Outer City Housing Estates

HC Deb 08 July 1987 vol 119 cc346-7

9. Mr. Stern

asked the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he has any plans to encourage trading initiatives in outer city housing estates.

Mr. Atkins

The inner-cities initiative is already piloting projects encouraging trading in housing estates, and we are looking at the particular contribution community businesses in general might make to tackling urban problems.

Mr. Stern

I am most grateful for my hon. Friend's reply. Does he agree that there is a danger that the inner-city initiative could be decided purely by geography? There is as much deprivation and as much need for the sort of initiatives that we are talking about in some outer city housing estates—many of which I represent in the city of Bristol—as there is in inner city areas. Will he seek to encourage such initiatives where they are needed, rather than base them purely on geographical terms?

Mr. Atkins

I am aware of the problems of outer city areas such as those in my hon. Friend's constituency and the interest that he takes in such matters. The lessons that we learn from the inner city initiatives will be put to good use in due course in areas such as his.

Mr. Leighton

Is the Minister aware that there is a great mystery about the Government's policy on cities? He knows that city action teams and task forces have had only puny funding, hardly any of which seems to have been spent, and have had hardly any effect. Is there anything new in the Government's approach to cities? If there is, will he tell us what it is? Does he accept that, if there is to be something new and effective, it will mean more resources? Can he give us any assurance that resources will be made available?

Mr. Atkins

The hon. Gentleman has asked a number of questions. The point about the inner cities initiative is that it is an experiment to investigate whether the various initiatives that have been taken in the eight pilot areas, and now the further eight pilot areas, can come up with ways of focusing resources, money, community action and a variety of other things on areas of deprivation which need such assistance. The £14 million to which he referred, and which was the subject of an earlier question to my right hon. and learned Friend, is by way of a pump-priming operation, because resources are already available in a number of Government schemes, adding up to hundreds of millions of pounds.