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1137419

registered interest
date	08/07/2019
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	Housing: Fire Prevention
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 guidance his Department has issued on fire safety for the construction of wooden dwellings.
tabling member constituency	Strangford
tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
uin	274543
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/07/2019 answer text <p>The Building Regulations in England set minimum fire safety requirements for new homes and non-domestic buildings. They are couched in functional terms, and the Building Regulation guidance sets performance recommendations rather than prescribing the materials or technologies to be used. Similar provisions exist in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. For example, Building Regulation guidance for fire resistance is provided in terms of ratings , these can be achieved by a range of materials and designs (e.g. steel, concrete, wood) by demonstrating they have met the requirements through recognised test methods and classifications. The Guidance for England has recently been revised in a new clearer format and is available on-line at; <a href="https://gbr01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gov.uk%2Fgovernment%2Fpublications%2Ffire-safety-approved-document-b&amp;data=02%7C01%7CBrian.Martin%40communities.gov.uk%7C171a3f8e4e0a4e9b3c2408d709e3b0f1%7Cbf3468109c7d43dea87224a2ef3995a8%7C0%7C0%7C636988745832773114&amp;sdata=rmZXMlv9xsWBMNqx4pNlOP4H3RZHOfb%2BdWMJFwpvMXE%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fire-safety-approved-document-b</a></p> answering member constituency North West Hampshire answering member printed Kit Malthouse question first answered 17/07/2019 15:41:24 answering member 4495 label Biography information for Kit Malthouse
tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

1137478

registered interest
date	08/07/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Pension Credit
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how long on average it takes to (a) agree and (b) allocate pension credit to eligible claimants.
tabling member constituency	Norwich South
tabling member printed	Clive Lewis
uin	274594
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/07/2019 answer text <p>The specific information requested is not available.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 17/07/2019 15:49:35 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	4500 label Biography information for Clive Lewis

1137479

registered interest
date	08/07/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Pension Credit and Universal Credit
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to improve accessibility to pension credit and universal credit for pensioners.
tabling member constituency	Norwich South
tabling member printed	Clive Lewis
uin	274595
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/07/2019 answer text <p>Pension Credit is an important benefit specifically intended to help the poorest pensioners. There are over 1.6m pensioners already claiming Pension Credit worth over £5billion a year. However, the Government wants to ensure that all pensioners eligible can claim the Pension Credit to which they are rightly entitled.</p><p> </p><p>We also welcome and encourage initiatives to promote take up of Pension Credit by national and local organisations who may often be best placed to understand the local circumstances and needs in the community. For this reason we have developed the Pension Credit toolkit, as an on-line tool for agencies and welfare rights organisations to use in order to encourage Pension Credit take-up. It can be found at: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pension-credit-toolkit" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pension-<strong>credit</strong>-toolkit</a></p><p> </p><p>The toolkit contains resources for anyone working with pensioners and includes guides to Pension Credit. It also contains publicity material and guidance designed to help older people understand how they could get Pension Credit and help organisations support someone applying for Pension Credit as well as ideas for encouraging take-up. The toolkit also provides links to information about disability and carers benefits.</p><p> </p><p>Organisations can use the Pension Credit calculator <a href="https://www.gov.uk/pension-credit-calculator" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/pension-credit-calculator</a> to help people check if they are likely to be eligible and get an estimate of what they may receive.</p><p> </p><p>In addition, the DWP targets activity on engaging with people who may be eligible to benefits at pivotal stages, such as when they claim State Pension or report a change in their circumstances. The DWP uses a wide range of channels to communicate information about benefits to potential claimants; including information on <a href="https://gov.uk/" target="_blank">https://gov.uk/</a> but also in leaflets and by telephone. DWP staff in Pension Centres and Jobcentres including visiting officers are able to provide help and advice about entitlement to benefits, as are staff in Local Authorities who administer Housing Benefit.</p><p> </p><p>People can telephone either the Pension Service helpline for general enquiries on 0800 731 0469 or those wishing to claim Pension Credit can do so by calling 0800 99 1234.</p><p> </p><p>Universal Credit is designed to target resources at those that need them most and to provide support for people who cannot work or need help moving towards the labour market.</p><p> </p><p>For those that are unable to access or use digital services, assistance to make and maintain their claim is available via the Freephone Universal Credit helpline on 0800 328 5644 and face-to-face support is available in Jobcentres. In exceptional circumstances, a home visit can be arranged to support a claimant in making and maintaining their claim.</p><p> </p><p>Additionally, claimants can access support with their Universal Credit application through the Citizen’s Advice Help to Claim service which, offers tailored, practical support online, over the phone, and face-to-face. You can contact an adviser through the free national Help to Claim phone service:</p><p>England: 0800 144 8 444</p><p>Wales: 08000 241 220</p><p>Scotland: 0800 023 2581</p><p>We are continuously reviewing and improving the service for people who claim Universal Credit to ensure that it is accessible and responsive to their needs. This includes how they are identified and supported, either from our own staff or via referrals from local services.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 17/07/2019 15:44:28 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	4500 label Biography information for Clive Lewis

