HC Deb 11 July 2003 vol 408 cc1060-1W
Ms Oona King

To ask the Deputy Prime Minister (1) what plans he has to commission research into the housing needs of the Somali community in response to the conclusion in paragraph 3.4 of Housing and BME communities: A review of the evidence base on the availability of housing related data about particular small or new migrant groups; [124706]

(2) what plans he has to commission research in response to the conclusion in paragraph 3.4 of Housing and BME communities: A review of the evidence base on the availability of systematic, empirical material on the housing and neighbourhood experiences of black minority ethnic children. [124707]

Keith Hill

To date, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has no specific plans in place to commission further work on the housing needs of Somali Communities or to collect further data on the housing and neighbourhood experiences of black and minority ethnic children.

The report makes a number of recommendations about how the evidence base can be strengthened in relation to the available data on housing, "race" and ethnicity. The report was published in May 2003 and the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister now needs to consider the priorities and practicalities of taking forward the various recommendations.