Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill on 16 January (HL3851), what plans they have, if any, to phase out the sale of new petrol motorcycles, in line with plans to phase-out the sale of new petrol cars from 2030.

Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

All modes and vehicle types have a part to play in meeting net zero, including motorcycles. The Government will set out any plans to decarbonise motorcycles in due course. To encourage uptake of zero emission motorbikes, the Government has a plug-in motorcycle grant which is available until at least March 2025 and offers up to £500 off the cost of a zero-emission motorcycle.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many affordable homes were built in 2024; how many are planned for (1) 2025, and (2) 2026; and how many for the duration of the current Parliament.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The number of new affordable housing delivered in England by new build/acquisitions is published here Live tables on affordable housing supply - GOV.UK

We are committed to delivering the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation. The government will set out details of new investment to succeed the 2021-26 Affordable Homes Programme at the Spending Review, which will deliver a mix of homes for sub-market rent and homeownership, with a particular focus on delivering homes for Social Rent.

In addition, the provision of affordable homes will be supported by our ‘Golden Rules’ for Green Belt development which mean that housing can only be built on Green Belt land if developers deliver high levels of affordable housing. We will also strengthen planning obligations to ensure that new developments provide more affordable homes.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to remove restrictions on short-term lets for residential flats following the provision in the Renters' Rights Bill to introduce periodic tenancies.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

We have no plans to remove restrictions on short-term lets for residential flats. The Renters’ Rights Bill includes a provision to ensure landlords will not be able to evict tenants simply to turn the property into a holiday let. We are considering what additional powers we might give local authorities to enable them to respond to the pressures created by short-term lets.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many people have been imprisoned in each of the past five years for non-payment of the BBC licence fee.

Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on sentencing outcomes for a wide range of offences including Television Licence Evasion in England and Wales between 2020 and June 2024 in the Outcomes by Offences data tool. This can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics Quarterly: June 2024.

In the last five years there have been no sentences of immediate custody for Television Licence Evasion in England and Wales.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to make training mandatory for e-scooter users.

Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

Resolving the longstanding problems and missed opportunities of micromobility and e-scooters is a priority for the Department for Transport and we will work with colleagues across Government to tackle this as soon as possible.

No decisions have been made on the future regulation of e-scooters and the Government will consult before any regulations come into force

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to make protective equipment mandatory for e-scooter users.

Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

Resolving the longstanding problems and missed opportunities of micromobility and e-scooters is a priority for the Department for Transport and we will work with colleagues across Government to tackle this as soon as possible.

No decisions have been made on the future regulation of e-scooters and the Government will consult before any regulations come into force

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to legalise the use of private e-scooters in public spaces.

Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

Resolving the longstanding problems and missed opportunities of micromobility and e-scooters is a priority for the Department for Transport and we will work with colleagues across Government to tackle this as soon as possible.

No decisions have been made on the future regulation of e-scooters and the Government will consult before any regulations come into force

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to abolish marriage value in property valuations.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 removes the requirement to pay marriage value in lease extensions and freehold acquisitions.

As set out in the Housing Minister’s Written Ministerial Statement on 21 November, the Government will act as quickly as possible to provide homeowners with greater rights, powers, and protections over their homes by implementing the provisions of that Act.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of large net migration on the private rented sector.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Government will ensure the immigration system is fair and controlled, while also being clear that net migration must come down.

The factors affecting supply in the private rented sector are complex and difficult to disentangle. As well as demographic change, they include house prices, rent levels, taxation policy, interest rates, and the movement of tenants into homeownership and social rented housing. While it is not possible to isolate the specific impact of each of these factors, it is important to recognise that the size of the private rented sector has doubled since 2002 to now be the second largest housing tenure. 4.7 million households rent privately, which is equivalent to 19% of the housing market – a figure which has remained relatively stable since 2013/14.

However, the Government recognises that the housing crisis we have inherited means that demand is currently outstripping the supply of properties available to let. This is why we will build 1.5m homes over this Parliament by taking bold action to reform our planning system, deliver a new generation of New Towns, and deliver the biggest increase in affordable housing for a generation.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage on 8 January (HL3567), whether they have any target for providing social homes over the lifetime of the current Parliament.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Government has committed to delivering the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation. Our aspiration is to ensure that, from the first full financial year of this Parliament (2025-26) onwards, the number of Social Rent homes grows consistently. We will update Parliament on our progress.

We have therefore asked Homes England and the Greater London Authority to maximise the number of Social Rent homes in allocating the remaining funding from the 2021-26 Affordable Homes Programme.

My department published an update on targets in the 2021-26 Programme on 30 July 2024. We have also made a number of changes to national planning policy that are designed to support the delivery of Social Rent homes. We will bring forward details of future Government investment in social and affordable housing at the Spending Review.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to ban all petrol and diesel motorcycles.

Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

The Government has no plans to ban all petrol and diesel motorcycles.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many social homes they expect to be delivered in each of the next five years.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

With regard to our work to increase the number of new social homes, I refer to the noble Lord to the answer given to Question UIN 19382 on 20th December 2024.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the finding in the report by Nottingham Trent University E-scooters: Still the new kid on the transport block. Assessing e-scooter legislation knowledge and illegal riding behaviour, published on 22 November 2023, that dangerous e-scooter use is linked to a lack of knowledge of the rules.

Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

The Government assesses a broad range of evidence that can assist with informing our understanding of what legislation is appropriate for e-scooters, and we recognise there are risks around the safe use of e-scooters which is why we are running trials of rental e-scooters.

Their purpose is to assess the benefits of e-scooters including their wider impacts, and to inform options for future regulation. The Government’s proposals for e-scooter regulations will take learning from the trials, academic research, stakeholder engagement and international evidence into consideration and we will consult on any new regulations before they come into force.

The Government also tracks the public’s attitudes, awareness and knowledge of e-scooters through the Transport Technology Tracker, with the most recent publication on 24 September 2024.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether landlords will have to pay a fee (1) to use the proposed Private Rented Sector Database, and (2) for the purposes of enforcement of the Decent Homes Standard, under the Renters (Reform) Bill.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Renters’ Rights Bill includes provisions for the Private Rented Sector Database to be funded through fees charged to private landlords when they register. Further details on fees will be set out in secondary legislation. We will take steps to make sure costs remain reasonable, proportionate and sustainable.

The new service will bring substantial benefits to landlords – providing a single source of information about their legal responsibilities, helping them showcase their compliance. It will also support local councils to enforce against unscrupulous landlords who undercut the responsible majority.

The Bill also provides local councils with the ability to prosecute or issue civil penalties for offences linked to Decent Homes Standard failures. Income generated from civil penalties can be used to fund further housing enforcement.

In accordance with the New Burdens Doctrine, we will ensure that, where necessary, the net additional costs that may fall on local councils as a result of our proposed reforms are fully funded.

Found: Schedule 3 Title Clauses 75 to 101 [Amendments marked ★ are new or have been altered] Clause 1 LORD TRUSCOTT

Found: Schedule 3 Title Clauses 75 to 101 [Amendments marked ★ are new or have been altered] Clause 1 LORD TRUSCOTT

Found: Schedule 3 Title Clauses 75 to 101 [Amendments marked ★ are new or have been altered] Clause 1 LORD TRUSCOTT

Found: Schedule 3 Title Clauses 75 to 101 [Amendments marked ★ are new or have been altered] Clause 1 LORD TRUSCOTT

Found: Schedule 3 Title Clauses 75 to 101 [Amendments marked ★ are new or have been altered] Clause 1 LORD TRUSCOTT