§ Mr. WatersonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many hectares of brown-field sites have been developed for private residential accommodation since January 1998. [74686]
§ Mr. RaynsfordThe information requested is not yet available. Latest figures, which relate to 1993, show the number of hectares of 'land previously developed for urban uses' (as defined by the Department's Land Use Change Statistics) that changed to residential use. These can be found in Annex A of the publication "Land Use Change in England No.13", a copy of which is in the House of Commons Library.
The Land Use Change Statistics can provide more recent estimates for (a) the percentage of land changing to residential use that was previously developed, and (b) the percentage of new dwellings built on previously developed land. In 1996, the latest year for which a reliable estimate is available, 47 per cent. of land changing to residential use was previously developed, and 53 per cent. of new dwellings were built on previously developed land (56 per cent. including conversion of existing dwellings).
We will be investigating the robustness of figures relating to hectares of land changing use to see if this will enable more timely provision of results.