Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the forthcoming Planning and Infrastructure Bill will include measures to support the use of low-carbon, natural building materials.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Planning and Infrastructure Bill contains no measures relating to building materials.
The full text of the Bill as introduced, as well as further versions of the Bill as it is reprinted to incorporate amendments made during its passage through Parliament, can be found online here.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent discussions he has had with the construction industry on planning barriers and standards affecting the use of natural materials such as stone in new developments.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 92689 on 28 November 2025.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for her Department's policies of firefighters' public pension scheme managers extending the deadline to issue Remediable Service Statements past the original deadline of 31 March 2025.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
A Remediable Service Statement sets out the benefits options available to members of the Firefighters’ Pension Scheme in order to remedy the discrimination found in McCloud. Delivery is managed locally by Fire and Rescue Authorities (FRAs), who may decide to extend the deadline beyond March 2025 in certain specific circumstances. Where an FRA has made such a decision, members may have to wait longer to receive the necessary information to make a decision regarding which pension benefits they wish to receive.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions she has had with (a) the Scottish Government and (b) local authorities on providing support to help tackle reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete in residential buildings.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The issues with RAAC are longstanding and well known. The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) estimate the prevalence in housing and the risk of injuries due to RAAC are low relative to other risks in the built environment.
All building owners are responsible for managing building safety and performance risks in their buildings. Guidance has been published by the Institution of Structural Engineers (IStructE) on managing the risks of RAAC.
Ministers and Officials in my department and across Government engage regularly with representatives from the insurance and lending industries on issues affecting these markets, including those related to building safety.
Both, building safety and local government finance are devolved. The Scottish Government are receiving at least 20% more per person than equivalent UK Government spending in the rest of the UK. Where remediation or maintenance works are required for RAAC or any other issues, local authorities should do so within existing budgets.
Although building safety and local government finance are devolved, I and my officials continue to engage with our Scottish Government counterparts on this and other important building safety and performance issues.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete in residential buildings on (a) homeowners and (b) tenants.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The issues with RAAC are longstanding and well known. The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) estimate the prevalence in housing and the risk of injuries due to RAAC are low relative to other risks in the built environment.
All building owners are responsible for managing building safety and performance risks in their buildings. Guidance has been published by the Institution of Structural Engineers (IStructE) on managing the risks of RAAC.
Ministers and Officials in my department and across Government engage regularly with representatives from the insurance and lending industries on issues affecting these markets, including those related to building safety.
Both, building safety and local government finance are devolved. The Scottish Government are receiving at least 20% more per person than equivalent UK Government spending in the rest of the UK. Where remediation or maintenance works are required for RAAC or any other issues, local authorities should do so within existing budgets.
Although building safety and local government finance are devolved, I and my officials continue to engage with our Scottish Government counterparts on this and other important building safety and performance issues.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions she has had with insurance providers to homeowners impacted by reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The issues with RAAC are longstanding and well known. The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) estimate the prevalence in housing and the risk of injuries due to RAAC are low relative to other risks in the built environment.
All building owners are responsible for managing building safety and performance risks in their buildings. Guidance has been published by the Institution of Structural Engineers (IStructE) on managing the risks of RAAC.
Ministers and Officials in my department and across Government engage regularly with representatives from the insurance and lending industries on issues affecting these markets, including those related to building safety.
Both, building safety and local government finance are devolved. The Scottish Government are receiving at least 20% more per person than equivalent UK Government spending in the rest of the UK. Where remediation or maintenance works are required for RAAC or any other issues, local authorities should do so within existing budgets.
Although building safety and local government finance are devolved, I and my officials continue to engage with our Scottish Government counterparts on this and other important building safety and performance issues.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to help support owners of homes impacted by reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete which were sold by local authorities.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The issues with RAAC are longstanding and well known. The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) estimate the prevalence in housing and the risk of injuries due to RAAC are low relative to other risks in the built environment.
All building owners are responsible for managing building safety and performance risks in their buildings. Guidance has been published by the Institution of Structural Engineers (IStructE) on managing the risks of RAAC.
Ministers and Officials in my department and across Government engage regularly with representatives from the insurance and lending industries on issues affecting these markets, including those related to building safety.
Both, building safety and local government finance are devolved. The Scottish Government are receiving at least 20% more per person than equivalent UK Government spending in the rest of the UK. Where remediation or maintenance works are required for RAAC or any other issues, local authorities should do so within existing budgets.
Although building safety and local government finance are devolved, I and my officials continue to engage with our Scottish Government counterparts on this and other important building safety and performance issues.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions she has had with mortgage providers to homeowners impacted by reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The issues with RAAC are longstanding and well known. The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) estimate the prevalence in housing and the risk of injuries due to RAAC are low relative to other risks in the built environment.
All building owners are responsible for managing building safety and performance risks in their buildings. Guidance has been published by the Institution of Structural Engineers (IStructE) on managing the risks of RAAC.
Ministers and Officials in my department and across Government engage regularly with representatives from the insurance and lending industries on issues affecting these markets, including those related to building safety.
Both, building safety and local government finance are devolved. The Scottish Government are receiving at least 20% more per person than equivalent UK Government spending in the rest of the UK. Where remediation or maintenance works are required for RAAC or any other issues, local authorities should do so within existing budgets.
Although building safety and local government finance are devolved, I and my officials continue to engage with our Scottish Government counterparts on this and other important building safety and performance issues.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions her Department has had with projects due to receive funds from the Community Regeneration Fund in Dundee.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
Officials from the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government met with stakeholders from across the public, private and voluntary, community and social enterprise sectors, as well as the Scottish Government, as part of developing the Community Regeneration Partnership in partnership with Dundee City Council. Officials continue to work closely with Dundee City Council to deliver the projects identified.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the Government plans to formally adopt a definition of anti-Palestinian racism.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The government condemns all forms of racism, racial discrimination and related forms of intolerance. We are committed to combatting it. We have a strong legal framework in place to deal with the perpetrators of racist and other forms of hate crime and expect the perpetrators of such offences to be brought to justice.