1136747

registered interest
date	03/07/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Prisoners' Release: Curfews
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government how many prisoners were (1) granted, and (2) refused, Home Detention Curfew in each of the last five years.
tabling member printed	Lord Bradley
uin	HL16897
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/07/2019 answer text <p>The following table shows the number of prisoners who were eligible for HDC, and how many and what proportion were released in each of the last five years. Because of the way in which data is recorded, the figures relating to the number eligible are higher than the true picture, as they include all offenders serving sentences of the right length, even though some do not meet the other eligibility criteria (see footnote 1).</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p><strong>2014</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2015<sup>(3)</sup></strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2016</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2017</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2018</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Number eligible for release on HDC <sup>(1,2)</sup></strong></p></td><td><p><strong>45,203</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>43,669</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>43,660</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>44,697</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>40,543</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Number released on HDC</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>8,614</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>8,319</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>9,041</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>9,312</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>14,769</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Percentage released</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>19%</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>19%</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>21%</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>21%</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>36%</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td colspan="6"><p>(1) This is the number of offenders serving sentences of between 12 weeks and just under 4 years and therefore potentially eligible for release on Home Detention Curfew (HDC) in the relevant period. However, it includes offenders who are in fact statutorily ineligible for HDC, such as registered sex offenders or those with a previous recall for breach of curfew on HDC (prisoners not eligible for HDC for these reasons cannot be identified from the data that is held). Moreover, certain offenders are presumed unsuitable for HDC and will only be considered for release in exceptional circumstances.</p></td></tr><tr><td colspan="6"><p>(2) An offender may be eligible for release on HDC in more than one year. This is because an offender may become eligible for release on HDC in one year and remain in the prison population to be eligible for release as a new year begins.</p></td></tr><tr><td colspan="6"><p>(3) Figures for 2015 and earlier were produced using an older methodology than for the years 2016 to date.</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Data on the number of prisoners refused HDC is not collated centrally and could not be obtained except at disproportionate cost.</p><p> </p><p>A prisoner may be released on or after their HDC eligibility date but may not lawfully be released before the eligibility date; such a release would be counted as a “release in error”. HMPPS publish annual data on releases in error but this does not indicate whether the offender was released on HDC and this could not be established except at disproportionate cost. This data is available here:</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/annual-hm-prison-and-probation-service-digest-2017-to-2018" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/annual-hm-prison-and-probation-service-digest-2017-to-2018</a></p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie grouped question UIN HL16896 HL16898 HL16899 question first answered 17/07/2019 15:05:30 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
tabling member	452 label Biography information for Lord Bradley

