-domestic rates collected in 2006-07, 2007-08 and 2008-09 in England from the local and central rating lists respectively are shown in the following table.
| Local list | Central list | |||
| Amount (£ billion) | Proportion of total (percentage) | Amount (£ billion) | Proportion of total (percentage) | |
The figures shown for the local list are the amounts collected in the year, after the deduction of reliefs and the cost of collection or losses.
Non-domestic Rates: Garages and Petrol Stations
Mr. Dunne: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will take steps to ensure that petrol filling stations in rural areas are not adversely affected as a result of the Valuation Office Agency's 2010 business rate revaluation. [314833]
Barbara Follett: The five-yearly business rates revaluations make sure each business pays its fair contribution and no more and will not raise a single extra penny for Government. Over a million properties will see their business rate liabilities come down as a result of revaluation.
In the last five years, alongside rising petrol prices and increasing turnover, the rents paid on many petrol filling stations has grown. It is only fair to all ratepayers this is reflected in rate bills. The Government have put in place a £2 billion relief scheme to limit the impact on the minority with bill increases, which in 2010-11 will ensure no business property sees its rates bill increase by more than 11 per cent. per cent. as a result of the revaluation, with maximum increases capped at just 3.5 per cent. per cent. for small properties. That is on top of the wider support available to help ease business pressures including discounted rate bills for small businesses and deferring tax payments.
Our rural rate relief scheme provides 50 per cent. rate relief for the sole petrol station with a rateable value below £10,500 in designated rural settlements, with a discretionary power for the relevant local authority to top this up to 100 per cent. We will uprate the rateable value threshold for to £12,500 from April 1 2010 in line with the general movement of property at revaluation. This means that any rural petrol station currently eligible for this relief will continue to be eligible in the next revaluation period if their rateable value has increased in line with the average.
Non-Domestic Rates: Lifeboats
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether lifeboat stations are eligible for business rate relief. [314967]
Barbara Follett: Life boat stations operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institute (RNLI) will be entitled to rate relief. As a registered charity the RNLI is entitled to 80 per cent. mandatory rate relief which can be topped up to 100 per cent. at the discretion of local authorities.
Non-Domestic Rates: Ports
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the answer to Lord Bates of 3 December 2009, Official Report, House of Lords, columns 66-67WA, on Department for Communities and Local Government: meeting with MPs, which hon. Members representing constituencies with ports he has met. [313807]
Barbara Follett: My right hon. Friend has met with my hon. Friends the hon. Members for Grimsby (Mr. Mitchell); Cleethorpes (Shona McIsaac); Brigg and Goole (Mr. Cawsey); and Liverpool, Riverside (Mrs. Ellman) regarding the backdating of national non domestic rates in ports.
Non-Profit Making Associations
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the outcomes have been of the work of his Department's social enterprise unit since its inception. [315101]
Barbara Follett:
Communities and Local Government has a Community Resource Division which is responsible for supporting the development of community-based
organisations. In relation to the support for local social enterprise, the following has been achieved:
Establishing the £70 million Communitybuilders Programme which makes loans and investment available to community anchor organisations throughout England.
Introducing the £9.25 million Empowerment Fund that has directly invested in the School for Social Entrepreneurs and Social Firms UK. Social Firms UK will use the fund to develop social firms as a way of tackling worklessness, creating jobs in community-based enterprises for individuals who need this support. They will be starting up at least 50 more social firms over three years to create 250 new employment opportunities. At least a third will be for disadvantaged people who would otherwise not have such an opportunity. The Empowerment Fund will enable the SSE to enhance, expand and grow the impact of their work on empowering and supporting individuals and groups in their communities to develop skills and confidence, networks and sustainable enterprises.
Establishing the Asset Transfer Unit, which provides information, advice and a referral service on asset transfer; for example buildings that can provide a base for community enterprises.
Developing the Advancing Assets Programme which provides local authority-community sector partnerships m 72 areas with support to develop community asset transfer strategies and advance individual transfer projects. A further 30 areas are currently in process of selection for 2010-11.
Producing a series of seminars in conjunction with the Social Enterprise Coalition and the Economic and Research Council linking the impact of social enterprise to departmental policies. The seminars have brought together policy officials, academics, and social enterprise practitioners to discuss and share knowledge and experiences in interactive workshops, open discussion and an opportunity to network and forge relationships.
Conducting action research with the Office of the Third Sector to study how local authorities across the country work successfully with social enterprises.
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many social enterprises have received assistance from his Department's social enterprise unit; and if he will make a statement. [315102]
Barbara Follett: Communities and Local Government has a Community Resource Division which is responsible for supporting the development of community-based organisations. In relation to the support for local social enterprise, the following has been achieved:
Establishing the £70 million Communitybuilders Programme which makes loans and investment available to community anchor organisations throughout England.
Introducing the £9.25 million Empowerment Fund that has directly invested in the School for Social Entrepreneurs and Social Firms UK. Social Firms UK will use the fund to develop social firms as a way of tackling worklessness, creating jobs in community-based enterprises for individuals who need this support. They will be starting up at least 50 more social firms over three years to create 250 new employment opportunities. At least a third will be for disadvantaged people who would otherwise not have such an opportunity. The Empowerment Fund will enable the SSE to enhance, expand and grow the impact of their work on empowering and supporting individuals and groups in their communities to develop skills and confidence, networks and sustainable enterprises.
Establishing the Asset Transfer Unit, which provides information, advice and a referral service on asset transfer; for example buildings that can provide a base for community enterprises.
