§ Mr. Michael Forsythasked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the local authorities that have (a) established a permanent site or sites for travelling people or (b) established a temporary site or sites for travelling people; and if he will detail the grants paid to each to cover the cost of site construction and the estimated costs falling on the rates from the operation of each site.
§ Mr. AncramA list of the existing local authority sites for travellers is as follows with details of grant-aid. Grant details relate to the scheme of 100 per cent. capital grants unless otherwise stated.
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Local Authority Site Total cost approved for grant Temporary Sites Glasgow District Council Millerston, Glasgow 37,496 Kirkcaldy District Council Pathhead Muir, Kirkcaldy 41,893 Monklands District Council Heatheryknowe, Coatbridge †figures not available Renfrew District Council Burnbrae, Linwood 38,550 * Grant paid under section 67 of the Countryside (Scotland) Act 1967 prior to introduction of the 100 per cent, scheme. † Grant paid under the Urban Programme prior to introduction of the 100 per cent, scheme. No information is held centrally on management and maintenance costs which are the responsibility of the local authorities concerned.
§ Mr. Michael Forsythasked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the representations he has received regarding the operation of the non-harassment policy towards travelling people.
§ Mr. AncramOver the past few years the Secretary of State has received representations about the policy of toleration and non-harassment from a number of local authorities, including particularly Berwickshire, Cunninghame, City of Glasgow, Falkirk, Hamilton, Kirkcaldy, Motherwell, Inverness, Renfrew, Strathkelvin and Perth and Kinross district councils. The subject has also been raised less directly by other correspondents whose principal concern was with a specific unauthorised encampment.
§ Mr. Michael Forsythasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what information he has as to the number of incidents reported to the police in each police authority, where travelling people in unauthorised sites have been subject to attack in any form.
§ Mr. AncramInformation of this kind is not collected centrally, but the following details, relating to alleged incidents in the year ended 30 September 1983, have been obtained from individual forces:
Force Number of incidents Central Scotland Police 3 Lothian and Borders Police 1 Strathclyde Police 7 These figures include allegations of physical and verbal attack as well as damage to property. In two cases only was there sufficient evidence for charges to be brought. No such incidents were reported in other force areas.
§ Mr. Michael Forsythasked the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) if he will list for each district and island council the number of travelling people recorded as present on the nearest convenient date;
(2) if he will estimate the proportion of travelling people in Scotland who also own or rent a permanent home.
§ Mr. AncramThis information is not available.
§ Mr. Michael Forsythasked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will detail the total costs of the advisory committee on travelling people in each year since its creation, indicating separately the sub-totals for travel, subsistence and payments to members.
§ Mr. AncramThe chairman and members of the committee are unpaid. Since the beginning of the committee's third term of office the annual cost of travel and subsistence payments has been as follows:
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£ 1979–80 1,770 1980–81 4,297 1981–82 4,645 1982–83 3,658 Separate subtotals for travel and subsistence and figures going back to the first appointment of the committee in 1971 are not readily available.
§ Mr. Michael Forsythasked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will publish in a comparative table the estimated amounts for providing (a) a pitch on a travelling people's site and (b) a council house in the current year of (i) capital cost of provision, including ancillary facilities, (ii) annual debt charges at current interest rates, (iii) management and maintenance costs and (iv) other related expenditure incurred annually.
§ Mr. AncramSo far as available, the information is as follows:
Traveller Site Council house £ £ Capital Cost 13,000–20,000 (according to site conditions) 25,000 (on average) Annual debt charges† — *474 Management and Maintenance costs‡ — *276 Other related expenditure‡ — *17 Notes:
* Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy Rating Review 1983.
† No debt charges fall to the local authority as approved costs are met by 100 per cent. grant.
‡ Information on these costs is not collected by my Department.