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1131865

	registered interest
	date	12/06/2019
	answering body	Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority
	answering dept id	90
	answering dept short name	Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority
	answering dept sort name	Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority
	hansard heading	Members: Allowances
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, if he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of the system for reimbursing MPs expenses; and if IPSA will make it its policy to reinstate the previous system for the reimbursement of expenses.
	tabling member constituency	Christchurch
	tabling member printed	Sir Christopher Chope
	uin	263668
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/06/2019 answer text <p>IPSA considered a range of options for its new system of reimbursing MPs’ business costs and expenses. The system selected is more integrated and efficient than its predecessor systems, and holds the personal data of MPs and their staff more securely. The software selected is widely used in the United Kingdom, including in many public bodies. Prior to its launch in April, the effectiveness of the system was thoroughly tested, including by MPs and their staff. Its benefits include:</p><p> </p><p>- A ‘single sign-on’ capability to allow MPs and their staff to access the system directly through their secure parliamentary account without an additional logon.</p><p>- MPs and staff no longer need to send paper receipts and invoices to IPSA, but can scan or photograph them and upload them digitally onto the system. This improves data security and means that IPSA can process and reimburse claims more quickly.</p><p>- MPs’ staff members can now be reimbursed directly by IPSA for their own expenses rather than via their MPs.</p><p>- MPs and their staff are now able to amend their personal details, including any change of name or address, on the new system themselves, without needing to submit a form to IPSA.</p><p>- The new system allows claims from different budgets to be submitted on the same form, rather than having to submit multiple forms.</p><p>- MPs and their staff have constant access to financial information about the amounts left in their budgets and the status of any repayments or amounts owed, rather than waiting a monthly financial statement from IPSA.</p><p> </p><p>As of 13 June, 612 MPs have successfully submitted claims on the new system. IPSA is committed to supporting and training MPs and their staff as they become accustomed to the new online claims system. IPSA does not intend to make it its policy to reinstate the previous system.</p> answering member constituency Broxbourne answering member printed Mr Charles Walker question first answered 20/06/2019 12:12:33 answering member 1493 label Biography information for Sir Charles Walker previous answer version 123708 answering member constituency Broxbourne answering member printed Mr Charles Walker answering member 1493 label Biography information for Sir Charles Walker
	tabling member	242 label Biography information for Sir Christopher Chope

1131867

	registered interest
	date	12/06/2019
	answering body	Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority
	answering dept id	90
	answering dept short name	Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority
	answering dept sort name	Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority
	hansard heading	Members: Email
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, what estimate he has made of the number of emails from hon. Members sent to IPSA in June 2019 that have not received a response within three days; and if he will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Christchurch
	tabling member printed	Sir Christopher Chope
	uin	263669
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/06/2019 answer text <p>IPSA has a key performance target to respond to 90 per cent of emails within five working days. Between 1 June and 13 June, IPSA responded to 88 per cent of the 563 emails received within this target. IPSA has recently brought in five temporary staff to help improve its response times following the introduction of a new finance, payroll and expenses system in April 2019.</p> answering member constituency Broxbourne answering member printed Mr Charles Walker question first answered 20/06/2019 12:09:53 answering member 1493 label Biography information for Sir Charles Walker previous answer version 123710 answering member constituency Broxbourne answering member printed Mr Charles Walker answering member 1493 label Biography information for Sir Charles Walker
	tabling member	242 label Biography information for Sir Christopher Chope

