Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether the Defending Democracy Taskforce has had discussions with the Electoral Commission on enhanced information sharing between (a) political parties and (b) public bodies.
Answered by Simon Hoare
As set out previously, the Government will consult the relevant authorities with the aim of finding ways to improve information sharing to facilitate enforcement of existing electoral law and report its conclusions to Parliament by the end of 2024.
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what recent discussions his Department has had with the Scottish Government on taking steps to support (a) Inverness and Cromarty Firth Green Freeport and (b) Forth Green Freeport.
Answered by Jacob Young
Both Green Freeports are receiving significant support from UK and Scottish Governments, including access to £1 million capacity funding for each Green Freeport, dedicated expertise and advice from the Freeports Consultancy Hub and support from officials from both UK and Scottish Governments.
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps he is taking to ensure the security of IT used in elections.
Answered by Dehenna Davison
The Government is committed to safeguarding democracy and has established the Defending Democracy Taskforce, which has a mandate to safeguard our democratic institutions and electoral processes.
Whilst elections continue to be delivered in a traditional manner - with electors voting with pencil and paper - the supporting infrastructure uses digital systems. The Register to Vote on-line service undergoes regular security and accessibility checks.
Through the Defending Democracy Taskforce, this department works closely with the National Cyber Security Centre to provide guidance and support relating to the risks of election-related cyber-attacks to local authorities and their suppliers, as well as to political parties.
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will make an assessment with Cabinet colleagues of the potential impact of the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Bill on intergovernmental relations.
Answered by Felicity Buchan
Minimum service levels are necessary across Great Britain to minimise the impacts that strikes have on the lives and livelihoods of the public. We recognise this will affect employers operating services that are devolved and have been clear that we want to engage with Devolved Governments on this Bill.
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will make an assessment with his Cabinet colleagues of the potential merits of extending the Council Tax rebate to cover the same time period as the Energy Price Guarantee.
Answered by Lee Rowley
The Government set up a £3 billion council tax rebate scheme to provide a one-off payment of £150 to nearly 20 million households in England in council tax bands A-D.
Further information on support the Government is currently providing for households is available here.
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of (a) a ban on installing gas boilers and (b) encouraging developers to install heat pumps in all new homes after 2025.
Answered by Lee Rowley
The Government has previously announced it intends to consult on the Future Homes Standard later this year.
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will make it his policy to include in the (a) building regulations and (b) associated approved documents requirements for new build homes to (i) have smart meter installed and (ii) enable the use of a smart meter.
Answered by Lee Rowley
As part of the British Energy Security Strategy, the Government has committed to ensuring all new homes are designed so that smart meters can be fitted from the outset, in advance of the Future Homes and Building Standards by 2024.
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department has made an assessment of the implications for its policies of the practice of car parking companies (a) sending letters threatening legal action and (b) passing details to debt collection agencies in cases of unpaid parking charges.
Answered by Luke Hall
My department is leading on the implementation of the Parking (Code of Practice) Act 2019, which includes creation of an independent Code of Practice for private parking companies to improve standards.
MHCLG is developing the Code of Practice through the British Standards Institution (BSI) in close consultation with key stakeholders, including landowners, consumer organisations, and the private parking industry, who are advising on its impact. The draft Code, which is available online at https://standardsdevelopment.bsigroup.com/projects/2020-00193 and on which the BSI recently publicly consulted, includes a requirement for a clear signage, surface markings, and clear and accessible displays of terms and conditions, as well as appropriate terminology used in operator notices or by debt recovery agents.
In parallel to the BSI consultation on the Code, my department consulted on the Parking Code of Practice Enforcement Framework and on 20 March 2021 published the response to the consultation, available online at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/parking-code-enforcement-framework
The consultation response announced our intention to develop a series of fairer parking measures which will benefit motorists and encourage people to return to high streets and town centres. This includes the creation of a single independent appeals service for motorists to turn to if they receive a private parking charge and an Appeals Charter, which will protect motorists from charges that are unfair or issued in error.
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department has plans to encourage private companies that levy car parking charges to introduce clearer signage for the public on the charges and potential consequences of parking in private car parks.
Answered by Luke Hall
My department is leading on the implementation of the Parking (Code of Practice) Act 2019, which includes creation of an independent Code of Practice for private parking companies to improve standards.
MHCLG is developing the Code of Practice through the British Standards Institution (BSI) in close consultation with key stakeholders, including landowners, consumer organisations, and the private parking industry, who are advising on its impact. The draft Code, which is available online at https://standardsdevelopment.bsigroup.com/projects/2020-00193 and on which the BSI recently publicly consulted, includes a requirement for a clear signage, surface markings, and clear and accessible displays of terms and conditions, as well as appropriate terminology used in operator notices or by debt recovery agents.
In parallel to the BSI consultation on the Code, my department consulted on the Parking Code of Practice Enforcement Framework and on 20 March 2021 published the response to the consultation, available online at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/parking-code-enforcement-framework
The consultation response announced our intention to develop a series of fairer parking measures which will benefit motorists and encourage people to return to high streets and town centres. This includes the creation of a single independent appeals service for motorists to turn to if they receive a private parking charge and an Appeals Charter, which will protect motorists from charges that are unfair or issued in error.