Asked by: Catherine West (Labour - Hornsey and Wood Green)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will issue guidance to housing associations on increasing the transparency of service charge costs.
Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
Registered Providers of social housing (including housing associations) are expected to set transparent and reasonable service charges. The policy statement clarifies that tenants should be supplied with clear information on how service charges are set. Where new or extended services are introduced, and an additional charge may need to be made, registered providers are expected to consult with tenants.
Asked by: Catherine West (Labour - Hornsey and Wood Green)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department has made an equality impact assessment of the decision to close the HMRC helpline between April and September each year.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
HMRC conducted a full Equalities Impact Assessment regarding the planned closure of the Self Assessment helpline between 8 April and 30 September 2024. However, HMRC has halted this plan while it engages with stakeholders about how to ensure all taxpayers’ needs are met as the Department shifts more people to online self-service.
Asked by: Catherine West (Labour - Hornsey and Wood Green)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 1 March 2024 to Question 15588 on Digital Technology: Disadvantaged, whether she has made an assessment of the adequacy of availability of free or low cost internet training for people aged 65 and over to tackle digital exclusion.
Answered by Robert Halfon
The government recognises that digital skills are important for adults of all ages, and we are committed to improving their level of digital skills to support active participation in society.
From August 2020, the department introduced a digital entitlement for adults with no or low digital skills to undertake specified digital qualifications, up to level 1, free of charge. The new entitlement mirrors the existing legal entitlements for English and maths, and puts essential digital skills on an equal footing in the adult education system, as a third basic skill. The department introduced new Essential Digital Skills qualifications (EDSQs) at entry level and level 1 from August 2020, funded under the digital entitlement. EDSQs are based on the new national standards for essential digital skills and are designed to meet the diverse needs of adults with no or low digital skills, reflecting different learning needs, motivations and starting points.
To further enhance the essential digital skills offer for adults, from August 2023 the department introduced new digital Functional Skills qualifications (FSQs), which have replaced FSQs in Information and Communication Technology. Digital FSQs have standardised content and assessment, providing a benchmark of digital skills for employers. The department published the final subject content for digital FSQs in October 2021.
The government recognises that formal qualifications are not appropriate for everyone. That is why the department also funds community learning and other non-regulated learning, such as building confidence in essential digital skills, through the Adult Education Budget. Many local authorities and other further education providers are already delivering these courses that help equip adults with the essential digital skills they need for work, life and further learning.
More information about essential digital skills and other government funded training opportunities can be found here: https://www.skillsforcareers.education.gov.uk/pages/skills-for-life.
Asked by: Catherine West (Labour - Hornsey and Wood Green)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his Department is taking to tackle car crime in north London.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government is committed to tackling vehicle crime. The latest estimates from the Crime Survey for England and Wales shows there were 726,000 incidents of vehicle-related theft in the year ending September 2023. This represents a 39% fall, when compared with the year ending March 2010, when there was an estimated 1,198,000 such incidents.
The Government is working closely with police and motor manufacturers through the National Vehicle Crime Working Group, chaired by ACC Jennifer Sims, the National Police Chiefs’ Council lead for vehicle crime, to take forward a programme of work to prevent and reduce vehicle crime nationally. This includes training police officers on methods used to steal vehicles, encouraging vehicle owners to secure their vehicles and working with industry to prevent theft. A network of vehicle crime leads has been established in every police force in England and Wales, ensuring forces share information about emerging trends in vehicle crime and are better able to tackle regional issues. The Metropolitan Police Service are represented on the Working Group and have an established vehicle crime lead.
We are also legislating through the Criminal Justice Bill to create two new offences where a person possesses, makes, adapts, supplies or offers to supply electronic devices where there are reasonable grounds to suspect they will be used in vehicle theft. The legislation will make it easier for police to prosecute criminals making and supplying these devices, as well as vehicle thieves.
Asked by: Catherine West (Labour - Hornsey and Wood Green)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to tackle discrepancies in entitlements for people on legacy benefits who are required to migrate to Universal Credit.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government has given a commitment that no eligible customer, notified they must claim Universal Credit (UC) by the Department for Work and Pensions, and whose circumstances remain the same, will have a lower entitlement on claiming UC than their existing entitlement to legacy benefits. To meet this commitment, eligible customers will be assessed for Transitional Protection and where necessary awarded a Transitional Element as part of their UC award.
Transitional Protections are also applied to customers who would not normally meet UC entitlement conditions. Normal UC entitlement rules of not being in full time education are disregarded for the duration of the course the customer was undertaking on claiming UC and having capital over £16,000 does not prevent entitlement for UC for 12 assessment periods.
Asked by: Catherine West (Labour - Hornsey and Wood Green)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment his Department has made of the implications for his policies of (a) financial pressures facing London local authority Housing Revenue Accounts and (b) the analysis by Savill's reported in the briefing entitled Housing Revenue Account financial pressures, published by London Councils on 15 December 2023.
Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The department has noted the analysis by Savill’s and has regular engagement with councils, including in London.
The department does not economically regulate local authority registered providers’ HRA finances but does work with local authorities and representative bodies to examine the problems that are common to all landlords, and to gain intelligence from practitioners on measures that have been taken locally, and how these might be adapted to the wider environment. Nonetheless, it is for councils to meet their statutory responsibilities to keep their homes to a safe, decent standard. The revised consumer standards and changes to the role of the Regulator of Social Housing will help to ensure that happens. Local authorities have wide discretion on how to prioritise their spending within the HRA to meet their statutory and other commitments.
The regulatory changes which come into effect on 1 April have been assessed to be affordable to the sector. Impact assessments were published for the Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023, the publication of the revised consumer standards, and for the ongoing consultation on competence and conduct requirements. All future regulatory changes, including to the Decent Homes Standard, will also be subject to consultation and impact assessment.
The impact assessment for the revised consumer standards can be found here: Annex 5: Regulatory impact assessment, and the draft impact assessment for competence and conduct requirements is available here: Annex C: Impact assessment.
Asked by: Catherine West (Labour - Hornsey and Wood Green)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment his Department has made of the feasibility of arrangements to fund the (a) training and (b) qualifications of London council staff under the Regulator for Social Housing's new regulatory regime through council Housing Revenue Accounts.
Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The department has noted the analysis by Savill’s and has regular engagement with councils, including in London.
The department does not economically regulate local authority registered providers’ HRA finances but does work with local authorities and representative bodies to examine the problems that are common to all landlords, and to gain intelligence from practitioners on measures that have been taken locally, and how these might be adapted to the wider environment. Nonetheless, it is for councils to meet their statutory responsibilities to keep their homes to a safe, decent standard. The revised consumer standards and changes to the role of the Regulator of Social Housing will help to ensure that happens. Local authorities have wide discretion on how to prioritise their spending within the HRA to meet their statutory and other commitments.
The regulatory changes which come into effect on 1 April have been assessed to be affordable to the sector. Impact assessments were published for the Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023, the publication of the revised consumer standards, and for the ongoing consultation on competence and conduct requirements. All future regulatory changes, including to the Decent Homes Standard, will also be subject to consultation and impact assessment.
The impact assessment for the revised consumer standards can be found here: Annex 5: Regulatory impact assessment, and the draft impact assessment for competence and conduct requirements is available here: Annex C: Impact assessment.
Asked by: Catherine West (Labour - Hornsey and Wood Green)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of changes to the (a) role of the Regulator of Social Housing and (b) Decent Homes Standard on London council Housing Revenue Accounts.
Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The department has noted the analysis by Savill’s and has regular engagement with councils, including in London.
The department does not economically regulate local authority registered providers’ HRA finances but does work with local authorities and representative bodies to examine the problems that are common to all landlords, and to gain intelligence from practitioners on measures that have been taken locally, and how these might be adapted to the wider environment. Nonetheless, it is for councils to meet their statutory responsibilities to keep their homes to a safe, decent standard. The revised consumer standards and changes to the role of the Regulator of Social Housing will help to ensure that happens. Local authorities have wide discretion on how to prioritise their spending within the HRA to meet their statutory and other commitments.
The regulatory changes which come into effect on 1 April have been assessed to be affordable to the sector. Impact assessments were published for the Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023, the publication of the revised consumer standards, and for the ongoing consultation on competence and conduct requirements. All future regulatory changes, including to the Decent Homes Standard, will also be subject to consultation and impact assessment.
The impact assessment for the revised consumer standards can be found here: Annex 5: Regulatory impact assessment, and the draft impact assessment for competence and conduct requirements is available here: Annex C: Impact assessment.
Asked by: Catherine West (Labour - Hornsey and Wood Green)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of amending planning rules to make it easier to install bicycle sheds in front gardens.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
We are currently consulting on changes to the householder permitted development rights to allow bin and bike stores in front gardens without the need for a planning application.
The consultation is open until 9 April 2024 and is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/changes-to-various-permitted-development-rights-consultation.
Asked by: Catherine West (Labour - Hornsey and Wood Green)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the availability of step down support in London for homeless people being discharged from hospital care.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Local systems are expected to undertake capacity and demand planning exercises for all intermediate care services, including step-down support.
We are working to ensure that people at risk of, or experiencing homelessness have a place to stay, and the right care and support to recover their health and wellbeing after leaving hospital. In January 2024 the Department published guidance on discharging people at risk of, or experiencing homelessness, to support staff involved in planning safe and supportive discharge of these patients from hospital. Furthermore, between 2020 and 2022, the Department delivered £16 million to 17 local sites, including in London, to pilot Out of Hospital Care Models to people experiencing homelessness following a hospital stay. The Department’s guidance on discharging people at risk of, or experiencing homelessness, is available at the following link: