§ Mr. Alfred MorrisTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on the regional housing needs indicator figures published by the Housing Corporation for the north-west; and how far the housing investment programme is meeting the urgent need for local authority homes to be improved and repaired in the Wythenshaw constituency.
§ Mr. BaldryThe Housing Corporation recently published the Housing Needs Indicator (HNI) for 1993–94. The score for the corporation's north-west region has risen from 10.39 per cent. this year to 10.8 per cent. next year. After compensation for the differing costs between regions, the share of the corporation's annual development programme (ADP) allocated to the north-west will be 9.21 per cent. in 1993–94 compared with 8.92 per cent. this year.
The HNI is a composite, relative indicator of the incidence of housing needs in different geographical areas in England. It is reviewed annually by a working group of the Department of the Environment, the Housing Corporation and the National Federation of Housing Associations.
Manchester's housing investment programme allocation for 1992–93 was £34.867 million. The need for local authority homes to be improved and repaired is taken into consideration when determining the size of this allocation. It is for the Manchester city council to decide how best to distribute these resources to meet the needs of the city.