The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2016-02-08.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether any Barnett consequentials arise from the Local Government Finance Report (England) 2016-17.
Greg Hands
The Barnett Formula will be applied in the usual way to any additional funding from the Exchequer arising from the final local government finance settlement for 2016-17.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian C. Lucas on 2016-02-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if officials in his Department will have discussions with officials in the Department of Health on the establishment of a ring-fenced fund for local authorities to be able to disregard military compensation payments in financial assessments for social care.
Mr Marcus Jones
Armed forces veterans injured in service receive payments through the War Disablement Pension or the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme. The latter applies to veterans injured from 6 April 2005. These payments are divided into a personal injury compensation element and other payments. Traditionally, only the personal injury compensation payment has been fully disregarded.
Since October 2012, Guaranteed Income Payments made to veterans under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme have been disregarded. The Department of Health has been in discussion with the Royal British Legion about how War Disablement Pension payments are treated. Currently, the first £10 per week of these payments is disregarded. The Government is considering how these payments to veterans should be treated in the financial assessment for social care charging in future.
It is not the policy of this Government to ring-fence funding for particular purposes. This is to allow local authorities the flexibility to manage their own resources in the most efficient manner.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-02-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whether his Department plans to categorise houses which are overcrowded and have fewer than three storeys as houses in multiple occupation; and if he will make a statement.
Brandon Lewis
The Department has recently consulted on options for extending the scope of mandatory licensing to include those Houses in Multiple Occcupation in England with fewer than three storeys. We plan to announce our proposals and next steps in the spring.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-02-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate his Department has made of the number of rent repayment orders issued to houses in multiple occupation which were not adequately licensed in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.
Brandon Lewis
The Department does not collect or hold information about the number of rent repayment orders issued in respect of unlicensed houses in multiple occupation.
A local authority may apply to the First Tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) for such an order if Housing Benefit was paid to cover or assist with rent payments during the period a house in multiple occupation was required to be licensed, but was not. Information about the number of rent repayment orders issued to local authorities will be held by the authorities themselves.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-02-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if his Department will introduce a requirement that Local Government Pension Scheme funds be invested in infrastructure projects.
Mr Marcus Jones
Administering authorities in the local government pension scheme in England and Wales have been asked to explain the proportion of their funds currently allocated to infrastructure projects and what proportion they intend to invest in infrastructure in the future. The benefits of scale achieved under the new pooling arrangements will enable authorities to be more ambitious and invest in infrastructure in a way that will help drive local growth.
Administering authorities have also been asked to submit their detailed proposals for pooling their assets, including their plans to invest in infrastructure, by 19 July. The proposals will then be assessed to establish whether they comply with the Department’s criteria for the pooling of scheme assets, including infrastructure.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-02-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate his Department has made of the number of licences issued for houses of multiple occupation in (a) Coventry, (b) the West Midlands and (c) the UK in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.
Brandon Lewis
The numbers of licences issued for houses in multiple occupation during the relevant period were:
|
2011/12 |
2012/13 |
2013/14 |
2014/15 |
||
|
Coventry |
233 |
216 |
282 |
357 |
|
|
West Midlands |
1,426 |
2,997 |
3,284 |
3,562 |
|
|
England |
34,464 |
36,256 |
27,182 |
38,530 |
The Department only began collecting this data in 2011 and collects data in respect of England.
Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/local-authority-housing-data
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-02-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what representations he has received from local councils on the application of (a) mandatory and (b) additional licensing for houses in multiple occupation; and if he will make a statement.
Brandon Lewis
The Department published a technical discussion paper on licensing of houses in multiple occupation on 6 November 2015. We received representations from 170 local authorities which we are currently analysing. We plan to publish our response in the coming months.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-02-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if his Department will conduct an assessment of the appropriateness of the definition of houses in multiple occupation; and if he will make a statement.
Brandon Lewis
The Department considers the definition of a house in multiple occupation, as set out in the Housing Act 2004, is appropriate and has no plans to change it. We have recently issued a technical discussion paper on whether to extend mandatory licensing to those houses in multiple occupation with fewer than three storeys and plan to publish our response and proposed next steps in the coming months.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jess Phillips on 2016-02-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will make it his policy to exempt victims of domestic abuse who move home to escape violence from the provisions on fixed term tenancies of the Housing and Planning Bill.
Brandon Lewis
Fixed term tenancies will enable local councils to review on-going need for a tenancy and, if this is still the case, to issue a new tenancy for the same or a more suitable home.
Where existing lifetime tenants transfer, the provisions in the Bill ensure that local authorities retain a discretion to offer the tenant a further lifetime tenancy in their new home.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jamie Reed on 2016-02-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many projects in West Cumbria have been (a) part-funded and (b) wholly-funded by the EU in each of the last 10 years.
James Wharton
The Department is unable to confirm how many projects in West Cumbria have been part-funded by the EU in the last ten years. DCLG is able to confirm that during the 2007-13 European Regional Development Fund programme 11 projects were funded in Cumbria. The regulatory requirement is for applicants to provide 50% of match-funding to support investment. No European Regional Development Fund projects were wholly-funded by the EU in the last 10 years.