Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what guidance his Department issues on the financial support available to (a) councils and (b) private tenants whose buildings were built with reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete and now need remedial work.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
Building standards are a devolved matter, it is for the Scottish Government to determine the action that should be taken on affected buildings in Scotland. In England, building owners are responsible for ensuring their buildings are safe and should act quickly to fix any dangerous defects.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department plans to provide financial support for (a) councils and (b) private tenants whose buildings were built with reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete and now need remedial work.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
Building standards are a devolved matter, it is for the Scottish Government to determine the action that should be taken on affected buildings in Scotland. In England, building owners are responsible for ensuring their buildings are safe and should act quickly to fix any dangerous defects.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will take steps to encourage the prioritisation of retrofitting over demolition and rebuilding for (a) public buildings, (b) high-rise flats and (c) other public housing.
Answered by Lucy Frazer - Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
It is important to find the right balance between demolition and retrofitting of buildings to enable sustainable development.
We believe that consideration of the prioritisation allotted to retrofit compared to demolition is best addressed through a holistic review of national planning policy as part of our programme of changes to the planning system. We have also committed to consulting this year on our approach to measurement and reduction of embodied carbon in new buildings.
Planning is a devolved power, so it is up to each individual Administration to decide how they wish to develop policy in these areas.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how many times the (a) webpage hosting the Model Tenancy Agreement has been visited and (b) Model Tenancy Agreement has been downloaded since 28 January 2021.
Answered by Eddie Hughes
Since 28 January 2021, The Model Tenancy Agreement webpage has received 169,679 page views. In the same timeframe, there have been 92,108 downloads of the online version of the document, and 61,390 downloads of the print version.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what discussions he has had with representatives of local authorities to help ensure that pets are not a barrier to domestic abuse survivors accessing temporary accommodation.
Answered by Eddie Hughes
It is absolutely critical that victims of domestic abuse get support and especially when they are in housing need. That is why we legislated through the Domestic Abuse Act to give people who are homeless as a result of being a victim of domestic abuse priority need for accommodation. Housing authorities should be sensitive to the importance of pets to applicants, particularly rough sleepers and domestic abuse survivors who may rely on pets for companionship. Although it will not always be possible to make provision for pets in temporary accommodation, housing authorities should give careful consideration to this aspect when making provision for applicants who wish to retain their pet.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
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 help ensure that people fleeing domestic abuse with a pet are given the support they need to find suitable and safe accommodation.
Answered by Eddie Hughes
Victims of domestic abuse with pets can face additional barriers to leaving an abusive relationship. Under the new statutory duties in the Domestic Abuse Act which came into force on 1 October 2021, local authorities must provide support for all victims of domestic abuse within safe accommodation when they need it. This includes victims who have a pet.
Associated regulations provide clear definitions of safe accommodation under the duty. This includes dispersed, self-contained accommodation, and sanctuary schemes in which the victim’s own home is made safe. Local authorities can refer to the regulations to help them provide support in safe accommodation suitable for victims with pets fleeing domestic abuse.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will meet with local authority leaders in Manchester to discuss the proportion of people who have been newly housed in temporary accommodation under the emergency housing measures in response to covid-19 who have left or been evicted from that accommodation; and if he will make an assessment of the reasons for those evictions.
Answered by Luke Hall - Minister of State (Education)
Over 90 per cent of those on the streets?at the beginning of the crisis?known to local authorities have now been made offers of safe accommodation, ensuring some of the most vulnerable in society are protected from the pandemic. This includes those rough sleeping or who have been living in accommodation with communal sleeping spaces such as night shelters.
On 2 May, Dame Louise Casey was appointed to spearhead a Taskforce to lead the next phase of the Government’s response for rough sleepers during this pandemic. The Taskforce will work hand-in-hand with councils across the country on plans to ensure rough sleepers can move into long-term, safe accommodation once the immediate crisis is over – ensuring as few people as possible return to life on the streets. The taskforce will also ensure the thousands of rough sleepers now in accommodation continue to receive the physical and mental health support they need over the coming weeks while they continue to self-isolate from the virus.
Ministers have regular teleconferences to discuss emerging issues with all local authorities, and Ministers have spoken regularly to the Mayor of Greater Manchester throughout the pandemic.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps the Government is taking to support people with alcohol and other drug problems who have been newly housed in temporary accommodation under the emergency housing measures in response to covid-19; and what plans his Department has to manage this group when the lockdown is eased and lifted.
Answered by Luke Hall - Minister of State (Education)
Over 90 per cent of those on the streets?at the beginning of the crisis?known to local authorities have now been made offers of safe accommodation. We know that this includes people with substance misuse and mental health needs.
Local authorities?are responsible for assessing local need and commissioning alcohol and drug services and this includes providing services for people who have been supported into emergency accommodation sites.?Most local authorities are using their existing locally commissioned drug and alcohol treatment services to provide this support, including harm reduction, prescribing services and managing related health issues like alcohol withdrawal. They are also drawing on wider NHS services to provide mental and physical health support.
The Government recognises the significant steps local authorities have taken to deliver this work. On top of the initial £3.2 million to support rough sleepers, the Government has now announced £3.2 billion in funding for local authorities to help them meet the pressures caused by COVID-19 and to support vulnerable people, which can be used to provide drug and alcohol services.
In addition, and backed by funding from MHCLG through the 2020/21 Rough Sleeping programme, a pan-London substance misuse team has been commissioned by the City of London on behalf of the Greater London Authority to provide additional drug and alcohol treatment support in the hotels. This supplements local authority-level responses from alcohol and drug treatment.? We are also working closely with local authorities, accommodation and support providers to ensure that they have guidance on how best to support people.
Public Health England (PHE)?has published?guidance to assist commissioners, managers and staff in addressing coronavirus and associated disease (COVID-19), in drug and alcohol services, which can be found here:?https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-for-commissioners-and-providers-of-services-for-people-who-use-drugs-or-alcohol
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans he has to introduce (a) standards and (b) regulations to replace the EU Directive on the energy performance of buildings after the transition period.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
There are no plans at this time to repeal the legislation which transposed the requirements of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 3 March 2020 to Question 20016 on Housing: Carbon Emissions, whether his Department holds information on carbon emissions target data relating to Scotland.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
Building Regulations are a devolved matter in the United Kingdom. Details of Scotland’s Building Regulations, including target carbon dioxide emissions levels, are available online at: https://www.gov.scot/policies/building-standards/.