Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
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
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 Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
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
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 Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
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
I refer the Hon. Member to the key features document.
Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
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
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 Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
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
Further to the oral statement by the Secretary of State on 30 January 2023, I refer the Hon. Member to this link.
Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether his Department is taking steps to ensure (a) local authorities process Energy Bills Support Scheme Alternative Funding applications in a timely manner and (b) successful applicants receive one-off payments no later than six weeks after submitting their applications.
Answered by Amanda Solloway
The Government has worked closely with pilot local authorities in designing the scheme and developing guidance for all local authorities. To reduce the administrative burden on local authorities and the time taken to process an application, many of the eligibility checks are completed centrally by the Government before applications are passed through to local authorities for final checks. The time that applicants will wait to receive support will depend on the case complexity and the volume of applications received by the local authority. The Government is committed to ensuring that eligible applicants are provided support as soon as possible.
Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate he has made of the number of households who are eligible for the Warm Home Discount Scheme but that are unable to secure the discount because they have a communal electricity supply.
Answered by Amanda Solloway
The Government does not hold data on the number of people using communal electricity supplies. Households are only eligible for a rebate under the Warm Home Discount if they have an electricity account with a participating electricity supplier. Low income and vulnerable households not eligible for a rebate may be able to receive assistance via the Industry Initiatives element of the Warm Home Discount.
Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, when he plans to publish details of successful bids to the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund Wave 2.1.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The 2019 Conservative Manifesto committed to a £3.8bn Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund over a 10-year period to improve the energy performance of social rented homes, on the pathway to Net Zero 2050.
The SHDF Wave 2.1 competition closed in November 2022, and successful projects are likely to be notified in March 2023.
Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he plans to take steps to enable households who are eligible for the Warm Home Discount Scheme but have a communal electricity supply to secure the discount.
Answered by Amanda Solloway
Rebates provided under the Warm Home Discount have always been provided to the electricity bill payers of participating energy suppliers so households with a community energy supply are not eligible. This makes the scheme efficient to deliver. Households who are ineligible via that route are able to benefit from assistance under the Industry Initiatives element of the Warm Home Discount.
Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if his Department will extend the Park Homes Warm Home Discount Scheme to all households with a communal electricity supply.
Answered by Amanda Solloway
Rebates provided under the Warm Home Discount have always been provided to the electricity bill payers of participating energy suppliers so households with a community energy supply are not eligible. The Warm Home Discount Park Homes Scheme is run by Charis Grants and funded voluntarily by energy suppliers under the Industry Initiatives element of the Warm Home Discount. It is not a government scheme.