HC Deb 20 July 1989 vol 157 cc337-43W
Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) following the completion of the register of those tenants entitled to vote in any ballot on the proposed creation of a housing action trust in Southwark, what arrangements will be made to allow new tenants moving on to either the North Peckham or Gloucester Grove estates to be accorded voting rights;

(2) how long, before any ballot on the proposed creation of a housing action trust in Southwark, the register of those eligible to vote will have to be completed.

Mr. Trippier

I refer the hon. Member to the answer that I gave her on 18 July.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) in which languages other than English any ballot form concerning the proposed creation of a housing action trust in Southwark will be made available;

(2) what length of notice will be given by a ballot on the proposed creation of a housing action trust in Southwark; and in what form it will be given;

(3) what will be the wording used on the ballot form concerning the creation of a housing action trust in Southwark;

(4) whether interpreters for non-English speaking tenants will be made available in the period immediately before any ballot on the proposed creation of a housing action trust in Southwark;

(5) whether voters in any ballot on the proposed creation of a housing action trust in Southwark will be required to vote in the form of a straight yes or no.

Mr. Trippier

I refer the hon. Member to the answers that I gave her on 18 and 19 July.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what forum there will be for those not entitled to vote in any ballot on the creation of a housing action trust in Southwark, to put forward their views during the consultation process.

Mr. Trippier

I refer the hon. Member to the answer that I gave on 24 May 1988 to the hon. Member for Hammersmith (Mr. Soley) at column599–600. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State will take into account the views of all residents in any proposed housing action trust area before deciding whether to make a designation order.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether there will be separate ballots taken on the creation of a housing action trust in the Gloucester Grove and North Peckham estates in Southwark.

Mr. Trippier

Any housing action trust ballot will be in respect of the area proposed by the Secretary of State for a designation order under section 60 of the Housing Act 1988.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment who will be entitled to vote in any ballot on the creation of a housing action trust in Southwark.

Mr. Trippier

Each secure tenant, including each joint tenant, and any other categories of tenants prescribed by regulations, living within the area proposed for designation will have a vote.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment for what period members of the proposed housing action trust board in Southwark would be elected or nominated.

Mr. Trippier

We shall decide the period of trust appointments in due course.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how abstentions would be recorded in any ballot on the proposed creation of a housing action trust in Southwark.

Mr. Trippier

I refer the hon. Member to the answers that I gave her on 18 and 19 July.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how rents would be paid by tenants to the proposed housing action trust in Southwark.

Mr. Trippier

It would be for a housing action trust to decide how to collect rents.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how the proposed housing action trust in Southwark would deal with racial harassment.

Mr. Trippier

A trust would have a duty under section 71 of the Race Relations Act 1976 to carry out its various functions with regard to the need to eliminate racial discrimination and to promote equality of opportunity. It would need to decide on policies to fulfil this duty, including how to deal with racial harassment. We would recommend to any trust two recent reports which my Department has drawn to the attention of local authorities: "The Response to Racial Attacks and Harassment: Report of the Interdepartmental Racial Attacks Group" and "Brunel Guide to Good Practice in Tackling Racial Violence and Harassment on Local Authority Housing Estates".

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how the service provided by the proposed housing action trust in Southwark to different ethnic groups would be monitored.

Mr. Trippier

We shall encourage trusts to seek advice from the Commission for Racial Equality on the use of ethnic monitoring.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make it his policy that all the occupants of demolished properties will be rehoused on the estate, in the event of the establishment of the proposed housing action trust in Southwark.

Mr. Trippier

A trust would have to find alternative accommodation for any tenant whose home had to be demolished as part of a programme of improvements decided on after consultation with local people. A trust, like a local authority, could not require a tenant to move out of his home if it needed to be demolished unless it secured suitable alternative accommodation for him. Such accommodation could be either on the estates or nearby.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what would be the procedure for electing resident members of the proposed housing action trust board in Southwark.

Mr. Trippier

I refer the hon. Member to the answer that I gave her yesterday.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) whether he will publish a statement as to the allocation policies of the proposed housing action trust in Southwark(a) before any ballot and (b) after the housing action trust has been formed;

(2) whether the proposed housing action trust in Southwark would maintain its own waiting list with its own prioritising policy.

