Written question asked by Patsy Calton (Liberal Democrat) on Wednesday, 18 December 2002, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 14 January 2003. It was answered by Barbara Roche (Labour) on Tuesday, 14 January 2003 on behalf of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.

Office of the Deputy Prime Minister

Question: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what plans he has to develop a housing poverty indicator to enable the development of more accurate evidence-based policies.

Answer: Mrs. Calton: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans he has to develop a housing poverty indicator to enable the development of more accurate evidence- based policies. [88541] Mrs. Roche: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister Department is currently involved in a project to consider options for strengthening and updating the Indices of Deprivation 2000 (ID 2000), including the way housing deprivation is measured. Preliminary proposals for improving the housing domain were published in the Stage One Consultation report, which is out to consultation until 15 January 2003. These proposals include: Using the most up-to-date information including data from the 2001 Census and the 2001 English House Condition Survey to update current indicators; Investigating the possibility of adding new indicators to measure children living in unsuitable accommodation, households lacking amenities and houses without central heating; and Considering how the 2002 English House Condition Survey might be used to model further indicators on housing quality. Once the consultation is over, the next step would be to draft a blue print setting out actual plans for updating the ID 2000, taking on board consultation responses. This blue print will then be subject to an independent peer review and a further period of consultation before the ID 2000 is updated.

Secondary information