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  • Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2016-10-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the potential income for each local authority in England from 100 per cent receipt of business rates; what effect the extension of small business rate relief and the uprating of the multiplier by the Consumer Price Index will have on that estimate; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    We recently conducted a consultation on our approach to the implementation of 100% Business Rates Retention. This consultation included questions on how to take account of changes in need over time, how to manage volatility in business rates income and how to distribute funding between different tiers of government. My officials are currently considering the 454 responses we have received to this consultation and we will publish a summary of the responses and our proposed way forward in due course. In the meantime, we will continue close collaboration with the Local Government Association, other groups representative of local government, and individual local authorities, in taking this work forward.

  • Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2016-10-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many times and on what dates the Business Rates Review Steering Group has met; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    The Local Government Association and Department for Communities and Local Government jointly chair the Business Rates Retention Steering Group which was established to consider the mechanisms needed to set up and run the new business rates system, as well as the timetable and implementation of the reforms. It oversees the work of a set of technical working groups, each looking at particular aspects of the reforms. The Group usually meets on a monthly basis and has done so on 6 occasions since April 2016. All papers for meetings are published here: http://www.local.gov.uk/business-rates

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  • Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2016-10-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will release some revenue support grant funding for local authorities to help councils affected by sudden increases in need once 100 per cent of business rates income is devolved to local authorities; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    We recently conducted a consultation on our approach to the implementation of 100% Business Rates Retention. This consultation included questions on how to take account of changes in need over time, how to manage volatility in business rates income and how to distribute funding between different tiers of government. My officials are currently considering the 454 responses we have received to this consultation and we will publish a summary of the responses and our proposed way forward in due course. In the meantime, we will continue close collaboration with the Local Government Association, other groups representative of local government, and individual local authorities, in taking this work forward.

  • James Cleverly – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    James Cleverly – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by James Cleverly on 2016-10-18.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent steps his Department has taken to detect and prevent electoral fraud involving polling cards and voter registration.

    Chris Skidmore

    The Electoral Commission provides guidance on preventing and reporting electoral fraud sets out the role of Local Electoral Registration Officers, Returning Officers, the police and political parties in detecting and preventing fraud. This guidance can be found online.

    Moreover, the security of registration has been improved by the introduction of Individual Electoral Registration. This service checks the details provided by the applicant, including their National Insurance number, against government data before passing the application to the relevant local electoral administration team.

    For applications with no National Insurance number and other applications not verified through the digital service, the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) will seek further information regarding identity. For all registration applications, online or otherwise, the ERO is also responsible for ensuring that other eligibility requirements, such as the nationality of the applicant, are satisfactorily met.

    Finally, the Government considers the integrity of the electoral system of the utmost importance and has recently welcomed the report published by Sir Eric Pickles into electoral fraud.

    The Government will closely consider the recommendations laid out in that report and issue its response shortly.

  • James Cleverly – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    James Cleverly – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by James Cleverly on 2016-10-18.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent steps his Department has taken to detect and prevent electoral fraud at polling stations.

    Chris Skidmore

    The Electoral Commission provides guidance on preventing and reporting electoral fraud sets out the role of Local Electoral Registration Officers, Returning Officers, the police and political parties in detecting and preventing fraud. This guidance can be found online.

    Moreover, the security of registration has been improved by the introduction of Individual Electoral Registration. This service checks the details provided by the applicant, including their National Insurance number, against government data before passing the application to the relevant local electoral administration team.

    For applications with no National Insurance number and other applications not verified through the digital service, the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) will seek further information regarding identity. For all registration applications, online or otherwise, the ERO is also responsible for ensuring that other eligibility requirements, such as the nationality of the applicant, are satisfactorily met.

    Finally, the Government considers the integrity of the electoral system of the utmost importance and has recently welcomed the report published by Sir Eric Pickles into electoral fraud.

