§ Mr. BreedTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many key workers will receive financial support from the Starter Home Initiative; and how much will be allocated to key workers in rural areas. [56976]
§ Ms KeebleWe are providing £250 million for the Starter Home Initiative (SHI) which aims to help around 10,000 key workers into home ownership. £230 million SHI funding was allocated to local scheme providers in September 2001 following a competitive bidding process. This included some £8.7 million allocated to schemes that proposed to help key workers to buy homes in small rural settlements with a population of 3,000 or less. We expect to announce the allocation of the remaining £20 million SHI funding to successful bidders later this month.