1136748

registered interest
date	03/07/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Prisoners' Release: Curfews
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government on what grounds each Home Detention Curfew application was refused in each of the last five years.
tabling member printed	Lord Bradley
uin	HL16898
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/07/2019 answer text <p>The following table shows the number of prisoners who were eligible for HDC, and how many and what proportion were released in each of the last five years. Because of the way in which data is recorded, the figures relating to the number eligible are higher than the true picture, as they include all offenders serving sentences of the right length, even though some do not meet the other eligibility criteria (see footnote 1).</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p><strong>2014</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2015<sup>(3)</sup></strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2016</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2017</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2018</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Number eligible for release on HDC <sup>(1,2)</sup></strong></p></td><td><p><strong>45,203</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>43,669</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>43,660</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>44,697</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>40,543</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Number released on HDC</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>8,614</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>8,319</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>9,041</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>9,312</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>14,769</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Percentage released</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>19%</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>19%</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>21%</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>21%</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>36%</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td colspan="6"><p>(1) This is the number of offenders serving sentences of between 12 weeks and just under 4 years and therefore potentially eligible for release on Home Detention Curfew (HDC) in the relevant period. However, it includes offenders who are in fact statutorily ineligible for HDC, such as registered sex offenders or those with a previous recall for breach of curfew on HDC (prisoners not eligible for HDC for these reasons cannot be identified from the data that is held). Moreover, certain offenders are presumed unsuitable for HDC and will only be considered for release in exceptional circumstances.</p></td></tr><tr><td colspan="6"><p>(2) An offender may be eligible for release on HDC in more than one year. This is because an offender may become eligible for release on HDC in one year and remain in the prison population to be eligible for release as a new year begins.</p></td></tr><tr><td colspan="6"><p>(3) Figures for 2015 and earlier were produced using an older methodology than for the years 2016 to date.</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Data on the number of prisoners refused HDC is not collated centrally and could not be obtained except at disproportionate cost.</p><p> </p><p>A prisoner may be released on or after their HDC eligibility date but may not lawfully be released before the eligibility date; such a release would be counted as a “release in error”. HMPPS publish annual data on releases in error but this does not indicate whether the offender was released on HDC and this could not be established except at disproportionate cost. This data is available here:</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/annual-hm-prison-and-probation-service-digest-2017-to-2018" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/annual-hm-prison-and-probation-service-digest-2017-to-2018</a></p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie grouped question UIN HL16896 HL16897 HL16899 question first answered 17/07/2019 15:05:30 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
tabling member	452 label Biography information for Lord Bradley

1136749

registered interest
date	03/07/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Prisoners' Release: Curfews
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government how many prisoners subject to Home Detention Curfews were released before their Home Detention Curfew Eligibility Date in each of the last five years.
tabling member printed	Lord Bradley
uin	HL16899
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/07/2019 answer text <p>The following table shows the number of prisoners who were eligible for HDC, and how many and what proportion were released in each of the last five years. Because of the way in which data is recorded, the figures relating to the number eligible are higher than the true picture, as they include all offenders serving sentences of the right length, even though some do not meet the other eligibility criteria (see footnote 1).</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p><strong>2014</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2015<sup>(3)</sup></strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2016</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2017</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2018</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Number eligible for release on HDC <sup>(1,2)</sup></strong></p></td><td><p><strong>45,203</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>43,669</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>43,660</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>44,697</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>40,543</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Number released on HDC</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>8,614</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>8,319</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>9,041</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>9,312</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>14,769</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Percentage released</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>19%</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>19%</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>21%</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>21%</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>36%</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td colspan="6"><p>(1) This is the number of offenders serving sentences of between 12 weeks and just under 4 years and therefore potentially eligible for release on Home Detention Curfew (HDC) in the relevant period. However, it includes offenders who are in fact statutorily ineligible for HDC, such as registered sex offenders or those with a previous recall for breach of curfew on HDC (prisoners not eligible for HDC for these reasons cannot be identified from the data that is held). Moreover, certain offenders are presumed unsuitable for HDC and will only be considered for release in exceptional circumstances.</p></td></tr><tr><td colspan="6"><p>(2) An offender may be eligible for release on HDC in more than one year. This is because an offender may become eligible for release on HDC in one year and remain in the prison population to be eligible for release as a new year begins.</p></td></tr><tr><td colspan="6"><p>(3) Figures for 2015 and earlier were produced using an older methodology than for the years 2016 to date.</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Data on the number of prisoners refused HDC is not collated centrally and could not be obtained except at disproportionate cost.</p><p> </p><p>A prisoner may be released on or after their HDC eligibility date but may not lawfully be released before the eligibility date; such a release would be counted as a “release in error”. HMPPS publish annual data on releases in error but this does not indicate whether the offender was released on HDC and this could not be established except at disproportionate cost. This data is available here:</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/annual-hm-prison-and-probation-service-digest-2017-to-2018" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/annual-hm-prison-and-probation-service-digest-2017-to-2018</a></p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie grouped question UIN HL16896 HL16897 HL16898 question first answered 17/07/2019 15:05:30 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
tabling member	452 label Biography information for Lord Bradley

