HC Deb 29 July 1998 vol 317 cc287-8W
Mr. Lansley

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what cumulative net increase in compliance costs has been estimated in compliance cost assessments published by his Department since 1 May 1997. [52945]

Mr. Dewar

[holding answer 28 July 1998]: It is not practicable to give a single net figure, because of the diverse detail contained within some of the individual compliance cost assessments.

In the majority of the compliance cost assessments produced by The Scottish Office, measures have been confirmed as being cost neutral or not imposing any cost on business. The compliance costs for 3 of the measures, however, have been estimated as follows: the building (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 1997—amendments to Part J of the Technical Standards for compliance with the Building Standards (Scotland) Regulations 1990. The net cumulative increase in compliance costs in respect of any typical year, range from a minimum of £30m to £60m per annum. The amendments will lead to an improvement in the energy performance of buildings resulting in a reduction of energy costs. Overall, the measures can be expected to pay for themselves in approximately 8–15 years. the Environmental Assessment (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 1997; and the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Scotland) Amendment Order 1997. The recurring cost of compliance across all business sectors affected will be in the range £50,000 to £100,000. the Building (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 1997—amendments to Part K of the Technical Standards for compliance with the Building Standards (Scotland) Regulations 1990. The building construction costs are likely to increase by about £75 for an average sized house. This, as a percentage of total construction costs, is considered negligible and should have little effect on construction costs, is considered negligible and should have little effect on construction firms. It is estimated that the total additional building costs for the Scottish house building industry as a whole will be —1.7m per annum.

For the detail, I refer the hon. Member to Cmnd Paper 3938 and the individual compliance cost assessments held in the House Library.