Asked by: Clive Efford (Labour - Eltham)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to ensure that the credit ratings of homeowners who have taken mortgage holidays during the covid-19 outbreak are not negatively affected.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
On 20 March, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published guidance on what it expects mortgage lenders to do for consumers facing financial difficulties as a result of COVID-19.
As part of this guidance, the FCA requires that the arrears status on credit files should be masked to minimise the negative impacts that consumers might otherwise experience from taking a payment holiday. This was reconfirmed in the FCA’s updated guidance published on 2 June and continues to be the case for any borrower taking a payment holiday until 31 October 2020.
When considering new loan or credit applications, lenders will look at a range of factors, not just a borrower’s credit file. This could include a customer’s income and future ability to make repayments, which may have been affected by COVID-19.
Officials continue to have discussions with the FCA and credit reference agencies on these matters.
Asked by: Clive Efford (Labour - Eltham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate he has made of the cost of building a new school on the former Greenwich university site at Avery Hill; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department worked closely with the Harris Federation and the London Borough of Greenwich to develop proposals for Harris Academy, Avery Hill. The Department submitted a planning application in June and is in consultation with the local community. The outcome of the planning application is expected in November.
The Department publishes capital costs for all free schools on GOV.UK once all works are completed and costs are finalised. These include acquisition and construction costs.
Asked by: Clive Efford (Labour - Eltham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, on how many occasions the Government has decided not to follow the advice of its medical and scientific advisers on how to tackle covid-19; and if he will publish the alternative advice on which Government decisions were based.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government has a world-renowned team of clinicians, public health experts and scientists working round the clock to keep this country safe. At all times the Government has been consistently guided by scientific advice to protect lives.
In the case of COVID-19, the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies has been providing Ministers and officials advice throughout, based on external scientific evidence and a wide source of essential information.
Transparency is at the heart of what the Government does and the Government has recently published online statements and accompanying evidence which demonstrate how our understanding of COVID-19 has evolved as new data has emerged. These statements are available online at the following link:
Asked by: Clive Efford (Labour - Eltham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will (a) list the recommendations made by Exercise Cygnus in 2016, (b) set out those recommendations that have been implemented by the Government and (c) provide the reasons for not implementing those remaining recommendations.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department does not routinely publish reports on exercises.
Asked by: Clive Efford (Labour - Eltham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the activity of (a) the Gaitanista Self-Defence Forces (AGC) in the Colombian department of Choco and (b) the response of the Colombian security forces to that situation; and if she make a statement.
Answered by Wendy Morton
We are aware of reports of violence and intimidation by the Gaitanista Self-Defence Forces in parts of Colombia, and in particular the Chocó region. We remain extremely concerned about the continued presence of illegal armed groups in Colombia, and the impact their competition for control of illicit economies has on local people - even more so at this challenging time. The UK Embassy in Colombia is monitoring events in Chocó.
The UK has been vocal in expressing our concern about the effect the activity of these armed groups has on the future of peace in Colombia. We regularly raise these issues with the Colombian Government and in multilateral fora. Most recently, our Permanent Representative to the United Nations spoke on this issue at the UN Security Council on 14 April, and we consistently press the Colombian Government to focus on extending the rule of law to all parts of the country.
Colombia has made significant progress in its efforts to end the influence of such groups, and we remain steadfast in our support of the Colombian authorities as they work towards sustainable peace.
Asked by: Clive Efford (Labour - Eltham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations she has made to her Colombian counterpart on support for the transitional justice mechanisms of the Colombian peace process.
Answered by Wendy Morton
President Duque's Government has publicly committed to implementing the Peace Accords of 2016 in their entirety. In meetings with the President in London last year the then-Foreign Secretary made it clear that the UK sees the transitional justice system and the involvement of victims as vital parts of the 2016 accords. President Duque's signing of the transitional justice law last June was a positive step forward, and we are pleased that the institutions have since begun their work.
We continue to emphasise our support for transitional justice in Colombia both with the government and in multilateral fora, including most recently at the UN Security Council on 14 April.
The UK Government has contributed over £26 million towards transitional justice mechanisms and victims of the conflict in Colombia since 2016. This includes supporting the truth commission's work to gather testimony from Colombians abroad, including here in the UK. We will continue to work closely with the Colombian government and civil society on the peace process and related matters.
Asked by: Clive Efford (Labour - Eltham)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
What recent assessment he has made of trends in the level of new homes for social rent since 2010.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
Since 2010, we have delivered over 430,000 new affordable homes, including over 308,000 for rent. Between 2010-11 and 2017-18, we delivered nearly 135,000 social rent homes.
Our £9 billion Affordable Homes Programme will deliver around 250,000 new affordable homes by March 2022, including at least 12,500 for social rent.
Asked by: Clive Efford (Labour - Eltham)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many disabled people have had their mobility car repossessed after an assessment for personal independence payments; how many people have subsequently had their entitlement reinstated after an appeal; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Clive Efford (Labour - Eltham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when the investigation into the Subject Access Request submitted by a constituent and referred to in the letter of the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State of 14 November on Movecom Limited will be completed.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
An internal review, or investigation, into our response to your constituent’s Freedom of Information (FOI) request was completed on 8 November 2018. All aspects of the subject access element of your constituent’s request were also completed last year.
Asked by: Clive Efford (Labour - Eltham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he plans to make representations to his counterpart in Colombia on approving the statutory law that will give the Special Jurisdiction for Peace in that country the provisions it needs to guarantee truth, justice, reparation and non-repetition in accordance with the 2016 peace agreement between the Government of Colombia and the revolutionary armed forces of Colombia - people's army; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Alan Duncan
The Special Jurisdiction for Peace continues to function under currently existing legal provisions despite the recent objections of President Duque to certain articles of the law. However, we remain concerned that a delay in finalising the legal underpinning of the transitional justice system risks undermining its authority and reducing cooperation of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).
Our Ambassador in Bogota informed President Duque of Colombia of the UK position on the Special Jurisdiction for Peace on 11 March during a briefing for the international community. He emphasised the importance of finalising the legal underpinning for the transitional justice system as quickly as possible to mitigate the risk of undermining its authority and reducing cooperation with the FARC. The UK permanent representative to the UN met Colombian Foreign Minister Holmes Trujillo on 15 March to reiterate the importance of a speedy process the positive signal that accelerating the implementation of the Peace Agreement would send.