Asked by: Chris Heaton-Harris (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will publish the Final Business Case, approved by the Government in March 2012, for the redevelopment of the New Covent Garden Market site.
Answered by Rory Stewart
The Final Business Case (FBC) for the development was approved by Treasury in March 2012. It includes commercially sensitive information that is unsuitable for release. A decision to withhold the entire document was taken due to concerns over potential harm to commercial interests and the interests of government internal policy formulation.
Asked by: Chris Heaton-Harris (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what percentage rental increases tenants of New Covent Garden Market Authority have been subject to in the last five years; and what such increases that Authority has planned for future years.
Answered by Rory Stewart
The last rent review for the tenants of New Covent Garden Market was at the time of the renewal of the leases on the market as at 31st March 2010. At that time the rents across the market increased by 8.7%. There have been no increases since that date.
Under the terms of the tenants’ leases the Covent Garden Market Authority (CGMA) is currently undertaking a rent review as at 31st March 2015. As negotiations with tenants on the level of increase continues, the proposals from CGMA are commercially confidential but the increases proposed are based on the increase in market rent for similar premises in the local area since the last rent review in 2010.
Asked by: Chris Heaton-Harris (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what options other than demolition and rebuilding her Department considered for the redevelopment of the car park in New Covent Garden Market; and what the estimated cost was of each such option.
Answered by Rory Stewart
It is not intended to demolish and rebuild the existing multi-storey car park at New Covent Garden Market. The existing car park has been assessed by structural engineers from both the Covent Garden Market Authority (CGMA) and by CGMA’s Private Development Partner who consider the structure to be in a satisfactory condition to be retained and refurbished rather than demolished and rebuilt.
The option to demolish and rebuild was considered as was extension of the existing car park. Neither of these options was considered cost effective.
The contracts to undertake the work will be let by the Private Development Partner, VSM (NCGM) Limited. Some of these contracts have yet to be finalised and as such cost information generated in assessing the options is commercially confidential and cannot be disclosed at this time.
Asked by: Chris Heaton-Harris (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether any members of staff involved in the sale of land by the New Covent Garden Market Authority have left that Authority and subsequently been employed by the land purchaser.
Answered by Rory Stewart
There have been no sales of land by the Covent Garden Market Authority (CGMA) in the last five years. Covent House, CGMA’s former office building, will be sold to London Underground Limited (LUL), a subsidiary of Transport for London, on 31st July 2015, under a Land and Works Agreement dated 29th October 2014. This was in order to effect a Compulsory Purchase of the land, necessary for the Northern Line extension of London Underground. The current Project Director of Covent Garden Market Authority is due to join Transport for London later this year. The CGMA Board has been informed of the appointment and was given an opportunity to raise issues or concerns about his move from CGMA to Transport for London. The Board has not raised concerns.
Asked by: Chris Heaton-Harris (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much the demolition and rebuilding of the car park in New Covent Garden Market is forecast to cost.
Answered by Rory Stewart
The existing Multi storey car park has been assessed by structural engineers from both the Covent Garden Market Authority (CGMA) and by CGMA’s Private Development Partner who consider the structure to be in a satisfactory condition to be retained and refurbished rather than demolished and rebuilt. However, due to the age of the car park, additional works are required to bring the user environment and services up to current standards. As such, repairs are being carried out to the concrete decks and walls, all surfaces are being treated with specialist paint finishes, new handrails are being installed and all electrical and mechanical services including two passenger lifts are being replaced. Externally, as required by a planning condition, a green wall is being installed to half of the surface area.
The contracts to undertake the work will be let by the Private Development Partner, VSM (NCGM) Limited. Some of these contracts have yet to be finalised and as such cost information is commercially confidential and cannot be disclosed at this time.
Asked by: Chris Heaton-Harris (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what receipts the New Covent Garden Market Authority has received from the sale of land in the last five years; who bought the land in each such case; and for what purpose the land was sold in each such case.
Answered by Rory Stewart
There has been no sale of land by CGMA in the last five years.
However, as part of the development of the new Northern Line extension, London Underground Limited has occupied CGMA’s former office building, Covent House, under a Transport and Works order which allows them to do so on a temporary basis. CGMA has entered into a Transport and Works Agreement with London Underground Limited, conditional on the issue of a general vesting declaration to effect the sale of the land to London Underground Limited. It is anticipated this will complete in August 2015. CGMA will receive £10.4m for the sale of Covent House and the full amount will subsequently be transferred to Defra.
Asked by: Chris Heaton-Harris (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what expenses have been claimed by the directors of the New Covent Garden Market Authority in the last five years.
Answered by Rory Stewart
The total expenses claimed by the Board of the Covent Garden Market Authority for each of the last five years were:
2010/11 £9,394
2011/12 £11,139
2012/13 £9,791
2013/14 £5,345
2014/15 £6,451
The amounts predominantly relate to travel and accommodation expenses associated with attendance at Board and Committee meetings.
Asked by: Chris Heaton-Harris (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what representations she has received from tenants of the New Covent Garden market Authority on that market's redevelopment in the last five years.
Answered by Rory Stewart
Defra Ministers have received various representations from New Covent Garden Market tenants in the past five years about the market redevelopment.
These have taken the form of formal correspondence and face to face meetings between the Covent Garden Tenants Association (CGTA) and the Minister, held at Defra and at New Covent Garden Market.
The representations have addressed a broad range of concerns about the plans for the redevelopment, its implementation and the role of the CGMA.
Asked by: Chris Heaton-Harris (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the (a) positions and (b) pay were of the principal officers of the New Covent Garden Market Authority in the last five years; and what consultation process will take place before any pay increases are awarded.
Answered by Rory Stewart
The positions of the principal officers of the Covent Garden Market Authority are:
Mrs J Lloyd - Chief Executive Officer
Mr C Morton - Finance Director/Authority Secretary
Mr B Marlow - Operations Director
Mr C Townend - Project Director
Ms H Evans - Business development & Support Director
Their annual gross pay in the last 5 years is shown below:
| 2010/11 | 2011/12 | 2012/13 | 2013/14 | 2014/15 |
Mrs Lloyd | 198,316 | 172,110 | 227,249 | 191,715 | 222,569 |
Mr Morton | 154,979 | 147,978 | 164,772 | 151,199 | 166,977 |
Mr Marlow | 98,471 | 100,543 | 108,600 | 112,218 | 120,361 |
Mr Townend | n/a | n/a | 89,146 | 117,240 | 127,898 |
Ms Evans | n/a | 62,626 | 75,511 | 81,828 | 99,300 |
The remuneration policy for the principal officers is recommended and monitored by CGMA’s Remuneration Committee. A representative of Defra attends the Committee but is not a member of the Committee. The pay is set by the CGMA Board.
The position and pay of each of the principal officers is reported in CGMA’s Annual Report & Accounts, copies of which have been laid in the libraries of the Houses of Parliament.
Asked by: Chris Heaton-Harris (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the cost to the public purse has been of policing the Dangerous Dogs Act each year since 2010.
Answered by George Eustice
The cost of policing the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 is a matter for each police force and is not held centrally.