Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to prevent wealthy foreign individuals from donating to UK political parties.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
We are bringing forward a package of reforms which represents a substantial tightening of the UK’s political finance system. These measures will introduce strict new requirements on political donations to reduce the risk of foreign money entering UK politics. While the law already prohibits foreign donations, it is clear that the threat of foreign interference is evolving, becoming increasingly hostile and sophisticated.
Under new legislation, we will require enhanced checks by recipients of donations to consider the risk of political donations being illegitimate, ensure political donors declare any benefit or sources of funding connected to their donation and tighten the rules around company donations by allowing them to donate only if they have a genuine connection to the UK or Ireland.
The rules around political donations must be abided by regardless of the type of donation made, which includes donations made using cryptocurrency. Political donations can only be accepted from permissible sources, and the recipients of donations must make an honest assessment of the value of the donation at the time they receive it. The Electoral Commission provides guidance on donations, including for non-standard donations such as those made in cryptocurrencies.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - 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 use of cryptocurrency for donations to UK political parties.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
We are bringing forward a package of reforms which represents a substantial tightening of the UK’s political finance system. These measures will introduce strict new requirements on political donations to reduce the risk of foreign money entering UK politics. While the law already prohibits foreign donations, it is clear that the threat of foreign interference is evolving, becoming increasingly hostile and sophisticated.
Under new legislation, we will require enhanced checks by recipients of donations to consider the risk of political donations being illegitimate, ensure political donors declare any benefit or sources of funding connected to their donation and tighten the rules around company donations by allowing them to donate only if they have a genuine connection to the UK or Ireland.
The rules around political donations must be abided by regardless of the type of donation made, which includes donations made using cryptocurrency. Political donations can only be accepted from permissible sources, and the recipients of donations must make an honest assessment of the value of the donation at the time they receive it. The Electoral Commission provides guidance on donations, including for non-standard donations such as those made in cryptocurrencies.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made on the proposed policy to restrict foreign donors from giving funds to UK political parties.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
We are bringing forward a package of reforms which represents a substantial tightening of the UK’s political finance system. These measures will introduce strict new requirements on political donations to reduce the risk of foreign money entering UK politics. While the law already prohibits foreign donations, it is clear that the threat of foreign interference is evolving, becoming increasingly hostile and sophisticated.
Under new legislation, we will require enhanced checks by recipients of donations to consider the risk of political donations being illegitimate, ensure political donors declare any benefit or sources of funding connected to their donation and tighten the rules around company donations by allowing them to donate only if they have a genuine connection to the UK or Ireland.
The rules around political donations must be abided by regardless of the type of donation made, which includes donations made using cryptocurrency. Political donations can only be accepted from permissible sources, and the recipients of donations must make an honest assessment of the value of the donation at the time they receive it. The Electoral Commission provides guidance on donations, including for non-standard donations such as those made in cryptocurrencies.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they will take to ensure that all people facing homelessness who seek support are seen and that every application is dealt with.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
In 2025/26 the Government is investing £1 billion in homelessness services in England, an increase of £233 million on the previous year. Local authorities can use this funding to provide a range of services to meet local need.
The Homelessness Code of Guidance sets out how local authorities in England should exercise their homelessness functions in accordance with the Homelessness Reduction Act, including how housing authorities must ensure their services are accessible. You can find the Code of Guidance on gov.uk here.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they will take to ensure that all homeless people have access to sufficient food and hygiene products.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
In 2025/26 the Government is investing £1 billion in homelessness services in England, an increase of £233 million on the previous year. Local authorities can use this funding to provide a range of services to meet local need.
The Homelessness Code of Guidance sets out how local authorities in England should exercise their homelessness functions in accordance with the Homelessness Reduction Act, including how housing authorities must ensure their services are accessible. You can find the Code of Guidance on gov.uk here.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to reform the funding rules for local elections.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The funding of costs necessarily incurred for the delivery of local elections is a matter for local authorities.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what measures they have in place to ensure that the beliefs of different faiths are respected.
Answered by Lord Khan of Burnley
Our country is strengthened by individuals of different faiths and beliefs, and the valuable contribution they make to our communities. I regularly meet leaders and representatives of major faiths and beliefs, and in the first six months in my role, I am proud to have engaged with all faith groups in the UK. The insights of faith and belief groups play an important role in shaping policies that promote inclusivity, understanding, and respect across our society.
Departmental officials also hold strong relationships with many faith and belief representatives, as interfaith practitioners.
This government also recognises and respects the importance of the various festivals commemorated by our different faiths. These are marked through attendance at events and receptions, and on the department’s social media channels.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many registered electors were not allowed to vote in the elections on 2 May due to not having acceptable photo identification.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Shadow Minister (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Electoral Commission is the independent electoral regulator and will be providing their analysis of the running of the May polls 2024. This will include the reporting of the number of individuals turned away. We anticipate publication of their interim report in early July.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to encourage local authorities to increase the amount of land made available for food allotments in England.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Shadow Minister (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government recognises how important allotments and other open spaces are for local people and have introduced a range of new powers and opportunities for local planning authorities to promote healthy and safe communities, including allotment provision and access to healthier food.
Our Green Infrastructure Framework clearly sets out that opportunities to provide new allotments and community orchards should be considered at the earliest stages of a development proposal. Furthermore, our Community Right to Bid policy, gave communities the right to nominate a local allotment site to be listed as an asset of community value.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Scott of Bybrook on 15 December (HL3951), whether this advice regarding the flying of flags of countries other than the UK or Ukraine also applies to (1) Northern Ireland, (2) Scotland, and (3) Wales.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Shadow Minister (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Town and Country Planning (Control of Advertisements) (England) Regulations 2007 (as amended) apply to England only. The flying of flags by local authorities in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales is a matter for the devolved administrations and for individual local authorities to determine in accordance with any applicable legislation.