§ Mr. Don FosterTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what(a) number and (b) percentage of properties in his charge are empty; and what steps are being taken by her Department to reduce the number of such properties. [116911]
§ Mr. WillsThere are currently eight Departmental headquarters properties and 53 Employment Service (ES) properties that are either fully or partly vacant. Using the standard measure of square metreage, these figures represents 3.19 per cent. of vacant space against the total headquarters property for DfEE and 4.9 per cent. against the total for ES. Both ES and DfEE use the services of external estates surveyors, under contract, who advise on the best method of achieving a speedy and cost effective disposal. This will include assignment, sub-letting or surrender. The option pursued will depend upon, for example, the terms of the lease, the wishes of the landlord and market conditions. In line with usual practice, retained estates surveyors employ local estate agents who market vacant premises.