Asked by: Jonathan Ashworth (Labour (Co-op) - Leicester South)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps his Department has taken to reduce the costs of error in the last three financial years.
Answered by Simon Hoare - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
Details of measures the department is taking to prevent fraud and error are set out in the department’s annual accounts.
Asked by: Mike Amesbury (Labour - Weaver Vale)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to the Building Safety Remediation data published by his Department on 22 February 2024, whether he has taken steps in relation to the 25 residential buildings that received Government funding under the (a) Waking Watch Relief Fund in 2021 and (b) Waking Watch Replacement Fund in 2022 that have not yet installed alarm systems.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
The department regularly engages with all fund applicants, local and regional authorities, where they are responsible for administering awarded grant funding, and local Fire and Rescue Services following a successful application to the fund, to drive pace on the installation of fire alarms and the subsequent standing down of a waking watch.
Over £80 million has been made available to applications to install alarms. The schemes have operated on a first come first served basis, and all successful applications have been awarded grant funding.
Of the 25 residential buildings that have received funding under the Waking Watch Relief Fund that are yet to install alarms, all of these are being administered by Greater Manchester Combined Authority and they have the lead responsibility for resolving these issues. On 17 of these 25, we have been advised by Greater Manchester Combined Authority that installations have been completed but we are awaiting further assurance before we can formally update the application status. For a further seven, we are waiting updates of the exact status despite departmental officials seeking an update. On the final case, we are working alongside the Authority to resolve a specific situation.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if his Department will encourage the use of traditional architectural styles in new developments.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
I refer my Hon Friend to the answer given to Question UIN 21850 on 23 April 2024. If he has any more representations on this issue, we would be happy to receive them.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he is taking steps to reform the eligibility criteria for the Flood Recovery Framework to include more (a)households and (b) businesses that have experienced flooding.
Answered by Simon Hoare - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
A review of the Flood Recovery Framework is currently under way with stakeholders.
Asked by: Jonathan Gullis (Conservative - Stoke-on-Trent North)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what guidance his Department has issued on claiming local council tax support when an elector (a) owns and (b) resides in more than one property.
Answered by Simon Hoare - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
Local authorities are required to put in place and administer council tax reduction schemes for low-income households. Support for working age people is designed by authorities and support for people of pension age must follow criterial prescribed in regulations by the Secretary of State in the Council Tax Reduction Schemes (Prescribed Requirements) (England) Regulations 2012.
In the case of pension-age local council tax reductions schemes, the Secretary of State has prescribed that a person must be resident in a property to claim support. In addition, the capital value of additional properties will be considered in determining eligibility, unless there are mitigating circumstances such as if the property is in the process of being sold. A pension age person with more than £16,000 of capital is not entitled to council tax reduction.
Eligibility for working age council tax reduction and the treatment of capital such as additional properties is decided by local authorities.
Asked by: Jonathan Gullis (Conservative - Stoke-on-Trent North)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what guidance his Department has issued on claiming single person discount on council tax when an elector (a) owns and (b) resides in more than one property.
Answered by Simon Hoare - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
My department has published a ‘Plain English Guide to Council Tax’ setting out the discounts and support available in the council tax system. This guide is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/paying-the-right-level-of-council-tax-a-plain-english-guide-to-council-tax.
As set out in local government finance law, a full council tax bill is payable if there are two or more adults living in a dwelling. If there is only one adult (other than disregarded individuals – e.g. full-time students), and it is their sole or main residence, the individual can claim the single person discount of 25% on their council tax bill. A second or empty home would not be eligible for this discount.
Further guidance has been published given by the Valuation Tribunal Service’s ‘Council Tax Manual’, which is available at: https://valuationtribunal.gov.uk/guidance-booklets/.
The manual includes guidance on single person discount, and the tests of a sole or main residence. For example, the Manual cites the case law of Cox v London South West Valuation Tribunal HC (RVR 1994 171). They observe: “the taxpayer spent time at two dwellings. The High Court concluded that the sole or main residence was the home where the wife and family resided.”
Asked by: Mary Kelly Foy (Labour - City of Durham)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps his Department is taking to ensure holiday caravan owners have the same protections under the Mobile Homes Act 2013 as residential park home owners.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
The protections under the Mobile Homes Act 1983 apply to park home owners living on caravan sites with planning permission for residential use.
