§ Lord Aveburyasked Her Majesty's Government:
How many caravan pitches were provided by local authorities and private persons or landlords respectively, and how many caravans there were on unauthorised encampments, as recorded by the January local authority counts since the information was first collected; and whether they consider that, in the absence of any new measures, unauthorised encampments will become unnecessary. [HL4450]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions (Lord Whitty)A list of local authority gypsy sites, indicating the number of pitches on each site, is produced annually by the Department, based on information provided by local authorities. When this information was first collected, in January 1982, there were 200 sites, containing a total of 3,113 pitches. As at January 2000, there were 319 sites, containing a total of 5,057 pitches. Information about sites provided by private persons or landlords is not recorded.
The twice yearly (January and July) counts of gypsy caravans, also based on information provided by local authorities, do not provide information about numbers of pitches, but of gypsy caravans. At January 1979, when the count was first introduced, there were 2,988 caravans on authorised local authority sites, 1,194 on authorised private sites and 4,176 on 160WA unauthorised sites (total 8,358). As at January 2000, there were 6,118 caravans on authorised local authority sites, 4,500 on authorised private sites and 2,516 on unauthorised sites (total 13,134).
Expressed as a percentage of the total number of gypsy caravans, the figures are:
Caravans on local authority sites Caravans on private sites Caravans on unauthorised sites Percentage at January 1979 36% 14% 50% Percentage at January 2000 47% 34% 19% The present policy (of encouraging gypsies to provide sites for themselves through the planning process, giving clear guidance to local authorities on their powers to deal with unauthorised camping and encouraging local authorities to keep existing local authority sites open) is clearly having an effect in reducing unauthorised camping. However, we are taking further action to ensure that this long-term trend continues.
Nick Raynsford, the Minister for Housing and Planning, announced on 24 July, as part of the Spending Review, that £17 million is to be made available over the next three years for the refurbishment and improvement of the existing network of local authority sites. Details are to be published shortly. My department is also about to commission research into the availability and condition of sites, including how they are managed, as a means of assessing the need for further sites, and as a precursor to the next Spending Review.