HC Deb 01 April 1996 vol 275 cc18-9W
Mr. David Martin

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what targets he has set for Property Advisers to the Civil Estate on its creation as an executive agency in his Department. [24354]

Mr. Freeman

PACE has today been established as an executive agency in the Office of Public Service. Its main aims are to enable Departments to achieve best overall value for money in the management of their property assets, by providing advisory and co-ordination services, and to carry out residual functions of disposing of inherited vacant property and collecting opportunity cost rents. I have set performance targets for its first year 1996–97:

  1. (i) to identify savings from proposals to be agreed with Departments for the co-ordination of property activities on the civil estate which in total should exceed the agency's related running costs;
  2. (ii) to recover 100 per cent. of the costs of providing intelligent client services;
  3. (iii) to contain expenditure on vacant properties within an annual net provision of £110 million;
  4. (iv) to recover 100 per cent. of opportunity cost rents due;
  5. (v) to recover 100 per cent. of the costs of the Whitehall district heating system.

I have today placed copies of the agency's framework document in the Library of the House.