Roma Community: Levelling Up

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Monday 27th June 2022 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

More than 14,000 Gypsy, Roma, Traveller or Irish heritage pupils are eligible for free school meals, representing over 40% of GRT pupils. GRT pupils do not attract the pupil premium per se, but the Government have increased the amount of money to £2.6 billion in 2022-23. I will look at and discuss with my noble friend in the Department for Education the level set for GRT pupils.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

The noble Baroness, Lady Brinton, is contributing remotely.

[Baroness Brinton (LD) [V]]

My Lords, mission 7 of the Government’s White Paper on levelling up in the UK aims to narrow the gap in healthy life expectancy by 2030. However, there is no mention in it at all of Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities. Given that the life expectancy of GRT people is 10 to 25 years less than that of the general population, can the Minister say what the Government are doing to target this disparity?

Leasehold Reform: Forfeiture Provisions

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Monday 20th June 2022 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

Once again, the noble Baroness is right that we need to sort out some of the practices that we see among managing agents. We are still considering how to take forward the recommendations of the noble Lord, Lord Best, but as noble Lords know, there is also a move to introduce voluntary codes, which I hope will elevate this. Overall, we need to see professionalisation of managing agents.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, we have a virtual contribution from the noble Lord, Lord Campbell-Savours.

Elections: Multiple Voting

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Tuesday 14th June 2022 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

As part of the Elections Act, we have introduced a requirement that you have to present some form of ID in order to vote. That should give the public greater confidence, and we are joining Northern Ireland and following its lead.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, we have a virtual contribution from the noble Lord, Lord Campbell-Savours.

Social Homes for Rent

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Thursday 26th May 2022 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

The Government do recognise the issue that the noble Lord describes. That is why in this Session we are bringing forward a private renters’ Bill and applying the decent homes standard to the private rented sector so we can raise the quality of the stock. However, we also recognise that we need to bring in more affordable housing, including more social housing.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, the noble Baroness, Lady Thomas of Winchester, will now make a virtual contribution.

[Baroness Thomas of Winchester (LD) [V]]

My Lords, what action are the Government taking to address the need for more accessible housing, and when can we expect a response to the consultation on raising accessible housing standards?

Levelling-up Report

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Thursday 19th May 2022 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

Of course, the expenditure is governed by the expenditure review, and I note that this is a nationwide pledge to level up. Record amounts of money are being spent through the devolved nations.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

We have a virtual contribution from the noble Baroness, Lady Brinton.

Housebuilding: Target

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Wednesday 30th March 2022 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, I recognise the important role that registered providers have played in building affordable housing but also note that, increasingly, councils are building council homes again, which is a good thing. We will look at whatever it takes to remove those barriers to enable people who are building affordable housing to access institutional investment.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, we have a virtual contribution from the noble Baroness, Lady Brinton.

[Baroness Brinton (LD) [V]]

My Lords, research by Habinteg has shown that the lifetime homes standard—that is, part M4 category 2—costs only £1,000 extra on new build, reducing the need for expensive adaptations later in life and keeping people independent. The LGA says that, at the current rate of housebuilding, it will take 2,000 years to achieve this standard. Worse, under 2% of new housing is required to be built to category 3, for wheelchair users, when a minimum of 10% is needed. How many units that meet category 2 and 3 have been built in the past five years?

Leaseholders: Costs

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Thursday 18th November 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, unsurprisingly, I completely agree with the Secretary of State on those principles, and I add a third: first, we need to protect leaseholders as far as we can; secondly, we must ensure that the polluter pays, and that goes beyond the developers to every single person who has contributed to this crisis; and thirdly, we need a degree of proportionality, so we do not create an industry that profiteers off the back of the poor leaseholders affected.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

Lord Haselhurst? Is he not present? Then I call the noble Viscount, Lord Stansgate.

--- Later in debate ---

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, I feel the burden, particularly on shared owners, who have a fraction of the equity in their home but face intolerable bills. I am surprised when I hear that social landlords, who should be caring for the people who live in those homes—the nurses and other people who support our NHS—are considering massive remediation schemes, very often for buildings that really require only mitigation at far lower cost instead. An MP raised a case with me yesterday of a nine-metre building where shared owners are facing bills of £20,000. That is because there is no sense of proportion. Let us get a sense of proportion, protect leaseholders and shared owners, and make sure that the polluter pays.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My apologies to Members. My list was the list for the fourth Question, not the third Question. I think we are on the right track again if I call the noble Baroness, Lady Chakrabarti.

