Written question asked by Baroness King of Bow (Labour) on Tuesday, 5 November 2002, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 7 November 2002. It was answered by Tony McNulty (Labour) on Thursday, 7 November 2002 on behalf of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.

Office of the Deputy Prime Minister

Question: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, pursuant to his Answer of 22nd October, Official Report, 391 c284W, on overcrowding, if it is his policy (a) to end the practice of counting living rooms as rooms available to sleep in, (b) to end the practice of not counting babies under the age of one and (c) to lower the age at which males and females should no longer be expected to have to sleep in the same room for the purposes of determining overcrowding.

Answer: Ms Oona King: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, pursuant to his answer of 22 October 2002, Official Report, column 284W, on overcrowding, if it is his policy (a) to end the practice of counting living rooms as rooms available to sleep in, (b) to end the practice of not counting babies under the age of one and (c) to lower the age at which males and females should no longer be expected to have to sleep in the same room for the purposes of determining overcrowding. [80093] Mr. McNulty: We are considering whether overcrowding is best tackled through a modern set of standards--updating the present legislative framework--or through the new Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS), which we hope to introduce as a replacement for the housing fitness standard when Parliamentary time allows. It will be possible to assess and tackle hazards from crowding and space under HHSRS, but we would need to be satisfied that the problem is one that can be dealt with through this process alone.

Secondary information