The protections do not extend to owners of caravans on holiday caravan sites, because the planning permission granted permits the use of those sites for holiday and recreational purposes only.
Holiday caravan owners have protections under the Consumer Rights Act 2015.
Asked by: Mike Amesbury (Labour - Weaver Vale)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of reallocating any underspend from the (a) Waking Watch Relief Fund and (b) Waking Watch Replacement Funds to support (i) sprinkler installation and (ii) other relevant steps where professional risk assessments deem them to be essential to mitigate life safety risks.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
The department regularly engages with all fund applicants, local and regional authorities, where they are responsible for administering awarded grant funding, and local Fire and Rescue Services following a successful application to the fund, to drive pace on the installation of fire alarms and the subsequent standing down of a waking watch.
Over £80 million has been made available to applications to install alarms. The schemes have operated on a first come first served basis, and all successful applications have been awarded grant funding.
Of the 25 residential buildings that have received funding under the Waking Watch Relief Fund that are yet to install alarms, all of these are being administered by Greater Manchester Combined Authority and they have the lead responsibility for resolving these issues. On 17 of these 25, we have been advised by Greater Manchester Combined Authority that installations have been completed but we are awaiting further assurance before we can formally update the application status. For a further seven, we are waiting updates of the exact status despite departmental officials seeking an update. On the final case, we are working alongside the Authority to resolve a specific situation.
Asked by: Mike Amesbury (Labour - Weaver Vale)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how much and what proportion of funding is un-allocated from the (a) the Waking Watch Relief Fund 2021, (b) Waking Watch Replacement Fund 2022 and (c) Waking Watch Replacement Fund 2023, as of 12 April 2024.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
The department regularly engages with all fund applicants, local and regional authorities, where they are responsible for administering awarded grant funding, and local Fire and Rescue Services following a successful application to the fund, to drive pace on the installation of fire alarms and the subsequent standing down of a waking watch.
Over £80 million has been made available to applications to install alarms. The schemes have operated on a first come first served basis, and all successful applications have been awarded grant funding.
Of the 25 residential buildings that have received funding under the Waking Watch Relief Fund that are yet to install alarms, all of these are being administered by Greater Manchester Combined Authority and they have the lead responsibility for resolving these issues. On 17 of these 25, we have been advised by Greater Manchester Combined Authority that installations have been completed but we are awaiting further assurance before we can formally update the application status. For a further seven, we are waiting updates of the exact status despite departmental officials seeking an update. On the final case, we are working alongside the Authority to resolve a specific situation.
Asked by: Jonathan Gullis (Conservative - Stoke-on-Trent North)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what guidance his Department or the predecessor Department has issued on registration on the electoral roll when an elector (a) owns and (b) resides in more than one property.
Answered by Simon Hoare - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Electoral Commission, as the independent electoral regulator, holds responsibility for issuance of guidance on electoral registration, voting and second homes.
This can be found at: https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/voting-and-elections/who-can-vote/other-registration-options/voting-and-second-homes.
A person is entitled to be registered as a parliamentary elector for a constituency - or in the case of local elections, as a local government elector for an electoral area - if on the date they submit their application they meet the criteria for registration.
Those criteria include a requirement (except, regarding Parliamentary elections, in respect of a British citizen living overseas) that the applicant is resident in the constituency or electoral area. It is for the Electoral Registration Officer to determine whether the applicant meets this residency requirement by reference to the factors set out in section 5 of the Representation of the People Act 1983 (and in some cases sections 6 to 7C of that Act also). Ownership of a property is not sufficient on its own, the ERO must determine that an individual is resident. Case law suggests this will involve a degree of permanence.
This means that some citizens are entitled to register to vote in respect of more than one address in certain circumstances.
However, it may be noted that it is a criminal offence for a registered elector to vote more than once in the same constituency at a parliamentary election or in the same electoral division or ward at a local government election. It is also a criminal offence for a registered elector to vote in more than one constituency at a parliamentary general election, or in more than once electoral division or ward at an ordinary election of councillors for county, London Borough or district.