To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate she has made of the cost to (a) local authorities and (b) central Government of reporting performance information to central Government in the last 12 months; and what the average cost to local authorities in England was in the same period. (277305)

A new National Indicator Set was introduced on 1 April 2008 as part of the new Local Performance Framework, replacing all other sets of indicators. These are the only measures on which central Government will performance manage local government working alone or in partnership. A study to estimate the cost of the Local Performance Framework and how this compares with the previous arrangements, including for the collection of performance information, is being planned once the new framework is established.