The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jess Phillips on 2016-07-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what (a) legal and (b) other costs were incurred by local authorities in relation to special educational needs and disability tribunals in each of the last five years.
Mr Marcus Jones
Information on the costs incurred by local authorities in relation to special educational needs and disability tribunals is not collected by the Department.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Hayes on 2016-07-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, when he will publish the results of the review of the local housing allowance rate for supported housing.
Gavin Barwell
The Government is committed to protecting the most vulnerable.
That is why we are continuing to work with the sector and other partners to develop a sustainable and workable future for supported housing and will announce next steps in due course.
In the meantime we have put in place a one year exemption for supported housing from the Local Housing Allowance cap.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-07-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what guidance his Department provides to local authorities on how to take into account a neighbourhood planning process being underway when considering making their own applications for housing on sites that will be affected by that neighbourhood plan.
Gavin Barwell
The procedures for dealing with development by local authorities are contained in the Town and Country Planning General Regulations 1992. A local authority’s development proposals, like those of other persons applying for planning permission, must be decided in accordance with the development plan unless material considerations indicate otherwise.
Once brought into force, a neighbourhood plan becomes part of the development plan for the area; an emerging neighbourhood plan may be a material consideration. The National Planning Policy Framework sets out that the weight of emerging plan policies will depend on the stage of the plan, the extent of unresolved objections and the degree of consistency with national policy. It is for the decision maker in each case to determine what is a material consideration and what weight to give to it.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Glen on 2016-07-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the introduction of the English language tuition scheme in supporting Muslim women to learn English.
Mr Marcus Jones
As the first step in rolling out the new £20 million programme we have committed just over £3 million to enable six providers who delivered the Department’s previous community-based English language programme to provide new tuition to over 10,000 people by March next year.
We will shortly be issuing a new Prospectus, inviting applications to run the bulk of the new programme from 2017. The nature and targeting of that provision will be informed by Louise Casey’s Review of Integration and Opportunity.
We will monitor the new Programme to assess its effectiveness in meeting its objectives.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Thangam Debbonaire on 2016-07-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to improve access to the private rented sector for single people who are homeless.
Gavin Barwell
One person without a home is one too many and we are committed to do all we can to prevent homelessness.
Increasing access to the private rented sector is one of the many ways we are trying to achieve this. We have already made a significant investment of nearly £14 million for Crisis to develop a programme to help single homeless people access private rented sector accommodation. This has helped over 10,000 people, with over 90% maintaining tenancies for at least 6 months.
In Budget 2016, we also announced a £10 million fund to support and scale-up initiatives to prevent and reduce rough sleeping and a £10 million Social Impact Bond to support the most entrenched rough sleepers off the streets.
In addition, we are working to increase supply, and therefore affordability, in the private rented sector by accelerating the development of a new market for private renters, including our £1 billion build to rent fund and the £3.5 billion private rented sector debt guarantee scheme.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-07-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 12 July 2016 to Question 42168, what legislative options are being explored by his Department to prevent more people from becoming homeless.
Mr Marcus Jones
We are considering a broad range of possible options, including legislation, to put prevention at the heart of how we tackle homelessness. We are keen to learn from the changes implemented in Wales and want to understand whether similar changes would work in the very different English housing market.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve Reed on 2016-07-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the UK leaving the EU on his Department’s work with the European Regional Development Fund.
Andrew Percy
This Government remains committed to investment in growth and infrastructure across all parts of the country. As the former Prime Minister made clear, while the UK remains a member of the EU, current EU funding arrangements continue unchanged. It will now be for the Government to begin the negotiations to leave, and set out arrangements for those currently in receipt of EU funds.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Glen on 2016-07-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many women have received tuition under the English language tuition scheme since January 2016.
Mr Marcus Jones
As the first step in rolling out the new £20 million programme we have committed just over £3 million to enable six providers who delivered the Department’s previous community-based English language programme to provide new tuition to over 10,000 people by March next year.
We will shortly be issuing a new Prospectus, inviting applications to run the bulk of the new programme from 2017. The nature and targeting of that provision will be informed by Louise Casey’s Review of Integration and Opportunity.
We will monitor the new Programme to assess its effectiveness in meeting its objectives.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Glen on 2016-07-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much of the English language tuition fund his Department has spent since January 2016.
Mr Marcus Jones
As the first step in rolling out the new £20 million programme we have committed just over £3 million to enable six providers who delivered the Department’s previous community-based English language programme to provide new tuition to over 10,000 people by March next year.
We will shortly be issuing a new Prospectus, inviting applications to run the bulk of the new programme from 2017. The nature and targeting of that provision will be informed by Louise Casey’s Review of Integration and Opportunity.
We will monitor the new Programme to assess its effectiveness in meeting its objectives.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Adams on 2016-07-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the recommendations of the Creative Industries Council in its report entitled Create Together, published in July 2016, on clarifying the role of safe harbours and rights holders’ remuneration.
Joseph Johnson
The Create Together strategy produced by the industry members of the Creative Industries Council is a strategy for building on the economic success of the UK’s creative sector. It is one which the Government supports. Government is currently reviewing specific recommendations within the strategy, including on safe harbour. We are strongly committed to working constructively with industry on these issues.
The Government agrees that it should not be possible to benefit from encouraging the posting of copyright infringing content through safe harbours, and that the rules governing who is responsible for such content should be clear. In developing the UK’s copyright framework going forward, we will consider whether the current situation is providing the right mix of incentives and protections.