[Baroness Chakrabarti (Lab)]

My Lords, faced with repeated variations on this question from my tenacious noble friend Lord Kennedy of Southwark, I have heard the always affable Minister talk about this injustice in terms of complexity, sometimes referring leaseholders to their contracts. I am delighted that the new Secretary of State takes a more bullish approach, suggesting that leaseholders should pay nothing and acknowledging that we collectively—the department, some in local government and others in the private sector—failed people at Grenfell. That is a wonderful acknowledgement of principle. Why did it take four and a half years, and when will we move from principle to practice?

Gypsies and Travellers

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Thursday 4th November 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, I answered that question in my answer to a previous supplementary: there are no plans to bring in statutory provision, because the previous introduction of a statutory duty simply did not work. We will continue to encourage local authorities to fulfil their duties under their local plans.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

The noble Baroness, Lady Blower, is not present, so I call the noble Lord, Lord Mann.

[Lord Mann (Non-Afl)]

Would it not be helpful to have a national website that identifies temporary sites? Indeed, would it not be quite possible for local authorities to be able to live-time the number of vacancies on those sites so that everyone can see what is available and where?

Net Zero: Social Market Foundation Report

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Monday 1st November 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, it is right that it is easier for London to hit the target of net zero by 2050, given its starting point. But levelling up is about improving living standards and unleashing enterprise and growth across all parts of the UK, and spreading opportunity. It is important to see how the £4.8 billion levelling-up fund is allocated to deal with the noble Lord’s point, but we also need to leverage private sector funding. Our estimates are that the fund will leverage substantial private sector income to achieve the green revolution that we all want.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, all supplementary questions have been asked and we now move to the next Question.

Buildings: Cladding

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Thursday 28th October 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

I thank the noble Lord for his colourful question. Of course we want to do all we can to support leaseholders. That is why we are taking the measures that I have already outlined.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

The noble Baroness, Lady Jones of Moulsecoomb, is not present. That concludes Oral Questions for today.

Public Services

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Tuesday 26th October 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

As the Fire Minister, I certainly recognise the importance of the delivery of the vast majority of our fire and rescue services through people who are currently employed by local government. As a former council leader, I know there is a whole host of statutory areas where you would seek to deliver services through people who are directly employed. But increasingly there are areas where you can drive down costs through competitive tendering. That also gives in-house services the opportunity to compete with the market to see whether they can deliver those services more effectively. Competition does drive down costs and increases the quality of the services provided.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

The noble Lord, Lord Flight, is not present, so I call the noble Baroness, Lady Blake of Leeds.

--- Later in debate ---

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, a significant amount of the councils’ budget is already ring-fenced, including adult social care. It is for local councils to determine how they spend their resources to ensure that they meet local needs. The core spending power in the most recent local government settlement increased from £49 billion to £51.3 billion in this financial year. The ring-fencing of budgets can have the deleterious effect of forcing councils to do something that is not necessarily in the immediate interests of their local residents.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, all supplementary questions have been asked, and we now move to the next Question.

Prime Minister: Meeting with First Ministers

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Wednesday 20th October 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

There is a clear political point there, but also a practical point. We must spend money for its intended purposes, which is why we have bodies such as the National Audit Office to ensure that taxpayers’ money is properly spent. We need to look into how we can have a similar regime for devolved Governments.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, all supplementary questions have now been asked.

Regulation of Property Agents Working Group

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Wednesday 20th October 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

I take this opportunity to pay tribute to the work undertaken by the noble Lord on the wide-ranging recommendations contained in the final report from his working group. I am grateful to him and to all those who contributed. However, he will appreciate that this is a complex area with many interdependencies. Having paused work on it at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, we continue to consider the recommendations in the noble Lord’s report.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

The noble Lord, Lord Adonis, is not here.

[Lord Palmer of Childs Hill (LD)]

My Lords, I declare my interest as chair of the advisory board of the Property Redress Scheme. The noble Lord, Lord Best, put it very clearly: this report was two years ago, and still nothing concrete has happened. Some things can be done quite simply. The first recommendation is the appointment of a new independent regulator to lead matters in this instance. May I specifically ask the Minister when he expects such a regulator to be appointed?

Building Safety Defects: Costs

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Monday 18th October 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

It is quite clear that the building owner and freeholder have responsibility for keeping the building safe. Whether the costs are passed on to leaseholders is a matter for the individual lease, but we are doing all we can to step in to help recoup the money that should rightly be paid by the developers and have also put forward taxpayer funding to the tune of over £5 billion at this point.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, all supplementary questions have been asked and we now move to the next Question.

