Asked by: Paul Davies (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of amending the Housing Act 1996 to help protect people living with HIV from housing discrimination.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
All people diagnosed with HIV are already afforded the full protections from discrimination relating to the provision of housing or services under the Equality Act 2010. Landlords and agents may not victimise or discriminate against a person based on their HIV status in relation to the offer of a tenancy, the terms on which a tenancy is offered, or in their general treatment in relation to the letting process.
Asked by: Paul Davies (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department considers people living with HIV to have a priority need for housing.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Local authorities are required to give ‘reasonable preference’ (priority) for social housing to people who need to move on medical or welfare grounds. This includes people with chronic or progressive medical conditions such as HIV.
Asked by: Paul Davies (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to accelerate the existing work to (a) proactively identify and (b) make available voting solutions for (i) blind and (ii) partially sighted people.
Answered by Rushanara Ali - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Elections Act 2022 sets out requirements for the Returning Officers who run elections to consider and provide support for electors with all forms of disability, including those with varying degrees of sight loss. The Tactile Voting Device designed to assist voters with sight loss has been in use since 2001, which the Government understands has worked well for some, and a variety of options including use of magnifiers, digital reading applications and audio are used by electors with differing preferences. We are working with the members of the Accessibility of Elections Working Group, drawn from organisations supporting and representing disabled people – including RNIB and others such as Mencap – alongside electoral administrators and the Electoral Commission, which provides statutory guidance on this matter, to identify and promote further options for disabled voters. We will continue to consider developments internationally and work closely with these organisations and the elections sector to support Returning Officers to provide solutions for all disabled electors, including those with sight loss, to take part in the democratic process.
Asked by: Paul Davies (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to help tackle delays due to financial infeasibility in an increasing number of (a) social and (b) council house building projects.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government has committed to delivering the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation.
On 30 July we announced a number of changes in planning policy designed to support the delivery of affordable homes and also confirmed a range of new flexibilities for councils and housing associations, both within the Affordable Homes Programme and in relation to how councils can use their Right to Buy receipts.
At this week’s Budget, the Chancellor will set out details of an immediate one year cash injection of £500 million to top up the existing Affordable Homes Programme which will deliver up to 5,000 new social and affordable homes. This comes ahead of the multi-year Spending Review next spring, where the Government will set out details of new investment to succeed the 2021-26 Affordable Homes Programme.
The Chancellor will also confirm that councils will be able to retain 100% of the receipts generated by Right to Buy sales. In addition, the Government will consult on a new 5-year social housing rent settlement to provide the sector with the certainty it needs to invest in new social housing.
Asked by: Paul Davies (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department is taking steps to establish a (a) green and (b) decent homes programme.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government recognises the need for low carbon homes, fit for a net zero future. Future standards next year will set our new homes and buildings on a path that moves away from relying on volatile fossil fuels and ensures they are fit for a net zero future. These homes will be future proofed with low carbon heating and high levels of energy efficiency. No further energy efficiency retrofit work will be necessary to enable them to become zero-carbon over time as the electricity grid continues to decarbonise. This will support our ambition that the 1.5 million homes we will build over the course of this parliament will be high quality, well designed and sustainable.
The Government is also clear that everyone deserves a safe and decent home to live in and recently committed to bringing forward a consultation as soon as possible setting out plans for a reformed Decent Homes Standard that will apply to both the social and private rented sectors. We have also committed to consult on EPC C (or equivalent) by 2030 for both rented sectors so that existing homes are warm and can be cheaper to heat.
Asked by: Paul Davies (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure that the Housing Revenue Account reflects the potential benefits for the council’s own tenants.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Housing Revenue Account (HRA) is a ring-fenced accounting mechanism within the General Fund. The ring-fence ensures that the income from tenants’ rents is only spent on the upkeep and management of local authority tenants’ homes and protects them from funding services already paid for through Council Tax. The HRA can also contribute toward the building of new council housing.
Councils are responsible for meeting their statutory responsibilities as a landlord within their HRA.
Asked by: Paul Davies (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department provides funding to local councils to enforce the ban on the use of barbecues and open fires on the moors during the summer.
Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government provides no specific funding to local councils to enforce the ban on the use of barbecues and open fires on moorland. The majority of the Local Government Finance Settlement is unringfenced in acknowledgement that local areas know best how to prioritise spending within their communities.
Asked by: Paul Davies (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she is taking steps with Cabinet colleagues to increase collaboration between local councils and fire services to help tackle moorland fires.
Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government works closely with Local Resilience Forums, which include local councils and fire and rescue services to support local collaboration and preparation for a wide range of the resilience risks including fires.
Asked by: Paul Davies (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to help provide affordable housing in (a) Colne Valley constituency and (b) West Yorkshire.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government is committed to delivering the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation and ensuring that every part of the country benefits from it.
We will set out further details in due course.