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, what recent discussions he has had with the (a) Financial Conduct Authority and (b) Association of British Insurers on (i) the insurance pooling scheme for building safety and (ii) when the details of the scheme will be published.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
All residential buildings above 11 metres in England now have a pathway to fix unsafe cladding, through either a taxpayer-funded scheme or developer-funded scheme; the Government has committed £5.1 billion to remove unsafe cladding from buildings. Five remediation schemes are underway:
Residents must be at the heart of building safety. This includes the significant and disruptive works required to remediate buildings, with those responsible for the project and works considering residents as a key stakeholder throughout. To that end on 27 July 2023, we published the Code of Practice for the Remediation of Residential Buildings which sets our expectations for all remediation projects. The Code places residents at the heart of remediations projects as the key stakeholder and sets the standard for how we expect all remediation projects to account and deliver for residents.
As of 31 December 2023, 950 buildings residential buildings over 18 metres in height in England have been deemed eligible for the Building Safety Fund due to the presence of unsafe non-ACM cladding. Of these, 486 (51%) have started or completed remediation and of those 231 (24%) have completed works.
The then Minister for Housing last met with the FCA on 11 October 2023 and the Secretary of State met the Association of British Insurers on 13 December 2023. We continue to press the insurance industry to launch their scheme, which leaseholders need urgently. The Association of British Insurers released a public update on the scheme on their blog on 19 December 2023.
In the last 6 months, both the Secretary of State and I have met with the FCA (on 11 October 2023) and the Association of British Insurers (on 18 August 2023, 27 November 2023 and 12 December 2023). The Secretary of State met the Association of British Insurers on 13 December 2023. We continue to press the insurance industry to launch their scheme, which leaseholders need urgently.
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, what steps he is taking to support residents of buildings with unsafe cladding.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
All residential buildings above 11 metres in England now have a pathway to fix unsafe cladding, through either a taxpayer-funded scheme or developer-funded scheme; the Government has committed £5.1 billion to remove unsafe cladding from buildings. Five remediation schemes are underway:
Residents must be at the heart of building safety. This includes the significant and disruptive works required to remediate buildings, with those responsible for the project and works considering residents as a key stakeholder throughout. To that end on 27 July 2023, we published the Code of Practice for the Remediation of Residential Buildings which sets our expectations for all remediation projects. The Code places residents at the heart of remediations projects as the key stakeholder and sets the standard for how we expect all remediation projects to account and deliver for residents.
As of 31 December 2023, 950 buildings residential buildings over 18 metres in height in England have been deemed eligible for the Building Safety Fund due to the presence of unsafe non-ACM cladding. Of these, 486 (51%) have started or completed remediation and of those 231 (24%) have completed works.
The then Minister for Housing last met with the FCA on 11 October 2023 and the Secretary of State met the Association of British Insurers on 13 December 2023. We continue to press the insurance industry to launch their scheme, which leaseholders need urgently. The Association of British Insurers released a public update on the scheme on their blog on 19 December 2023.
In the last 6 months, both the Secretary of State and I have met with the FCA (on 11 October 2023) and the Association of British Insurers (on 18 August 2023, 27 November 2023 and 12 December 2023). The Secretary of State met the Association of British Insurers on 13 December 2023. We continue to press the insurance industry to launch their scheme, which leaseholders need urgently.
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, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the building safety fund.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
All residential buildings above 11 metres in England now have a pathway to fix unsafe cladding, through either a taxpayer-funded scheme or developer-funded scheme; the Government has committed £5.1 billion to remove unsafe cladding from buildings. Five remediation schemes are underway:
Residents must be at the heart of building safety. This includes the significant and disruptive works required to remediate buildings, with those responsible for the project and works considering residents as a key stakeholder throughout. To that end on 27 July 2023, we published the Code of Practice for the Remediation of Residential Buildings which sets our expectations for all remediation projects. The Code places residents at the heart of remediations projects as the key stakeholder and sets the standard for how we expect all remediation projects to account and deliver for residents.