1131868

	registered interest
	date	12/06/2019
	answering body	Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority
	answering dept id	90
	answering dept short name	Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority
	answering dept sort name	Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority
	hansard heading	Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority: Working Hours
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, what steps he is taking to help ensure that IPSA has sufficient resources to extend its working hours so that (a) telephone calls can be answered during the hours the House sits and (b) responses can be given to emails from MPs within three to five working days.
	tabling member constituency	Christchurch
	tabling member printed	Sir Christopher Chope
	uin	263670
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/06/2019 answer text <p>IPSA’s December 2018 user survey found that 68 per cent of MPs and their staff were satisfied with the support that they receive from IPSA on the phone, up from 53 per cent in 2017. Since the introduction of its new online finance and expenses system in April 2019, IPSA has experienced a higher-than-normal volume of calls, with some calls taking up to 45 minutes as MPs and their staff familiarise themselves with the new system. To respond to this increased demand, IPSA has recruited five temporary staff to answer the phone to MPs, and has temporarily closed its phone lines at 4pm in order to respond to the queries raised. IPSA expects to re-open its phone lines until 5pm when this demand subsides.</p><p>IPSA has a key performance target to respond to 90 per cent of emails within five days. In 2018-19, IPSA responded to over 85 per cent of the 54,500 letters and emails that were received within five working days of receipt. In April 2019, following the introduction on the new system, IPSA only replied to 70 per cent of emails within this target. The additional temporary staff will also address this increased demand.</p><p>IPSA’s performance is monitored by the Speaker’s Committee for the IPSA which approves IPSA’s budget and targets, including how it responds to MPs’ queries.</p> answering member constituency Broxbourne answering member printed Mr Charles Walker question first answered 20/06/2019 12:11:25 answering member 1493 label Biography information for Sir Charles Walker previous answer version 123711 answering member constituency Broxbourne answering member printed Mr Charles Walker answering member 1493 label Biography information for Sir Charles Walker
	tabling member	242 label Biography information for Sir Christopher Chope

1180185

	registered interest
	date	24/02/2020
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Churches: Bats
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what (a) policy changes and (b) steps the Church of England is taking in relation to the 2019 survey of bats in churches undertaken with funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund,
	tabling member constituency	Christchurch
	tabling member printed	Sir Christopher Chope
	uin	19751
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/02/2020 answer text <p>The £3.8m funding from the National Heritage Lottery Fund that was secured in 2018, enabled not just one survey, but a five-year Bats in Churches partnership project made up of the Church of England, Natural England, Historic England, the Bat Conservation Trust, and the Churches Conservation Trust.</p><p>The project is working with ecologists, church architects, heritage experts and church communities to support and develop bespoke solutions for around 120 churches struggling with unsustainable bat roosts across the country. Churches that are part of the project are continuously monitored to ensure there is no damage to the bat populations. Additionally, a nationwide volunteer-led four-year survey, the ‘Bats in Churches Study’ is to be launched this summer and will give an in-depth picture of how bats are using Church of England churches and the attitudes of churchgoers towards them.</p><p>The Bats in Churches project is now in its second year and can report the delivery of three successful mitigation works in some of the worst affected churches, in Braunston-in-Rutland, Tattershall and Swanton Morley. These three schemes have enabled congregations and the wider community to co-exist harmoniously alongside the bats and for church heritage to be respected.</p><p>Other projects nearing completion include:</p><ul><li>St Pega’s Church Peakirk, following a lead theft that has enabled bat mitigation to be incorporated into the re-roofing repair work.</li><li>St John the Baptist Church in Cold Overton is similarly incorporating bat mitigation into its repairs.</li></ul><p>Support for churches sheltering bats is available from the Bats in Churches project who are running events to build networks of volunteers, links to bat and heritage groups and specialist cleaning workshops and advice.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency South West Bedfordshire answering member printed Andrew Selous question first answered 28/02/2020 10:56:16 answering member 1453 label Biography information for Andrew Selous
	tabling member	242 label Biography information for Sir Christopher Chope

