Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the readiness of each local resilience forum to respond to future emergencies.

Local Resilience Forums (LRFs) have well established plans to respond to emergencies and routinely review their preparedness.

The Civil Contingencies Act 2004 (CCA), and the associated Regulations, place statutory duties on Category 1 responders (those organisations at the core of the response to most emergencies including the emergency services, local authorities, NHS bodies) to conduct risk assessments and maintain emergency plans. Duties under the CCA rest with responders but can be exercised through the LRF.

The Cabinet Office's Civil Contingencies Secretariat has developed National Resilience Standards for LRFs which are intended to establish a consistent and progressive means for LRFs and their constituent local responder organisations to: assure their capabilities, assure their overall level of readiness, and guide continuous improvement against mandatory requirements.

The Department for Leveling Up, Housing and Communities have a network of regionally-based resilience advisers who offer support and challenge to LRFs on their preparedness for the range of emergencies that could occur in their respective local areas.