Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number of buy-to-let properties that have been sold in the last 12 months, and how this compares with the previous 12 months.

Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)

According to UK Finance’s latest quarterly Buy-to-Let statistical release (published 22 October), in Q2 2024 there were 51,459 new buy-to-let loans advanced in the UK, worth £8.9 billion. This was up 26% by number (27.7% by value) compared with the same quarter in the previous year.

There is a wide variety of data and statistics about the mortgage market in the UK available from the Bank of England [1] , the Financial Conduct Authority [2] and UK Finance [3].

[1] https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/statistics

[2] https://www.fca.org.uk/data

[3] https://www.ukfinance.org.uk/data-and-research/data

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

To ask His Majesty's Government how the Decent Homes Standard is monitored and implemented.

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

It is imperative that homes are decent, safe and warm. The Decent Homes Standard plays a key role in setting a minimum quality standard that all social homes should meet. The government is extending the Decent Homes Standard to apply to the private rented sector for the first time through the Renters’ Rights Bill.

In the social rented sector, landlords are held accountable for meeting the standard by the Regulator of Social Housing. Once applied in the private rented sector, local authorities will be responsible for enforcing the Decent Homes Standard.

Compliance with the Decent Homes Standard is monitored primarily through the English Housing Survey, which reports annually. The government also reviews a wider range of self-reported monitoring data provided by social housing providers.

The government will launch a consultation on an updated Decent Homes Standard next year.

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

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have carried out an impact assessment for the Renters' Rights Bill on the supply of properties in the private rented sector.

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

The Government published its Impact Assessment for the Renters’ Rights Bill on 22 November 2024, following scrutiny from the Regulatory Policy Committee. The Impact Assessment received a ‘green’ rating, indicating it is ‘fit for purpose’. The Impact Assessment is available at the following link.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number of buy-to-let mortgages that have been issued in the last 12 months, and how this compares with the previous 12 months.

Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)

According to UK Finance’s latest quarterly Buy-to-Let statistical release (published 22 October), in Q2 2024 there were 51,459 new buy-to-let loans advanced in the UK, worth £8.9 billion. This was up 26% by number (27.7% by value) compared with the same quarter in the previous year.

There is a wide variety of data and statistics about the mortgage market in the UK available from the Bank of England [1] , the Financial Conduct Authority [2] and UK Finance [3].

[1] https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/statistics

[2] https://www.fca.org.uk/data

[3] https://www.ukfinance.org.uk/data-and-research/data

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

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to regulate property management companies.

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

The Government is committed to ensuring that those living in the rented and leasehold sectors are protected from abuse and poor service at the hands of unscrupulous property agents.

As set out in the Written Ministerial Statement of 21 November 2024 (HCWS244), the Government is looking again at Lord Best’s 2019 report on regulating the property agent sector. As part of our response to this report, the Government will strengthen regulation of managing agents to drive up the standard of their service.

As a minimum, this should include mandatory professional qualifications which set a new basic standard that managing agents will be required to meet. We will consult on this matter next year.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that energy performance certificates are inaccurate.

Answered by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Government recognises challenges with energy performance certificates (EPCs) and is consulting on proposals for improvements to the EPC system, including on how to make them more accurate and reliable.

As part of this, the Government is overhauling the methodology underpinning EPCs with the Home Energy Model. An initial consultation on the Home Energy Model closed in March 2024, which will be followed by a technical consultation on a revised EPC methodology in due course.

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 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.