Asked by: Lord Truscott (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether there will be exemptions for listed buildings under the proposed new energy performance certificate regulations.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Currently buildings protected as part of a designated environment or because of their special architectural or historical merit are exempt from the requirements to have an energy performance certificate insofar as compliance with minimum energy performance requirements would unacceptably alter their character or appearance.
We have recently consulted on EPC Reform and we are proposing that all heritage buildings are required to have an Energy Performance Certificate. The act of obtaining an EPC does not have any effect on the building materially and even if obtaining an EPC were to bring a heritage building into scope of the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards, there are relevant exemptions if consent by the relevant authorities cannot be obtained, or if any of the recommendations on the EPC that need to be made, devalue the property by more than 5%. We would plan for this to be further balanced by ensuring EPC recommendations are tailored appropriately to consider the nature of the buildings.
Asked by: Lord Truscott (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether secondary glazing and infrared heaters are included in energy performance certificate (EPC) assessments; and if not (1) why, and (2) what consideration they have given to including secondary glazing and infrared heaters in EPC assessments in future.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Energy Performance of existing homes is assessed through the model known as the RdSAP, which enables EPC assessors to record instances of secondary glazing so this can contribute towards a higher EPC score for the dwelling. Infrared heaters are currently treated as a standard direct electric heater under this methodology. Although infrared heating is not modelled as its own category, the Government acknowledges its potential to offer efficiency benefits over other direct electric heating appliances. The ‘Appendix Q’ process enables the recognition of additional technologies such as infrared heating and manufacturers or industry groups can pursue that route for recognition in RdSAP subject to the completion of appropriate testing.
Asked by: Lord Truscott (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they still intend to abolish marriage value in lease extension calculations.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
I refer the Noble Lord to the answer given to Question UIN HL 3047 on 10 December 2024.
Asked by: Lord Truscott (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to restricting or banning estate agents from collecting rent commission one year in advance, in line with the proposed restriction on landlords requesting upfront rent payments as set out in the Renters' Rights Bill.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
There are already protections in place to ensure that both tenants and landlords are treated fairly by letting agents. This includes the Tenant Fees Act 2019 which bans most letting fees and caps tenancy deposits paid by tenants in the private rented sector.
In addition, the Renters’ Rights Bill will prohibit landlords from requiring more than one month's rent in advance from tenants looking to secure a tenancy. This unfair practice can encourage prospective tenants to stretch their finances to the limit or prevent them from accessing the private rented sector altogether.
This measure does not apply to the fee structures agreed between landlords and property agents.
Asked by: Lord Truscott (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
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.
Asked by: Lord Truscott (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
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.
Asked by: Lord Truscott (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
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.
Asked by: Lord Truscott (Non-affiliated - 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 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.
Asked by: Lord Truscott (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
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.
Asked by: Lord Truscott (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
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.