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65864

registered interest
date	04/07/2014
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Housing
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if his Department will publish a code of practice for the management of residential property.
tabling member constituency	Hertford and Stortford
tabling member printed	Mr Mark Prisk
uin	204061
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/07/2014 answer text <p> </p><p>We have asked the industry to come together and develop a code of practice for both the management of residential property and the process of letting property. The Royal Institute for Chartered Surveyors (RICS) is leading the development of the Code which we expect to be published in the summer.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Kris Hopkins question first answered 10/07/2014 14:16:46 answering member 4043 label Biography information for Kris Hopkins
tabling member	1424 label Biography information for Mr Mark Prisk

65865

registered interest
date	04/07/2014
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Letting Agents
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, in which month the redress arrangements concerning letting and managing agents will commence.
tabling member constituency	Hertford and Stortford
tabling member printed	Mr Mark Prisk
uin	204060
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/07/2014 answer text <p> </p><p>The Redress Schemes for Lettings Agency Work and Property Management Work (Requirement to Belong to a Scheme etc) (England) Order was laid in Parliament on 23 June. Subject to approval of that Order by both Houses of Parliament, the requirement for letting agents and property managers in England to belong to an approved redress scheme will come into force on 1 October 2014.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Kris Hopkins question first answered 10/07/2014 13:59:32 answering member 4043 label Biography information for Kris Hopkins
tabling member	1424 label Biography information for Mr Mark Prisk

65866

registered interest
date	04/07/2014
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Landlords: Scotland
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the register of landlords in Scotland in reducing bad practice.
tabling member constituency	Hertford and Stortford
tabling member printed	Mr Mark Prisk
uin	204056
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/07/2014 answer text <p> </p><p>The Coalition Government supports a bigger and better private rented sector and is keen to minimise the burden of regulation on the vast majority of good landlords. Excessive red tape would just force up rents and reduce choice and supply for tenants.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>We believe that imposing a national register of landlords would be disproportionate and unfairly penalise good landlords who are fully compliant with their obligations. It would cost an estimated £40 million a year – costs which ultimately would be passed on to tenants in higher rents.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>As an alternative to such regulation, we support the use of voluntary accreditation by local authorities coupled with strong enforcement action to crack down on the small minority of rogue landlords who rent out overcrowded and dilapidated property. Voluntary accreditation helps drive up standards and increase levels of professionalism amongst landlords.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>We have not formally assessed Scotland's scheme, but I note that an answer to a Parliamentary Question in the Scottish Parliament in January 2013 noted that since the scheme was introduced in 2006, it had cost landlords £11 million in fees and a further £5 million in costs to taxpayers, but only 40 landlords had been refused in total over that period out of almost 200,000 landlord registrations. This suggests that such state regulation had not been effective at tackling rogue landlords despite significant costs imposed on the whole rented sector.</p><p> </p><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Kris Hopkins question first answered 14/07/2014 15:54:49 answering member 4043 label Biography information for Kris Hopkins
tabling member	1424 label Biography information for Mr Mark Prisk

65867

registered interest
date	04/07/2014
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Fire Services: West Midlands
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what recent discussions he has had with West Midlands Fire Authority on staffing patterns in that fire service.
tabling member constituency	Solihull
tabling member printed	Lorely Burt
uin	204053
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/07/2014 answer text <p> </p><p><em>[Holding Reply: Wednesday 9 July 2014]</em></p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Staffing patterns are entirely the responsibility of West Midlands Fire and Rescue Authority. I have had no discussions with the Authority on this matter.</p><p> </p><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p><p>The Knight Review ‘Facing the Future', found huge variations in the way fire and rescue authorities operated and concluded that there were significant opportunities for sensible savings such as through: sharing of senior staff, reforms to flexible staffing and crewing arrangements, better procurement, shared services, collaboration with emergency services and other organisations on service delivery and estates, sickness management, locally led mergers and operational collaborations, new fire-fighting technology, preventative approaches and working with local businesses.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Great Yarmouth answering member printed Brandon Lewis question first answered 14/07/2014 12:42:20 answering member 4009 label Biography information for Sir Brandon Lewis previous answer version 9246 answering member constituency Great Yarmouth answering member printed Brandon Lewis answering member 4009 label Biography information for Sir Brandon Lewis
tabling member	1567 label Biography information for Baroness Burt of Solihull