Developing the Advancing Assets Programme which provides local authority-community sector partnerships in 72 areas with support to develop community asset transfer strategies and advance individual transfer projects. A further 30 areas are currently in process of selection for 2010-11.
Producing a series of seminars in conjunction with the Social Enterprise Coalition and the Economic and Research Council linking the impact of social enterprise to departmental policies. The seminars have brought together policy officials, academics, and social enterprise practitioners to discuss and share knowledge and experiences in interactive workshops, open discussion and an opportunity to network and forge relationships.
Conducting action research with the Office of the Third Sector to study how local authorities across the country work successfully with social enterprises.
It would be extremely difficult to obtain an exact number of enterprises affected as many of these programmes are ongoing and this could be gathered only at disproportionate cost.
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much and what proportion of its budget his Department has allocated for assistance to social enterprises in the next three years. [315103]
Barbara Follett: The Department's records do not differentiate between social enterprises and other third sector organisations so the information requested could be provided only at disproportionate cost. CLG and its non-departmental public bodies has allocated over £2.5 billion to third sector organisations in the 2009-10 financial year, which is around 18 per cent. of the budget for the year. We do not have information on final allocations for 2010-11 and funding in 2011-12 will be subject to the next spending review.
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance his Department's social enterprise unit has provided to (a) local authorities, (b) regional development agencies and (c) non-governmental organisations on procurement since its inception. [315104]
Barbara Follett: Communities and Local Government has worked with the Office of the Third Sector and the Improvement and Development Agency on the National Programme for Third Sector Commissioning. The programme aims to increase awareness and understanding of the third sector, increase third sector involvement in commissioning and improve bidding practice. According to the evaluation of Phase 1 of the programme, 70 per cent. of commissioners said it had increased their knowledge about how to make commissioning available to third sector organisations, leading to increased shared learning and application to commissioning practices, and incorporation of core principles into frameworks, strategies and other documents.
Furthermore, the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government will be hosting a round table with local authority innovation and procurement experts and third sector representatives (including social enterprise representatives) to discuss the role of the third sector in local public service commissioning.
The Department is also fully committed to, and involved in the work of, the Cabinet Committee on the third sector's involvement in public services, at which issues of procurement and commissioning will be discussed.
In addition the Department, in partnership with the Office of the Third Sector, is to undertake action research to look at how local authorities work successfully in partnership with social enterprises. This will include looking at issues of commissioning and procurement.
We intend to publish our findings to local authorities and social enterprises once the research is complete in 2011.
Public Lavatories
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many public conveniences there are in each local authority area; and how many have closed in each such area in each of the last 10 years. [314901]
Barbara Follett: The provision and maintenance of toilets in public places is at the discretion of local authorities who have, under section 87 of the Public Health Act 1936, a power to provide public conveniences, but no duty to do so. For this reason, the information requested is not held centrally.
Snow and Ice
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the costs to his Department arising from the severe weather conditions in the period 4 January to 18 January 2010; and if he will make a statement. [313583]
Barbara Follett: No formal assessment of costs have been made; however costs are likely to be minimal and associated with the existing salaries of staff who work on resilience matters.
Social Rented Housing
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent guidance his Department has given to (a) the Homes and Communities Agency, (b) the Tenant Services Authority and (c) registered social landlords on (i) procurement priorities and (ii) social enterprises in the last three years. [315090]
Barbara Follett: The Office of Government Commerce is responsible for issuing guidance to the public sector on (i) procurement priorities and (ii) social enterprises.
Supporting People Programme
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the number of Supporting People contracts what will not be renewed in 2010-11; and if he will make a statement. [314857]
Barbara Follett: The Government have made no such estimate. It is for local authorities to make decisions around Supporting People contracts, based on their strategic assessments of local needs.
House of Commons Commission
Buildings: Ebbsfleet
Dr. Stoate: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission what consideration he has given to the potential for the relocation of a Government office or executive agency to Ebbsfleet in the Kent Thameside growth area. [313432]
Mr. Byrne: I have been asked to reply.
The Lyons review which reported in 2004 suggested that a Government relocation programme could generate savings over a 15-year period and demonstrated the positive impact that well planned relocations can have on local economies. In light of this the Government set a target to relocate 20,000 Civil Servants out of London and the South East by March 2011 and increased this to 24,000 at Budget 2009.
Putting the Front Line First: Smarter Government published in December 2009 went further and announced that Ian Smith would lead an independent review on relocations. The review will report in time for Budget and will outline how at least 10 per cent. of all Civil Service posts currently based in London and the South East can be relocated in the medium term.
As part of this I have asked that the review provide recommendations which deliver a step change in the transparency of Government relocations, involving both the development of a transparent long-term pipeline, and launch of a new forum to regularly bring together local areas and OGC to structure relocation propositions that deliver better value for money.
Work and Pensions
Better Off in Work Credit: Yorkshire and the Humber
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to the answer of 3 November 2009, Official Report, column 814W, on better off in work credit: Yorkshire, how many people have moved from benefits to work in Yorkshire under the pilot. [308399]
Jim Knight: The better off in work credit aims to increase people's confidence that they will be better off in work. On 21 January, the National Institute of Economic and Social Research published a report of their evaluation of the pilot. The research supports the Government's belief that most people are better off in work than on benefits. There are however a small number of situations where this may not be the case and for these customers the better off in work credit provides a useful means of support to those entering work.
Information on the number of people who moved from benefits to work in Yorkshire under the pilot is not available. 108 people received better off in work credit payments.
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