HC Deb 23 March 1999 vol 328 cc151-2W
Mr. Darvill

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions when the Government plan to consult on the proposal contained in the consultation paper, "Residential Leasehold Reform in England and Wales", to give to leaseholders of houses a similar right of first refusal to that of qualifying tenants in blocks of flats. [77650]

Mr. Raynsford

We must first consider all the responses to the existing consultation paper, which are still being received. We expect to proceed with further consultation later in the year.

Mr. Darvill

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment. Transport and the Regions what form the consultation about the technical details of the Government's proposal to create a new right for a majority of the leaseholders in a block of flats to take over the management of the block will take; and when that consultation will take place. [77651]

Mr. Raynsford

We will issue a consultation paper on the new right to manage once we have decided on the main issues of principle in the light of the responses to our existing paper. I would expect that to be later this year.

Mr. Darvill

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what research his Department has carried out on the numbers of former local authority tenants who have acquired leasehold flats under the right to buy legislation and are now unable to resell their homes on the open market; and if he will publish the results of that research. [77649]

Mr. Raynsford

My Department carried out two research studies which were published by HMSO in 1995 as Housing Research Reports, "The Resale of Former Council Homes" and "Leaseholders and Service Charges in Former Local Authority Flats". Copies of both reports and summaries are in the Library of the House.

The Department has been carrying out further research into leaseholders of social landlords since 1996 as part of the Survey of English Housing. The Survey involves an annual sample of around 1 in 1,000 households and has collected data only on 256 leasehold properties which had been purchased from a local authority by a sitting tenant; and of these, only 18 had put their home on the market at some time since purchase. We shall publish results once we have statistically significant information.