Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps he is taking to ensure councils distribute council tax rebates to student households.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - Leader of HM Official Opposition
Despite being exempt from council tax, student households living in eligible properties should receive the council tax rebate in the same way as other households that do not pay council tax by direct debit. My department has issued guidance and FAQs on the delivery of the rebate and has discussed the particular issues related to student households with councils that have large student populations.
Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what legislative steps he is taking to progress leasehold reform.
Answered by Eddie Hughes
This Government is committed to creating a fair and just housing system that works for everyone.
We have already made great strides with the Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Act 2022, which will come into force from 30 June. The leasehold measures in our Building Safety Act will come into force tomorrow meaning that for the first time, qualifying leaseholders in buildings above 11 metres or with at least five storeys will be legally protected from extortionate building safety costs.
In the next Parliamentary Session, we will legislate to reform the leasehold and commonhold systems, helping millions of households genuinely to own their own home.
Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how much and what proportion of the £144 million discretionary fund provided to local authorities to tackle the rise in energy bills has been disbursed to students as of 25 May 2022.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - Leader of HM Official Opposition
Students that were living in a property in council tax bands A – D on 1 April 2022 are eligible for the main council tax rebate, aside from those living in student halls. Any student that is impacted by rising energy costs can apply to their local council for discretionary support. My Department does not hold data on the characteristics of households benefiting from discretionary support.
Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how much has been spent from the public purse on advertisements in the Guardian newspaper related to levelling up.
Answered by Neil O'Brien - Shadow Minister (Policy Renewal and Development)
There has been no spend in these publications in relation to levelling up. The full campaign expenditure will be published in due course, as part of the departments routine transparency commitments.
Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how much has been spent from the public purse on advertisements in The Telegraph newspaper related to levelling up.
Answered by Neil O'Brien - Shadow Minister (Policy Renewal and Development)
There has been no spend in these publications in relation to levelling up. The full campaign expenditure will be published in due course, as part of the departments routine transparency commitments.
Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how much has been spent from the public purse on advertisements in The Times newspaper related to levelling up.
Answered by Neil O'Brien - Shadow Minister (Policy Renewal and Development)
There has been no spend in these publications in relation to levelling up. The full campaign expenditure will be published in due course, as part of the departments routine transparency commitments.
Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how much has been spent from the public purse on advertisements in the Evening Standard newspaper related to levelling up.
Answered by Neil O'Brien - Shadow Minister (Policy Renewal and Development)
There has been no spend in these publications in relation to levelling up. The full campaign expenditure will be published in due course, as part of the departments routine transparency commitments.