Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the costs of compliance for charities in implementing the Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information in Tax Matters via the OECD Common Reporting Standard compared with the intended benefits for the taxpayer.

It is the responsibility of each fire and rescue authority to manage its prevention, protection and operational resources to address effectively risks within their communities. This includes determining which premises to audit to ensure compliance with the provisions of the Fire Safety Order. When carrying out an audit, including for short-term accommodation let through Airbnb or similar platforms, it is for the individual fire and rescue authority to determine how they assess whether the fire risk assessment carried out by the responsible person and the fire precautions in place are adequate and appropriate for a particular premises. No two premises are the same. What may represent a proportionate approach to improved fire safety management in one building, will not necessarily apply in another.

The level of competency required for individual premises will vary according to their nature and complexity.

The Government issued guidance to assist enforcing authorities in their enforcement responsibilities under the Fire Safety Order, which is available here - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/regulatory-reform-fire-safety-order-2005-guidance-note-enforcement. In addition, the Chief Fire Officers Association, now the National Fire Chiefs Council, produced a standardised audit form to ensure consistency of audits.

The person responsible for complying with the Fire Safety Order (usually the owner, employer, landlord or managing agent) may decide that they are competent to carry out the risk assessment themselves or they may choose to appoint a competent person to undertake the risk assessment on their behalf. A decision on this may be made in conjunction with their insurers.

The requirements for a competent person are set out in the Fire Safety Order. A person is to be regarded as competent for the purposes of making a fire risk assessment if they have sufficient training and experience or knowledge and other qualities to enable them properly to assist in undertaking the preventative and protective measures. To help those responsible for ensuring that the risk from fire in their premises has been accurately assessed, the fire sector has produced guidance on how to choose a competent fire risk assessor. This is available on www.cfoa.org.uk/19532.

In addition, fire safety risk assessment guidance produced by the Government and by the Local Government Association also provides advice and guidance to those responsible for fire safety compliance to help them to accurately assess the risks from fire and implement adequate and appropriate fire safety measures. This is available here: https://www.gov.uk/workplace-fire-safety-your-responsibilities/fire-risk-assessments.

The Government will consider the ongoing suitability of the Fire Safety Order as part of the wider work underway following the horrific fire at Grenfell Tower.