Communities department criticised

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The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) had taken only "the first steps" towards the sort of performance taxpayers should expect, it warned in a highly-critical report.

Ecotowns, home sellers' packs, and regional fire control centres were all areas that had suffered as a result of the inadequacies, they concluded.

And the select committee, dedicated to scrutinising the work of DCLG, also highlighted fines imposed by the European Union and a failure to deal with an internal bullying problem.

The committee, chaired by Labour MP Phyllis Starkey, said it had seen no consistent and sustained evidence that the Department possesses the full range of skills required for the effective formulation and delivery of the policies for which it is responsible.

It said the eco-towns policy was "clearly in some difficulty" and warned delivering Prime Minister Gordon Brown's initial claims for it would "be a difficult task and a severe test of the Department's progress in a crucial aspect of improving its performance".

Both ecotowns and Home Information Packs (Hips) were "victims of the Department's weaknesses in engaging and enthusing its delivery partners", it said.

Those involved in the former project would "find (it) difficult to believe" DCLG's claim in its annual report that outside partners thought it was getting better at involving them, the MPs noted.

A DCLG spokesman said it was making "significant progress". "In an increasingly challenging financial climate the Department continues to make significant progress across a range of areas that are crucial in creating strong, cohesive communities.

"We are committed to building on the progress of the last three years, by further improving our performance in leadership, strategy and delivery. We will study the report closely and consider how the Committee's recommendations might support and contribute towards these aims."