Asked by: Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of The EU's Impact on the UK Housing and Construction Industry, produced for the Red Tape Initiative in May 2016, in particular the comment that the Construction Products Regulation (EU 305/2011) is some "red tape folly" which is "expensive and burdensome for small businesses"; and what assessment they have made of the continued validity of that regulation, which aims to harmonise the quality of construction materials across the EU, including external cladding, to make sure that those materials are safe and fit to use.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
No assessment has been made of this report.
Asked by: Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will make membership of a Client Money Protection Scheme mandatory for letting and managing agents.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
The Government encourages letting and management agents to join Client Money Protection schemes and encourages landlords and tenants to choose agents with Client Money Protection via the Safe Agent Kite Mark. Ministers are reviewing the report of the working group chaired by Baroness Hayter and Lord Palmer of Childs Hill, which considers the available evidence of Client Money Protection in the market today and provides recommendations on whether Client Money Protection should be made mandatory. Ministers will respond to this report setting out next steps in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they considered the economic, societal and environmental impacts of fire when producing the Approved Document B (fire safety) regulations; and if not why not; and whether they consider that the Building Act 1984 and the Sustainable and Secure Building Act 2004 provide that the purposes for which regulations may be made for the design, construction, servicing and fittings of buildings should include such impacts.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
The government has not made such an estimate. Such estimates are made, only where necessary, to assist in the assessment of specific policy proposals.
Part B (Fire safety) of the Building Regulations for England was last subjected to a major review in 2006. Since then the guidance has been subject to minor amendments in 2007, 2010 and 2013. Where substantive changes were made, in 2006 and 2013, the government of the day issued an impact assessment which set out the matters that were considered at the time. These documents ( attached) are available in the library of the house and available on the internet at;
Asked by: Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what estimate they have made of the economic and environmental costs of fire in domestic, industrial and commercial buildings, and, if such estimates have not been made, why not.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
The government has not made such an estimate. Such estimates are made, only where necessary, to assist in the assessment of specific policy proposals.
Part B (Fire safety) of the Building Regulations for England was last subjected to a major review in 2006. Since then the guidance has been subject to minor amendments in 2007, 2010 and 2013. Where substantive changes were made, in 2006 and 2013, the government of the day issued an impact assessment which set out the matters that were considered at the time. These documents ( attached) are available in the library of the house and available on the internet at;
Asked by: Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to review the guidance issued under the Building Regulations 2010, in particular that guidance relating to fire safety.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
The Government is considering a number of issues related to the Building Regulations 2010 and building control system matters in England. We will make an announcement about our plans in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress has been made to bring forward regulations to introduce electrical safety checks, as set out in the Housing and Planning Act 2016.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
The Government is committed to protecting tenants and, as part of this, introduced the enabling power into the Housing and Planning Act 2016, allowing regulations to protect private sector tenants from electrical hazards in the home to be set at a later date.
This is a highly technical area and we need to explore appropriate options with relevant experts in the sector to test the most effective approach. My Department intends to set up a working group to identify what, if any, legislative requirements are needed and envisage this work being completed this year. This will ensure any introductions are beneficial and strike the right balance by protecting tenants while not over burdening the sector.
Asked by: Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to mandate the timescale by which the Leasehold Property Enquiries form must be completed.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
At Spending Review 2015, the Government announced its plan to publish a call for evidence looking at the process of buying a selling a home. We understand that there are complexities involved and, therefore, will assess the evidence received in response to the call for evidence to determine what changes have the potential to make the greatest impact. The call for evidence will include consideration of the impact of leasehold on buying and selling homes, and will be launched in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the obstacles to improving and speeding up the home buying process.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
At Spending Review 2015, the Government announced its plan to publish a call for evidence looking at the process of buying a selling a home. We understand that there are complexities involved and, therefore, will assess the evidence received in response to the call for evidence to determine what changes have the potential to make the greatest impact. The call for evidence will include consideration of the impact of leasehold on buying and selling homes, and will be launched in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will launch a consultation on improving the home buying process, and if so, when.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
At Spending Review 2015, the Government announced its plan to publish a call for evidence looking at the process of buying a selling a home. We understand that there are complexities involved and, therefore, will assess the evidence received in response to the call for evidence to determine what changes have the potential to make the greatest impact. The call for evidence will include consideration of the impact of leasehold on buying and selling homes, and will be launched in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will review the costs charged by a landlord to the purchaser of a leasehold property of providing (1) the notice of assignment or charge, (2) the certificate of compliance, (3) the deed of covenant, and (4) the stock transfer.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
At Budget 2016 the Government announced its plan to publish a call for evidence looking at the process of buying a home including the process of purchasing a leasehold property. The Government will assess the evidence received to determine what changes to the homebuying process can make the greatest impact including the transactional costs incurred by leaseholders.