Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking with Cabinet colleagues to strengthen communities in the aftermath of the recent riots.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government has made £15 million available to the places most severely affected by disorder through the Community Recovery Fund to support the immediate recovery. Officials from my department have also carried out an extensive engagement process with these places to understand the underlying causes of the unrest.
The disorder that affected communities across the UK following the Southport tragedy this summer has made clear that a new approach to community cohesion is urgently needed. This is a priority for the Government and I have stood up a cross-government Communities & Recovery Steering Group to oversee this work.
We are listening to communities across the country to understand the challenges they face and this will inform how this government works to empower communities and build greater cohesion.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he is taking steps to use maritime spatial planning to identify areas with high potential for the development of offshore wind energy.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
In October 2024, the UK, Scottish and Welsh governments jointly commissioned the NESO to produce a Strategic Spatial Energy Plan (SSEP) for Great Britain. This more strategic approach to planning will help accelerate the government’s clean energy superpower mission, including through the development of offshore wind.
This first SSEP will cover infrastructure for power generation, including offshore generation in Great British waters, so that the government can create a more efficient electricity network and reduce waiting times for generation projects to connect to the grid. This will move to a whole energy system plan in future iterations.
The SSEP will sit alongside the existing Marine Spatial Prioritisation programme, as well as wider planning reform, whilst respecting devolved competencies.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking to support job creation in the renewable energy sector.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Our recently announced Clean Industry Bonus will help to drive investment in our heartland and coastal communities, and in cleaner supply chains – creating economic opportunities in the supply chains of the future. We have also set up the Office for Clean Energy Jobs, which will work closely with businesses and unions to map skills needs and ensure we have the workforce needed to take advantage of the clean energy transition.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether entitlement to a defined benefit occupational pension affects entitlement to Universal Credit if that pension is not drawn.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
It has been a long-standing policy of successive governments to encourage people to save for their retirement. Universal Credit is a means-tested benefit and takes occupational and personal pensions into account when the customer receives that income under the scheme rules.
Where someone reaches the age where Pension Credit is payable, the pension may be treated as available under the long-standing notional income rules. This means that a notional income is taken into account which has the effect of reducing the award of Universal Credit.
Means-tested benefits are paid for out of general taxation, and it is only right that a customer avails themselves of their own financial resources before relying on benefits. These rules provide a fair balance between the needs of the customer and the taxpayer who pays for the cost of means-tested benefits.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will take steps to improve the effectiveness of data collection from mobile phones by the police in relation to crime.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Digital Forensics Programme (DFP) scopes, develops and delivers innovative solutions to ensure policing can use high quality technology to tackle the rising volumes of digital forensics work, including forensic examinations of mobile phones, more efficiently.
We have allocated up to £13m to forensics in 2024/25 to help forces access, develop, and deliver more integrated, sustainable and efficient forensic services, improve various aspects of the investigatory process, speed up the time it takes the police to analyse data, including data from mobile phones, and enhance the victim experience.
The Government intends to consult on a new National Centre of Policing to bring together crucial support services, including forensics, that local police forces can draw upon, to raise standards, and improve efficiency.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she has taken to communicate the recent changes to the Right to Buy scheme to eligible social housing tenants.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government made clear in its manifesto that it intended to review the increased right to buy discounts introduced in 2012 and reiterated this in a Written Ministerial Statement on 30 July. The Right to Buy discounts review was published alongside the Budget on 30 October, and we announced that discounts would reduce to between £16,000 and £38,000 (varying by region).
We have taken a number of steps to communicate this announcement to social landlords and tenants. We wrote to both councils and registered providers through the National Housing Federation. We ensured the government’s helpline, the Right to Buy Agent Service, immediately had the new information. We also updated all relevant online materials, including the Right to Buy summary booklet, and the guidance documents that we provide for both tenants and landlords.
All the documents explained that the changes would come into force on 21 November, whilst making it clear that applications received by social landlords from eligible tenants before 21 November 2024 would be eligible for the previous maximum cash discounts. We also released press notices highlighting the discount changes and the timeframe for their implementation.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps his Department has taken to help support (a) people with dementia and (b) their carers.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England has recently refreshed the RightCare Dementia Scenario. This sets out best practice for supporting people with dementia. NHS England has also funded an evidence-based improvement project to fund two trusts in each region, 14 sites in total, to pilot the Diagnosing Advanced Dementia Mandate tool to improve the diagnosis of dementia and the provision of support in care homes. All pilots completed at the end of May 2024, and it is anticipated that learning will be shared in early 2025. The Government is investing in dementia research across all areas, from causes, diagnosis, and prevention, to treatment, and care and support, including for carers.
The Government is committed to ensuring that both the person with dementia and their family have the support that they need. In April 2025, the Government will increase the Carer's Allowance weekly earnings limit from £151 a week to £196, the equivalent of 16 hours at the National Living Wage. This represents the largest increase in the earnings limit since Carer’s Allowance was introduced in 1976. It means carers can earn up to £10,000 a year whilst still retaining Carer's Allowance, which is approximately an additional £2,000 a year.
On 28 November 2024, the Government also announced that the Accelerating Reform Fund's (ARF) second tranche of funding worth £22.6 million will shortly be released for 2024/25. More than half of the ARF projects, and at least one in each integrated care system area, are focussed on identifying, recognising, and supporting unpaid carers.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Business and Trade on the potential impact of a tax on tourism.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
We have no plans to introduce a tax on tourism.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of incentivising people serving non-violent custodial sentences to undertake more community service work.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Prisoners serving non-violent custodial sentences currently can access community service work through Release on Temporary Licence (ROTL) during the custodial element of their sentence. Prisoners are eligible to be considered for ROTL once they have served at least half of the custodial element of their sentence, provided they are within two years of release, or once they transfer to an open prison.
ROTL is an important rehabilitation tool which allows prisoners to participate in activities in the community which have been identified as serving a particular purpose in meeting their individual resettlement objectives. Suitable, risk assessed prisoners may be allowed out during the day to, for example: work, attend college, attend an interview or maintain/re-establish links with their family. This helps them develop responsibility and gain valuable skills so that they can turn their lives around upon leaving prison.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to paragraph 2.72 of the Autumn Budget 2024, HC 295, what assessment she has made of the potential impact on social care of a £600 million investment.
Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
This Government recognises the pressures on councils delivering social care services. Including the £600 million of new grant funding announced at the Autumn Budget, the Government is providing over £10 billion in 2025-26 Settlement funding for social care through the Market Sustainability and Improvement Fund (MSIF), the Better Care Fund (including discharge funding), Social Care Grant, Children’s Social Care Prevention Grant and Children and Families Grant.
This funding, alongside income from unringfenced sources including council tax, can be used to address the range of pressures facing the social care sector. We provided more information on funding for local government in the Policy Statement published on 28 November, and further details will be included in the provisional Local Government Finance Settlement.