Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what progress his Department has made on reviewing the responses to the call for evidence on local authority remote meetings, published on 25 March 2021; when he plans to publish the Government's response; and what factors have contributed to the Department being unable to do so to date.
Answered by Lee Rowley
I have nothing to add to the answer given to Question UIN 95817 on 2 December 2022.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what information his Department holds on the average cost of parish council by-elections; and if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of information provided to parish councils about the cost of such by-elections.
Answered by Lee Rowley
The department does not hold this information. Parishes are their own sovereign entity and responsible to their local electors.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what progress his Department has made on reviewing the responses to the call for evidence on local authority remote meetings, published on 25 March 2021; and when he plans to publish the Government's response.
Answered by Lee Rowley
The Government issued a call for evidence on remote meetings last year. We are considering the responses and will be issuing a response in due course.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether the extended delivery hours for supermarkets and other food retailers implemented during the covid-19 pandemic are still in place; and whether his Department plans to reinstate the overnight delivery restrictions which were in place before 9 March 2020.
Answered by Lucy Frazer
The Government issued a series of Written Ministerial Statements encouraging local planning authorities to take a measured approach to enforcement against breaches of certain planning conditions, including those governing delivery times. The latest of these expired in September 2022. We will keep the issue under review and my hon. Friend is welcome to write to me with information he considers relevant on this matter.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
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 providing (a) free and (b) subsidised bus travel to Ukrainian refugees who have settled in rural areas.
Answered by Eddie Hughes
Bus travel schemes are administered by the local councils and bus companies.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, when he plans to publish his Department's response to the call for evidence on whether local authorities and parish councils may meet remotely on a permanent basis, which closed on 17June 2021; and whether he plans to make changes to the existing requirements for those meetings.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - Leader of HM Official Opposition
We launched a call for evidence on 25 March 2021 to gather views and inform a longer-term decision about whether to make express provision for councils to meet remotely on a permanent basis.
The Department has considered the responses to the consultation and the Government will respond shortly.