Asked by: Andrea Leadsom (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to tackle uncapped service charges on freeholders and leaseholders.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
We have committed to protecting leaseholders who are suffering at the hands of rogue managing agents every day from unexpected costs or excessive fees for poor quality repairs.
We set up a working group, chaired by Lord Best, to look at regulating and professionalising property agents. This included reviewing the standards around the transparency of service charges and other fees and charges, how they are presented to consumers and putting them into a statutory code for managing agents. The working group has now completed their considerations and made recommendations to ministers. The working group’s final report was published on 18 July.
The Government will consider the recommendations set out in the report and will respond in due course
We are also looking at the future use of charges and restrictions beyond service charges – such as permission fees, administration charges and other restrictions and covenants faced by leaseholders and resident freeholders, and consider whether they should be capped or banned, and will consider this alongside the working group’s proposals.
The Government has committed to ensuring that residential freeholders who pay charges for the maintenance of communal areas and facilities on a private or mixed tenure estate can access equivalent rights to those of leaseholders to challenge their reasonableness. This will include a right to change the provider of maintenance services by applying to the tribunal for the appointment of a new manager.
Asked by: Andrea Leadsom (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to ensure accountability and transparency in service charges.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
We have committed to protecting leaseholders who are suffering at the hands of rogue managing agents every day from unexpected costs or excessive fees for poor quality repairs.
We set up a working group, chaired by Lord Best, to look at regulating and professionalising property agents. This included reviewing the standards around the transparency of service charges and other fees and charges, how they are presented to consumers and putting them into a statutory code for managing agents. The working group has now completed their considerations and made recommendations to ministers. The working group’s final report was published on 18 July.
The Government will consider the recommendations set out in the report and will respond in due course
We are also looking at the future use of charges and restrictions beyond service charges – such as permission fees, administration charges and other restrictions and covenants faced by leaseholders and resident freeholders, and consider whether they should be capped or banned, and will consider this alongside the working group’s proposals.
The Government has committed to ensuring that residential freeholders who pay charges for the maintenance of communal areas and facilities on a private or mixed tenure estate can access equivalent rights to those of leaseholders to challenge their reasonableness. This will include a right to change the provider of maintenance services by applying to the tribunal for the appointment of a new manager.
Asked by: Andrea Leadsom (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans he has to bring forward legislative proposals to ensure fairness between freeholders and leaseholders on challenging high service charges.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
We have committed to protecting leaseholders who are suffering at the hands of rogue managing agents every day from unexpected costs or excessive fees for poor quality repairs.
We set up a working group, chaired by Lord Best, to look at regulating and professionalising property agents. This included reviewing the standards around the transparency of service charges and other fees and charges, how they are presented to consumers and putting them into a statutory code for managing agents. The working group has now completed their considerations and made recommendations to ministers. The working group’s final report was published on 18 July.
The Government will consider the recommendations set out in the report and will respond in due course
We are also looking at the future use of charges and restrictions beyond service charges – such as permission fees, administration charges and other restrictions and covenants faced by leaseholders and resident freeholders, and consider whether they should be capped or banned, and will consider this alongside the working group’s proposals.
The Government has committed to ensuring that residential freeholders who pay charges for the maintenance of communal areas and facilities on a private or mixed tenure estate can access equivalent rights to those of leaseholders to challenge their reasonableness. This will include a right to change the provider of maintenance services by applying to the tribunal for the appointment of a new manager.
Asked by: Andrea Leadsom (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to ensure that developers are accountable to local authorities when appointing sub-contractors to build roads and other infrastructure; and what powers local authorities have to ensure that developers contribute adequately to the cost of maintaining roads once adopted by the local authority.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) and section 106 contributions can be used to provide and maintain roads and other infrastructure. Our recent reforms enable local authorities to hold developers to account when infrastructure is provided as part of new development. Where developers do not deliver on contributions, this can be enforced through legal proceedings.
Asked by: Andrea Leadsom (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the recommendations of the Inter Ministerial Group on early years family support have been agreed by his Department; and what further steps he has taken to improve early years family support.
Answered by Rishi Sunak - Prime Minister, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service, and Minister for the Union
The Early Years Family Support Ministerial Group has been considering how the Government can improve the coordination and cost-effectiveness of early years (conception to age 2) family support and identify gaps in available provision. The group has made recommendations to Secretaries of State which they are now considering.