Asked by: Zarah Sultana (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department plans to issue guidance for properties under 18 meters on the requirements for completing Cladding External Wall System forms.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
The Fire Safety Act (2021) was clear that multi-occupancy residential buildings, regardless of height, must have an up-to-date fire risk assessment that includes the external walls
Separately, the External Wall System Fire Review (EWS1) form is an industry-produced valuation tool to aid valuers and lenders to assess high rise properties. The EWS1 form is not a safety certificate, and it is not a legal or Government requirement. The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) have issued guidance on its use and application. This guidance makes clear when a valuer surveyor working for a mortgage lender should use the EWS1 process. A surveyor has to justify any request for an EWS1 form.
Asked by: Zarah Sultana (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans she has to allow people seeking asylum housed in the Bibby Stockholm barge to enter and leave the barge (a) during the day and (b) at night.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The statutory inspection was carried out prior to the Home Office taking control of the barge.
Asked by: Zarah Sultana (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 5 July 2023 to Question 191863 on Asylum: Falmouth, if her Department will publish the results of the statutory inspection.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The statutory inspection was carried out prior to the Home Office taking control of the barge.
Asked by: Zarah Sultana (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 25 July 2023 to Question 194955 on Asylum: Boats, if her Department will publish the Equality Impact Assessment completed for the Bibby Stockholm.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
Equality Impact Assessment (EqiA) documentation is for internal use and therefore is not routinely published.
Asked by: Zarah Sultana (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department plans to conduct a review of the funding formula for Police Forces.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The government recognises that the current police funding formula is out of date and no longer accurately reflects demand on policing. A review of the funding formula was launched in Autumn 2021 to ensure that it fairly and transparently distributes the circa £8.6bn of annual core grant funding across the 43 police forces in England and Wales.
We are working towards completing the first phase of the review and are considering the demands facing each police force and the relative impact of local factors on forces. We have engaged closely with the policing sector throughout the review, and this work continues.
Asked by: Zarah Sultana (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department had discussions with the Home Department on the suitability of the Bibby Stockholm as accommodation.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
Developing accommodation sites for asylum seekers is a priority for the Government and officials from the Department of Health and Social Care are working with the Home Office and other Government departments to support delivery of these sites, including the Bibby Stockholm vessel at Portland Port.
Asked by: Zarah Sultana (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department had discussions with the Home Department on the suitability of the Bibby Stockholm as accommodation.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
In line with the practice of successive administrations, details of internal discussions are not normally disclosed.
Asked by: Zarah Sultana (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department plans to provide indefinite leave to remain to Sudanese families in Coventry who were recently granted six-months leave to enter the UK.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
Where a person has leave in the UK but is unable to return home they should apply for Leave Outside the Rules using the FLR(HRO) form Application to extend stay in the UK: FLR(HRO) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk). Each case will be assessed on its merits.
If they are unable to afford the fee then a fee waiver application can be made here: fee waiver application form
Asked by: Zarah Sultana (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department undertook a consultation before deciding (a) to use barges and other floating vessels to accommodate people seeking asylum and (b) locating the Bibby Stockholm in Portland Port.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
An Equality Impact Assessment (EQIA) has been completed and routinely monitored to ensure that the accommodation is safe, habitable, fit for purpose and meets all regulatory requirements, for single adult male asylum seekers.
We will assess individual’s suitability to reside at each location and will only accommodate individuals who are considered suitable to reside there. Each person’s suitability will be assessed at regular intervals.
The sites are be designed to be as self-sufficient as possible, helping to minimise the impact on local communities and services. This includes 24/7 security to reduce the need for police patrols, on-site catering and healthcare and transport provisions for asylum seekers.
We also conducted relevant assessments in line with the Home Office’s role as competent authority under the Conservation and Habitats Regulations 2017. An environmental impact assessment (EIA) screening was not required as planning permission was not required.
Asked by: Zarah Sultana (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has made an assessment of the suitability of the Bibby Stockholm to berth at Portland Port as accommodation for up to 506 adults.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
An Equality Impact Assessment (EQIA) has been completed and routinely monitored to ensure that the accommodation is safe, habitable, fit for purpose and meets all regulatory requirements, for single adult male asylum seekers.
We will assess individual’s suitability to reside at each location and will only accommodate individuals who are considered suitable to reside there. Each person’s suitability will be assessed at regular intervals.
The sites are be designed to be as self-sufficient as possible, helping to minimise the impact on local communities and services. This includes 24/7 security to reduce the need for police patrols, on-site catering and healthcare and transport provisions for asylum seekers.
We also conducted relevant assessments in line with the Home Office’s role as competent authority under the Conservation and Habitats Regulations 2017. An environmental impact assessment (EIA) screening was not required as planning permission was not required.