§ Ms WalleyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions (1) what proposals he has for consultation with interested bodies following publication of the report of the 1996 English House Condition Survey: [5144]
(2) what evaluation of the risks to the health and safety of occupants of living in unfit and otherwise inadequate dwellings will be included in the 1996 English House Condition Survey; [5145]
46W(3) what assessment of the costs to the NHS of people living in unfit houses will be included in the 1996 English House Condition Survey; [5146]
(4) what account the 1996 English House Condition Survey will take of the impact of proposals for amending the housing fitness standard. [5189]
§ Mr. RaynsfordThe results of the 1996 EHCS will be widely disseminated. We shall consider arrangements for consultation with those bodies which have an interest in housing conditions when these results are published.
The first report of the 1996 EHCS, to be published later this year, will show the number of dwellings that were, al the time of the survey, unfit under the current housing fitness standard, and those that were in other respects inadequate. The report will also identify the occupants of poor housing, in terms of their age, income, and other characteristics. Some information on the health of occupants was recorded during the course of the survey and the analysis of this information will he included in future reports.
There are no plans to include an estimate of the cost to the NHS of people living in unfit dwellings in any report of the 1996 EHCS. Further research is required to identify specific costs to the health service which might be directly attributable to people living in unfit homes.
The 1996 EHCS will report housing conditions in terms of the fitness standard as it is now defined. However, 1996 EHCS data will be helpful in assessing the effect of any changes to the standard proposed in the current review.
§ Ms WalleyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions (1) what research has been undertaken to ascertain the costs to the NHS of people living in dwellings which are unsatisfactory on grounds of(a) dampness, (b) inadequate fire precautions, (c) poor indoor air quality, with particular reference to radon, (d) hazardous internal design features and (e) homes energy rating (SAP) of 30 or less; [5149]
(2) what research he has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on the effects on demand on the national health service from increased investment in improving housing conditions; and to what extent health and safety issues are taken into account when local authorities devise their housing strategies. [5150]
§ Mr. RaynsfordThe reviews conducted by the Building Research Establishment ofBuilding regulation and health and Building regulation and safety, published in 1995, and Building regulation and fire safety, to be published later this year, give an indication of the relative risks to health and safety of dampness, inadequate fire precautions, poor indoor air quality and radon, hazardous internal design features and cold homes.
The Department has also contributed recently to the fifth sweep of the National Child Development Study which includes housing and health data and we are currently considering options of the analysis of this material. We have also seen studies made by others in London, Sheffield and elsewhere.
A common feature of all this research is the lack of reliable evidence of changes in health which follow from changes in housing conditions. However, the Department 47W has recently published a research report Housing and Health Research: measuring the health benefits of housing improvements which explores the feasibility of researching the links between health and housing conditions and we are considering with the Department of Health ways in which these could be established.
In developing their housing strategies it is for local authorities to take account of the needs of all people in their areas and decide on priorities accordingly.
§ Ms WalleyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions (1) what assessment he has made of the current definition of fitness used in the review of the housing fitness standard; [5148]
(2) when he expects to publish the outcome of the review of the housing fitness standard which was announced by the previous Government; and what plans he has for subsequent consultation. [5147]
§ Mr. RaynsfordWe are looking at the definition of fitness as part of the current review of the housing fitness standard. We plan to publish a consultation paper in the autumn setting out our proposals in the light of the review.