I thank Ms King for raising this important matter and for the way in which she presented a strong case for more effective action to tackle the problem of homeless families in bed-and-breakfast accommodation. I share her concern about the large number of households that are in that position and the human impact that she graphically described, as did Ms Buck. Both my hon. Friends have been assiduous in pressing the issue during this Parliament. I have no hesitation in agreeing with my hon. Friends that the number of households in bed-and-breakfast accommodation is too high and must be reduced. The constraints and limitations of living in one or two rooms, with bed and breakfast only, can have a debilitating effect on family life and particularly the development of young children. We must discourage that.

The Government have a clear policy on the use of temporary bed-and-breakfast accommodation for families with children. It should be used only as a last resort when nothing more suitable is available and its use should be limited to the minimum possible time. That is stated clearly in our statutory guidance to local authorities on the discharge of their responsibilities to homeless people.

Bed-and-breakfast accommodation is used by local authorities as one way of discharging a legislative duty to secure accommodation for homeless households. In many cases, an authority owes an interim duty to homeless families while it completes inquiries to determine whether a substantive duty is owed under legislation. The authority may decide that the applicant does not have a priority need or is found to have become homeless intentionally or not to be without alternative accommodation. In such cases, the authority will not have a substantive duty and the use of temporary bed-and-breakfast accommodation for a short period is understandable. It is less appropriate as a discharge of the substantive duty to provide accommodation for homeless households that have been accepted as the responsibility of the local authority. However, I know that some local authorities have to use it for that purpose. I would be particularly concerned if authorities were using temporary bed-and-breakfast accommodation when that could be avoided.

Homeless families are generally placed in bed-and-breakfast accommodation because no better options are available. Having said that, not all authorities facing serious pressures are making extensive use of bed and breakfast. Indeed some, including my own local authority in Greenwich, have avoided bed and breakfast even though they accommodate substantial numbers of homeless households. Often that is because they have been more successful in directly re-housing homeless households into permanent housing, or they have secured better alternative forms of temporary accommodation. We should remember that those in bed and breakfast are just a small proportion of the total number of households placed in temporary accommodation pending the availability of a more settled housing solution.

The problem is concentrated in a relatively small number of areas. At the end of December 2000, only 36 local authorities in England reported 50 or more homeless households in bed-and-breakfast accommodation. Those 36 authorities accounted for 7,980 of the total of 9,860 households in bed-and-breakfast accommodation. Of those 36 authorities, 25 were in London, five in the south-west, four in the south-east, one in the north-west and one in Yorkshire and Humberside. That reinforces my hon. Friend's point that the problem is heavily concentrated in London.

The London borough of Tower Hamlets, which covers my hon. Friend's Constituency of Bethnal Green and Bow, is one of the inner London authorities that had more than 50 households in bed-and-breakfast accommodation--a total of 145 at the end of December 2000. I am pleased to say that Tower Hamlets council is working hard to keep that number as low as possible. While the total number of households in temporary accommodation in Tower Hamlets increased by about 806 during the period from December 1997 to December 2000, the numbers in bed-and-breakfast accommodation decreased by 19, and in December 2000 represented just 9 per cent. of the total number of homeless households for whom the authority had accepted responsibility. That is much better than the London average, which is 15 per cent.

The picture in Regent's Park and Kensington, North is not so happy because my hon. Friend's constituency straddles two boroughs. Kensington and Chelsea has the highest percentage of all homeless applicants placed in bed and breakfast. At the last count it was 68 per cent. The City of Westminster had the fourth highest percentage with 36 per cent. of homeless households accepted by the local authority being placed in bed and breakfast. That is an indication of how the pattern varies between areas and how, despite considerable pressures, some authorities can do much better than others to minimise the use of bed and breakfast. Tower Hamlets has also made good use of its own housing stock to meet the needs of 39 per cent. of its households in temporary accommodation; that compares with an average of just 16 per cent. across London generally.

Having accepted entirely the case that my hon. Friends have made that this is a serious and highly regrettable problem and having described the concentration of the problem in a limited number of areas, I come to the obvious question of what can be done to ensure that the use of bed-and-breakfast accommodation is reduced to an absolute minimum. The best solution is to minimise the incidence of homelessness in the first place. That is easier said than done. The causes of homelessness can be complex and personal. One cannot wave a magic wand to ensure that all homelessness is eradicated immediately. However, the Government are doing a great deal and will do a great deal more to prevent homelessness.

The Homes Bill, on which both my hon. Friends served, is currently under consideration in Another place. It will require local housing authorities to have a homelessness strategy and ensure that adequate provision of accommodation and support is available to those who cannot avoid homelessness. That will require a multi-agency approach, involving not just the local housing authority, but the social services authority and public, private and voluntary bodies whose activities can contribute to meeting the strategy's aims.

Some authorities already operate this sort of strategic and multi-agency approach, and we expect others to consider doing the same without waiting for the Bill to be enacted. Having said that, we expect the Homes Bill to reach the statute book soon to make clear our commitment to more effective and strategic responses to the challenge of homelessness throughout the country. Local authorities are best placed to tackle the problems of homelessness on the ground, but they need the tools to do the job. A supply of affordable accommodation is clearly the key and the Government are acting to achieve it.