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Written Question
Domestic Abuse
Friday 22nd March 2024

Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will make an assessment of the potential implications for his Department's policies of the report by Women's Aid entitled Domestic Abuse Report 2024, The Annual Audit, published in February 2024; and whether his Department is taking steps to increase funding for the specialist domestic abuse sector.

Answered by Felicity Buchan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

The Government recognises the vital role of local domestic abuse organisations in supporting victims and survivors of domestic abuse, as highlighted by the Women’s Aid 2024 Annual Report.

The Government is committed to the delivery of safe accommodation with support for victims of domestic abuse and their children who need to flee their homes and has placed a duty on councils to provide safe accommodation services to victims under the Domestic Abuse Act 2021.

Since 2021, the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) has committed over £507 million, including £129.7 million in 2024/25, to councils across England to fund this duty. Funding from April 2025 will be determined at the next Spending Review.

I work closely with the Domestic Abuse Commissioner, the Local Government Association, and the domestic abuse sector, including Women’s Aid, through a National Expert Steering Group on safe accommodation to ensure that councils have the support they need to deliver their duty requirements. DLUHC is also working closely with Women’s Aid, the specialist ‘by and for’ sector and local authorities to explore ways to improve the commissioning of 'by and for' services.


Written Question
Affordable Housing
Wednesday 13th March 2024

Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what recent estimate he has made of the number of homes for social rent that will be delivered through the Affordable Homes Programme between 2021 and 2026.

Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

Our £11.5 billion Affordable Homes Programme will deliver thousands of affordable homes for both rent and to buy right across the country.

The Levelling Up White Paper committed to increasing the supply of social rented homes and a large number of the new homes delivered through our Affordable Homes Programme will be for social rent.


Written Question
Housing and Carbon Emissions: Finance
Wednesday 13th March 2024

Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will commission research on the potential (a) social, (b) economic and (c) environmental merits of introducing targeted Government funding to (i) reduce the number of long-term empty homes, (ii) meet national net zero objectives and (iii) increase the supply of social housing.

Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

The Government has a range of policy and funding commitments across social housing, net zero and long-term empty homes. Details of these are available on gov.uk and include the £11.5 billion Affordable Homes Programme and the recently expanded Affordable Homes Guarantee Scheme 2020. The Department’s empty homes policy. I also refer the Hon Member to answer given to Question UIN 197506 on 12 September 2023.

On net zero, the Government has implemented a number of measures to meet its net zero objectives for housing, including the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund. Details of the Future Homes Standard consultation, closing on 27 March 2024, can be found at the following link.


Written Question
Homelessness
Monday 11th March 2024

Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what recent steps his Department has taken to prevent homelessness upon discharge from a public institution.

Answered by Felicity Buchan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

In September 2022, we published our cross-government strategy ‘Ending Rough Sleeping for Good’ setting out how we are investing almost £2.4 billion over three years to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping. This sets out a ‘prevention first approach’, including bringing forward investment so that nobody leaves a public institution for the streets, whether that is a hospital, prison, care or the asylum system.

Homelessness and hospital discharge guidance was jointly published by DHSC and DLUHC on 26 January 2024 for staff in care transfer hubs and others involved in planning discharge of patients (including NHS, local authority, housing and other partners). The guidance is available here: Discharging people at risk of or experiencing homelessness.


Written Question
Sleeping Rough: Abuse and Crimes of Violence
Monday 11th March 2024

Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps he has taken to prevent violence and abuse targeted at people experiencing rough sleeping.

Answered by Felicity Buchan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

The streets can never be a place of safety for people sleeping rough and accommodation provides the safety and security needed for individuals to engage positively with support services. That is why the Government published the strategy Ending rough sleeping for good in September 2022 and is investing almost £2.4 billion from 2022 to 2025 to prevent homelessness and rough sleeping.


Written Question
Criminal Justice Bill: Homelessness
Monday 11th March 2024

Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he has had recent discussions with (a) the Secretary of State for the Home Department and (b) organisations working with people experiencing homelessness on the Criminal Justice Bill.

Answered by Felicity Buchan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

In line with the practice of successive administrations, details of internal discussions are not normally disclosed.


Written Question
Absent Voting
Wednesday 6th March 2024

Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, pursuant to the Answer of 27 February 2024 to Question 14837 on Absent Voting, how are postal ballot sweeps are undertaken; and what guidance is provided to Returning Officers.

Answered by Simon Hoare - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

Royal Mail conducts ‘sweeps’ of all primary (and where requested, secondary) mail centres on the evening of polling day by identifying and pulling out postal vote envelopes, which are specially marked to support this process. All incoming mail collected from post-boxes goes via the delivery offices and should be at the mail centres later that day, before sweeps take place. Any postal vote envelopes pulled out at mail centres are provided directly to the relevant local returning officers. Royal Mail liaises directly with each local elections office regarding the organisation of postal ballot sweeps.

Guidance on working with Royal Mail and other mail delivery partners is provided by the Electoral Commission and is available on their website (https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/guidance-returning-officers-administering-local-government-elections-england/planning-election/managing-contractors-and-suppliers/working-mail-delivery-partners).

Sweeps for Police and Crime Commissioner and UK Parliamentary elections are paid for centrally from the Consolidated Fund and are planned for the Police and Crime Commissioner and local elections on 2 May 2024 and for the next UK Parliamentary general election.


Written Question
Absent Voting
Wednesday 6th March 2024

Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, pursuant to the Answer of 27 February 2024 to Question 14837 on Absent Voting, whether postal ballot sweeps will be undertaken at local delivery offices on the evening of (a) 2 May 2024 and (b) General Election polling day.

Answered by Simon Hoare - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

Royal Mail conducts ‘sweeps’ of all primary (and where requested, secondary) mail centres on the evening of polling day by identifying and pulling out postal vote envelopes, which are specially marked to support this process. All incoming mail collected from post-boxes goes via the delivery offices and should be at the mail centres later that day, before sweeps take place. Any postal vote envelopes pulled out at mail centres are provided directly to the relevant local returning officers. Royal Mail liaises directly with each local elections office regarding the organisation of postal ballot sweeps.

Guidance on working with Royal Mail and other mail delivery partners is provided by the Electoral Commission and is available on their website (https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/guidance-returning-officers-administering-local-government-elections-england/planning-election/managing-contractors-and-suppliers/working-mail-delivery-partners).

Sweeps for Police and Crime Commissioner and UK Parliamentary elections are paid for centrally from the Consolidated Fund and are planned for the Police and Crime Commissioner and local elections on 2 May 2024 and for the next UK Parliamentary general election.


Written Question
Absent Voting
Tuesday 27th February 2024

Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what plans he has to monitor the potential impact of Royal Mail delays on the number of postal votes received after the deadline; and what information his Department holds on the number and proportion of voting packs that were received late in (a) local elections in May 2023 and (b) other elections in the last five years.

Answered by Simon Hoare - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

I refer the Hon Member to my answer to Question UIN 13601 on 22 February 2024.

The May local elections will be held on the same day as scheduled Police and Crime Commissioner Elections, and so the Government has taken the decision to fund a ‘national’ sweep on polling day this year. This will mean that Royal Mail can conduct ‘sweeps’ of their mail centres to ensure completed postal ballot packs are pulled out at mail centres on the evening of polling day and delivered directly to local Returning Officers.

Returning Officers are required at elections to record the number of postal ballot packs received after the close of poll and this information is available for public inspection after the election.


Written Question
Absent Voting
Tuesday 27th February 2024

Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will make it a requirement for the number of voting packs received after an election deadline to be published; and what steps he is taking to protect the postal voting system from Royal Mail delays.

Answered by Simon Hoare - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

I refer the Hon Member to my answer to Question UIN 13601 on 22 February 2024.

The May local elections will be held on the same day as scheduled Police and Crime Commissioner Elections, and so the Government has taken the decision to fund a ‘national’ sweep on polling day this year. This will mean that Royal Mail can conduct ‘sweeps’ of their mail centres to ensure completed postal ballot packs are pulled out at mail centres on the evening of polling day and delivered directly to local Returning Officers.

Returning Officers are required at elections to record the number of postal ballot packs received after the close of poll and this information is available for public inspection after the election.