Housing (Hansard, 16 February 1995)

§ Mrs. Maddock
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) how many households currently on social housing waiting lists have been waiting for more than(a) six months, (b) a year, (c) two years, (d) three years, (e) five years and (f) 10 years in each region of England;
(2) what is the total number of households currently on social housing waiting lists in each region of England.

§ Mr. Robert B. Jones
Local authorities in England report the number of households on their council housing waiting lists in their annual housing investment programme returns.
Figures for each region, as at 1 April 1994, can be found in section B of the "1994 HIP1 All Items Print", a copy of which is in the Library.
Information on the length of time households have been on waiting lists is not collected centrally.

§ Mrs. Maddock
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) how much of the 1994–95 approved development programme funding was allocated to(a) each region and (b) each housing authority area in England and Wales; and what is the allocation for 1995–96;
(2) how much of the 1994–95 housing investment programme funding was allocated to (a) each region and (b) each housing authority area in England and Wales; and what is the allocation for 1995–96.

§ Mr. Robert B. Jones
The information requested for England is in the Library. For information about Wales I refer the hon. Member to the Secretary of State for Wales.

§ Mrs. Maddock
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how much of the Government's total 1994–95 housing budget was allocated to(a) each region and (b) each housing authority area in England and Wales; and what is the allocation for 1995–96.

§ Mr. Robert B. Jones
For housing investment programme and approved development programme allocations in England, I refer the hon. Member to the answers I gave to her questions earlier today. Housing investment programme allocations comprise local authority credit approvals and resources for private sector renewal.
The Department is providing additional credit approvals in 1994–95 for the housing partnership fund, £30 million, the cash incentive scheme, £30 million, and the flats-over-shops scheme, £10 million. I have placed in the Library copies of the Department's press notices which announced allocations by English local authority area for these schemes for 1994–95. In 1995–96 the housing partnership fund will again provide £30 million and the cash incentive scheme will provide £60 million. Individual allocations have not yet been made for 1995— 96.
800W
The estimated cost of housing revenue account subsidy for England in 1994–95 is £4.1 billion. Final claims for the year will not be received by the Department until early in 1996, but I have placed in the Library a list of the latest provisional claim figures for each authority and region. all of these are still subject to validation.
The estimated cost of housing revenue account subsidy in 1995–96 is £4.2 billion. No claims have yet been received from authorities.
The remainder of the Government's housing resources for England is allocated through a wide range of smaller programmes, and further information can be found in chapter A6 of the Department's "Annual Report 1994", published in March 1994, and in its "Annual Report 1995" which will be published shortly.
Housing in Wales is the responsibility of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales.

§ Mrs Maddock
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment in respect of how many social housing units work was started during the last 12 months for which figures are available in(a) each region and (b) each housing authority area in England and Wales.

§ Mr. Robert B. Jones
The publication "Local Housing Statistics" shows estimates of housebuilding starts for each region and each local authority area in England and Wales. It shows starts by sector, including activity by housing associations and by local authorities. Figures for 1993 and provisional figures for the first quarter of 1994 are in issue No. 110, March quarter 1994.
A copy of this publication is in the Library.