1136771

registered interest
date	03/07/2019
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Migrant Workers: Veterinary Medicine
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to accept the Migration Advisory Committee's recommendation to add veterinarians to the Shortage Occupation List; and if not, why not.
tabling member printed	Lord Rogan
uin	HL16921
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/07/2019 answer text <p>I refer the Noble Lord to the answer given to HL16474 on the 2nd July 2019.</p> answering member printed Baroness Williams of Trafford grouped question UIN HL16922 question first answered 17/07/2019 15:43:17 answering member 4311 label Biography information for Baroness Williams of Trafford
tabling member	2478 label Biography information for Lord Rogan

1136772

registered interest
date	03/07/2019
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Migrant Workers: Veterinary Medicine
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to add veterinarians to the Shortage Occupation List in sufficient time for them to be trained and ready to deploy in advance of a no-deal Brexit.
tabling member printed	Lord Rogan
uin	HL16922
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/07/2019 answer text <p>I refer the Noble Lord to the answer given to HL16474 on the 2nd July 2019.</p> answering member printed Baroness Williams of Trafford grouped question UIN HL16921 question first answered 17/07/2019 15:43:17 answering member 4311 label Biography information for Baroness Williams of Trafford
tabling member	2478 label Biography information for Lord Rogan

1132395

registered interest
date	17/06/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Probate
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the average length of time for probate to be granted in the last (a) three months and (b) financial year.
tabling member constituency	Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire
tabling member printed	Simon Hart
uin	265484
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/07/2019 answer text <p>Official statistics are not published on the average length of time from receipt of the application to the issue of a grant of probate. Internal management information, which is not subject to the rigorous quality assurance processes of official statistics, however shows that in the last financial year (2018/2019) the average time was three weeks.</p><p> </p><p>Whilst timeliness data are not yet available for the last three months, it is clear that waiting times have increased. Urgent action has been taken to address these temporary delays, staffing has been increased and the digital service further improved, and as a result waiting times are starting to reduce.</p><p> </p><p>There are no prescribed target times for dealing with probate applications. The recent increase in waiting times has been caused by a combination of an increased volume of incoming work and the transition to a new case management IT system. The move to the new system meant that staff had to spend time being trained and familiarising themselves with the system – which also had some initial performance issues that have been addressed.</p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 17/07/2019 15:38:49 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
tabling member	3944 label Biography information for Simon Hart

1131835

registered interest
date	12/06/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	HM Courts and Tribunals Service: Reform
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the total spending was on (a) academic research and (b) public consultations undertaken by his Department to inform the HMCTS reform programme in each financial year since 2011-12.
tabling member constituency	Bolton South East
tabling member printed	Yasmin Qureshi
uin	263790
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/07/2019 answer text <p>HMCTS and the Ministry of Justice have undertaken a number of formal written consultation exercises since the Reform Programme began in 2016. This included the Ministry of Justice consultation on the Reform Programme entitled Transforming our Justice System, which set out the Government’s broad approach to reform and sought views on three specific sets of proposals: the assisted digital strategy; automatic online conviction and statutory standard penalty; and tribunal panel composition.</p><p> </p><p>HMCTS has spent the following amounts on academic research for evaluation of reform:</p><p> </p><p>2016/17: £220,000 for research on the Citizen user Experience</p><p>2017/18: £50,000 for research on the Professional User Experience</p><p>2017/18: £40,000 for a survey of SSCS appellants digital capability</p><p>2018/19: £49,000 for LSE evaluation of video hearings in tax</p><p>2018/19: £47,976 for research on Flexible Operating Hours</p><p> </p><p>HMCTS undertakes public consultation when reorganising estate or closing a tribunal building. This work is conducted by civil servants alongside other duties and it is not possible to capture an accurate assessment of the time and cost spent on this.</p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 17/07/2019 15:36:55 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
tabling member	3924 label Biography information for Yasmin Qureshi