To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is his estimate of the (a) annual cost and (b) total value of the empty properties owned by (i) his Department, (ii) his agencies and (iii) other public bodies for which he has responsibility, in (A) 1995–96, (B) 1996–97, (C) 1997–98 to date and (D) 1997–98 full year. [26588]

[holding answer 5 February 1998]: The estimate of the annual cost and total value of the empty properties administered by the Department is as follows.

£
	Annual cost	Total value
1995–96	150,000	21.6 million
1996–97	330,000	29.9 million
1997–98 to date	290,000	36.3 million
1997–98 full year	300,000	36.3 million

The Annual Cost includes rents to landlords, contributions in lieu of rates, security and maintenance. The Total Value is based on the actual or estimated sale prices as at 1 April of each year. The decline in Civil Service numbers has enabled Departments to declare more office space surplus to requirements, and that, in the longer term, reductions in the size of the Government estate will provide the tax payer with greater value for money.All redundant properties are disposed of in accordance with HM Treasury guidelines. This often requires the Department to hold them for a time in order to gain favourable outline planning consents which enhance their values.