Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many staff are directly supporting intergovernmental relations; in which departments they are based; and in which locations in each part of the UK they are based.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
Intergovernmental Relations (IGR) is a cross-government priority, involving officials in all Government Departments. There is a dedicated team in the Cabinet Office, based across the UK, focusing on IGR specifically and supporting the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities in his role as Minister for Intergovernmental Relations.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government why they have appointed a Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities as Minister for Intergovernmental Relations; and what assessment they have made of whether the two roles can be performed by a single individual.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
The role of Minister for Intergovernmental Relations is a continuation of my Rt. Hon. friend’s role as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office. The creation of this ministerial responsibility alongside his role as Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities demonstrates the importance that this Government places on working effectively with the devolved administrations to deliver for citizens in every part of the UK.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many homeless people there were in England in (1) 1990, (2) 2000, (3) 2010, and (4) 2020.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
Levels of homelessness in England can be best estimated by looking at the number of households in temporary accommodation at the end of each year.
There is no data before 1998. The number of households in temporary accommodation in Q4 1998 was 53,790. In Q4 2000 it was 73,080, in Q4 2010 it was 48,010 and Q4 2020 is provisionally 95,370.
We are putting in place an unprecedented level of support to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping over 2021/22, over £750 million. This includes the £310 million Homelessness Prevention Grant, giving local authorities more control and flexibility in managing homelessness pressures and supporting those who at risk of homelessness.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how much has so far been spent of the £16 million to support the modernisation of local authorities' cyber security systems, as announced in the Spending Review 2020 on 15 December 2020.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
The £16 million to support the modernisation of local authorities' cyber security systems, as announced in the Spending Review 2020, has been made available for spend in this financial year commencing April 2021. Our work in this financial year has only just begun, and therefore there has not been significant expenditure to date.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how they collect data regarding individuals who are homeless; and whether any personal data of homeless individuals is collected without their consent.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
Local authorities have responsibilities to offer homelessness assistance under statutory homelessness legislation and send case level data to MHCLG, for households that apply for statutory homelessness support. This data includes information on the circumstances and needs of households and the support they receive through the system. This includes some personal data.
The personal data will only be shared with MHCLG where local authorities are satisfied they have the lawful basis to do so and householders have been informed and/or appropriate consent has been obtained.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact changes to planning regulations will have on the number of affordable homes.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
To aid small and medium-sized (SME) builders through economic recovery, we have consulted on a proposal to increase the current threshold at which affordable housing contributions can be collected on new developments. Details of the impact of this proposal are set out in the Changes to the current planning system consultation, which closed on 1 October. It is important that we analyse the consultation feedback thoroughly. We will respond to the consultation in due course.
We are proposing this as a short-term measure before introducing radical reform through the Planning for the future white paper, in which we are proposing a new nationally-set ‘Infrastructure Levy’ that delivers at least as much on-site affordable housing as at present. The Planning for the future consultation closes on 29 October.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what arrangements they are making to provide all rough sleepers with face masks so that they can comply with the requirements to use such masks on public transport.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
£3.2 billion has been provided to support councils to respond to the coronavirus pandemic, including meeting the costs of accommodating some of the most vulnerable people in our society.
This is in addition to £3.2 million in targeted funding for councils to support vulnerable rough sleepers. This funding is specifically to assist local authorities in dealing with the impacts of the challenges faced by the most vulnerable in society during this difficult time.
Local authorities are able to use this funding flexibly to ensure that the rough sleepers they are supporting are given the support they require. This includes supporting rough sleepers in a variety of ways, potentially including travel if necessary.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps, if any, they are taking to provide homeless people with free access to public transport to enable them to travel greater distances to access support services during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
£3.2 billion has been provided to support councils to respond to the coronavirus pandemic, including meeting the costs of accommodating some of the most vulnerable people in our society.
This is in addition to £3.2 million in targeted funding for councils to support vulnerable rough sleepers. This funding is specifically to assist local authorities in dealing with the impacts of the challenges faced by the most vulnerable in society during this difficult time.
Local authorities are able to use this funding flexibly to ensure that the rough sleepers they are supporting are given the support they require. This includes supporting rough sleepers in a variety of ways, potentially including travel if necessary.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that all refuge centres for the homeless have sufficient funds to continue their work during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
Almost 15,000 vulnerable people have been housed in emergency accommodation, including hotels, since the start of the COVID-19 emergency, according to returns from local authorities to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG). This includes people coming in directly from the streets, people previously housed in shared night shelters and people who have become vulnerable to rough sleeping during the pandemic.
£3.2 billion has been provided to support councils to respond to the coronavirus pandemic, which councils can use to provide support for vulnerable rough sleepers. This is in addition to £3.2 million in targeted funding for councils to support vulnerable rough sleepers.
Local authorities are able to use this funding flexibly to ensure that those being offered accommodation to self-isolate are given the support they require. This funding is alongside significant investment including £112m across England in 2020/21 for the Rough Sleeping Initiative to help around 270 areas tackle rough sleeping across 2020/21.
MHCLG also recently announced the?Coronavirus (COVID-19) Homelessness Response Fund, granting £6 million to charities, including those who run hostel accommodation. This is to be spent on organisational sustainability in order to ensure the ongoing activities that help keep people who are homeless safe and supported during the pandemic.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to extend their contracts with hotels and bed and breakfasts to offer temporary accommodation for those who require it until the end of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
Nearly 15,000 vulnerable people have been housed in emergency accommodation, including hotels, since the COVID-19 emergency began. This includes people coming in directly from the streets, people previously housed in shared night shelters and people who have become vulnerable to rough sleeping during the pandemic.
The Government asked Dame Louise Casey to?spearhead a specialist taskforce to lead the next phase of the Government’s support for rough sleepers during the pandemic. The taskforce will work hand-in-hand with councils across the country on plans to ensure rough sleepers can move into long-term, safe accommodation once the immediate crisis is over – ensuring as few people as possible return to life on the streets.
We announced on 24 May radical plans to provide thousands of long-term, safe homes for vulnerable rough sleepers taken off the streets during this pandemic. This ambitious commitment will be backed by £160 million this year through accelerating plans for the £381 million announced for rough sleeping services at Budget, bringing the total to £433 million over the lifetime of this parliament. This funding will ensure that 6,000 new housing units will be put into the system, with 3,300 units of this accommodation becoming available in the next 12 months.
We are working intensively with local authorities to design plans for next steps which includes consideration of the role of hotels. We continue to explore this and are working with national organisations to do so, alongside councils.