Asked by: Lord Hain (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what regulations govern Universal Credit payments for prisoners immediately after their release.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
There are no specific regulations that govern the payment of Universal Credit (UC) to a prisoner upon release. They are treated like every other customer when they make a claim to UC. If they need urgent financial assistance when they have completed their online UC claim they can ask for a new claim advance payment which is offered to all new customers. There are provisions (Claims and Payments Regulations 2013) that allow prisoners to start to prepare their UC claim before their release, however the date of entitlement starts on the release date, and first payment is usually made around five weeks after the claim is made.
Asked by: Lord Hain (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what are the latest recidivism rates for released prisoners receiving benefits.
Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
This Government is reducing reoffending by giving prison leavers the tools to move away from crime.
The latest available data for England and Wales shows that 37.0% of adults released from custody between April 2021 and March 2022 were proven to have reoffended within 12 months of release.
We do not currently measure reoffending rates for released prisoners receiving benefits, on training schemes for job placements or in work (although the latter will be featured in future publications of proven reoffending statistics, with the first due for release in October 2024).
We do, however, know from previous research that offenders who leave custody into employment are up to nine percentage points less likely to reoffend, and there is a similar percentage point reduction in reoffending for those who have engaged in any form of in-prison education.
Asked by: Lord Hain (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what are the latest recidivism rates for all released prisoners.
Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
This Government is reducing reoffending by giving prison leavers the tools to move away from crime.
The latest available data for England and Wales shows that 37.0% of adults released from custody between April 2021 and March 2022 were proven to have reoffended within 12 months of release.
We do not currently measure reoffending rates for released prisoners receiving benefits, on training schemes for job placements or in work (although the latter will be featured in future publications of proven reoffending statistics, with the first due for release in October 2024).
We do, however, know from previous research that offenders who leave custody into employment are up to nine percentage points less likely to reoffend, and there is a similar percentage point reduction in reoffending for those who have engaged in any form of in-prison education.
Asked by: Lord Hain (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what are the latest recidivism rates for released prisoners on training schemes for job placements.
Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
This Government is reducing reoffending by giving prison leavers the tools to move away from crime.
The latest available data for England and Wales shows that 37.0% of adults released from custody between April 2021 and March 2022 were proven to have reoffended within 12 months of release.
We do not currently measure reoffending rates for released prisoners receiving benefits, on training schemes for job placements or in work (although the latter will be featured in future publications of proven reoffending statistics, with the first due for release in October 2024).
We do, however, know from previous research that offenders who leave custody into employment are up to nine percentage points less likely to reoffend, and there is a similar percentage point reduction in reoffending for those who have engaged in any form of in-prison education.
Asked by: Lord Hain (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what are the latest recidivism rates for released prisoners in work.
Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
This Government is reducing reoffending by giving prison leavers the tools to move away from crime.
The latest available data for England and Wales shows that 37.0% of adults released from custody between April 2021 and March 2022 were proven to have reoffended within 12 months of release.
We do not currently measure reoffending rates for released prisoners receiving benefits, on training schemes for job placements or in work (although the latter will be featured in future publications of proven reoffending statistics, with the first due for release in October 2024).
We do, however, know from previous research that offenders who leave custody into employment are up to nine percentage points less likely to reoffend, and there is a similar percentage point reduction in reoffending for those who have engaged in any form of in-prison education.
Asked by: Lord Hain (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what regulations govern training for prisoners while still in prison for job placements on release.
Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The prison education curriculum enables prisoners to gain the skills they need to get employment on release. In addition to English, maths and vocational training we offer bespoke, local training via the Dynamic Purchasing System. We are developing other training through our Future Skills Programme in a variety of sectors, such as construction and hospitality with employers guaranteeing interviews to prisoners on completion of the course. Prisoners may also undertake other work placements during their sentence which prepares them for work on release. Some are within the prison setting e.g. prison kitchens, but prisoners in open prisons may also go out to work in a variety of sectors under Release on Temporary Licence conditions. We also work with the Department for Education who fund a ‘skills bootcamp’ to deliver training in skills needed to work in the rail industry alongside continuing to develop the opportunities for serving prisoners to undertake apprenticeships.
