HL Deb 13 June 2002 vol 636 cc370-2

3.14 p.m.

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What action they will be taking following the publication of the Countryside Agency's State of the Countryside Report 2002.

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Lord Whitty)

My Lords, the report of the Countryside Agency is an important compilation of data on the current state of the countryside. The report records an improvement over the past year in the availability of some services, but there are also some less encouraging trends, which our policies now need to address.

The new department, DEFRA, is actively pursuing the rural policy agenda set out in the rural White Paper to develop stronger rural communities, stronger rural economies and a better environment.

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer

My Lords, I thank the Minister for his Answer. Does he agree with the chairman of the Countryside Agency in his introduction to the report that parts of the report make pretty grim reading? Does he also accept that the part which makes the grimmest reading concerns the provision of social affordable housing? That is very much a government responsibility. The Government should have taken a lead years ago and failed to do so. How does the Minister expect there ever to be a thriving rural economy if, more and more, the countryside is becoming the preserve of the rich and the retired?

Lord Whitty

My Lords, I agree with the noble Baroness in part. The reference to a grim picture is, in part, what has happened in the countryside. Certainly, many parts of the countryside give cause for optimism. Some of the services and employment possibilities have significantly improved. However, with some services there has been a serious problem.

The issue of affordable housing affects urban, inner city and rural areas, and is a big problem. Having taken on this responsibility in recent days, my noble friend Lord Rooker is now very much "on the case" with regard to both rural and urban housing. The Government have supported the efforts of the Housing Corporation and housing associations to try to increase the amount of affordable housing in many rural areas.

Lord Tanlaw

My Lords—

Earl Peel

My Lords—

The Lord Privy Seal (Lord Williams of Mostyn)

My Lords, shall we start with the Cross Benches and then go to the noble Earl, Lord Peel?

Lord Tanlaw

My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Lord for giving way. Can the Minister give an indication as to when broadband communication on the Internet will be available to the local post office, the rural school and to the farmer who wants to diversify in the countryside? Does he agree that without that service it is impossible to see a great future in the countryside?

Lord Whitty

My Lords, I agree that the provision of broadband is an important part of the strategy of engaging and connecting particularly the more remote rural areas with the rest of the economy. My colleagues in the Department of Trade and Industry are on that case.

Earl Peel

My Lords, the report on access to rural services, which, as the Minister will be aware, is a very real problem in the countryside, states that greater access to cashpoints is the only significant change from last year. Can the Minister tell the House whether he is proud of the progress of his new department in that respect?

Lord Whitty

My Lords, I am proud of some of the developments in services, particularly in relation to transport. Rural bus services have improved significantly over the past five years in terms of availability. The number of people who live within easy distance of a bus route has increased from one-third to nearly one-half. That results from significant resources being allocated by the Government and my previous department to the bus subsidy and to the rural bus challenge. While some services have improved, I accept the implication that in others there has been a deterioration, which we need to address.

Lord Mackie of Benshie

My Lords, does the Minister agree that one of the great problems with rural housing has been the sale of publicly-financed houses which were built to let? Would not it be better to build more houses for letting and to stop such sales?

Lord Whitty

My Lords, the noble Lord gets into very dangerous water by suggesting that the Government should intervene to stop people selling their houses to those who are prepared to pay the going price. However, I recognise—this was alluded to by the noble Baroness, Lady Miller—that one of the difficulties is that if the only people who can afford the going price are incomers and retired people, the availability of housing for the economically active and particularly the younger element in many rural areas is seriously distorted. That is why we need to address the issue of affordable housing.

Baroness Nicol

My Lords, I welcome the comment from my noble friend that rural transport has been improved. Does the use of postal buses figure in the improvement, or is that being considered for the future?

Lord Whitty

My Lords, there has been some development on the postal bus side in a few areas. That is also part of the more flexible approach for which my department and the Department for Transport see a need so that there are forms of transport available which are somewhere between taxis and buses. Some fixed bus routes are not necessarily appropriate for rural needs and taxis are too expensive. There are experiments, including the use of other forms of transport such as postal vehicles, which could benefit rural communities.

Lord Stoddart of Swindon

My Lords, is it not a fact that public authorities are building virtually no affordable houses? That is despite the Government making a good profit out of housing. They get —3.1 billion in stamp duty; they no longer give mortgage relief to house buyers; and subsidies have been cut. We need to take a good hard look at public and affordable housing and start building many more thousands of houses than the housing associations are currently providing.

Lord Whitty

My Lords, it is not the case that there is no building of social housing. As I indicated, the Housing Corporation has engaged, along with the housing associations, in some significant builds. Indeed, it has exceeded its targets for the provision of rural housing in recent years. Nevertheless, there is a quantum problem which will no doubt be addressed in the current spending round in order to ensure that there are adequate resources for social and affordable housing.