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Written Question
Housing: Valuation
Tuesday 26th March 2024

Asked by: Paul Howell (Conservative - Sedgefield)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 12 March 2024 to Question 16860,on Housing: Valuation, whether the Valuation Office Agency plans to collect additional (a) dwelling house codes and (b) value significant codes in addition to those used in England for the model.

Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Welsh Government has commissioned the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) to carry out a revaluation of all domestic property in Wales. To facilitate this, the VOA has built an Automated Valuation Model which has produced values for 1.46 million properties.

The following external datasets were used:

  • Land Registry Price Paid data to supplement VOA sales data
  • Land Registry Title Polygons and Ordnance Survey National Geographic Database for plot sizes for houses
  • Ordnance Survey Master Map for building footprints for houses
  • House Price Index to adjust sales in time
  • National Statistics Postcode Lookup (NSPL) to incorporate Census Geography
  • Ordnance Survey AddressBase Premium for latest property coordinate data
  • Energy Performance Certificates

Additionally, as part of model development, sales verification was undertaken. VOA staff used a range of available data, such as aerial and street view photography, sales particulars, EPC certificates and Local Authority Planning websites to verify the usefulness of the sale.

The VOA has not collected additional codes over and above those already used within England and Wales.

I would observe that this is a policy proposed by the Labour Welsh Government, and does not represent the policy position of the UK Government in England.


Written Question
Housing: Valuation
Tuesday 26th March 2024

Asked by: Paul Howell (Conservative - Sedgefield)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 12 March 2024 to Question 16860 on Housing: Valuation, how many value estimates have been produced using the Valuation Office Agency's automated valuation model.

Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Welsh Government has commissioned the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) to carry out a revaluation of all domestic property in Wales. To facilitate this, the VOA has built an Automated Valuation Model which has produced values for 1.46 million properties.

The following external datasets were used:

  • Land Registry Price Paid data to supplement VOA sales data
  • Land Registry Title Polygons and Ordnance Survey National Geographic Database for plot sizes for houses
  • Ordnance Survey Master Map for building footprints for houses
  • House Price Index to adjust sales in time
  • National Statistics Postcode Lookup (NSPL) to incorporate Census Geography
  • Ordnance Survey AddressBase Premium for latest property coordinate data
  • Energy Performance Certificates

Additionally, as part of model development, sales verification was undertaken. VOA staff used a range of available data, such as aerial and street view photography, sales particulars, EPC certificates and Local Authority Planning websites to verify the usefulness of the sale.

The VOA has not collected additional codes over and above those already used within England and Wales.

I would observe that this is a policy proposed by the Labour Welsh Government, and does not represent the policy position of the UK Government in England.


Written Question
Housing: Valuation
Tuesday 26th March 2024

Asked by: Paul Howell (Conservative - Sedgefield)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 12 March 2024 to Question 16860 on Housing: Valuation, which already available data from third parties was used for the model development.

Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Welsh Government has commissioned the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) to carry out a revaluation of all domestic property in Wales. To facilitate this, the VOA has built an Automated Valuation Model which has produced values for 1.46 million properties.

The following external datasets were used:

  • Land Registry Price Paid data to supplement VOA sales data
  • Land Registry Title Polygons and Ordnance Survey National Geographic Database for plot sizes for houses
  • Ordnance Survey Master Map for building footprints for houses
  • House Price Index to adjust sales in time
  • National Statistics Postcode Lookup (NSPL) to incorporate Census Geography
  • Ordnance Survey AddressBase Premium for latest property coordinate data
  • Energy Performance Certificates

Additionally, as part of model development, sales verification was undertaken. VOA staff used a range of available data, such as aerial and street view photography, sales particulars, EPC certificates and Local Authority Planning websites to verify the usefulness of the sale.

The VOA has not collected additional codes over and above those already used within England and Wales.

I would observe that this is a policy proposed by the Labour Welsh Government, and does not represent the policy position of the UK Government in England.


Written Question
Middle East: International Assistance
Monday 25th March 2024

Asked by: Paul Howell (Conservative - Sedgefield)

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent discussions he has had with his international counterparts on helping to ensure stability in the Middle East.

