§ Mr. Chris Smithasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what appraisal his Department has undertaken to assess how far, and in what respect, housing projects for which urban development grant aid has been provided have helped urgent local housing needs; and what information is available to his Department concerning the proportion of dwellings provided under such projects which have been (a) let, or (b) sold under a low cost home ownership scheme, or (c) sold at open market value to (1) homeless households, (2) households registered on local authority waiting lists, (3) households registered on local authority transfer lists and (4) first-time buyers.
§ Sir George YoungAll housing projects which have been supported by urban development grant (UDG) have been approved on the basis that the dwellings concerned would be sold or let under assured tenancies at full market value. Information about the personal circumstances of purchasers is not available at present but some housing projects are included in current research into the impact of UDG.
§ Mr. Chris Smithasked the Secretary of State for the Environment according to what criteria his Department assesses whether housing projects submitted by local authorities for urban development grant aid would be economically unviable were such grant aid not made available; and what appraisal his Department has undertaken to evaluate whether, when urban development grant aid has been provided for housing projects, it has in practice proved essential for their execution.
§ Sir George YoungAll applications for urban development grant (UDG) receive a detailed development appraisal in order to establish whether the project could
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Appraiser Firm Period of secondment D. Barker Norwich Union Insurance Group October 1982—April 1983 J Cooper* Hillier Parker May & Rowden October 1982—April 1983 P. Hilling Authur Young McClelland Moores & Co. October 1982—October 1983 or would not proceed without grant. Research into the outcome of a representative sample of completed UDG projects is under way.
§ Mr. Chris Smithasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list any housing projects for which urban development grant aid has been provided where the local authority has clawed back profits from the developer under the terms of grant aid and list in each case (a) the profit allowed to the developer under the terms of the grant before clawback, (b) the profit clawed back by the local authority and (c) the profit retained by the developer.
§ Sir George YoungAlmost all offers of urban development grant for housing projects have included conditions requiring grant to be repaid to the local authority if during the period between grant approval and the completion of the project house prices increase more rapidly than building costs. It is not the practice to disclose financial details of individual projects, but clawback conditions are known to have come into operation in five cases.
§ Mr. Chris Smithasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list any housing project for which urban development grant aid has been provided where the developers' approved expenses for the project have included (a) the provision of white goods in the dwellings, (b) the establishment of a show house and the running expenses for a sales office and (c) advertising and agent fees for the dwellings; and if he will list in each case the reasons why his Department judged such expenses to merit urban development grant aid.
§ Sir George YoungUrban development grant is not paid in respect of specific items of expenditure but rather to cover the gap between the total costs that the developer will have to incur in order to carry out the project and the estimated value of the completed project. Housing projects invariably involve marketing expenses and some projects have included "White goods" packages. Such expenditure would normally reduce rather than increase the grant requirement because it enables the completed housing to be sold sooner or at a higher price than would otherwise be the case.
§ Mr. Chris Smithasked the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) if he will list those firms from which members of his Department's urban development grant appraisal team have been seconded, the members seconded, and the periods of their secondment;
(2) if he will list any former members of his Department's urban development grant appraisal team who to his knowledge have subsequently been employed as consultants by local authorities wishing to submit urban development grant applications.
§ Sir George YoungThe following have been or are members of the Department's urban development grant appraisal team whilst on secondment to the Department:
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Appraiser Firm Period of secondment A. H. Mallinson* Thomson McLintock Associates October 1982—March 1984 J. F. Reid* Costain Group Ltd. April 1983—March 1985 N. F. Smith Drivers Jonas May 1983—May 1984 T. A. S. Russell* King & Co. July 1983—January 1985 R. N. C. Cowley Peat Marwick Mitchell & Co. August 1983—December 1984 M. C. Gloster Grimley & Son May 1984—August 1985 M. J. Barrington Spicer and Pegler October 1984—July 1986 N. J. Sadler Richard Ellis January 1985—March 1986 A. G. Vining John Laing Construction Ltd. April 1985—April 1987 G. M. Seeff Stoy Hayward Associates July 1986—to be determined. * Former appraisers known to have acted for local authorities in connection with applications, or prospective applications, for Urban Development Grant. There is in general no restriction on former appraisers or their firms acting for local authorities or other persons in connection with applications for urban development grant, but the terms of secondments preclude former appraisers from getting involved in any way with projects which were before the Department during their periods of secondment.
§ Mr. Chris Smithasked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether his Department has received a copy of the recent report by the district auditor to members of Langbaurgh borough council, drawing attention to the financial implications of their decision to dispose of part of the Spencerbeck housing estate to Barratt (Urban Renewal Northern) Ltd for refurbishment for sale with urban development grant aid; and what steps his Department plans to take to ensure that in future before urban development grant aid is approved for such projects, that the short and long term financial implications of the disposal of its housing stock for refurbishment for sale have been fully appraised.
§ Sir George YoungThe Department has not received a copy of the auditor's report. It is for local authorities to assess the impact that disposals for sale will have on their housing revenue accounts.