Asked by: Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they will give to introducing regulations for the use of premises for the sale of vaping products, following the fire in Glasgow on 8 March.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Tobacco and Vapes Bill provides powers for Ministers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland to establish a licensing scheme for the retail sale of tobacco, vaping and nicotine products in their respective nations. Instead of retail licensing, Scotland has an established register of tobacco and vape retailers which has been in place for over 15 years.
Retail licensing will strengthen enforcement of tobacco and vape legislation, supporting retailers who operate responsibly while deterring those who break the law. The Government sought evidence on the implementation of retail licensing through a call for evidence which closed in December last year. We will hold a subsequent consultation on our proposals before introducing regulations.
In terms of fire safety, the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 places a range of legal duties on Responsible Persons (the person in control of a premises which can include building owners, landlords and employers), chief among which is the need to undertake a fire risk assessment. The assessment must identify any general fire safety precautions that need to be taken to ensure that the premises, and people within it, are safe from fire. Additionally, the Responsible Person must put those precautions in place and ensure they are subject to a suitable system of maintenance.
In order to help Responsible Persons discharge their duties MHCLG publish a range of guides including a guide for persons with duties under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (as amended) and are in the process of updating the Offices and Shops guide where we will take any learning from this fire and see how this can be captured in guidance.
Asked by: Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether, as part of their commitment in the most recent King’s Speech to strengthen the integrity of elections and encourage wide participation in the democratic process, they will consider introducing compulsory voting for general elections.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The government has no plans to introduce a compulsory requirement to vote.
Asked by: Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks of the Cabinet Secretary in evidence to the House of Lords Select Committee on the Constitution on 18 July, what action they have taken to review the position of the Scottish Minister for Independence and the team of civil servants who currently support him.
Answered by Lord Evans of Rainow
I am aware that the Cabinet Secretary, Simon Case, has stated that he is considering this matter.
All civil servants must abide by the Civil Service Code and the law, and that applies to civil servants working for the Scottish Government.
People expect their Governments to be fully focused on the issues which matter most to them: driving down inflation, growing our economy and maintaining the UK’s energy security by making Britain more energy independent.
Asked by: Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much public funding was provided to the Scottish National Party for the last financial year for which figures are available.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Shadow Minister (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Eligible political parties can receive a limited amount of public funding each year. Information on this is held by the Cabinet Office.
Political parties are required to report the funding that they receive, including public funding, directly to the Electoral Commission as part of their wider financial reporting obligations. The Electoral Commission publishes this information on their online database for transparency and public scrutiny.
Asked by: Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report by the International Longevity Centre UK The Mayhew Review – Future-proofing retirement living: Easing the care and housing crises, published on 1 November; and in particular the recommendation that His Majesty’s Government should aim to build 50,000 new homes for older people each year to address issues in the (1) housing, and (2) social care, sectors.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Shadow Minister (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Ensuring older people have access to the right homes that suit their needs can help them to live independently for longer and feel more connected to their communities.
We announced in the Levelling Up White Paper an older people’s housing taskforce, to explore how we can improve the choice of and access to housing options for older people.
We are continually increasing our understanding of this market, and note the recommendations in Professor Mayhew's recent review alongside contributions from other stakeholders.
Asked by: Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government when the task force on housing for older people will be launched as promised in the White Paper, Levelling up the United Kingdom, published on 2 February.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Shadow Minister (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Ensuring older people have access to the right homes that suit their needs can help them to live independently for longer and feel more connected to their communities.
We announced in the Levelling Up White Paper an older people’s housing taskforce, to explore how we can improve the choice of and access to housing options for older people.
We are continually increasing our understanding of this market, and note the recommendations in Professor Mayhew's recent review alongside contributions from other stakeholders.
Asked by: Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask Her Majesty's Government who has replaced Chloe Smith MP as the Minister in the Cabinet Office responsible for the Constitution and Devolution; and in particular, for the work on Common Frameworks.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
Following the recent Government reshuffle, Neil O’Brien MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, has taken on the role of Minister for Levelling Up, the Union and the Constitution. As part of this role, Minister O’Brien has assumed responsibility for the Union and Constitution, including the Common Frameworks programme.
Asked by: Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they intend to take to increase the provision of (1) extra-care housing, and (2) retirement villages for older people.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
Both my Department and the Department of Health and Social Care are committed to further improving the diversity of housing options available to older people. We are engaging closely with both the sector and a range of other stakeholders on this issue. This includes considering the merits of different engagement and delivery models including proposals from the sector for a cross-Government taskforce.
Asked by: Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress they have made in setting up the task force on housing with care; and what is its remit.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
Both the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and the Department of Health and Social Care are committed to further improving the diversity of housing options available to older people. We are engaging closely with both the sector and a range of other stakeholders on this issue. This includes considering the merits of different engagement and delivery models including proposals from the sector for a cross-Government taskforce.
Asked by: Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the proposal for the creation of a new task force on meeting the current and future housing and care needs of people as they age in communities, as recommended by the Associated Retirement Community Operators in its report Planning for retirement: How retirement communities can help meet the needs of our ageing population, published in June; and what plans they have, if any, to establish such a task force.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
The Government welcomes the work of specialist older people’s housing providers in building homes and meeting the needs of our aging population. We are already engaging with specialist providers as we take forwards our plan to build the homes our country needs including through our reform and modernisation of the planning system. Ministers and officials will continue to engage with this sector going forward.