Minister for Intergovernmental Relations

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Monday 18th October 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

I thank the noble Lord for raising this issue. It is quite clear that you need to have the competence to spend taxpayers’ money. The best way in which to rein them in is, of course, to win at the ballot box.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, all supplementary questions have been asked, and we now move to the next Question.

Leasehold: Building and Fire Safety

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Thursday 16th September 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

We recognise that many people are responsible and that the standard of construction products has not been at the level we expect. That is why we have brought in a construction products regulator, situated in the Office for Product Safety and Standards, to oversee that within BEIS. Obviously, we are looking at how best to ensure that this does not happen in future and that those responsible make a contribution.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

The noble Baroness, Lady Neville-Rolfe, is not present, so I call the noble Baroness, Lady Pinnock.

[Baroness Pinnock (LD)]

My Lords, the Minister has just said that he is considering a further levy on developers to enable leaseholders not to have to pay huge bills. One leaseholder I know has a bill of £200,000 landing on their doormat to pay now. Why are the Government so willing to protect developers’ profits while throwing leaseholders to the wolves?

--- Later in debate ---

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

We continue to have a number of discussions with members of the G15 housing associations, and particularly with local authorities. The hard yards of achieving a situation in which the same cladding as Grenfell—the aluminium composite material—has been got off around 96% of those buildings, much of that during this pandemic, have required work at every level of government. We will continue to engage with them to come up with practical steps to deal with other buildings with unsafe cladding.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, all supplementary questions have been asked and we now move to the next Question.

Net-Zero Emissions: Planning and Building Regulations

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Thursday 9th September 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh]

My Lords, I point out that our proposed outcomes-based system of integrated assessment will provide the Government with a mechanism to reflect their environmental ambitions, including wider net-zero commitments, in the planning process.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

I call the noble Lord, Lord Berkeley. No? I call the noble Lord, Lord Oates.

[Lord Oates (LD)]

My Lords, does the Minister recognise that the decision in 2016 to scrap the zero-carbon homes scheme was a catastrophic mistake, and can he tell us the amount of carbon that has been emitted from the 1 million substandard homes that have been built since that time?

--- Later in debate ---

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, I would agree with what the noble Lord said: it is important to join up government and we are making progress in this area. How we intend to do this will be outlined imminently as we respond to the consultation on the Planning for the Future White Paper and set out our legislation in this Session.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, all supplementary questions have been asked and we now move to the next Question.

Council Tax

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Thursday 22nd July 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, I point out that Westminster has a low-tax policy and sets probably the lowest council tax in the country, and it should be commended for being a low-tax authority. Certain authorities know how to squeeze every penny in every pound, and I commend Westminster on being able to do that.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has elapsed. We now come to the fourth Oral Question.

Mortgages: EWS1 Form

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Tuesday 29th June 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, we recognise that there may still be an outstanding problem. Where the building is outside the scope of the RICS guidelines and lenders are still insisting on the form, we ask that sellers take that up with RICS in the first instance. But I point out that 80% of lenders have adopted the RICS guidance formally, so people who are purchasing properties have a choice in the market to go to lenders that will follow that guidance.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has elapsed. We now come to the third Oral Question.

Homeowners: Cladding-related Costs

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Thursday 24th June 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, there was media coverage of a medium-rise building where leaseholders and shared owners were facing demands of around £100,000. I was struck by that, not least because the building in question did not have unsafe cladding. There we have a medium-rise building without unsafe cladding, but with some building safety defects that refer to compartmentation. Talk about levying bills of £100,000 seems to be disproportionate, so I have met in that case with the housing association and talked it through with my officials, to encourage them to find a more proportionate approach to keep people safe in these sorts of buildings.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, the time allowed for this question has elapsed.

Housing: New Developments

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Thursday 17th June 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My noble friend is absolutely right that we need homes of all types and tenures. Our reforms will give communities a greater voice from the start of the planning process. The reforms will make planning more straightforward and accessible and make it easier for people to influence local plans and have a say on locations, standards and types of development. The Government are of course committed to home ownership; the First Homes scheme allows a discount of up to 30% of full market value and, of course, there is the £11.5 billion affordable homes programme that will allow for the decent family homes that my noble friend sees as so critical.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, all supplementary questions have been asked, so we will move the next Question.

