Joe Powell

While the Government remains committed to enhancing transparency in relation to trusts within the Register of Overseas entities (ROE), we must carefully consider the privacy risks that come with it. The government will be laying regulations in due course to allow applications to be made for public access to unpublished trust information on the ROE in circumstances to be specified in the regulations. We are also currently reviewing responses to the public consultation on Transparency of Land Ownership Involving Trusts which provided a range of views and perspectives.

The responsibility for the interrelated areas of open government and open data is currently held in the Central Digital and Data Office (CDDO). However, as part of a Machinery of Government change to create the Digital Centre of Government, CDDO has moved into the Department for Science Innovation and Technology (DSIT) from the Cabinet Office. The ongoing work to design the digital centre will assess the suitability of the current arrangement and make recommendations for the future responsibility for the delivery of the principles of Open Government and the National Action Plan for Open Government and inform the Ministerial lead for the UK’s seat on the Open Government Partnership Steering Committee.

In line with our Safer Streets Mission, the Online Safety Act brings much needed protections to the online world by protecting children from harmful and age-inappropriate content, tackling violence against women and girls, and taking down criminal activity. The new laws apply to search services and all companies that allow users to share and post content online or interact with each other, even if the companies providing them are outside the UK.

The conclusions of the Joint Ministerial Council will be published through a communiqué jointly agreed by the UK and the Overseas Territories. We will also make a Written Ministerial Statement.

The UK has a long-standing commitment to the protection of human rights. We are committed to Freedom of Religion or Belief for all. In July, the Foreign Secretary and I raised concerns publicly and privately about the unprecedented levels of violence and we urged for a de-escalation of the situation. The Interim Government in Bangladesh has the UK's full support as it works to restore peace and order. We welcome the Chief Advisor's recent comments on the need to support minority communities in Bangladesh, particularly in the lead up to Durga Puja.

The UK remains concerned at the increased number of detentions of independent journalists, human rights defenders and civil society representatives over the last year, and we continue to urge Azerbaijan to improve human rights protections for all its citizens; Azerbaijan's hosting of COP29 in November provides the country with an opportunity to demonstrate meaningful action in this regard. The UK has consistently called on Azerbaijan to ensure that those in detention are afforded a fair trial and are provided safe conditions, in accordance with Azerbaijan's international obligations and commitments. British Embassy Baku regularly raises these issues with the Azerbaijani authorities at senior levels.

On 9 October, I [Minister Doughty] made clear to Georgian Foreign Minister Ilia Darchiashvili that Georgia's parliamentary elections must be held in accordance with international democratic standards. We have allocated £500,000 to support independent election monitoring in Georgia. The funding will enable the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) election observation mission and Georgian civil society groups to effectively monitor 26 October's parliamentary elections.

We are appointing a fixed-term Covid Fraud Commissioner through an open competition that is running now. The Commissioner will make sure that everything is done to return the money owed to the public purse, with a primary focus on pandemic PPE contracts. The Commissioner will report to the Chancellor, working with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, and their report will be presented to Parliament for all Members to see.

The Government intend to act quickly to provide homeowners with greater rights, powers, and protections over their homes by implementing the provisions of the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024. These include the provisions at Sections 49 and 64 of the Act. We will set out details in due course about the extensive programme of secondary legislation needed to bring the Act into force.

The Government intend to act quickly to provide homeowners with greater rights, powers, and protections over their homes by implementing the provisions of the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024. These include the provisions at Sections 49 and 64 of the Act. We will set out details in due course about the extensive programme of secondary legislation needed to bring the Act into force.

Over the course of this Parliament, the Government will further reform the leasehold system. We will enact remaining Law Commission recommendations relating to enfranchisement and the Right to Manage, tackle unregulated and unaffordable ground rents, reinvigorate commonhold through a comprehensive new legal framework, and ban the sale of new leasehold flats so commonhold becomes the default tenure.

The Government has made clear it intends to publish draft legislation on leasehold and commonhold reform in this session so that it may be subject to broad consultation and additional parliamentary scrutiny. We will announce further details in due course.