Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether persons with at least one British Nationals (Overseas) parent but who are not themselves British Nationals (Overseas) are eligible to be employed in the Civil Service.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The Civil Service Nationality Rules reflect a long-standing legislative framework that has existed under successive governments and govern eligibility for employment in the Civil Service on the grounds of nationality.
Whether or not an individual is eligible to work in the Civil Service under the nationality rules is dependent on their nationality only.
An individual who had at least one British National (Overseas) parent, but who themselves was not a British National (Overseas), may still be eligible to work in the Civil Service if they meet the nationality rules in their own right.
Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when she plans to respond to the letter of 20 January 2023 from the hon. Member for Greenwich and Woolwich on the Art for All by All campaign.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
A reply was issued on 20 April 2023.
Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, when he plans to publish his Department's response to the Leaseholder-owned buildings (11m+ or 5 storeys+): call for evidence consultation.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
We will publish a response in due course.
Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will publish a list of the housebuilders and mixed-use developers that his Department asked to sign the developer remediation contract on 30 January 2023.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
On 14 March, the Government published lists of developers who had signed the contract and of developers who were invited to sign, but had yet to do so. The lists are being kept up to date.
Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, when he plans to launch the full medium-rise scheme to provide funding to remediate or mitigate unsafe external wall systems on buildings between 11 to 18m in height where the developer of a building cannot be traced or identified.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave to Question UIN 170716 on 29 March 2023.
Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that resident directors in charge of Right-to-Manage companies and Resident Management Companies who do not wish to exercise the option of appointing a building safety director will be able to secure insurance cover against the new liabilities arising from Part 4 of the Building Safety Act 2022.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
As set out by Dame Judith Hackitt in 2018, in her Building a Safer Future report, 'A step change is…needed to place greater demands on the new duty holder to manage building safety effectively.' Following the Building Safety Act gaining Royal Assent in 2022, the Building Safety Regulator will make guidance available to accountable persons to assist them in complying with their new duties and/or requirements under Part 4 of the Act.
Insurers make individual decisions on whether to offer insurance products and the associated premiums based on a range of factors. We will continue to work with the insurance industry to help them understand the roles and duties in the Building Safety Act 2022 (the Act) and encourage them to provide appropriate cover that is priced fairly and in the best interest of their customers.
Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department is taking steps to ensure that (a) Right to Manage Companies and (b) Residential Management Companies who do not wish to exercise the option of appointing a building safety director will be able discharge their obligations under Part 4 of the Building Safety Act 2022.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
As set out by Dame Judith Hackitt in 2018, in her Building a Safer Future report, 'A step change is…needed to place greater demands on the new duty holder to manage building safety effectively.' Following the Building Safety Act gaining Royal Assent in 2022, the Building Safety Regulator will make guidance available to accountable persons to assist them in complying with their new duties and/or requirements under Part 4 of the Act.
Insurers make individual decisions on whether to offer insurance products and the associated premiums based on a range of factors. We will continue to work with the insurance industry to help them understand the roles and duties in the Building Safety Act 2022 (the Act) and encourage them to provide appropriate cover that is priced fairly and in the best interest of their customers.
Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to his oral contribution in the statement on building safety on Tuesday 14 March 2023, Official Report, column 727, if he will publish key features of the Government’s new responsible actors scheme by 24 March 2023.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
I refer the Hon. Member to the key features document.
Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department holds a list of competent professionals qualified to conduct Fire Risk Appraisals of External Wall construction following the methodology set out in PAS 9980:2022 for existing multi-storey, multi-occupied residential buildings.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
This information is not held centrally by the Department.
Homes England holds information relating to those that have registered with its panel of qualified assessors. This is not a complete list, due to the range of professional accrediting bodies of which qualified assessors may be members.
Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department has approached Comer Group UK to sign the developer remediation contract.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
Further to the oral statement by the Secretary of State on 30 January 2023, I refer the Hon. Member to this link.