Asked by: Anne Marie Morris (Conservative - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of allowing hybrid local council meetings to continue while there are still cases of covid-19.
Answered by Luke Hall - Minister of State (Education)
The Government issued Covid-19 guidance to ensure local council meetings take place safely. The guidance is aimed at those who manage council buildings, and many council buildings are also workplaces which host a variety of meetings in addition to statutory meetings of local authority members. Where in-person attendance is not required these meetings should continue to be held virtually. The guidance also actively encourages local authorities to continue to provide remote public access until 19 July, at which point it is anticipated that restrictions on indoor gatherings will be lifted. It is for local authorities to satisfy themselves they have met the necessary requirements.
We launched a call for evidence which closed on 17 June to gather views on a longer-term decision about provision for local authorities to meet remotely or in hybrid form on a permanent basis. The Department is reviewing the responses and will respond shortly.
Asked by: Anne Marie Morris (Conservative - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of returning to in-person local council meetings during the outbreak of covid-19 on wide and full participation in those meetings.
Answered by Luke Hall - Minister of State (Education)
The Government issued Covid-19 guidance to ensure local council meetings take place safely. The guidance actively encourages local authorities to continue to provide remote public access until 19 July, at which point it is anticipated that restrictions on indoor gatherings will be lifted. It is for local authorities to satisfy themselves they have met the necessary requirements and apply the Covid-19 guidance to ensure meetings take place safely.
However, we recognise there may continue to be concerns about the potential risks of holding face-to-face meetings. The Government continues to work with sector representative bodies to ensure that local authorities understand the guidance and are aware of the full range of options available to them.
Asked by: Anne Marie Morris (Conservative - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will publish the evidence-based rationale for placing each local authority in their designated priority category for the Levelling Up Fund.
Answered by Luke Hall - Minister of State (Education)
As set out in the prospectus published at Budget, the index used for the Levelling Up Fund places areas into category one, two or three based on the local area’s need for economic recovery and growth, improved transport connectivity, and regeneration. We will shortly publish further detail on the methodology used to calculate the index.
Asked by: Anne Marie Morris (Conservative - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will publish the Index of Economic Need methodology.
Answered by Luke Hall - Minister of State (Education)
As set out in the prospectus published at Budget, the index used for the Levelling Up Fund places areas into category one, two or three based on the local area’s need for economic recovery and growth, improved transport connectivity, and regeneration. We will shortly publish further detail on the methodology used to calculate the index.
Asked by: Anne Marie Morris (Conservative - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the draft Building Safety Bill, whether the Golden Thread provision will apply to all buildings.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
The golden thread will apply to buildings in scope of the new building safety regime. The Government encourages the sector to go further embedding golden thread best practice throughout the industry, ensuring people are responsible and accountable for delivering and maintaining safe buildings, including keeping information.
Asked by: Anne Marie Morris (Conservative - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when he plans to notify applicants to the Future High Streets Fund of the outcome of their applications.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
Now more than ever, it is vital that we continue to?help?our local economies?by supporting?town centres and high streets?to?recover, adapt and evolve. Our £1 billion Future High Streets Fund competition will help create jobs and build more resilient local economies and communities as we begin to recover from the impact of coronavirus. I am pleased to say we are in the final stages of assessing the proposals from the 101 shortlisted applicants and expect to announce the outcome of the competition soon.
Asked by: Anne Marie Morris (Conservative - Newton Abbot)
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 ensure the provision of covid-secure accommodation for rough sleepers over winter 2020-21.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
During the pandemic, we have worked closely with local authorities and the sector to offer vulnerable people safe accommodation and support. That work is ongoing and in September, we had successfully supported over 29,000 people, with 10,000 in emergency accommodation and nearly 19,000 provided with settled accommodation or move on support.
On 13 October, we announced additional winter support, to give local areas the tools they need to support vulnerable rough sleepers this winter. This includes a new £10 million Cold Weather Fund for local areas and £2 million in funding for the faith, communities and voluntary sector to bring forward self-contained and COVID secure accommodation this winter.
We have worked extensively with Public Health England (PHE) to provide Operating Principles for the sector to help them open shelters as safely as possible where necessary, when self-contained accommodation cannot be made available and when local partners agree that it is the right thing to do.
Asked by: Anne Marie Morris (Conservative - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will publish the list of experts appointed by the High Streets Task Force.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
This Government is providing support to local leadership with a High Streets Task Force that will give high streets and town centres the expert advice they need to adapt and thrive.
Through the Task Force local authorities in England will receive free expert advice to help them evolve their town centres and respond to the impact of COVID-19.
These high streets experts have been recruited from the Design Council, Landscape Institute, Institute of Place Management and Royal Town Planning Institute. They will work with places, bringing insight into town centre change and how to work with communities to build capacity for that change.
The High Streets Task Force will publish the full list of experts on the register in due course
Asked by: Anne Marie Morris (Conservative - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, for what reason places of worship are not allowed to serve food and drink while businesses are allowed to do so during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Luke Hall - Minister of State (Education)
In a place of worship, where food or drink are essential to the act of worship, they can be served and consumed. If it is necessary to handle food or drink as a part of a faith practice, those giving and receiving these items should wash their hands thoroughly before and after consumption, or wear gloves
If a place of worship provides hospitality spaces, such as cafes, these are permitted to open but should be limited to table-service, social distancing should be observed, and with minimal staff and customer contact in line with the hospitality guidance.
Asked by: Anne Marie Morris (Conservative - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps the Government is taking to support indoor market retailers during the economic recovery from the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Simon Clarke
The Government has delivered one of the most generous and comprehensive packages of support globally, with a total fiscal response of close to £200 billion. Many of the measures introduced, including loan schemes, tax deferrals, Self-Employment Income Support Scheme and the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme remain open and have been designed to be accessible to businesses in most sectors and across the UK
Eligible market stalls with a rateable value could also benefit from flat rate payments of £10,000 under the grant scheme for the retail, hospitality, and leisure sectors. Moreover, in recognition that some market traders were excluded from this grant fund because of the way they interact with the business rates system, the Government encouraged local authorities to include these businesses as a priority group for the Discretionary Grant Fund
In terms of rent assistance, the Government encourages tenants to continue to pay their rent in full where they are in a position to do so, although we recognise that others may not be in this position. We welcome the fact that many local authorities and other operators have been able to be flexible in their approach and negotiate suitable arrangements including rent concessions for a significant number of market traders in support of the industry, recognising the financial strain the pandemic has placed on their finances.