1168492

	registered interest
	date	19/12/2019
	answering body	Attorney General
	answering dept id	88
	answering dept short name	Attorney General
	answering dept sort name	Attorney General
	hansard heading	David Duckenfield
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Attorney General, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of the (a) first, (b) second and (c) third prosecution against Mr David Duckenfield on manslaughter in relation to the Hillsborough tragedy; and if he will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Christchurch
	tabling member printed	Sir Christopher Chope
	uin	31
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/01/2020 answer text <p>This was a complex and harrowing case. Every effort was made to build a robust case for prosecution, in accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecutors and the case was handled by a team of experienced specialist prosecutors.</p><p> </p><p>As it involved the prosecution of more than one defendant, it is not possible to state definitively the total costs in relation to the prosecution of David Duckenfield alone. In June 2017, David Duckenfield, the police commander in charge of safety during the Hillsborough stadium disaster, was charged with gross negligence manslaughter. At trial in April 2019, the jury was unable to reach a verdict against David Duckenfield, while a second defendant, Graham Mackrell, was convicted of a health and safety offence. In November 2019, after a retrial at Preston Crown Court, the jury found David Duckenfield not guilty.</p><p> </p><p>The CPS estimates the cost of legal counsel fees and other prosecution costs for the prosecution of both David Duckenfield and Graham Mackrell to be approximately £1.97 million. CPS records do not capture the cost of the time spent by internal CPS staff on this case.</p><p> </p><p>The CPS cannot comment on costs incurred by the police, HM Courts and Tribunals, or any other partners in this case. Nor can the CPS comment on the private prosecution referred to in the question, which was brought against David Duckenfield by the Hillsborough Family Support Group in 2000.</p> answering member constituency Northampton North answering member printed Michael Ellis question first answered 07/01/2020 13:09:39 answering member 4116 label Biography information for Sir Michael Ellis
	tabling member	242 label Biography information for Sir Christopher Chope

1168829

	registered interest
	date	20/12/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
	answering dept id	7
	answering dept short name	Housing, Communities and Local Government
	answering dept sort name	Housing, Communities and Local Government
	hansard heading	Park Homes: Sales
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to prevent park homes from being advertised as bungalows in promotional marketing; and if he will make it his policy to raise awareness of the legal difference between a home which is a real estate in land and chattel or personal property.
	tabling member constituency	Christchurch
	tabling member printed	Sir Christopher Chope
	uin	259
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/01/2020 answer text <p>The Government is committed to improving the park homes sector and ensuring that residents are better protected.</p><p>Consumer Rights legislation is already in place to protect consumers from unfair or misleading trading practices and ban misleading omissions and aggressive sales tactics.</p><p>We have published a factsheet (<a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/buying-a-park-home" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/buying-a-park-home</a>) for anyone intending to buy a park home. There is also valuable information for those buying a home in the Government’s How to Buy a Home Guide (<a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/how-to-buy-a-home" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/how-to-buy-a-home</a>). In addition, free independent advice has been made available through the Leasehold Advisory Service.</p><p>We have set up a working group to examine how messages about residents’ rights and responsibilities can be improved and better disseminated. The working group will publish its recommendations in due course.</p> answering member constituency Tatton answering member printed Esther McVey question first answered 07/01/2020 17:07:35 answering member 4084 label Biography information for Esther McVey
	tabling member	242 label Biography information for Sir Christopher Chope

1168832

	registered interest
	date	20/12/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
	answering dept id	7
	answering dept short name	Housing, Communities and Local Government
	answering dept sort name	Housing, Communities and Local Government
	hansard heading	Right to Buy Scheme: Housing Associations
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to enable tenants of Housing Associations in England to have a Right to Buy; and if he will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Christchurch
	tabling member printed	Sir Christopher Chope
	uin	260
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/01/2020 answer text <p>The Voluntary Right to Buy for housing association tenants is currently being piloted in the Midlands, which is giving thousands of tenants in the East and West Midlands the opportunity to enjoy the benefits of home ownership. The demand for the pilot was high. Over 9,000 households registered for the ballot in August 2018, with 6,000 tenants being given the opportunity to apply to their housing association. The pilot will be fully evaluated after its completion.</p><p>As set out in the 2019 manifesto, we will be evaluating new pilot areas. We will announce more details on this in due course.</p> answering member constituency Tatton answering member printed Esther McVey question first answered 07/01/2020 17:09:53 answering member 4084 label Biography information for Esther McVey
	tabling member	242 label Biography information for Sir Christopher Chope

