Asked by: Richard Ottaway (Conservative - Croydon South)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much the London Borough of Croydon received in total government grant in the last year; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Kris Hopkins
In 2014-15, the London Borough of Croydon is forecast to receive £428 million in government grants, excluding mandatory housing benefits, equivalent to £2,877 per dwelling. Including mandatory housing benefits, the forecast is £693 million (source: Revenue Account budget returns). The Greater London Authority also delivers services (police, fire, transport, strategic housing and planning) in Croydon, and is forecast to receive £4.5 billion in government grants in 2014-15, equivalent to £1,311 per dwelling. Taken together, this is equivalent to £4,189 per dwelling in Croydon.
Leaving aside education spending which has changed due to the funding shift from local authorities to academies directly, in 2014-15 Croydon’s net current expenditure excluding education is forecast to be £546 million (source: Revenue Account budget returns). This compares with £490 million in 2009-10 (source: Revenue Outturn returns). This represents an 11 per cent increase in cash terms.
It has been brought to my attention that the Council has put up posters on council-owned billboards asserting: “Government is cutting its funding to you by £100 million over the next three years”. This is factually incorrect, given no decisions have been made on local government funding beyond 2015-16. Moreover, such polemical publicity is not only potentially contrary to the provisions of the local government Publicity Code, but is in itself a waste of money – the Council could be using its advertising space to sell commercial advertising and generate revenue to support frontline services, rather than peddle political messages.
Asked by: Richard Ottaway (Conservative - Croydon South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when he plans to publish his Department's next six monthly report on Hong Kong.
Answered by Lord Swire
The six monthly report on Hong Kong covering the period July-December 2014 was published on 26 February.
Asked by: Richard Ottaway (Conservative - Croydon South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representatives of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government met the Minister of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office during his visit to that region in January 2015.
Answered by Lord Swire
On the day of my visit, the Hong Kong Government was focused on the launch of the second public consultation on constitutional reform. They were consequently unavailable to meet me. It was nevertheless valuable for me to visit Hong Kong on my way back from mainland China, in light of recent events and our ongoing interest under the Joint Declaration. I was able to meet the President of the Legislative Council and a wide range of legislators, which was particularly important given their key role in the next stage of the constitutional reform process, as well as Chief Justice Geoffrey Ma and representatives of the business community.
Asked by: Richard Ottaway (Conservative - Croydon South)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what the salary was at each payband used in her Department in (a) 2012, (b) 2013 and (c) 2014.
Answered by Desmond Swayne
The following table gives the salary range for each DFID pay band in (a) 2012, (b) 2013 and (c) 2014.
Civil Service | DFID | DFID Pay Range | DFID Pay Range | DFID Pay Range |
Perm Sec | Perm Sec | £141,836 - £277,349 | £141,836 - £277,349 | £141,836 - £277,349 |
SCS 3 | SCS 3 | £101,500 - £208,100 | £103,000 - £208,100 | £104,000 - £208,100 |
SCS 2 | SCS 2 | £82,900 - £162,500 | £84,000 - £162,500 | £85,000 - £162,500 |
SCS 1 | SCS 1 | £58,200 - £117,800 | £60,000 - £117,800 | £62,000 - £117,800 |
Grade 6 | A1 | £59,265 - £69,585 | £61,381 - £70,290 | £61,381 - £70,290 |
Grade 7 | A2 | £47,459 - £57,441 | £49,410 - £58,160 | £49,410 - £58,160 |
Senior Executive Officer | A2(L) | £38,894 - £44,817 | £41,218 - £45,380 | £41,218 - £45,380 |
Higher Executive Officer | B1 | £29,118 - £35,225 | £31,320 - £35,680 | £31,320 - £35,680 |
Fast Stream | B1(D) | £26,800 - £36,827 | £26,800 - £37,195 | £26,800 - £37,195 |
Executive Officer | B2 | £22,106 - £27,850 | £23,930 - £28,210 | £23,930 - £28,210 |
Administrative Officer | C1 | £19,249 - £22,981 | £19,500 - £23,275 | £19,500 - £23,275 |
Administrative Assistant | C2 | £15,866 -£19,839 | £16,080 - £20,090 | £16,080 - £20,090 |
Asked by: Richard Ottaway (Conservative - Croydon South)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the introduction of selective licensing in relevant areas and the level of private-sector rates; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Kris Hopkins
Selective licensing allows local authorities to license all privately rented housing in a designated area that suffers from low housing demand and/or significant anti-social behaviour. The Department does not routinely collect information on the number or extent of licensing schemes although local authorities were asked on a one-off voluntary basis to provide this information last year. 194 local authorities responded, of which 14 had introduced licensing. While an assessment of the impact of licensing on private sector rents has not been undertaken, we believe that licensing puts unnecessary extra costs on good landlords, thereby pushing up rents, and reduces choice.
Asked by: Richard Ottaway (Conservative - Croydon South)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, when his Department plans to publish the conclusions of its review of property conditions in the private rented sector; and whether his Department plans to restrict borough-wide selective licensing schemes.
Answered by Kris Hopkins
We plan to publish an analysis of the replies and proposed next steps, including any decision that may be made on restrictions of borough wide licensing schemes, in the Summer.
Asked by: Richard Ottaway (Conservative - Croydon South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the nationality and gender of each suspected victim of trafficking referred to the Trafficking Victim Support Scheme operated by the Salvation Army was in June 2014 in which (a) region and (b) county each of the suspected victims was found; which agency referred each person to the Scheme; in which town the shelter was to which they were placed for the relevant period; and what contact it had with each victim after they exit the shelter to ensure they are not re-trafficked.
Answered by Karen Bradley
In June 2014, there were 97 referrals to the Government-funded support service
for adult victims of human trafficking in England and Wales administered by the
Salvation Army, of which 59 were female victims, 37 were male victims and 1 was
a transgender victim. In the interests of victim safety only the region in
which the victim was encountered is provided, and not the county, parliamentary
constituency or details of the specific shelters at which victims are
supported. The scope of the victim care contract does not extend (a) beyond the
date on which a victim exits government funded support or (b) to the safety and
protection of victims post the recovery and reflection period. The Salvation
Army therefore does not routinely maintain contact with victims outside the
scope of the victim care contract.
Details are provided in the table below.