Tag: Tom Tugendhat

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Tugendhat on 2016-05-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to reduce the number of his Department’s properties classified as void.

Penny Mordaunt

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is developing an ambitious programme of estate rationalisation which will provide a plan for a smaller, but significantly better Defence estate to meet the needs of the Armed Forces as set out in the Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015. This strategic review of the Defence estate will provide a more efficient and better infrastructure laydown in support of military capability for future generations. The MOD expects to announce the final results of this review in the autumn. When the MOD no longer has a requirement for vacant properties they will be disposed of in accordance with the standard disposal procedure.

The MOD is also reducing the number of voids by leasing out vacant properties from directly renting to the general public and through other organisations. A number of properties are also vacant awaiting the return of remaining Army personnel and families from Germany over the next three years who will require accommodation.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Tugendhat on 2016-05-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many of his Department’s properties classified as void have been empty for over 12 months.

Penny Mordaunt

The number and locations of properties classified as void as of 24 May 2016 are shown in the table below:

County	Voids
ABERDEENSHIRE	5
ANGUS	20
ARGYLL AND BUTE	237
AVON	42
AYRSHIRE	21
BEDFORDSHIRE	194
BERKS	276
BUCKS	183
CAITHNESS	1
CAMBS	373
CHESHIRE	50
CLWYD	1
CORNWALL	46
*COUNTY ANTRIM	647
*COUNTY DOWN	397
COUNTY DURHAM	16
CUMBRIA	14
DEVON	202
DORSET	151
DUMBARTON	4
DUMFRIES	3
DURHAM	8
DYFED	45
EAST SUSSEX	2
EAST YORKSHIRE	4
EDINBURGH	169
ESSEX	155
FIFE	221
GLOUCESTERSHIRE	88
GWENT	45
GWYNEDD	53
**HANTS	1074
HEREFORDSHIRE	8
HERTS	176
INVERNESS-SHIRE	58
ISLE OF BENBECULA	3
KENT	483
LANCASHIRE	86
LEICESTERSHIRE	162
LINCOLNSHIRE	294
LONDON	86
MIDDLESEX	163
MIDLOTHIAN	43
MORAY	121
NORFOLK	209
NORTH LANARKSHIRE	4
NORTH LINCOLNSHIRE	3
NORTH YORKS	522
NORTHUMBERLAND	67
NOTTINGHAM	58
ORKNEY ISLANDS	1
OXON	361
OXON	1
PEMBROKE	4
PERTH	3
POWYS	64
RENFREWSHIRE	26
ROSS AND CROMARTY	1
SHETLAND ISLANDS	1
SHROPSHIRE	223
SOMERSET	90
SOUTH GLAMORGAN	111
SOUTH YORKS	2
ST ANDREWS	3
STAFFORDSHIRE	83
STIRLING	1
SUFFOLK	281
SURREY	222
SWINDON, WILTS	19
TYNE AND WEAR	12
WARWICKSHIRE	69
WEST MIDLANDS	9
WEST SUSSEX	14
WEST YORKS	2
***WILTS	1294
YORKSHIRE	29
(blank)
Total Voids	10219

Of these properties 4623 were vacant for more than 12 months.

*The majority of void properties in Northern Ireland are awaiting demolition while 59 have been gifted to the NI Executive.

**Void properties in Hants have been retained due to short term Ministry of Defence requirements and plans have been made to release many of these for disposal.

***In the Wiltshire region a number of properties remain void to accommodate Army personnel returning to the area from Germany as a result of the Army Basing Programme.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Tugendhat on 2016-05-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the cost was for (a) management of the Defence Infrastructure Organisation estate of Service Family Accommodation (SFA), (b) the maintenance of SFA and (c) improvements to SFA in (i) 2013, (ii) 2014 and (iii) 2015.

Penny Mordaunt

The cost for the management of the Defence Infrastructure Organisation estate of Service Family Accommodation (SFA), the maintenance of SFA and the improvements to SFA, by financial year (FY), can be found within the table below.

