Asked by: Helen Jones (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what discussions he has had with (a) housing associations and (b) lenders on the potential effects of the extension of the right to buy scheme on the credit ratings and ability to access credit of housing associations; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
Officials have met with a number of housing associations on an individual basis and further meetings are planned.
Details of Ministers’ meetings and those of the Permanent Secretary with external organisations are published on-line here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/dclg-ministerial-data
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dclg-permanent-secretary-data-2014#history
Asked by: Helen Jones (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, when he plans to lay regulations before the House to make the provision of smoke alarms in private rented property compulsory; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
The Department of Communities and Local Government published a discussion document in 2014, which invited views on regulating for the installation of smoke and carbon monoxide alarms. We will publish our response along with a summary of the views shortly.
Asked by: Helen Jones (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what the total amount of uncollected council tax was in (a) Warrington and (b) the North West in each financial year since 2009-10.
Answered by Kris Hopkins
The amounts of council tax outstanding in Warrington at 31 March in each of the last five years are shown in the table below.
Total council tax arrears outstanding | |
As at 31 March | £000s |
2010 | 9,518 |
2011 | 9,317 |
2012 | 9,817 |
2013 | 10,703 |
2014 | 11,860 |
Source: Quarterly Return of Council Taxes and Non-domestic rates (QRC4) form.
The figures are calculated by adding the amount of council tax that was uncollected within the year to the council tax arrears brought forward, less any receipts received in respect of previous years’ arrears, less any council tax written off as uncollectable.
The council tax collection rates for Warrington for the last 5 years are:
2009-10 97.3%
2010-11 97.5%
2011-12 97.6%
2012-13 97.4%
2013-14 97.2%
My Department does not produce regional statistics. The local government finance system does not operate on a regional basis, and the Government Office regions have been abolished.
In our best practice document, “50 ways to save”, we listed improving council tax collection rates and reducing arrears as a key way of making sensible savings to help keep overall council tax bills down and protect frontline services. Every penny of council tax that is not collected means a higher council tax for the law-abiding citizen who does pay on time.
It is important that councils are sympathetic to those in genuine hardship, are proportionate in enforcement and do not overuse bailiffs. However, these figures show that there is a significant source of income for councils, which councils could use to support frontline service or cut council tax bills.
Asked by: Helen Jones (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many non-frontline roles are currently available in (a) Warrington and (b) Cheshire for firefighters who cannot meet fitness requirements for reasons beyond their control.
Answered by Penny Mordaunt
I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 11 December 2014, PQ 217653.
Asked by: Helen Jones (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many affordable homes (a) for rent and (b) to buy have been built in Warrington in each year since 2009-10.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
Statistics on additional affordable housing provided in each local authority area in England are published in the Department’s live tables 1006 (social rent), 1006a (affordable rent), 1007 (intermediate housing) and 1008 (all affordable housing), which are available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-affordable-housing-supply
These figures include both newly built housing and acquisitions.
Since April 2010, 940 affordable homes have been delivered in Warrington.
Asked by: Helen Jones (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what recent estimate he has made of the cost to local and central government of industrial action in the fire service since January 2014; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Penny Mordaunt
The strike action called by the Fire Brigades Union has been unnecessary and unproductive. The 2015 firefighter pension scheme will provide one of the most generous schemes in the public sector and has been improved through consultation.
Since January 2014, central government has invested £2 million to enhance the nation’s resilience against industrial action and other potential disruption to fire and rescue services.
Individual fire and rescue authorities are responsible for their own business continuity plans for industrial action, and we do not hold information centrally on any costs they incur in implementing those plans, or indeed, the savings they will have accrued through deduction of striking firefighters’ wages.
National resilience has been strengthened by the work and training undertaken by both local and central government.
Asked by: Helen Jones (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what recent discussions his Department has had with the devolved administrations on the firefighters' pension dispute; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Penny Mordaunt
Officials from the Department meet regularly with the officials from the devolved administrations to discuss issues of common interest relating to the fire and rescue service, including the current dispute with the Fire Brigades Union over firefighter pension reform. Ministers correspond and have met with the fire and rescue services in the devolved nations.
Asked by: Helen Jones (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, when a Minister in his Department last visited Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service; and who was met on that visit.
Answered by Penny Mordaunt
I have met with the Chief Fire Officer of Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service on several occasions. In addition, my hon. Friend, the Member for Great Yarmouth (Brandon Lewis), visited Cheshire Fire and Rescue Authority last year (June 2013) in his capacity as the then Fire Minister. He attended the Retained Duty System Working Group for a question and answer session, had a tour of the Incident Command Training Suite and was updated on community fire safety. He met with the Chief Fire Officer, the Chairman of the Fire and Rescue Authority and other fire service staff present that day.
Asked by: Helen Jones (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what recent discussions he has had with the Fire Brigades Union on firefighters' pensions.
Answered by Penny Mordaunt
After extensive consultation, and numerous changes, the Government laid the regulations to implement the Firefighters’ Pension Scheme 2015 before Parliament on 28 October. This provides one of the best schemes in the public sector, with a firefighter who earns £29,000 and retires after a full career receiving a £19,000 a year pension at age 60. The reforms ensure that a greater proportion of firefighters are protected from the changes than any other large public service workforce.
The Department continues to discuss the remaining detail of the pension reforms, including the transitional arrangements and new governance arrangements to apply from April 2015, with the Fire Brigades Union, other workforce representative bodies and the employers. Furthermore, these bodies are part of the joint fitness group facilitated by the Chief Fire and Rescue Adviser, Peter Holland. This group complements the consultation we published to put the key fitness principles onto a statutory footing through the Fire National Framework. We would encourage the Fire Brigades Union and all other representative bodies to respond to that consultation, which closes on 9 December. The consultation can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/firefighter-fitness-standards-and-assessment.
Asked by: Helen Jones (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what the average debt level per capita is of local authorities in (a) England and (b) the North West; and what the level of debt per capita is in Warrington Borough Council.
Answered by Kris Hopkins
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the rt.hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne East (Mr Nicholas Brown) on 14 July 2014, Official Report, Column 532W.
My Department does not publish regional statistics.