Prison Education delivered by HMPPS is underpinned by the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009, the Prison Rules 1999 and the Prison Education and Libraries Framework. The delivery of apprenticeships to prisoners is governed by the Apprenticeships (Miscellaneous Provisions) Regulations 2017. All aspects of education, skills and work are inspected by Ofsted alongside HMIP.
Asked by: Lord Hain (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what regulatory powers they have to ensure leaseholders are protected from unreasonable charges or inadequate services property management agents.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Opposition Whip (Lords)
By law all variable service charges must be reasonable and, where costs relate to works or services, the works or services must be of a reasonable standard and leaseholders may challenge them at the property tribunal. It is also a legal requirement for managing and letting agents in England to belong to one of the two Government approved redress schemes.
The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Bill will make it easier for leaseholders to scrutinise costs and challenge the services provided by both landlords and property managing agents. The Bill includes measures to require landlords to provide further information to leaseholders upfront and increase the transparency of their service charges and administration charges, as well as providing more information to leaseholders when requested.
For those homeowners on private and mixed tenure freehold estates, the Bill will also give them rights to challenge costs at the tribunal and improved rights of transparency of costs and services.
The Government intends to work closely with stakeholders to determine the detail of how the measures will work to protect leaseholders, which will be set out in secondary legislation.
These measures, alongside existing protections and work undertaken by industry, will make property managing agents more accountable to the leaseholders and homeowners on freehold estates that pay for their services, and we will keep under review the need for further regulation in the sector.
Asked by: Lord Hain (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to launch a consultation about the experiences of leaseholders in relation to service charges.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Opposition Whip (Lords)
By law all variable service charges must be reasonable and, where costs relate to works or services, the works or services must be of a reasonable standard and leaseholders may challenge them at the property tribunal. It is also a legal requirement for managing and letting agents in England to belong to one of the two Government approved redress schemes.
The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Bill will make it easier for leaseholders to scrutinise costs and challenge the services provided by both landlords and property managing agents. The Bill includes measures to require landlords to provide further information to leaseholders upfront and increase the transparency of their service charges and administration charges, as well as providing more information to leaseholders when requested.
For those homeowners on private and mixed tenure freehold estates, the Bill will also give them rights to challenge costs at the tribunal and improved rights of transparency of costs and services.
The Government intends to work closely with stakeholders to determine the detail of how the measures will work to protect leaseholders, which will be set out in secondary legislation.
These measures, alongside existing protections and work undertaken by industry, will make property managing agents more accountable to the leaseholders and homeowners on freehold estates that pay for their services, and we will keep under review the need for further regulation in the sector.
Asked by: Lord Hain (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 transparency of ownership structures of freehold property management agents.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Opposition Whip (Lords)
By law all variable service charges must be reasonable and, where costs relate to works or services, the works or services must be of a reasonable standard and leaseholders may challenge them at the property tribunal. It is also a legal requirement for managing and letting agents in England to belong to one of the two Government approved redress schemes.
The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Bill will make it easier for leaseholders to scrutinise costs and challenge the services provided by both landlords and property managing agents. The Bill includes measures to require landlords to provide further information to leaseholders upfront and increase the transparency of their service charges and administration charges, as well as providing more information to leaseholders when requested.
For those homeowners on private and mixed tenure freehold estates, the Bill will also give them rights to challenge costs at the tribunal and improved rights of transparency of costs and services.
The Government intends to work closely with stakeholders to determine the detail of how the measures will work to protect leaseholders, which will be set out in secondary legislation.
These measures, alongside existing protections and work undertaken by industry, will make property managing agents more accountable to the leaseholders and homeowners on freehold estates that pay for their services, and we will keep under review the need for further regulation in the sector.
Asked by: Lord Hain (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the number of inquests into deaths to the legacy of the Troubles in Northern Ireland that will not have been completed by 1 May.
Answered by Lord Caine
The Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023 requires Troubles-related inquests to conclude by 1 May 2024. The legislation provides a limited carve out for any Troubles-related inquests where the hearing of all evidence has finished and where the only matter still to come is the delivery of the inquest’s findings.
The Act contains provisions allowing a coroner to request a review of a death by the ICRIR, led by Sir Declan Morgan as Chief Commissioner, if the inquest has not been concluded via the coronial process by 1 May 2024. Close family members, as well as the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, the Attorney General for Northern Ireland and the Advocate General for Northern Ireland, can also request a review of a death by the ICRIR.
The case management of inquests is a matter for coroners.