As of 31 December 2023, 950 buildings residential buildings over 18 metres in height in England have been deemed eligible for the Building Safety Fund due to the presence of unsafe non-ACM cladding. Of these, 486 (51%) have started or completed remediation and of those 231 (24%) have completed works.
The then Minister for Housing last met with the FCA on 11 October 2023 and the Secretary of State met the Association of British Insurers on 13 December 2023. We continue to press the insurance industry to launch their scheme, which leaseholders need urgently. The Association of British Insurers released a public update on the scheme on their blog on 19 December 2023.
In the last 6 months, both the Secretary of State and I have met with the FCA (on 11 October 2023) and the Association of British Insurers (on 18 August 2023, 27 November 2023 and 12 December 2023). The Secretary of State met the Association of British Insurers on 13 December 2023. We continue to press the insurance industry to launch their scheme, which leaseholders need urgently.
Asked by: Baroness Smith of Basildon (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what guidance has been issued to the film and television industry regarding the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Work in the film and television industry is covered under the general requirements of the Health and Safety etc. Act 1974 and associated regulations. However, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) also provides extensive guidance on common or higher risk activities encountered across multiple industries which may be applicable to activities within film and television production, e.g. working at height or managing asbestos (when filming on location).
HSE also provides a range of guidance which is specific to film and television industry that describes the various roles and responsibilities of those within the production process (INDG360: Health and safety in audio-visual production. Your legal duties) and information sheets for specific production activities and risks, e.g. stunts, use of firearms and filming while using vehicles.
All guidance and information are freely available on the HSE website, a section of which is dedicated to health and safety in the film, theatre and broadcasting industries.
Alongside this, industry specific guidance is also available from a range of industry bodies and stakeholders.
Asked by: Dan Jarvis (Labour - Barnsley Central)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the Work at Height Regulations 2005.
Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Work at Height Regulations 2005 set out the approach necessary to ensure the safety of people working at height. They place clear responsibilities on employers and those in control of any work at height to prevent falls by making sure work is properly planned, supervised, and undertaken by competent people. This includes using the right type of equipment including, where suitable, ladders.
In 2022/23, 40 fatal injuries were due to falls from a height accounting for 30% of all worker deaths1 over the year. The level of fatality and major injury arising from falls is still high so there is an ongoing need for the regulations to focus attention on the issue.
Following the announcement of the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill, Heath and Safety engagement with industry groups and trade organisations demonstrated extensive support to retain the Work at Height Regulations. The Regulations are well embedded in the health and safety framework and recognised as a key instrument in ensuring effective workplace health and safety standards.
1Work-related fatal injuries in Great Britain, 2023 (hse.gov.uk)
Asked by: Virginia Crosbie (Conservative - Ynys Môn)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill on regulations on working at height.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
With the introduction of the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill (REUL Bill), the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) remains focused on ensuring that regulatory frameworks maintain the United Kingdom’s high standards of health and safety protection and continue to reduce burdens for business. HSE’s approach aligns closely with the Government’s pledge to do more for business to help promote growth by removing disproportionate burdens and simplifying the regulatory landscape. Our standards of health and safety protections are among the highest in the world.
HSE will continue to review its retained EU Law to seek opportunities to reduce business burdens and promote growth without reducing health and safety standards.
Asked by: Justin Madders (Labour - Ellesmere Port and Neston)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Answer of 22 April 2022 to Question 154083 on Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency: Standards, if he will publish the data used to conclude that (a) there are no delays in successful online applications, (b) the backlog of vehicles paper applications has been eliminated and (c) straightforward vocational driving licence applications and renewals are being processed within five working days with no backlog.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA)’s online services are the quickest and easiest way to make an application. The average time taken to process successful online applications between April 2021 and March 2022 was two working days.
All vehicles-related paper applications are now being processed within normal turnaround times.
