Leasehold Reform
Debate between Lord Cormack and Baroness Scott of Bybrook(10 months, 2 weeks ago)
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Baroness Scott of Bybrook (Con)
We are dealing with it—it is a big piece of work, but we are dealing with it. It is happening all the time. What I have said to the noble Baroness and others many times at the Dispatch Box is that, if there are individuals who have complex issues and want to discuss them, we have a team of people in the department who will do that. I am happy to talk to her further about that.
Lord Cormack (Con)
My Lords, is the delay due in any way to the fact that we have had a significant number of ministerial changes at Secretary of State level?
Baroness Scott of Bybrook (Con)
I thank my noble friend for that question—but not as far as I am concerned, no.
Homelessness: Vagrancy Act 1824
Debate between Lord Cormack and Baroness Scott of Bybrook(1 year, 4 months ago)
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Baroness Scott of Bybrook (Con)
The noble Lord should know that we have the private renters’ Bill starting in the Commons shortly, which will include the repeal of Section 21.
Lord Cormack (Con)
My Lords, surely these consultations have gone on long enough. My noble friend Lord Young of Cookham got the date slightly wrong, but can my noble friend Lady Scott confirm that this will be well off the statute book by 2124?
Residential Leasehold
Debate between Lord Cormack and Baroness Scott of Bybrook(1 year, 6 months ago)
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Baroness Scott of Bybrook (Con)
I do not agree with the noble Lord. The Secretary of State has made it clear that we want to bring forward reforms to leasehold, and we want to do so during this Parliament. We wish to extend the benefits of freehold ownership to more home owners. In line with our manifesto commitments, we will continue leasehold reform during this Parliament. We are working with the Law Commission to bring forward game-changing reforms to the system, and we thank the commission for all the work it has done in this area. As I have said, I cannot at this Dispatch Box pre-empt the King’s Speech.
Lord Cormack (Con)
My Lords, my noble friend in answer to a question a moment or two ago referred to people taking legal advice, but how can lawyers give advice if they do not know what the Government are proposing to do?
Voter ID
Debate between Lord Cormack and Baroness Scott of Bybrook(1 year, 6 months ago)
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The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities (Baroness Scott of Bybrook) (Con)
No, I do not agree that we have done it in haste, because I have spoken personally to the LGA and many leaders across the country who are having polls. I have also spoken to the Electoral Commission. The processes that were put in place worked well; the IT worked well, and we will know after tomorrow what the outcome is. As I said yesterday in this House, the number of people who have not registered for a voter authority card will come out in the data. Whether or not we need to look at any changes, this Government and the people of this country want voter ID. Two out of three people asked said they would feel more confident in our democratic process if it was in place.
Lord Cormack (Con)
My Lords, I return to a subject that I raised yesterday. It would be so much easier and sensible for all of us if we had an identity card that we could produce on all necessary occasions. There would then be no question of some people not having one of the designated documents, because they would all have the same. Could this please be looked at again if, as I suspect, the figures from tomorrow are disappointing?
Baroness Scott of Bybrook (Con)
Just to let my noble friend know, the Government have no intention of looking again at identity cards, as I said to him yesterday.
Voter Authority Certificates
Debate between Lord Cormack and Baroness Scott of Bybrook(1 year, 6 months ago)
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Baroness Scott of Bybrook (Con)
My Lords, there are multiple reasons why voters have chosen not to apply for a voter authority certificate at this time. Not everyone will have elections in their area, for a start, and not everyone will choose to vote in a polling station. Those who vote by post or by proxy will not need voter identification and therefore have no need to apply for a VAC. While we would not seek to predict turnout on 4 May, in previous local elections over the past decade a significant proportion of votes have been cast by post. For example, in the May 2022 local elections, postal votes comprised 38% of overall turnout and proxy votes a further 1%. We also have to accept that, while we hope that every elector takes part in the democratic process, this is simply never going to be the case and many will choose not to vote. The cost of this is £2.42 per elector over a 10-year period.
Lord Cormack (Con)
My Lords, does my noble friend not agree that the best form of voter authority certificate would be an identity card? Will she also reflect on her own remarks about postal voting? Where there has been manifest corruption in recent years, it has been not at the ballot box in the station but among postal voters.
Baroness Scott of Bybrook (Con)
The discussion about ID cards is a whole new question that I do not intend to go into. As for postal votes, the Elections Act 2022 contains further measures on postal votes to secure that vote.
Housebuilding
Debate between Lord Cormack and Baroness Scott of Bybrook(1 year, 8 months ago)
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Baroness Scott of Bybrook (Con)
The noble Lord brings up a very interesting idea. We are looking at different ways of land use in the levelling-up Bill, and I am sure that there will be more discussions on those sorts of issues.
Lord Cormack (Con)
My Lords, will my noble friend bear in mind the immortal words of William Morris, that a thing of use should also be a thing of beauty? Can we have some attention paid, far more than in the past, on the quality of housing, and make sure that it can easily be equipped to deal with climate change?
Baroness Scott of Bybrook (Con)
My noble friend is absolutely right and if he has the time over the Recess to read the levelling-up Bill, he will see that the Government have plans and are committed to building better houses with better design, and building more energy-efficient housing as well.
Government Business: Messaging Services
Debate between Lord Cormack and Baroness Scott of Bybrook
Baroness Scott of Bybrook (Con)
I cannot give the noble Baroness any further information apart from the fact that there are appropriate arrangements and guidance in place for the management and security of all electronic communications to conduct government business. In line with practices across successive Administrations, the Government do not otherwise comment on internal security arrangements, as I have already said.
Lord Cormack (Con)
My Lords, should it not be a breach of the Ministerial Code to tweet or to Twitter?
Northern Ireland Protocol
Debate between Lord Cormack and Baroness Scott of Bybrook
Baroness Scott of Bybrook (Con)
My Lords, I am afraid I do not agree. The protocol is a unique solution to the complex challenges we were confronted with. We are committed to implementing it, but in a pragmatic and proportionate way, as I have said. I will take back the noble Lord’s offer to the department and see what we can arrange.
Lord Cormack (Con) [V]
My Lords, is it not a fact that when the EU suspended Article 16, it immediately recognised its profound and, frankly, stupid mistake? Should we not be doing everything possible to calm and improve relations with our former partners in the EU, and not take measures that could jeopardise the chances of the European Parliament ratifying an agreement which brought a degree of stability, and much relief, at the beginning of this year?
EU: Future Trade Agreement
Debate between Lord Cormack and Baroness Scott of Bybrook
Baroness Scott of Bybrook
The deal on services is tied up with the deal on trade, and negotiating those deals will continue throughout the summer.
Lord Cormack (Con)
I congratulate my noble friend on responding to her first Private Notice Question. Can she make unequivocally clear that the declaration of last October still stands and will be honoured?
Baroness Scott of Bybrook
I thank my noble friend. I have no reason to believe that there are any changes to that declaration and that it will not be honoured.
Equal Pay Legislation
Debate between Lord Cormack and Baroness Scott of Bybrook
Baroness Scott of Bybrook
The noble and learned Baroness is absolutely right that the employer is responsible for ensuring that its employees who are doing the same job are getting equal pay.
Lord Cormack (Con)
My Lords, that being the case, why should employers not be obliged to sign the declaration?
Baroness Scott of Bybrook
My Lords, as I said, it is a complex issue, and the Government will be looking into it—