    The Government will closely consider the recommendations laid out in that report and issue its response shortly.

  • Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2016-10-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effect of demographic changes in the last ten years on the demand for local authority services, and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    The Spending Review took account of the demographic pressures facing local authorities and set out a sustainable basis for local authorities to discharge their functions over this parliament.

    The Department is also conducting the Fair Funding Review which is a thorough assessment of the relative needs and resources of local authorities. The treatment of demographic changes is a key part of this. The Review will determine the funding baselines for individual local authorities under 100% business rates retention.

  • Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2016-10-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will devolve (a) tax raising powers, (b) business and skills funding, (c) housing and planning, (d) transport, (e) health and (f) policing and criminal justice to the Mayor of London and London Assembly; and if he will make a statement.

    Andrew Percy

    Our devolution agenda is making huge strides in putting decision making powers in the hands of local people. London has been the trailblazer for that and already has significant powers across a range of policy areas including housing, transport and policing. We remain open to exploring opportunities to devolve further powers to local areas that may approach with such proposals, including London.

  • Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2016-10-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what his policy is on changing the apportionment of business rate income between district and county local authorities once business rate income is fully devolved; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    We recently conducted a consultation on our approach to the implementation of 100% Business Rates Retention. This consultation included questions on how to take account of changes in need over time, how to manage volatility in business rates income and how to distribute funding between different tiers of government. My officials are currently considering the 454 responses we have received to this consultation and we will publish a summary of the responses and our proposed way forward in due course. In the meantime, we will continue close collaboration with the Local Government Association, other groups representative of local government, and individual local authorities, in taking this work forward.

  • MiDavies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    MiDavies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by MiDavies on 2016-10-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what proportion of land in England is covered by an adopted local plan.

    Gavin Barwell

    244 of 338 local planning authorities (72%) have an adopted Local Plan, compared to 58 (17%) in May 2010. Approximately 69% of England’s land area is covered by adopted Local Plans. In order to ensure areas get plans in place the Government has tabled an amendment to the Neighbourhood Planning Bill to place a statutory duty on every local planning authority to have a development plan document and to give the Secretary of State power to direct the relevant county council to produce a plan if a local planning authority in a two-tier area has failed to do so.

  • Julie Elliott – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Julie Elliott – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Elliott on 2016-10-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to reduce levels of homelessness in the North East of England.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    One person without a home is one too many. That is why the Government is clear that prevention must be at the heart of everything we do to tackle homelessness. We have protected homelessness prevention funding for local authorities, which will amount to £315 million by 2020, to help them provide quality advice and assistance to everyone who approaches them for help.

    We have also increased central investment to tackle homelessness over the next four years to £139 million and why we have just announced the new £40 million Homelessness Prevention Programme to provide an innovative approach to reducing homelessness, with prevention at its heart.

    The Homelessness Prevention Programme includes;

    • £20 million to establish a network of ambitious Homelessness Prevention Trailblazer areas that will give local authorities the resources to ramp up prevention and take new approaches to reduce homelessness;
    • a £10 million rough sleeping grant fund for targeted prevention or early intervention for those at imminent risk of sleeping rough; and
    • a new £10 million Social Impact Bond to support rough sleepers with the most complex needs which builds on the success of the world’s first homelessness Social Impact Bond (SIB), run by the Greater London Authority. This SIB turned round the lives of around 830 of London’s most entrenched rough sleepers over half of which have achieved accommodation, employment or reconnection outcomes.

    As well as this, we announced in the Budget an additional £100 million to deliver low cost ‘move on’ accommodation to enable people leaving hostels and refuges to make a sustainable recovery from a homelessness crisis, providing at least 2,000 places for vulnerable people to enable independent living.

    In the North East, Newcastle City Council has been announced as an early adopter of our Homelessness Prevention Trailblazer programme. The Council has been awarded £1 million to build on the good work they are doing in driving reform and innovation in homelessness prevention.