1169591

	registered interest
	date	08/01/2020
	answering body	Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
	answering dept id	7
	answering dept short name	Housing, Communities and Local Government
	answering dept sort name	Housing, Communities and Local Government
	hansard heading	Housing: Construction
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent estimate his Department has made of the number of homes in respect of which planning permission for development was granted more than 24 months previously but in which no development has begun in (a) Dorset and (b) England; and if he will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Christchurch
	tabling member printed	Sir Christopher Chope
	uin	1267
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/01/2020 answer text <p>The Department does not collect the requested data itself but instead purchases information from Glenigan Ltd on numbers of homes granted planning permission. <br> <br>For Dorset, as at 29 November 2019, there were 1,900 units with detailed planning permission granted more than 24 months earlier where the permission has not expired on sites which had not yet been completed. Of these, 1,400 units have started on site and 500 units are on sites yet to start. Of those yet to start, 300 are now ‘progressing towards a start’ and the remaining 200 units are on sites which have been sold, are due to be sold or on sites where information is unavailable.</p><p>For England, as at 29 November 2019, there were 312,000 units with detailed planning permission granted more than 24 months earlier where the permission has not expired on sites which had not yet been completed. Of these, 234,000 units had started on site and 78,000 units were on sites yet to start. Of those yet to start, 44,000 were ‘progressing towards a start’, 7,000 were on unstarted sites that are ‘on hold' or shelved and the remaining 27,000 units are on sites which have been sold, are due to be sold or on sites where information is unavailable.</p><p>Figures are rounded to the nearest hundred and are subject to change as they are regularly updated.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Tatton answering member printed Esther McVey question first answered 13/01/2020 17:51:49 answering member 4084 label Biography information for Esther McVey previous answer version 728 answering member constituency Tatton answering member printed Esther McVey answering member 4084 label Biography information for Esther McVey
	tabling member	242 label Biography information for Sir Christopher Chope

1169596

	registered interest
	date	08/01/2020
	answering body	Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
	answering dept id	7
	answering dept short name	Housing, Communities and Local Government
	answering dept sort name	Housing, Communities and Local Government
	hansard heading	Housing: Construction
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to ensure that local authorities are using the powers in section 94(1)(a) of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 to ensure that developers complete developments which have already received planning permission.
	tabling member constituency	Christchurch
	tabling member printed	Sir Christopher Chope
	uin	1271
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/01/2020 answer text <p>The Government’s housing White Paper in 2017 announced proposals to speed up and simplify the completion notice process under section 94 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 to give local planning authorities greater confidence, control and certainty in their use. These proposals require changes to primary legislation, and we will consider the scope to make them as we seek to make the planning system simpler and faster as part of the planning White Paper.</p> answering member constituency Tatton answering member printed Esther McVey question first answered 13/01/2020 17:50:59 answering member 4084 label Biography information for Esther McVey previous answer version 724 answering member constituency Tatton answering member printed Esther McVey answering member 4084 label Biography information for Esther McVey
	tabling member	242 label Biography information for Sir Christopher Chope

1176517

	registered interest
	date	05/02/2020
	answering body	Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
	answering dept id	7
	answering dept short name	Housing, Communities and Local Government
	answering dept sort name	Housing, Communities and Local Government
	hansard heading	Landlords
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many landlords in England are registered on the Government's rogue landlord database; and what his estimate is of the number of rogue landlords who are not yet registered; and if he will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Christchurch
	tabling member printed	Sir Christopher Chope
	uin	12837
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/02/2020 answer text <p>There are 18 individual landlords and property agents and five companies currently registered on the database for offences committed since 6 April 2018.</p><p>For mandatory inclusion on the database a landlord must be convicted of a banning order offence and receive a banning order. If the landlord receives a conviction for a banning order offence or receives two of more civil penalties for a banning order offence within a 12 month period then the local authority has the discretion to include the landlord on the database. The database is intended for the worst and most persistent offenders, who neglect their responsibilities to provide tenants safe homes.</p> answering member constituency Tatton answering member printed Esther McVey question first answered 12/02/2020 18:19:22 answering member 4084 label Biography information for Esther McVey previous answer version 6012 answering member constituency Tatton answering member printed Esther McVey answering member 4084 label Biography information for Esther McVey
	tabling member	242 label Biography information for Sir Christopher Chope