§ Mr. Peter AtkinsonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement about the finance management and policy review of the Housing Corporation. [2460]
§ Mr. CurryThe finance management and policy review of the Housing Corporation has been completed and I am placing a copy of the final report in the Library.
This final report is the completion of a process which started last year. The FMPR of a non-departmental public body comprises two stages. The report on the first stage, the prior options study, was completed in June 1995. The bulk of the fieldwork for the second stage, following up the POS, was completed by early this year. Given that neither the POS nor the fieldwork identified significant problems and that the Housing Bill had been introduced, completion of the report was deferred so that it could reflect the content of the Housing Act 1996.
The original POS confirmed that there should be no change in the basic approach of the Housing Corporation, and identified a number of points to be covered in the second stage of the FMPR and a series of issues which should be followed up outside the FMPR. A number of recommendations in the POS were reflected in the Housing Act 1996, including arrangements to put the housing association tenants ombudsman service on a statutory footing.
A good deal of the report is devoted to the strategic relationship between the corporation and the Department. The review, which included an investigation by outside consultants, found that this relationship was in good shape but made a series of detailed recommendations on how it could be improved further. The report summarises a series 345W of other reviews: of the corporation's financial systems; of the scope for out-sourcing service functions; of the corporation's senior management structure; of the specific regulatory issues identified in the POS; and of how to handle potential conflicts of interest for corporation board members. The report also summarises progress with actions arising from the POS outside the FMPR.
The POS, last year, underlined the importance of the corporation's work and the effective way it is carried out. This report makes a series of suggestions for minor improvement, but again confirms the basic soundness of the arrangements. This all reflects well on both the staff of the corporation and the chairman and members of the board.