Answered by Grant Shapps - Secretary of State for Defence

The UK is working tirelessly to preserve stability in the Middle East and as such I have regular discussions with regional partners and our international allies including with NATO. These discussions cover a range of topics, including the conflict in Gaza and requirement for humanitarian assistance to our work with partners on protecting and deterring Houthi attacks against international shipping in the Red Sea.


Written Question
Housing: Valuation
Tuesday 12th March 2024

Asked by: Paul Howell (Conservative - Sedgefield)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the Valuation Office Agency's contract Contract Finder procurement reference VOA/2023/033, if he will list each of the associated contracts that have been awarded to assist the development of the Automated Valuation Model with (a) name of supplier and (b) awarded value; and what external datasets have been purchased to assist that development.

Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) has developed an Automated Valuation Model in-house as part of its preparations for the proposed Council Tax Revaluation in Wales. I would observe that this is a policy proposed by the Labour Welsh Government, and does not represent the policy position of the UK Government in England.

The let contract relates to an independent audit of the VOA’s Automated Valuation Model, undertaken to ensure it meets expected international standards.

VOA used its own data, and already available data from third parties, for the model development, at no additional cost. To assist with the development process, the VOA let a short-term advisory contract with the Center for Appraisal Research and Technology (CART), budgeted at $6,000.


Written Question
Housing: Valuation
Tuesday 12th March 2024

Asked by: Paul Howell (Conservative - Sedgefield)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the Valuation Office Agency's contract ContractFinder procurement reference VOA/2023/033, what the budget is for the development of the Automated Valuation Model, and at what stage in its development is the current model.

Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) has developed an Automated Valuation Model in-house as part of its preparations for the proposed Council Tax Revaluation in Wales. I would observe that this is a policy proposed by the Labour Welsh Government, and does not represent the policy position of the UK Government in England.

The let contract relates to an independent audit of the VOA’s Automated Valuation Model, undertaken to ensure it meets expected international standards.

VOA used its own data, and already available data from third parties, for the model development, at no additional cost. To assist with the development process, the VOA let a short-term advisory contract with the Center for Appraisal Research and Technology (CART), budgeted at $6,000.


Written Question
GCSE: Assessments
Thursday 26th October 2023

Asked by: Paul Howell (Conservative - Sedgefield)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she is taking steps to ensure that pupils at schools that may have lost teaching time as a result of disruption caused by the presence of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete are not at a disadvantage when sitting GCSE exams in summer 2024.

Answered by Nick Gibb

It has not proved possible to respond to my hon. Friend in the time available before Prorogation.


Written Question
Livestock: Exports
Monday 11th September 2023

Asked by: Paul Howell (Conservative - Sedgefield)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help support farmers export live animals into the European Union.

Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

His Majesty’s Government is working with industry and inspectors to develop digital Export Health Certificates to replace paper certification for live animals, to reduce the administrative burden on traders where possible. We anticipate a staged approach to digitisation of certification for exports to tie in with wider work on the Single Trade Window, which will allow traders to meet all their import, export and transit obligations by submitting information once, and in one place.

EU BCPs can only be constructed with approval given by EU Member States. Defra has regular bilateral meetings with EU Member States where the topic of building BCPs in EU to support the export of live animals in the EU has been discussed.


Written Question
Exports: Notifiable Diseases
Monday 3rd July 2023

Asked by: Paul Howell (Conservative - Sedgefield)

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions her Department has had with the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on the potential impact of notifiable disease outbreaks on UK exports.

Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Secretary of State for Business and Trade maintains regular dialogue with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on a wide range of issues relating to agriculture and trade. The government will continue to prioritise trade facilitation in our free trade agreements to benefit UK exports.


Written Question
Conversion Therapy
Monday 19th June 2023

Asked by: Paul Howell (Conservative - Sedgefield)

Question

To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, whether she plans to complete pre-legislative scrutiny on the bill to ban conversion therapy in this parliamentary term.

Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

The Government remains committed to protecting everyone who is at risk of conversion practices from harm, and will shortly publish a draft Bill and consultation response setting out our approach to banning these abhorrent practices. The draft legislation will go for pre-legislative scrutiny by a Joint Committee in this parliamentary session.