Asked by: Margaret Mullane (Labour - Dagenham and Rainham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions his department has had with faith groups and local authorities promoting faith covenants since the Prime Minister’s commitment in June 2024.
Answered by Nesil Caliskan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
This Government recognises the value of partnership working at the local level to support communities, including between faith and belief groups and local authorities. Faith Covenants are an important example of such partnerships.
The Civil Society Covenant is a principles-based foundation for resetting the relationship between the public sector and civil society. Faith and belief groups are explicitly recognised as valued partners within the Civil Society Covenant.
The new Civil Society Council, which includes representatives from the Voluntary, Community, and Faith sectors, provides a central forum to identify opportunities for civil society to play a greater role in the design and delivery of policies and services.
Our recently launched £11.59 million Local Covenant Partnerships (LCP) Fund puts many of the Covenant’s principles into practice. The LCP Fund will invest in 15 places across England to develop innovative partnership models between civil society organisations and local public sector bodies.
Asked by: Margaret Mullane (Labour - Dagenham and Rainham)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many outstanding cases of people facing the retrospective Loan Charge she expects will be settled as a result of the McCann Review.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
I refer the Hon. Member to the answers I gave on 9 February 2026 to UINs 109841, 109843 and 109842.
Asked by: Margaret Mullane (Labour - Dagenham and Rainham)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the value-for-money to the taxpayer of the retrospective Loan Charge.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
I refer the Hon. Member to the answers I gave on 9 February 2026 to UINs 109841, 109843 and 109842.
Asked by: Margaret Mullane (Labour - Dagenham and Rainham)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what plans he has to future proof existing and new housing.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Future Homes and Buildings Standards will come into force on 24 March 2027 and there will be a further transitional period for one year afterwards to allow the construction sector to transition smoothly to the new standards.
The FHS reduces energy demand and removes reliance on the volatile gas market by using highly efficient fabric standards, low‑carbon heating such as heat pumps, and on‑site renewable electricity generation.
Moreover, as set out in the £15 billion Warm Homes Plan, consumers will benefit from the biggest public investment in home upgrades in British history, supporting millions of households up to 2030 with measures to reduce bills, and improve our energy security.
This Parliament, we also intend to introduce the most appropriate and cost-effective passive cooling measures into funding schemes focused on improving the homes of low-income consumers and social housing.
Asked by: Margaret Mullane (Labour - Dagenham and Rainham)
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 increase the jobs and skills needed in the construction and retrofit sectors to meet the delivery targets in the Warm Homes Plan.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Warm Homes Plan will support up to 180,000 additional jobs in energy efficiency and clean heating by 2030. It includes our £8 million Warm Homes Skills Programme and a £7 million Heat Training Grant already helping people gain requisite skills and qualifications.
The Plan also highlights DESNZ’s wider work to support growth, including co-chairing the Warm Homes Plan Workforce Taskforce to facilitate the transition, creation and growth of a diverse, skilled and resilient workforce for existing workers and new entrants, and working with other government departments and the industry-led Construction Skills Mission Board to accelerate workforce growth in construction.
Asked by: Margaret Mullane (Labour - Dagenham and Rainham)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what recent steps she has taken to help improve public awareness of the risks associated with using unofficial third party websites for accessing government services.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The department continues to strengthen GOV.UK as the authoritative source of online government information and services.
This includes upholding its clear and consistent identity so that users recognise and trust official content, supporting efforts to counter scams and misinformation. DSIT additionally works with the National Cyber Security Centre, Action Fraud and search engine providers to find and remove misleading websites.
Asked by: Margaret Mullane (Labour - Dagenham and Rainham)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what discussions his Department has had with internet search providers on preventing unofficial websites from presenting themselves as government service portals and charging inflated fees for services.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government Digital Service works with a number of external partners, including internet search providers, to help prevent unofficial websites from presenting themselves as government services and charging inflated fees. This includes identifying and removing misleading or imitation sites.
GDS also cooperates with organisations such as the National Cyber Security Centre and Action Fraud to support wider efforts to tackle online scams and misinformation. Responsibility for taking action against websites that imitate or unfairly charge for specific government services primarily sits with the department that owns the relevant service.
Asked by: Margaret Mullane (Labour - Dagenham and Rainham)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of the prevalence of third party websites charging for government services that are otherwise free or low cost.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
While the department has not made a formal assessment of the prevalence of third‑party websites that charge for government services which are otherwise free or low cost, it is reducing their impact through prevention, enhancing awareness and collaborating with partners.
This includes strengthening GOV.UK as a trusted and recognisable brand to help users identify official government services, and working with the National Cyber Security Centre, Action Fraud and search engine providers to find and remove misleading websites.
Responsibility for taking action against imitation websites relating to specific services primarily sits with the department that owns the service concerned.
Asked by: Margaret Mullane (Labour - Dagenham and Rainham)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of commissioning independent advice on the cost of essentials when setting the rate of the Universal Credit Standard Allowance.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government has taken important steps to improve the support available to help people with the cost of essentials. The Universal Credit Act will deliver the first sustained above inflation rise in the standard allowance of Universal Credit since it was introduced.
A Universal Credit award is made up of a standard allowance towards basic living costs, paid according to age and household unit. Additional amounts are added to provide for individual needs such as housing, disability, and childcare costs. Each household will always have different requirements depending on their circumstances.
We will continue to consider evidence and insights from a range of organisations to ensure the social security system provides the support people need.
Asked by: Margaret Mullane (Labour - Dagenham and Rainham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to support the regeneration of existing social housing stock.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement made on 28 January 2026 (HCWS1283).