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Written Question
Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities: Defamation
Thursday 14th March 2024

Asked by: Florence Eshalomi (Labour (Co-op) - Vauxhall)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to paragraphs 7.16 and 7.17 of the Ministerial Code, on how many occasions Ministers in his Department have informed the Law Officers that they are the defendants in a libel action in (a) their personal capacity, (b) their official position and (c) both since 19 December 2019.

Answered by Simon Hoare - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

I refer the Hon Member to paragraph 2.13 of the Ministerial Code which states: “The fact that the Law Officers have advised or have not advised and the content of their advice must not be disclosed outside Government without their authority”.


Written Question
Local Government: Assets
Monday 22nd January 2024

Asked by: Florence Eshalomi (Labour (Co-op) - Vauxhall)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to his Department’s call for views on new local authority capital flexibilities published on 19 December 2023, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of the listed options in that publication on sales of local authority assets that are not classified under IAS 40.

Answered by Simon Hoare - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

The Government does not collect data on individual local authority assets, including investment assets. Details of these assets should be held locally by councils.


Written Question
Local Government Finance
Monday 22nd January 2024

Asked by: Florence Eshalomi (Labour (Co-op) - Vauxhall)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to his Department’s call for views on new local authority capital flexibilities, published on 19 December 2023, if he will publish a list of investment properties valued at an estimated £23.2 billion.

Answered by Simon Hoare - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

The Government does not collect data on individual local authority assets, including investment assets. Details of these assets should be held locally by councils.


Written Question
Evictions
Monday 17th April 2023

Asked by: Florence Eshalomi (Labour (Co-op) - Vauxhall)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department has conducted an impact assessment in respect of making behaviour capable of causing nuisance or annoyance a ground for eviction in the Anti-Social Behaviour Action Plan.

Answered by Rachel Maclean

The Government is committed to abolishing Section 21, so called 'no fault' evictions, which will make tenants significantly more secure in their homes. Landlords will always need a reason to evict a tenant and should be prepared to evidence this in court. To ensure that landlords can gain possession when reasonable, we will strengthen the grounds for possession.

We will introduce a Renters Reform Bill in this parliament and a full impact assessment will be published alongside the Bill.

Of course, owning a musical instrument, or playing one at normal volume during appropriate hours, is not in of itself a ground for eviction.


Written Question
Evictions
Monday 17th April 2023

Asked by: Florence Eshalomi (Labour (Co-op) - Vauxhall)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether it is his Department's policy that operation of a musical instrument at reasonable hours would be a ground for eviction as a behaviour capable of causing nuisance or annoyance in the Anti-Social Behaviour Action Plan.

Answered by Rachel Maclean

The Government is committed to abolishing Section 21, so called 'no fault' evictions, which will make tenants significantly more secure in their homes. Landlords will always need a reason to evict a tenant and should be prepared to evidence this in court. To ensure that landlords can gain possession when reasonable, we will strengthen the grounds for possession.

We will introduce a Renters Reform Bill in this parliament and a full impact assessment will be published alongside the Bill.

Of course, owning a musical instrument, or playing one at normal volume during appropriate hours, is not in of itself a ground for eviction.


Written Question
Evictions
Monday 17th April 2023

Asked by: Florence Eshalomi (Labour (Co-op) - Vauxhall)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether it is his Department's policy that possession of a musical instrument would be a ground for eviction as a behaviour capable of causing nuisance or annoyance in the Anti-Social Behaviour Action Plan.

Answered by Rachel Maclean

The Government is committed to abolishing Section 21, so called 'no fault' evictions, which will make tenants significantly more secure in their homes. Landlords will always need a reason to evict a tenant and should be prepared to evidence this in court. To ensure that landlords can gain possession when reasonable, we will strengthen the grounds for possession.

We will introduce a Renters Reform Bill in this parliament and a full impact assessment will be published alongside the Bill.

Of course, owning a musical instrument, or playing one at normal volume during appropriate hours, is not in of itself a ground for eviction.


Written Question
Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities: Location
Tuesday 15th November 2022

Asked by: Florence Eshalomi (Labour (Co-op) - Vauxhall)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if they will publish the payments made to officials in their Department for relocation to government offices outside London in 2021.

Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)

The Government is committed to Places for Growth. This policy is intended to help address the imbalance of public sector roles throughout the UK and to boost local economic growth, outside of London and the South East. The intention is to build more sustainable career paths for civil servants, including senior officials, outside of London. To achieve these ends some relocations are required. A total of £37,429 was paid for costs incurred in relocating outside London.


Written Question
Housing: Fire Prevention
Wednesday 12th October 2022

Asked by: Florence Eshalomi (Labour (Co-op) - Vauxhall)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, when the full unsafe building remediation contract between his Department and participating developers, which was due to be finalised on 10 August, will be published.

Answered by Paul Scully

The Government published a draft of the developer remediation contract on 13 July 2022 and has since received comments and held discussions on the draft with various parties. We are currently working with developers and other stakeholders to finalise the terms of the contract and we will publish the final form of the contract as soon as possible.


Written Question
Social Rented Housing: Standards
Monday 16th May 2022

Asked by: Florence Eshalomi (Labour (Co-op) - Vauxhall)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps he is taking to help improve standards in the social rental sector.

Answered by Eddie Hughes

This Government has set an ambitious mission to halve the number of non-decent homes and drive up standards in all rented sectors by 2030 - with the biggest improvements in the lowest-performing areas.

I was delighted that the Queen's Speech confirmed we will bring forward a Social Housing Regulation Bill.

The Bill will create a strong and proactive consumer regulation regime that will drive up standards in social housing and help tenants and the Regulator hold landlords to account.


Written Question
High Rise Flats: House Insurance
Wednesday 2nd February 2022

Asked by: Florence Eshalomi (Labour (Co-op) - Vauxhall)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps the Government is taking to reduce the increase in buildings insurance premiums for leaseholders in residential blocks as a result of building safety concerns.

Answered by Christopher Pincher

The Government is aware that some buildings are currently unable to secure adequate, affordable building insurance. On the 28 January, I called on the FCA and the CMA to conduct a review of the buildings insurance market to review buildings insurance premiums for people living in medium and high rise blocks of flats. In his oral statement on the 10 January, the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities noted Lord Greenhalgh’s intention to work with insurers on new industry-led approaches that bring down the premiums facing leaseholders. Lord Greenhalgh has written to the Association of British Insurers, encouraging them to investigate the possibility of an industry-led risk pool with their members.