Asked by: Gareth Thomas (Labour (Co-op) - Harrow West)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, when he expects the Harrow 13 (Trident Point) application to the Building Safety Fund will be determined; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
The eligibility of the registration to the Building Safety Fund for the Trident Point building in Harrow is currently being assessed. The Department is committed to the safety of residents and will continue to work as quickly as possible to assess registrations and applications to the Fund.
Asked by: Gareth Thomas (Labour (Co-op) - Harrow West)
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 merits of compensating or indemnifying local authorities for any financial damages they may be asked to pay, in respect of legal challenge by residents and businesses, as a result of non-removal of Tree Preservation Orders from protected trees; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
The Government recognises the value of trees, including their support for biodiversity, their relationship to landscape and amenity, their contribution to health and mitigating climate change and, in many cases, their rarity and role as part of our cultural heritage. The Tree Preservation Order (TPO) system is an important method of protecting trees and woodlands of amenity value.
The Town and Country Planning Regulation 2012 clearly sets out that an authority is only liable to pay compensation for damage caused by TPO trees in certain circumstances; there are strict criteria and limitations. This is also set out in our Planning Practice Guidance.
This year, the Government has made available an increase in Core Spending Power in England from £49 billion in 2020-21 to up to £51.3 billion in 2021-22, a 4.6% increase in cash terms. This recognised the resources councils need to meet their pressures and maintain current service levels.
Asked by: Gareth Thomas (Labour (Co-op) - Harrow West)
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 for its proposed financial assistance for people affected by unsafe cladding in properties that are 18 metres and over to be provided to all leaseholders, including those who are (a) owner occupiers and (b) owners of buy-to-let properties; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
The Government will support leaseholders by funding the cost of replacing unsafe cladding in residential buildings 18 metres and over in England. Leaseholders who are buy-to-let landlords are able to benefit from funding for eligible remediation works, subject to the relevant subsidy control requirements.
Asked by: Gareth Thomas (Labour (Co-op) - Harrow West)
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 for its proposed loan scheme for people affected by unsafe cladding to be offered to all leaseholders, including those who are (a) owner-occupiers and (b) owners of buy-to-let properties; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
The new finance scheme which will provide leaseholders with protection from the costs of cladding remediation and limit their payments to £50 per month will be available for leaseholders in residential buildings between 11 and 18 metres. This is line with longstanding independent advice on which buildings are at the highest risk. We will publish further details of the scheme as soon as we are in a position to do so.
Asked by: Gareth Thomas (Labour (Co-op) - Harrow West)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what safeguards are in place to guarantee the quality of work by contractors undertaking remediation works on buildings identified as having fire safety defects; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
The removal and replacement of unsafe cladding from buildings must be signed off by the relevant building control body to ensure that the works comply with the building regulations requirement for the external walls of the building to adequately resist the spread of fire over the walls and from one building to another, having regard to the height, use and location of the building. Where works are funded by the Government we expect fund applicants to appoint a team of competent professionals to advise them on the assessment of the external wall system and the proposed remediation works, and to confirm the use of non-combustible materials in the recladding works.
Asked by: Gareth Thomas (Labour (Co-op) - Harrow West)
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 implications for his policies of the proposals published by the Leasehold Knowledge Partnership for a single special purpose vehicle to fund remediation works on buildings identified as having fire safety defects; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
The Government values and listens to the views of our stakeholders in all relevant areas, including the Leasehold Knowledge Partnership, and we are continuing to develop a financing scheme using a range of evidence to ensure that it protects leaseholders, prioritising affordability and accelerating remediation. We will announce further details as soon as we are in a position to do so.
Asked by: Gareth Thomas (Labour (Co-op) - Harrow West)
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 number of EWS1 certificates being required by mortgage lenders for buildings which either do not have cladding or are primarily finished in brick; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
The EWS1 process is not a Government form or regulatory requirement, and the Department does not hold data on its use. However, following the Government announcement in November 2020, leaseholders living in blocks with no cladding should not be asked to produce an EWS1 form to sell or re-mortgage their flat.
Asked by: Gareth Thomas (Labour (Co-op) - Harrow West)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many section 20 notices have been issued to leaseholders in each of the last 12 months for remediation works identified as part of the EWS1 process or to address other fire safety defects; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
The Department does not hold this data.
Asked by: Gareth Thomas (Labour (Co-op) - Harrow West)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many people have commenced training as building surveyors since November 2020; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
To speed up valuations where EWS1 forms are justified, the Government is providing nearly £700,000 funding to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors to train up to 2,000 more assessors in 2021. This training commenced in January and there are currently 453 candidates on the course.
Asked by: Gareth Thomas (Labour (Co-op) - Harrow West)
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 available testing capacity for samples removed from buildings as part of fire safety assessments; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
The Department continues to support building owners by providing free screening tests for the identification of Aluminium Composite Materials.
The Government announced on 19 January that it will shortly commission an independent review to examine in detail the deficiencies in testing and conformity assessment regime for construction products.
The review will report later this year.