HC Deb 09 January 2003 vol 397 cc348-50W
Dr. Stoate

To ask the Deputy Prime Minister (1) what plans he has to make use of the provision for differential pricing contained in the Electronic Communications Act 2000 to support the work of the National Land Information Service; [88672]

(2) how many local authorities have introduced pricing for the electronic provision of answers to land and property search enquiries; [88656]

(3) what plans he has to provide financial support to the National Land Information Service to encourage take up of its services; [88670]

(4) whether it is his policy to support differential pricing for local authorities for the provision of answers to land and property search enquiries between electronic search and other methods of searches; [88658]

(5) what plans he has for action in the next six months to encourage local authorities to introduce pricing for the electronic provision of answers to land and property search enquiries; [88657]

(6) what assessment he has made of the (a) administrative and (b) staffing cost to local authorities of responding to land and property search enquiries by (i) electronic means and (ii) other means; [88671]

(7) what steps he has taken in the last six months to encourage local authorities to introduce pricing that encourages take-up of the electronic provision of answers to land and property search enquiries. [88655]

Mr. McNulty

The Government supports the National Land Information Service (NLIS) initiative as a way of delivering property searches electronically within the context of the 2005 target for e-enabling public services and as a part of the seller's pack initiative. Over the last year the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has supported NLIS by contributing to a reception for exemplar authorities and co-ordinating the distribution of a letter to all authorities briefing them on the benefits of NLIS and the National Land and Property Gazetteer (NLPG). In particular, the briefing [paragraph 13] makes the case for lower fees as an incentive for electronic searches. Copies of the letter have been placed in the Library of the House. Officials in the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and other government departments have formed a central government stakeholders group to co-ordinate work with NLIS across Government. NLIS is an integral part of our proposals to reform the home buying and selling process. It provides the information needed for conveyancing searches more quickly and with more certainty than paper-based systems. NLIS will help ensure that sellers' packs can be produced quickly and thus reduce the scope for gazumping and other problems to occur.

Fees for searches of the local land charges are prescribed by my right hon. Friend the Lord Chancellor. Fees for other land and property searches are set by individual local authorities. These powers are already wide enough to allow different fees to be set for electronic and manual searches, so the question of an order under the Electronic Communications Act does not arise. As with other services they provide, it is the responsibility of local authorities to set income targets and fees for dealing with conveyancers' enquiries, taking account of the cost of the service and the level of charges the market will bear. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister supports reasonable levels of differential pricing where local authorities consider this appropriate in light of these criteria. Completely electronic based services are likely to be cheaper and the briefing quotes the Improvement and Development Agency (IDeA) and NLIS calculation that fees for searches received could be set at least 18 per cent. lower than for other searches (even without counting savings from electronic payment).

There has been no assessment of administrative and staffing costs of the search methods as it is for councils to set the level of charges. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is encouraging Information House's efforts to market NLIS and the cost savings from e-enabling is clearly an attractive part of the business case for adoption. NLIS reports that over 70 authorities have introduced differential pricing for land and property searches.

It is not the intention of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister to offer financial support to either Information House or individual councils to accelerate take up of NLIS. It has always been framed as a self-funding proposition for both Information House and participation councils. However, councils may, if they wish, use part of the 200,000 capital grant made available by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (Implementing Electronic Government monies) for e-Government to support local implementation of NLIS.

Over the next month and beyond, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister will work with other government departments and NLIS in the context of the Central Government Stakeholders group to consider ways of encouraging the take up and success of NLIS. Officials are currently working with the IDeA and Information House to discuss the provision of funding to support the NLPG project and the development of Local Land and Property Gazetteers (LLPGs) in local authorities. The implementation of LLPGs in local authorities and NPLG will assist take up of NLIS. Officials in the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and the Lord Chancellors Department are working together to examine a proposal from the Local Government Association for differential prescribed fees for searches of the local land charges register.