Asked by: Rachel Blake (Labour (Co-op) - Cities of London and Westminster)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 11 November 2024 to Question 12343 on Foreign Companies: Property, when she plans to publish his response to the consultation.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government will publish a response to the public consultation on the Transparency of Land Ownership Involving Trusts in due course.
Asked by: Rachel Blake (Labour (Co-op) - Cities of London and Westminster)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 29 November 2024 to Question 15319 on Holiday Accommodation: Registration, what additional powers her Department plans to give to local authorities to respond to pressures of short-term lets.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Members to the answer to Question UIN 13348 on 18 November 2024.
Asked by: Rachel Blake (Labour (Co-op) - Cities of London and Westminster)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate her Department has made of when the Building Safety Regulator will be determining 50% of its judgments within its statutory 12-week target.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
We are aware of the delays for applicants in Gateway two. The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) is an independent regulator in its infancy and operational functions are still bedding in. BSR report to MHCLG that Gateway processing times continue to improve and the BSR has recruited additional personnel who are starting to process applications.
We also understand that it currently takes longer than expected to stand up specialist multidisciplinary teams to assess Gateway applications and this is a major contributing factor to delays. To support the BSR with this process the government has provided funding to support additional Fire and Rescue (FRS) staff and funding for new local authority building control inspectors. The recruitment and training of these additional staff is well underway. MHCLG continue to review how multidisciplinary teams are resourced through our internal channels.
However, it is also clear that the sector must take responsibility for the projects they deliver. We understand the BSR have rejected a significant number of Gateway Two applications for failing to meet the building safety regulatory standards. Sub-standard rejected applications contribute to the time taken to process compliant applications and the BSR continue to support industry to ensure they are meeting the functional requirements of the building regulations. Guidance is available to support applicants in understanding their duties.
Asked by: Rachel Blake (Labour (Co-op) - Cities of London and Westminster)
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 efficacy of the multi-disciplinary team system within the Building Safety Regulator.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
We are aware of the delays for applicants in Gateway two. The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) is an independent regulator in its infancy and operational functions are still bedding in. BSR report to MHCLG that Gateway processing times continue to improve and the BSR has recruited additional personnel who are starting to process applications.
We also understand that it currently takes longer than expected to stand up specialist multidisciplinary teams to assess Gateway applications and this is a major contributing factor to delays. To support the BSR with this process the government has provided funding to support additional Fire and Rescue (FRS) staff and funding for new local authority building control inspectors. The recruitment and training of these additional staff is well underway. MHCLG continue to review how multidisciplinary teams are resourced through our internal channels.
However, it is also clear that the sector must take responsibility for the projects they deliver. We understand the BSR have rejected a significant number of Gateway Two applications for failing to meet the building safety regulatory standards. Sub-standard rejected applications contribute to the time taken to process compliant applications and the BSR continue to support industry to ensure they are meeting the functional requirements of the building regulations. Guidance is available to support applicants in understanding their duties.
Asked by: Rachel Blake (Labour (Co-op) - Cities of London and Westminster)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what progress her Department has made on setting out a timeline for the commencement of the repeal of the Vagrancy Act 1824.
Answered by Rushanara Ali - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
We are carefully considering the Vagrancy Act and other relevant legislation in developing our new cross-government strategy.
Asked by: Rachel Blake (Labour (Co-op) - Cities of London and Westminster)
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 remove the requirement for a local connection for (a) homeless veterans, (b) survivors of domestic abuse and (c) care leavers.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
On the 24 September the Prime Minister announced an ambition to improve access to social housing for veterans, survivors of domestic abuse and young care leavers.
Statutory guidance recommends that local authorities exempt victims of domestic abuse and care leavers from local connection and residency tests, and we know that most local authorities already do this. We are clear that a victim of domestic abuse, a care leaver or a veteran should not be disqualified from social housing on the grounds of having no local connection.
The Department laid regulations on 27 November which will require local authorities to exempt all veterans from local connection requirements for social housing allocations.
We will bring forward similar regulations covering survivors of domestic abuse and care leavers when parliamentary time allows.
Asked by: Rachel Blake (Labour (Co-op) - Cities of London and Westminster)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of rules on local connection for housing allocations.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
On the 24 September the Prime Minister announced an ambition to improve access to social housing for veterans, survivors of domestic abuse and young care leavers.
Statutory guidance recommends that local authorities exempt victims of domestic abuse and care leavers from local connection and residency tests, and we know that most local authorities already do this. We are clear that a victim of domestic abuse, a care leaver or a veteran should not be disqualified from social housing on the grounds of having no local connection.
The Department laid regulations on 27 November which will require local authorities to exempt all veterans from local connection requirements for social housing allocations.
We will bring forward similar regulations covering survivors of domestic abuse and care leavers when parliamentary time allows.
Asked by: Rachel Blake (Labour (Co-op) - Cities of London and Westminster)
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 consult on the draft of the Leasehold and Commonhold Reform Bill.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer my hon Friend to the Written Ministerial Statement made on 21 November 2024 (HCWS244).
Asked by: Rachel Blake (Labour (Co-op) - Cities of London and Westminster)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what progress her Department has made on establishing a Jewish History Month.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
This Government is committed to celebrating the positive contributions to society made by this country’s faith and belief groups, including our Jewish communities. We are proud of the contribution that Jewish people have made and continue to make to the UK in so many areas of life.
We continue to support Britain’s Jewish communities on areas such as Holocaust education, our commitment to the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre, and our resolve to tackle antisemitism in all its forms.
Initiatives to mark specific cultural events or history months are best led from within the community, and the Government is fully supportive of these efforts.
Asked by: Rachel Blake (Labour (Co-op) - Cities of London and Westminster)
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 impact of the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 on recent trends in the cost of service charges for leaseholders.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The level of service charge that leaseholders pay depends on many factors, including the terms of a lease and the age and condition of a building.
By law, variable service charges must be reasonable. Should leaseholders wish to contest the reasonableness of their service charges they may make an application to the appropriate tribunal.
The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 includes measures designed to drive up the transparency of service charges to make them more easily challengeable if leaseholders consider them to be unreasonable. We will set out details in due course about the extensive programme of secondary legislation need to bring the various provisions of the Act into force.
Leaseholders in shared ownership properties whose leases qualify for protections set out in the Building Safety Act are protected from the costs of internal building safety defects, with a cost cap proportionate to their equity stake in the property.
All leaseholders can benefit from the Government’s Cladding Safety Scheme or Developer Scheme for the removal of unsafe cladding. The Government understands the difficulties some leaseholders are still experiencing and has committed to review how to better protect leaseholders from costs and to accelerate the pace of remediation.