Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question
To ask the Chairman of the Public Accounts Commission, what assessment the National Audit Office has made of the adequacy of local authority audit in (a) Wales, (b) Scotland and (c) Northern Ireland.
Answered by Clive Efford
The National Audit Office has not assessed the adequacy of local authority audit in Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland. The audit of such bodies is conducted under devolved audit arrangements in accordance with relevant statute, and the NAO has no remit to assess its adequacy.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 28 April 2025 to Question 44492 on Business Rates: Tax Allowances, if she will list the special category codes for the types of hereditaments whose valuation is assessed (a) in whole and (b) in part on a consideration of the receipts and expenditure of the property.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Special category codes (SCAT) identify the type of property, not the valuation methodology adopted. They cannot be used to identify the valuation method because for some property types a receipts and expenditure, contractor’s or rental comparison methods may all have been used.
The valuation methods used for different property types are set out on gov.uk here: Business Rates – Valuation Office Agency
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will set out the the policy of the Valuation Office Agency on amending the valuation of (a) schools and (b) hospitals following the installation of rooftop solar panels.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) applies the law as it stands when valuing domestic and non-domestic properties.
In relation to solar panels, the legal position is set out in the Rating Manual, which is published on gov.uk: Section 5a: valuation of all property classes - Power generators - Guidance - GOV.UK, in particular Appendix 1: rateability of microgeneration schemes refers.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will publish the Valuation Office Agency presentation entitled Use of AVMs – Council Tax revaluation in Wales, given at the Conference of Valuation Agencies in October 2024.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Information about how the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) uses model assisted valuation and mass appraisal to support large-scale valuation is available on GOV.UK: How model assisted valuation delivers large-scale property valuations - GOV.UK.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to page 25 of the Valuation Office Agency's document entitled Annual Report and Accounts 2024-25, published on 17 July 2025, if she will publish the training manual for the Valuation Operating System for council tax.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The training material the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) has produced on the Valuation Operating System is for internal staff use only.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of removing the separate eligibility criteria for children under three for the Blue Badge scheme.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Since 17 June 2011, children under the age of three have been eligible for a Blue Badge if they fall under either or both of the following criteria:
(a) a child who, because of a condition, must always be accompanied by bulky medical equipment which cannot be carried around with the child without great difficulty
(b) a child who, because of a condition, must always be kept near a motor vehicle so that, if necessary, treatment for that condition can be given in the vehicle or the child can be taken quickly in the vehicle to a place where such treatment can be given
Whilst the Department recommends that local authorities treat each application for children under the age of three as a special case, it does not consider that there is a compelling case for giving automatic Blue Badge eligibility to disabled children below the age of three who do not meet the above criteria. In most cases, they could reasonably be carried in a pram or pushchair, in much the same way as able-bodied children of a similar age.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of asylum seekers on the safeguarding of children and young people.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
All those who claim asylum undergo a series of security checks against immigration and police databases and are screened to identify individuals who may have been involved in criminality both in the UK and outside the UK or are of national security interest. Further information regarding security checks during the asylum screening process is available in published policy guidance on GOV.UK at: Screening and routing.docx (publishing.service.gov.uk).
The Home Office takes the safety and welfare of all children extremely seriously and protecting vulnerable people is a cross-cutting departmental priority. Officials are constantly alert to any signs that a child is at risk of harm or abuse or may have been trafficked.
The Home Office keeps all aspects of the immigration system under regular review, in consultation with a wide range of experts and stakeholders.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 21 March 2025 to Question 38045 on Councillors: Planning, if she will make it her policy to require the Mayor of London to undertake the same compulsory training on planning that will be required of councillors on a planning committee.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
As set out in the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, it is the intention that mayors will be required to undertake mandatory training.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the correspondence of July 2025 from the Leader of Kent County Council on visas for social care workers from overseas, if she will publish her Department's response to Kent County Council.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Government does not routinely publish Ministerial correspondence.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of accommodating asylum seekers with unknown or unverifiable criminal histories on public safety.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office has a legal obligation to accommodate asylum seekers where they would otherwise be destitute. All asylum seekers undergo checks against policing and immigration databases.
Decisions on allocation of asylum seekers to accommodation are made with case-by-case consideration of an individual’s circumstances and needs, in line with published policy. Safeguarding and welfare remain a priority, and the Home Office works closely with statutory partners where required.