The DVLA focused extra resource on vocational driving licence applications and cleared more than 55,000 applications in a matter of weeks at the height of the driver shortage. Routine applications for vocational driving licences are being processed within normal turnaround times of five working days. Applications where a medical condition must be investigated will take longer.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps she is taking to ensure that child abuse claims are dealt with in a timely fashion within the criminal justice system.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Child sexual abuse cases are some of the most challenging, complex and sensitive cases. They are dealt with by specially trained prosecutors, working closely with the police to build the strongest possible cases that meet the legal test.
In 2020-2021 there were 6,402 prosecutions for cases classified as child abuse. In the same period the conviction rate was 85.6%, an increase of 2.7% on the previous year.
Listing and prioritisation is a judicial function and judges continue to work to prioritise cases involving vulnerable complainants and witnesses (including youth cases), domestic abuse and serious sex cases. The most effective method to ensure that child abuse cases are dealt with in a timely fashion once they get to court is to expand our capacity, so that all cases requiring jury trial can be heard swiftly. To achieve this, among various other measures, we removed the limit on the number of days the Crown Court can sit in the 21/22 financial year, and equipped over 70 per cent of all courtrooms with the video hardware to use Cloud Video Platform, which enabled up to 20,000 cases to be heard virtually each week at the height of the pandemic. These measures are working. The caseload in the Crown Court has reduced from around 61,000 cases in June 2021 to around 58,400 cases at the end of December 2021.
Looking ahead, we will be investing £477 million in the Criminal Justice System to improve waiting times for victims and to reduce the Crown Court backlogs caused by the pandemic from 60,000 cases today to an estimated 53,000 cases by March 2025. We are also extending magistrates’ court sentencing powers from 6 to 12 months for a single Triable Either Way offence to allow more cases to be heard in the magistrates' court. As a result of these measures, in the next financial year we expect to get through 20% more Crown Court cases than we did pre-Covid (116,700 in 22/23 compared to 97,000 in 19/20).
Having the right data across the criminal justice system is also crucial to recovery. Working with our partners across the justice system, we have published criminal justice scorecards which bring together data on key areas of performance, including timeliness. The national CJS scorecards for all-crime and recorded adult rape, published in December 2021, can be found here: https://data.justice.gov.uk/cjs-scorecard-all-crime
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Croydon North)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the (a) mean and (b) median number of days taken from offence to completion of criminal cases for (i) Crown and (ii) Magistrates Court in England and Wales, broken down by individual court and region for each of the last three years for which figures are available.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
o Table 1 – Days from offence to completion at Crown Court, by year (the latest available data, broken down by region and Crown Court)
o Table 2 – Days from offence to completion at Magistrates, by year (the latest available data, broken down by region and Local Justice Area (LJA))
The pandemic is the primary cause of the increased caseload in our courts. The outstanding caseload reduced significantly pre-pandemic – from over 55,000 in late 2014 to c.33,000 in late 2018.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent steps he has taken to tackle backlogs in the Crown Court.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
As part of the Spending Review we announced that we will be investing £477 million in the Criminal Justice System over the next three years to help reduce the backlog and deliver the swift access to justice that victims deserve.
We also invested a quarter of a billion pounds to support recovery in the last financial year, and this year we will provide over £150.5m for support services for victims and witnesses, rising to over £185m by 2024/25.
We extended 32 Crown Nightingale courtrooms until the end of March 2022, and removed the limit on the number of days the Crown Court can sit this year. Our rapid roll out of video technology, which has equipped 70 per cent of all courtrooms with our Cloud Video Platform, enabled up to 20,000 cases to be heard virtually each week at the height of the pandemic.
These measures are already working – the backlog in the Crown Court has reduced from around 61,000 cases in June 2021 to around 58,700 cases at the end of November 2021.
We are now extending magistrates’ court sentencing powers from 6 to 12 months for a single Triable Either Way offence. This will provide vital additional capacity in the Crown Courts to drive down the backlog of cases over the coming years and is expected to free up an estimated 1,700 extra days of Crown Court time annually.