§ Mr. SoleyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how much has been spent by his Department(a) on consultants' fees and expenses and (b) otherwise on the proposed housing action trusts in (i) Tower Hamlets, (ii) Lambeth, (iii) Southwark, (iv) Sandwell, (v) Leeds, (vi) Sunderland and (vii) Waltham Forest.
§ Mr. Michael SpicerExpenditure on those seven housing action trust proposals is shown in the table: 545W
1(a) 2(b) £000 £000 Tower Hamlets 182 3 Lambeth 182 12 Southwark 1,411 25 Sandwell 191 17 Leeds 161 13 Sunderland 667 23 Waltham Forest 129 — 1 Expenditure related to consultancies. 2 Expenditure related to the Department's information material and to ballots. Expenditure related to consultancies has covered extensive studies of the physical and social conditions in the areas, the formulation of costed options for improvements and detailed design proposals, and consultation with tenants. The information obtained will inform policies in these and other areas. Expenditure related to information and ballots is in pursuance of the statutory duty under the Housing Act 1988 to hold a ballot of tenants and the need to ensure that the tenants are fully informed of the proposals.