Mr. Trippier

One of the primary objects of a housing action trust under section 63 of the Housing Act 1988 is to secure the proper and effective management and use of the housing for which it is responsible. It would be for a trust to decide on its allocation policy once it had been set up. It would be required, like Southwark council, to publish its allocation policy under section 106 of the Housing Act 1985. It would also have to consider how to make best use of any properties which become available for occupation.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether the proposed housing action trust in Southwark would be given the responsibility of assisting residents in obtaining their correct benefit entitlements.

Mr. Trippier

Where housing action trusts are set up, local authorities will retain responsibility for the administration of housing benefit.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether the proposed housing action trust in Southwark would be able to receive housing benefit payments for tenants directly from the council in a similar way to housing associations.

Mr. Trippier

Housing benefit rent allowance payments to trust tenants would be governed by the same rules as apply to all rent allowance payments. Consequently, just as in certain circumstances a housing association can receive benefit payments direct from the local authority administering the benefit, so a trust could receive benefit payments direct.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether the proposed housing action trust in Southwark would have an equal opportunities policy.

Mr. Trippier

Yes.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether the proposed housing action trust in Southwark would support the activities of existing community groups.

Mr. Trippier

Section 63 of the Housing Act 1988 sets out the primary objects of a housing action trust which include the improvement of living and social conditions in its area. We expect that a trust would want to use its powers under section 63(2)(b) to work for the benefit of the community.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether the proposed housing action trust on the North Peckham and Gloucester Grove estates in Southwark would employ multilingual workers.

Mr. Trippier

I refer the hon. Member to the reply that I gave her earlier today. It would be for a trust to decide whether it needed to employ multilingual workers.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if at the end of the operating period for a housing action trust created in Southwark, the option of returning to council management would be made available.

Mr. Trippier

Once improvements had been carried out, a trust would consult secure tenants about whether they wanted to transfer to a landlord approved by the Housing Corporation, such as a housing association or co-operative, or go back to the council. We would give local authorities the necessary supplementary credit approvals to enable them to buy back properties where tenants opted to return to them.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what training would be provided to enable residents to run a management co-operative at the end of the operating period for a housing action trust in Southwark;

(2) what training would be provided to instruct residents on how to conduct their functions on the estate management boards, during and after the formation of the proposed housing action trust in Southwark;

(3) what would be the role of the proposed housing action trust in Southwark in the training or assisting of residents to take advantage of existing training facilities outside the housing action trust;

(4) what would be the role of the proposed housing action trust in Southwark in the training or assisting of residents to carry out senior management roles, such as membership of the housing action trust board.

Mr. Trippier

I have already asked tenants' representatives from the North Peckham and Gloucester Grove estates to discuss training with my officials. Both before and after a trust is set up, we shall ensure that tenants who want to become involved in managing their own housing have access to the training that they need. Trusts may also have a wider role in helping residents to take advantage of other training and employment opportunities which may be available locally. We shall want trusts to discuss with all interested bodies and agencies how best to achieve this.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether, in the event of the establishment of the proposed housing action trust in Southwark, any provision will be made for individual blocks in the North Peckham and Gloucester Grove estates, to be able to withdraw their membership at any time.

Mr. Trippier

As a trust completed improvements to parts of the estates, tenants in an improved block could opt to transfer to an approved landlord offered to them by the trust, or return to the council. They would also be able to exercise tenants' choice at any time during the life of the trust.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) under what circumstances he would have the power to impose a budget on the proposed housing action trust in Southwark;

(2) what powers he would have to approve or disapprove the annual budget of the proposed housing action trust in Southwark.

Mr. Trippier

A trust's programme of work will be decided after consultation with residents and the local housing authority. This will form the basis of a plan, including a budget, which the Secretary of State will approve annually. Trusts will be funded through grant-in-aid, which Parliament will be invited to vote each year under normal procedures, and by borrowing up to an agreed limit.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will identify prior to any ballot on the creation of the proposed housing action trust in Southwark which blocks in the Gloucester Grove and North Peckham estates would be demolished.

Mr. Trippier

Under section 64 of the Housing Act 1988 a trust board, which would include tenant and council representatives, would be required to draw up a statement of proposals for its area in consultation with the residents and the local authority. The statement would include proposals for physical alterations to the estates. We would expect the trust to take account of the views expressed in the current consultation exercise in drawing up its proposals.