Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government, following the publication on 7 March of the Plan for Neighbourhoods, what definition they use for workplace representative, and whether neighbourhood boards will be required to give seats to workplace representatives.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Plan for Neighbourhoods’ prospectus was published on 4 March. As outlined in the Plan for Neighbourhoods’ governance and boundary guidance, published on 12 March, Neighbourhood Boards should comprise representatives from a cross-section of the local community to promote community leadership.

Boards may want to consider but are not obligated to include workplace representatives, such as a trades union representative.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the publication on 16 December 2024 of the English Devolution White Paper, whether they intend to retain ceremonial counties for the purposes of appointing Lord Lieutenants and High Sheriffs.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

There is no intention that the priorities set out in the English Devolution White Paper will impact on the ceremonial counties or the important roles that Lord Lieutenants and High Sheriffs play as the Monarch’s representatives in those counties, and ceremonial counties will be retained. The government recognises and values the work they do in relation to civic, business, social and community life in the ceremonial counties, and will ensure that the ceremonial rights and privileges of an area will be maintained after any reorganisation of local government.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government, following the publication of the English Devolution White Paper on 16 December 2024, what plans they have to ensure that integrated care systems operate in areas that are coterminous with Mayoral Combined Authorities.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

As set out in the English Devolution White Paper, the government recognises the benefits that aligned geographical boundaries can have for improving coordination between public services. The English Devolution White Paper therefore set out government's long-term ambition to align public service boundaries, including job centres, police, probation, fire, health services and Strategic and Local Authorities.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to give guidance to local authorities on signing new commercial contracts where those local authorities are undergoing local government re-organisation and are soon to be abolished.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

It is essential that councils developing proposals for reorganisation continue to deliver their business-as-usual services and duties, which remain unchanged up until such time as the reorganisation process is complete. This duty may include signing or renewing commercial contracts that deliver or support the delivery of statutory services. Until a decision about any new councils is made and legislation is in place councils are encouraged to consider voluntary arrangements to help balance the decisions needed now to maintain service delivery and ensure value for money for council taxpayers, with those key decisions that will affect the future success of any new councils in the area. Once legislation is in place establishing new unitary councils, then the Secretary of State may put in place a direction requiring that those councils to be dissolved must seek consent of the new council as specified in the direction before entering into certain contracts or land disposals. It would however make sense for contracts which are being agreed in this period to recognise and accommodate for the changes to local government coming through.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact that probate application delays have on the number of empty homes.

Answered by Lord Ponsonby of Shulbrede - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

HM Courts & Tribunals service (HMCTS) has not collected data to assess the impact that probate application delays have on the number of empty homes.

However, HMCTS has invested in additional staff and made system and process improvements to reduce waiting times and progress is being made to reduce delays. Official statistics published by the Ministry of Justice show, despite continued high levels of receipts, average waiting times are improving and was 7 weeks, from receipt of the documentation needed, for grants issued during July to September 2024. Management Information published by HMCTS, which undergoes fewer quality checks than Ministry of Justice Official Statistics, shows average waiting times currently stand at 4 weeks, from receipt of the documentation needed to grant issue, for cases completing in December 2024. This in turn is likely to have had a positive impact on the time that housing remains empty. Individual cases may take longer due to a variety of reasons such as family disputes or lack of information, leaving homes empty for extended periods.

Average waiting times for probate grants are routinely published on gov.uk via the Family Court Statistics (Family Court Statistics Quarterly - GOV.UK) and HMCTS Management Information (HMCTS management information - GOV.UK).

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what body will hold responsibility for the issuing of permits for operators of automated passenger services under the Automated Vehicles Act 2024.

Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

Section 82 of the Automated Vehicles Act 2024 gives the appropriate national authority the power to grant an Automated Passenger Services (APS) permit. The appropriate national authority is defined in section 90 (4) and (5) as the Secretary of State for the provision of any taxi and private hire-like service in England and for the provision of a service in a public service vehicle across Great Britain. In relation to a permit for the provision of a taxi and private hire-like service in Scotland, this is Scottish Ministers, and in Wales, this is Welsh Ministers. The Act further sets out that the appropriate national authority can provide for its functions to be exercisable by Traffic Commissioners instead of or in addition to the appropriate national authority. Consideration is still being given to whether these functions will be exercised by Traffic Commissioners.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether, in implementing the Automated Vehicles Act 2024, they plan to give local authorities the right to withhold consent for an automated passenger services operator permit to be granted; and if so, which tier of local government will be responsible for providing consent.

Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

The Automated Vehicles Act 2024 provides the right for specified local authorities to withhold their consent for an automated passenger services (APS) operator permit to be granted. This right protects local decision-making.

For services resembling taxies or private hire vehicles, section 85 outlines that an APS permit may not be granted without the consent of each licensing authority in whose areas the service may be provided under the permit. A “licensing authority” is where responsibility sits for the issuing of taxi or private hire licenses, and currently is typically a lower-tier authority, unitary authority or Transport for London.

For services resembling buses where a bus franchising scheme exists, section 86 outlines that an APS permit may not be granted without the consent of each relevant franchising body. Where an automated passenger service is proposed to operate under an APS permit in an area which sits outside of a bus franchising scheme, the legislation does not require consent from local authorities.

To withhold consent, the licensing or franchising authority must provide written reasons within six weeks of receiving a formal request, beginning with the day on which the request is made.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the English Devolution White Paper published on 16 December 2024 (CP1218), what steps they are taking to ensure that the boundaries of fire and rescue authorities are coterminous with the boundaries of newly created strategic authorities.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

As set out in the English Devolution White Paper, where mayoral geographies align with police force and fire and rescue geographies, Mayors will be, by default, responsible for exercising Police and Crime Commissioner and Fire and Rescue Authority functions. This is the case in three of the six places being considered under the Devolution Priority Programme.

We will explore, in time for the English Devolution Bill, the possibility of a single Mayor taking on Police and Crime Commissioner and Fire and Rescue Authority responsibilities across two or more Police Force and Fire and Rescue Authorities, where boundaries align.

Where Strategic Authorities do not currently align with these boundaries, or where alignment is not appropriate for new devolution areas, we will take steps to achieve alignment over the longer term. Future new Strategic Authorities will be considered with existing Police and Crime Commissioner and Fire and Rescue Authority boundaries in mind.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether the Planning and Infrastructure Bill will require planning officers who determine planning applications through their national scheme of delegation to declare any interests; and whether the bill will require local authorities to create a register of interests for planning officers along the lines of those for local councillors.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

Our live tables on planning statistics show that in 2024 for district planning decisions 96% of applications were delegated to officers, and for county planning decisions 81% of applications were delegated to officers.

Proposals in the Planning and Infrastructure Bill in relation to planning committees and a national scheme of delegation do not include changes to requirements to declare interests for either officers or councillors.

Clause 46 of the Bill gives the Secretary of State the power to, through regulations, require planning decisions to be made by committees or officers. We will consult on the details of this in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government what proportion of planning applications that were considered by local authorities in 2024 were determined by (1) planning applications committees, and (2) planning officers.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

Our live tables on planning statistics show that in 2024 for district planning decisions 96% of applications were delegated to officers, and for county planning decisions 81% of applications were delegated to officers.

Proposals in the Planning and Infrastructure Bill in relation to planning committees and a national scheme of delegation do not include changes to requirements to declare interests for either officers or councillors.

Clause 46 of the Bill gives the Secretary of State the power to, through regulations, require planning decisions to be made by committees or officers. We will consult on the details of this in due course.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether, before selecting hotels as accommodation for asylum seekers, it is their policy to consult the chief executives and leaders of affected local authorities.

Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)

This Government inherited an asylum system under exceptional strain, with tens of thousands of people stuck in limbo without any prospect of having their claims processed. At their peak use under the previous Government, in the autumn of 2023, more than 400 asylum hotels were being leased by the Home Office, at a cost of almost £9 million a day.

Inevitably, due to the size of the backlog we inherited, the Government has been forced to continue with the use of hotels for the time being. It remains our absolute commitment to end the use of hotels over time, as part of our reduction in overall asylum accommodation costs.

When a hotel has been identified for use as contingency accommodation, Home Office officials will write to the local authority Chief Executive and the constituency MP to inform them of plans to accommodate asylum seekers there.

The Home Office continues to work closely with local authorities to manage all the pressures arising from the provision of asylum accommodation including the impact on wider local authority obligations and plans.