	FY 2012-13	FY 2013-14	FY 2014-15	FY 2015-16	Totals
	£ million	£ million	£ million	£ million	£ million
Management of DIO Estate	20.6	15.7	20.4	18.8	75.5
Maintenance of SFA	42	39.9	41.1	40.9	164.5
Improvements	64.5	96.3	65.9	56.7	283.4
Totals	127.1	151.9	127.4	117.4	523.8

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Tugendhat on 2016-05-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the cost was for maintaining his Department’s properties classified as void in (a) 2013, (b) 2014 and (c) 2015.

Mark Lancaster

Information on the cost of maintaining Service Family Accommodation (SFA) on Ministry of Defence (MOD) properties classed as void prior to 2014-15 is not held.

For 2014-15 the cost was £5.590 million and for 2015-16 the cost was £5.714 million. This covers the standard cost of retaining SFA when it is vacant, regardless of whether any maintenance is required.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Tugendhat on 2016-01-27.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department has taken to measure the annual cost of commission and other charges levied on individual private pension plans by financial advisers in the last five years.

Harriett Baldwin

Adviser remuneration is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Through the Retail Distribution Review (RDR), introduced at the end of 2012, the FCA has taken a number of steps to ensure that adviser remuneration on retail investment business is disclosed in advance of any services required. Product providers no longer have any influence over the remuneration received for advising on investments. Where commission remains on investments sold prior to the RDR, this will have been disclosed as required by the rules in force at the time the product was sold.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Tugendhat on 2016-01-27.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department has taken to ensure transparency of commission and other charges levied by financial advisers during the sale of financial products to individuals.

Harriett Baldwin

Adviser remuneration is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Through the Retail Distribution Review (RDR), introduced at the end of 2012, the FCA has taken a number of steps to ensure that adviser remuneration on retail investment business is disclosed in advance of any services required. Product providers no longer have any influence over the remuneration received for advising on investments. Where commission remains on investments sold prior to the RDR, this will have been disclosed as required by the rules in force at the time the product was sold.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Tugendhat on 2016-09-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the announcement on page 4 of her Department’s publication entitled Central Government Funding for Flooding and Coastal Erosion, published in September 2016, that decisions on where to allocate the remaining funding set aside for flood defences have yet to be made, (a) which Department or agency will make those decisions and (b) when she expects those decisions to be made.

Dr Thérèse Coffey

Decisions on allocating the remaining headroom from the £700 million uplift to flood defence and resilience measures announced at Budget 2016 will be made on the basis of a rigorous assessment of local needs and value for money. HM Treasury, in consultation with other government departments including Defra and the Environment Agency, will make allocation decisions in due course.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Tugendhat on 2016-01-27.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department has taken to ensure transparency of commission and other charges levied by financial advisers on individual pension plans.

Harriett Baldwin

Adviser remuneration is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Through the Retail Distribution Review (RDR), introduced at the end of 2012, the FCA has taken a number of steps to ensure that adviser remuneration on retail investment business is disclosed in advance of any services required. Product providers no longer have any influence over the remuneration received for advising on investments. Where commission remains on investments sold prior to the RDR, this will have been disclosed as required by the rules in force at the time the product was sold.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Tugendhat on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 13 September 2016 to Question 45646, on what basis she will make recommendations to HM Treasury on allocation of remaining funding from the £700 million uplift to flood defence and resilience measures.

Dr Thérèse Coffey

Proposals to improve flood defences are made by Defra and its agencies on the basis of the economic benefits, which are assessed in terms of the potential flood damages avoided, the current level of risk and the number homes that would be better protected by the scheme.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Tugendhat on 2016-01-27.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what information his Department holds on the annual cost of commission and other charges levied by financial advisers during the sale of financial products to individuals in the last five years.

Harriett Baldwin

Adviser remuneration is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Through the Retail Distribution Review (RDR), introduced at the end of 2012, the FCA has taken a number of steps to ensure that adviser remuneration on retail investment business is disclosed in advance of any services required. Product providers no longer have any influence over the remuneration received for advising on investments. Where commission remains on investments sold prior to the RDR, this will have been disclosed as required by the rules in force at the time the product was sold.