HL Deb 11 April 1988 vol 495 cc964-5WA
Lord Wolfson

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What is their annual budget allocation for the external cleaning and renovation of public buildings.

The Earl of Caithness

In his Autumn Statement, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced a substantial increase in present levels of spending on the maintenance of government civil accommodation from 1988–89 onwards.

There is no annual budget allocation specifically for the external cleaning and renovation of public buildings occupied by government departments and maintained by the Property Services Agency. Funds for this type of work are drawn from the general provision for building maintenance in accordance with the priority judged in relation to competing claims of other maintenance needs on the available resources.

On 12 major schemes of this nature within an area maintained by the London region of the PSA, it is planned to carry out work to the value of about £4.7 million in the financial year 1988–89 out of a total budget for civil building maintenance of some £40 million. Similar work is undertaken throughout the UK by the PSA although the amount to be done varies from place to place, according to need.