To match an exact phrase, use quotation marks around the search term. eg. "Parliamentary Estate". Use "OR" or "AND" as link words to form more complex queries.


Keep yourself up-to-date with the latest developments by exploring our subscription options to receive notifications direct to your inbox

Written Question
Members: Correspondence
Monday 13th November 2023

Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, when he plans to respond to the letter of 14 August 2023 from the hon. Member for Greenwich and Woolwich, case reference 30420793.

Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)

I apologise to the Hon Member for the delay in responding to his correspondence. A response issued on 13 November 2023.


Written Question
Members: Correspondence
Monday 13th November 2023

Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, when he plans to respond to the correspondence of 16 August 2023 from the hon. Member for Greenwich and Woolwich on Union Park, Greenwich SE10.

Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)

I apologise to the Hon Member for the delay in responding to his correspondence. A response issued on 13 November 2023.


Written Question
Private Rented Housing: Safety
Tuesday 9th May 2023

Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)

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 commission a (a) review and (b) redraft of the housing health and safety rating system guidance, published on 23 August 2006.

Answered by Rachel Maclean

Reviewing and updating the HHSRS is integral to the government's commitment to ensuring that everyone has a safe and decent standard of housing free from dangerously hazardous conditions.

The review aims to streamline the process that local councils take in inspecting properties to assess hazards and, make it easier for landlords and tenants to understand the standards required, supporting increased compliance. This included reviewing the statutory Operating and Enforcement Guidance.

We will make any announcements in the usual way.


Written Question
Right to Buy Scheme: Housing Associations
Thursday 27th April 2023

Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether it remains his Department's policy to extend the voluntary Right to Buy scheme to housing association tenants.

Answered by Rachel Maclean

Details of Government spending are published on gov.uk.

We are tackling the barriers to increasing the use of modern methods of construction in the industry, giving us the potential to deliver homes cheaper and quicker, but it means we have to be joined up so that we have a sustained pipeline for these companies to be able to deliver these important new houses. Through our £11.5 billion affordable homes programme we are challenging the sector to increase the number of homes delivered through modern method of construction. Around 40% of current allocations made through the programme use modern methods of construction.

I refer the Hon Member to my answer to Question UIN 139221 on 13 February 2023.


Written Question
Housing: Construction
Thursday 27th April 2023

Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what recent assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Modern Methods of Construction Taskforce on the delivery of new homes made using modern methods of construction.

Answered by Rachel Maclean

Details of Government spending are published on gov.uk.

We are tackling the barriers to increasing the use of modern methods of construction in the industry, giving us the potential to deliver homes cheaper and quicker, but it means we have to be joined up so that we have a sustained pipeline for these companies to be able to deliver these important new houses. Through our £11.5 billion affordable homes programme we are challenging the sector to increase the number of homes delivered through modern method of construction. Around 40% of current allocations made through the programme use modern methods of construction.

I refer the Hon Member to my answer to Question UIN 139221 on 13 February 2023.


Written Question
Housing: Construction
Thursday 27th April 2023

Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how much of the £10 million of seed funding allocated to the Modern Methods of Construction Taskforce in the Budget 2021 has been spent.

Answered by Rachel Maclean

Details of Government spending are published on gov.uk.

We are tackling the barriers to increasing the use of modern methods of construction in the industry, giving us the potential to deliver homes cheaper and quicker, but it means we have to be joined up so that we have a sustained pipeline for these companies to be able to deliver these important new houses. Through our £11.5 billion affordable homes programme we are challenging the sector to increase the number of homes delivered through modern method of construction. Around 40% of current allocations made through the programme use modern methods of construction.

I refer the Hon Member to my answer to Question UIN 139221 on 13 February 2023.


Written Question
Buildings: Fire Prevention
Wednesday 19th April 2023

Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, when he plans to publish his Department's response to the Leaseholder-owned buildings (11m+ or 5 storeys+): call for evidence consultation.

Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)

We will publish a response in due course.


Written Question
High Rise Flats: Fire Prevention
Monday 17th April 2023

Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will publish a list of the housebuilders and mixed-use developers that his Department asked to sign the developer remediation contract on 30 January 2023.

Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)

On 14 March, the Government published lists of developers who had signed the contract and of developers who were invited to sign, but had yet to do so. The lists are being kept up to date.


Written Question
Housing: Insulation
Thursday 30th March 2023

Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, when he plans to launch the full medium-rise scheme to provide funding to remediate or mitigate unsafe external wall systems on buildings between 11 to 18m in height where the developer of a building cannot be traced or identified.

Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave to Question UIN 170716 on 29 March 2023.


Written Question
Property Management Companies
Wednesday 29th March 2023

Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that resident directors in charge of Right-to-Manage companies and Resident Management Companies who do not wish to exercise the option of appointing a building safety director will be able to secure insurance cover against the new liabilities arising from Part 4 of the Building Safety Act 2022.

Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)

As set out by Dame Judith Hackitt in 2018, in her Building a Safer Future report, 'A step change is…needed to place greater demands on the new duty holder to manage building safety effectively.' Following the Building Safety Act gaining Royal Assent in 2022, the Building Safety Regulator will make guidance available to accountable persons to assist them in complying with their new duties and/or requirements under Part 4 of the Act.

Insurers make individual decisions on whether to offer insurance products and the associated premiums based on a range of factors. We will continue to work with the insurance industry to help them understand the roles and duties in the Building Safety Act 2022 (the Act) and encourage them to provide appropriate cover that is priced fairly and in the best interest of their customers.