Asked by: Mike Amesbury (Independent - Runcorn and Helsby)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what her planned timetable is for extending the voting franchise to 16 and 17 year olds.
Answered by Rushanara Ali - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government is committed to delivering on the manifesto commitment to give 16- and 17-year-olds the right to vote in all elections during this Parliament, strengthening our democracy, empowering young people to participate and building an informed and empowered electorate.
Asked by: Mike Amesbury (Independent - Runcorn and Helsby)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to introduce multi-year Local Government Finance Settlements.
Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer to Question HL3336 on 20 December 2024.
Asked by: Mike Amesbury (Independent - Runcorn and Helsby)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023 in tackling instances of damp in social housing stock.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
All homes should be safe, decent, and warm. The government is committed to introducing Awaab’s Law to the social rented sector as soon as possible. Awaab’s Law forms part of the Social Housing Regulation Act and will set new time limits for social landlords to fix dangerous hazards, including damp and mold. Once regulations are in force, all social landlords will have to comply with the requirements of Awaab’s Law. If they do not, residents will be able to hold their social landlords to account by taking legal action through the courts or seeking redress through the Housing Ombudsman Service.
All registered providers of social housing are also required to deliver the outcomes of the regulatory standards set by the independent Regulator of Social Housing. Under the Safety and Quality Standard, landlords must take all reasonable steps to ensure the health and safety of tenants in their homes and provide an effective and timely repairs service for the homes for which they are responsible. As part of the new consumer regime facilitated by the Social Housing (Regulation) Act, the Regulator has begun carrying out regular inspections of large landlords to seek evidence they are delivering the outcomes of the standards.
Asked by: Mike Amesbury (Independent - Runcorn and Helsby)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of introducing a default housing first model in the Government's long-term housing plan.
Answered by Rushanara Ali - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
MHCLG funded pilots to test, at scale, if this type of intervention can be successful in supporting our most entrenched rough sleepers in the English context. The evaluation of the pilots was published in October 2024 here: Housing First Pilot: national evaluation reports - GOV.UK.
The Deputy Prime Minister is leading cross-government work to develop a strategy to deliver the long-term solutions we need to get us back on track to ending all forms of homelessness. Work to develop the strategy also includes working with representatives from across the homelessness and rough sleeping sector, local and combined authorities and wider experts to assess what is working well nationally and locally and where improvements are needed.
Asked by: Mike Amesbury (Independent - Runcorn and Helsby)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to her Department's policy paper entitled, Joint plan to accelerate developer-led remediation and improve resident experience, last updated 13 January 2025, whether Avant Homes has been asked to sign the developer remediation contract.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Yes. Viva Midco Limited, parent company of Avant Homes, was invited to and signed the developer remediation contract.
Asked by: Mike Amesbury (Independent - Runcorn and Helsby)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to paragraph 3 of her Department's Joint plan to accelerate developer-led remediation and improve resident experience, published on 02 December 2024, what steps her Department plans to take to review the accuracy of previous assessments where a fire engineer has been suspended by a professional fire engineering body.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer to Question UIN 21355 on 10 January 2025.
Asked by: Mike Amesbury (Independent - Runcorn and Helsby)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to paragraph 3d of her Department's policy paper entitled Joint plan to accelerate developer-led remediation and improve resident experience, published on 02 December 2024, when her Department will begin publishing developer performance against audits; and if the Department will report retrospectively on audits carried out since the commencement of the Developer Remediation Contract in April 2023.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon Member to the answer give to Question UIN 20246 on 20 December 2024.
Asked by: Mike Amesbury (Independent - Runcorn and Helsby)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to paragraph 2h of her Department's policy paper entitled Joint plan to accelerate developer-led remediation and improve resident experience, published on 2 December 2024, what the target date is for the draft guidance on Alternative Dispute Resolution to be published in final form, and whether it will be optional for developers and building owners to participate in ADR.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 20707 on 20 December 2024.
Asked by: Mike Amesbury (Independent - Runcorn and Helsby)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of taking into account Carers allowance in the calculation of state pensions.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The new State Pension was introduced in 2016 and improves State Pension outcomes for many people, including carers. When in receipt of Carer’s Allowance, a person also receives a National Insurance credit, which counts towards a person's State Pension entitlement.
Carers who do not get Carer's Allowance are able to apply for Carer's Credits if they are caring for one or more disabled people for at least 20 hours a week. Carer’s Credits also count towards a person’s State Pension entitlement.
Under the new State Pension, National Insurance Contributions and National Insurance Credits have equal value, providing access to the same level of entitlement for all.
Asked by: Mike Amesbury (Independent - Runcorn and Helsby)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of paying carers allowance beyond State Pension age.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
I refer the honourable member to the answer I gave on 14 October 2024 to question UIN 6904.