Private Landlords: Tenants with Pets

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Tuesday 15th June 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My noble friend is right to point out the impact of the Tenant Fees Act 2019. The Government recommend that the rental deposit of five weeks is a maximum rather than a default. Charging a deposit of four weeks’ rent would provide leeway to expand it to five weeks for such things as pet ownership and also to take up some of the suggestions that we have heard today around insurance or potentially looking at rent levels to accommodate wider pet ownership.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, the time allowed for the Question has elapsed. We now come to the third Oral Question.

Rogue Landlords Register

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Wednesday 26th May 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, one of the measures in our wider reform of the relationship between landlords and tenants is to make sure that landlords are all members of a redress scheme. I will look at some of the other points the noble Baroness has raised as part of that reform agenda.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has elapsed, and we now come to the fourth Oral Question.

Fire Safety: Leaseholder Bankruptcies

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Monday 24th May 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

I thank the noble Lord for that creative idea. We will take it away and ponder it. In reality, we must recognise that the only three ways of helping leaseholders are by providing an additional grant, providing a financing scheme—of which we will provide details—or levelling a tax on the polluters, namely the developers that caused this problem in the first place.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, all supplementary questions have been asked. We now move to the next Oral Question.

Social Housing

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Monday 24th May 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, in the last 10 years we have built more affordable homes than in the previous 10. We have seen around 148,000 homes built specifically for social rent in the last decade, and through this programme we are proposing to build more. The real revolution that has occurred is in the number of council homes: councils have built 29,993—nearly 30,000—affordable homes in the last decade, up from a paltry 2,994 over the previous 13 years. That is a record to be proud of.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, all supplementary questions have now been asked.

Rent Arrears: Covid-19

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Thursday 20th May 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My noble friend will be pleased to know that, to support landlords, mortgage lenders have agreed to offer payment holidays of up to six months, including for buy-to-let mortgages. Although that is available only until July 2021, from 1 April 2021 there have been moves to enable forbearance options tailored to the individual landlord.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has elapsed. We now come to the fourth Oral Question.

Tower Blocks: Cladding

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Wednesday 12th May 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

I simply do not accept that personal attack on the Prime Minister. This is a Prime Minister who has committed an unprecedented sum of money. Let us remember that, when I took office, only £600 million had been committed to the remediation of unsafe cladding. In the first Budget in his time as Prime Minister, £1 billion was committed—and now a further £3.5 billion. This is a Prime Minister committed to ensuring that the tragedy of Grenfell Tower never happens again.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, all supplementary questions have been asked. We now come to a number of First Readings.

Wales: Replacement Funding

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Wednesday 3rd March 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

What applies to Cornwall will apply to other areas. Further details on the operation of the fund will be set out in the UK-wide investment framework for the UK shared prosperity fund that will be published in 2021. The funding profile for the UK shared prosperity fund will form part of the next spending review.

[The Senior Deputy Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has elapsed.

Northampton Town Football Club

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Wednesday 3rd March 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

I am not entirely sure I got the gist of the question. I am sure that the noble Lord agrees with the sentiment that we should learn the lessons of this transaction and ensure that future investment is properly secured.

[The Senior Deputy Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, all supplementary questions have been asked and we now move to the second Oral Question.

Housing: Cladding

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Tuesday 22nd September 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, I have had a number of discussions with lenders, including a round table in June, to encourage them to take a more proportionate approach to risk in this regard. We recognise the points that the noble Baroness raises. However, I would say that, a number of times, we have seen buildings remediated through warranties, but also through building owners stepping up and paying for that remediation. Finally, we have asked Michael Wade, a senior adviser to the department, to look at ways of making remediation costs affordable to leaseholders if they do fall on them.

[The Senior Deputy Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has elapsed.

Devolution in England

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Tuesday 22nd September 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, the noble Baroness makes the important point that we need to move quickly and make decisions so that we are clear about the future. I have assured the House that unitarisation will not be a topdown, blanket approach and we will not see the wholesale abolition of districts.

[The Senior Deputy Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, all supplementary questions have been asked and we move on to the next Question.

Planning

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Wednesday 16th September 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, I will have to write to the noble Baroness about that suggestion.

[The Senior Deputy Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

Baroness Bakewell. No? My Lords, all supplementary questions have been asked. We now move to the next Question.

Housing: New Homes

Debate between Lord Greenhalgh and Lord McFall of Alcluith

Tuesday 8th September 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, I recognise the antipathy for development in some places that the noble Baroness has pointed out, but two-thirds of local authorities are building in line with their housing need. The current approach and the consultation on housing need to take into account a number of factors and provide a start point for a dialogue about the number of homes that are needed to be built in next decade.

[The Senior Deputy Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has elapsed.