Asked by: Baroness King of Bow (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government on which occasions (1) ministers, and (2) officials, have met members of (a) the Management Board, and (b) the Senior Management Team, of Circle Housing Group since May 2010.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
Ministers and officials of the Department for Communities and Local Government have regular meetings with senior figures in the housing sector; Circle Housing Group included, and have done so since May 2010 in order to collaborate effectively with the sector.
Asked by: Baroness King of Bow (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 8 December 2015 (HL4001), how much funding has been awarded to each of the successful applications to regenerate local authority housing estates.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
Four schemes were shortlisted to receive loan funding. One scheme withdrew and became self financing. We are in contract with Genesis Housing Association providing £56 million recoverable loan for the redevelopment of the Grahame Park Estate. We expect to be in contract with Swan New Homes, in relation to the Blackwall Reach redevelopment in Tower Hamlets shortly. The due diligence process with Notting Hill Homes is underway with regard to the Aylesbury Estate redevelopment.
Asked by: Baroness King of Bow (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government on which occasions the Chair of the Regulatory Committee of the Homes and Communities Agency and his staff have met members of (1) the Management Board, and (2) the Senior Management Team, of Circle Housing Group since May 2010.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
The social housing regulator is an independent regulator and as such it is not appropriate for DCLG to comment on their operational work. However, we understand that they have met with Circle Housing Group as part of their ongoing regulatory engagement with this provider.
Asked by: Baroness King of Bow (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Freud on 21 July 2015 (HL1153), whether they will now provide an estimate of how many, and what proportion of, households affected by the proposed reduction of the benefit cap to £23,000 per year receive (1) Employment and Support Allowance, (2) Income Support, and (3) Jobseeker's Allowance.
Answered by Lord Freud
We will publish an impact assessment in due course.
Asked by: Baroness King of Bow (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many pensioners received Attendance Allowance in (1) London, and (2) the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, in each year since 2012, broken down between (a) the higher, and (b) the lower, rate.
Answered by Baroness Altmann
The numbers of claimants receiving higher or lower rate Attendance Allowance in (1) London and (2) the London Borough of Tower Hamlets are detailed below:
| Nov - 2012 | Nov - 2013 | Nov - 2014 | Nov - 2015 |
London Total | 138,710 | 133,470 | 131,930 | 130,760 |
Higher | 80,690 | 78,510 | 78,790 | 79,800 |
Lower | 58,050 | 54,950 | 53,120 | 51,000 |
Tower Hamlets Total | 3,420 | 3,310 | 3,380 | 3,460 |
Higher | 2,030 | 2,020 | 2,100 | 2,200 |
Lower | 1,380 | 1,290 | 1,290 | 1,260 |
Source: DWP Tab Tool (Cases in Payment)
Note: Figures have been rounded to the nearest 10.
Figures may not sum due to rounding.
Asked by: Baroness King of Bow (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they will publish details of their plans to devolve responsibility for Attendance Allowance to local authorities.
Answered by Baroness Altmann
The Government has announced that by the end of the Parliament local government will retain 100% of local business rates and new responsibilities will be devolved alongside this. As part of this, the government will consider giving councils in England more responsibility to support older people with care needs. Any change would not affect existing Attendance Allowance claimants, and any new responsibilities would be matched by the transfer of equivalent spending power. The Government intends to consult on this in due course.
Asked by: Baroness King of Bow (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Prior of Brampton on 11 May (HL8079), and in the light of the judgment <i>In re. Z(A Child) (No.2)</i> [2016] EWHC 1191(Fam), whether they now intend to review the legislation relating to surrogacy.
Answered by Lord Prior of Brampton
Surrogacy is a complex issue, the legislation about which has not been significantly addressed by respective administrations since the Surrogacy Arrangements Act 1985. The Government recognises the arguments for the need for a review, and we have therefore asked the Law Commission, as part of the consultation on its 13th work programme this summer, to consider including a project on surrogacy
The Government has accepted the judgment by Sir James Munby from the High Court. We will be looking to update the legislation on Parental Orders, and are now considering how best to do this.
The Government recognises surrogacy as an important option for some people wishing to start a family and is currently considering how best to clarify the current legal arrangements for intended parents, surrogates and their families. The Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service campaign to increase awareness of Parental Orders is ongoing and targeted at health workers, local authority registration staff and surrogacy agencies. It will be evaluated in full upon completion in autumn 2016; in-campaign monitoring indicates its messaging is reaching the target audience.
Asked by: Baroness King of Bow (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of Sir James Munby’s ruling in <i>In re. Z(A Child) (No.2)</i> [2016] EWHC 1191(Fam) that UK law is incompatible with the human rights of single parents who have children born through surrogacy.
Answered by Lord Prior of Brampton
Surrogacy is a complex issue, the legislation about which has not been significantly addressed by respective administrations since the Surrogacy Arrangements Act 1985. The Government recognises the arguments for the need for a review, and we have therefore asked the Law Commission, as part of the consultation on its 13th work programme this summer, to consider including a project on surrogacy
The Government has accepted the judgment by Sir James Munby from the High Court. We will be looking to update the legislation on Parental Orders, and are now considering how best to do this.
The Government recognises surrogacy as an important option for some people wishing to start a family and is currently considering how best to clarify the current legal arrangements for intended parents, surrogates and their families. The Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service campaign to increase awareness of Parental Orders is ongoing and targeted at health workers, local authority registration staff and surrogacy agencies. It will be evaluated in full upon completion in autumn 2016; in-campaign monitoring indicates its messaging is reaching the target audience.
Asked by: Baroness King of Bow (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the views of surrogates, academics, parents through surrogacy, and legal practitioners, about the case for surrogacy law reform, in particular with regard to legal parenthood following surrogacy.
Answered by Lord Prior of Brampton
Surrogacy is a complex issue, the legislation about which has not been significantly addressed by respective administrations since the Surrogacy Arrangements Act 1985. The Government recognises the arguments for the need for a review, and we have therefore asked the Law Commission, as part of the consultation on its 13th work programme this summer, to consider including a project on surrogacy
The Government has accepted the judgment by Sir James Munby from the High Court. We will be looking to update the legislation on Parental Orders, and are now considering how best to do this.
The Government recognises surrogacy as an important option for some people wishing to start a family and is currently considering how best to clarify the current legal arrangements for intended parents, surrogates and their families. The Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service campaign to increase awareness of Parental Orders is ongoing and targeted at health workers, local authority registration staff and surrogacy agencies. It will be evaluated in full upon completion in autumn 2016; in-campaign monitoring indicates its messaging is reaching the target audience.
Asked by: Baroness King of Bow (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to ask the Social Housing Regulator to request data from the Circle Housing Group about the performance of Kier Gas in repairing or replacing faulty boilers in each week since the Group downgraded Kier Gas's governance rating.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
I refer the Noble Lady to my previous answer to her on 8 December (HL4002). The Social Housing Regulator is statutorily independent. The Department for Communities and Local Government cannot therefore direct the Regulator on this matter.