§ Mr. HopkinsTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will list the local authorities in(a) England, by region, (b) Scotland and (c) Wales that own housing stock indicating in each case (i) how many properties they manage, (ii) how much debt they have in their housing revenue account and (iii) what plans they have to deal with their investment and repair backlogs. [25886]
§ Ms KeebleThe information requested on the numbers of dwellings owned by each local authority in England and the associated Housing Revenue Account debt, has been placed in the Libraries of the House. Details of the information provided on plans to tackle renovation and improvement backlog is in the Housing Revenue Account Business Plans that authorities were required to produce for the first time last summer and is available in the Library of the House (see Section E of the Statistical Appendix to the Business Plan).
The quality of these initial plans varies considerably and not all authorities have been able to provide backlog figures in line with the definitions set. Government Offices however, are working closely with authorities to improve the robustness of the assessment of investment needs and expenditure plans.
Responsibility for housing matters in Scotland and Wales rests with the Scottish and Welsh Offices.