65868

registered interest
date	04/07/2014
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Private Rented Housing
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, when the new Model Tenancy Agreement will be published.
tabling member constituency	Hertford and Stortford
tabling member printed	Mr Mark Prisk
uin	204054
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/07/2014 answer text <p> </p><p>We plan to publish the Model Tenancy Agreement later in the summer.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Kris Hopkins question first answered 14/07/2014 12:43:58 answering member 4043 label Biography information for Kris Hopkins
tabling member	1424 label Biography information for Mr Mark Prisk

65656

registered interest
date	03/07/2014
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Council Tax
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what guidance his Department has issued on whether the landlord or tenant is responsible for the payment of council tax on the day that a tenancy ends.
tabling member constituency	Leeds Central
tabling member printed	Hilary Benn
uin	203889
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/07/2014 answer text <p> </p><p>The hierarchy of liability for council tax is set out in Section 6 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992. A resident tenant of a dwelling is higher in the hierarchy of liability than a non-resident owner. A tenant who has permanently vacated a property is not liable for council tax under local government finance legislation. Decisions on liability are a matter for billing authorities, and will depend on the particular circumstances of each case, such as whether the property is that person's sole or main residence, or whether there are other remaining residents.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>My Department has not issued specific guidance on this issue, however, our predecessor, the Department of the Environment, has previously done so. I have placed a copy of “Council tax practice note 2” in the Library of the House. It is a reflection of the prevailing legislation at that point in time; with that caveat, it is still guiding otherwise. Paragraph 7 deals with the determination of council tax on a daily basis and states that for liability purposes ‘The state of affairs at the end of any day is assumed to have lasted all that day.'</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Great Yarmouth answering member printed Brandon Lewis grouped question UIN 203890 question first answered 10/07/2014 13:55:33 answering member 4009 label Biography information for Sir Brandon Lewis
tabling member	413 label Biography information for Hilary Benn

65657

registered interest
date	03/07/2014
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Council Tax
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what guidance his Department has issued on whether the landlord or tenant is responsible for the payment of council tax when a tenant leaves the property but fails to inform the landlord.
tabling member constituency	Leeds Central
tabling member printed	Hilary Benn
uin	203890
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/07/2014 answer text <p> </p><p>The hierarchy of liability for council tax is set out in Section 6 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992. A resident tenant of a dwelling is higher in the hierarchy of liability than a non-resident owner. A tenant who has permanently vacated a property is not liable for council tax under local government finance legislation. Decisions on liability are a matter for billing authorities, and will depend on the particular circumstances of each case, such as whether the property is that person's sole or main residence, or whether there are other remaining residents.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>My Department has not issued specific guidance on this issue, however, our predecessor, the Department of the Environment, has previously done so. I have placed a copy of “Council tax practice note 2” in the Library of the House. It is a reflection of the prevailing legislation at that point in time; with that caveat, it is still guiding otherwise. Paragraph 7 deals with the determination of council tax on a daily basis and states that for liability purposes ‘The state of affairs at the end of any day is assumed to have lasted all that day.'</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Great Yarmouth answering member printed Brandon Lewis grouped question UIN 203889 question first answered 10/07/2014 13:55:33 answering member 4009 label Biography information for Sir Brandon Lewis
tabling member	413 label Biography information for Hilary Benn

65660

registered interest
date	03/07/2014
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	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 Communities and Local Government, if he will (a) review and (b) amend or provide an exemption to the five-year housing land availability test for councils who have land on the proposed High Speed 2 rail route.
tabling member constituency	North East Derbyshire
tabling member printed	Natascha Engel
uin	203897
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/07/2014 answer text <p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>High Speed 2 provides the opportunity to be a significant catalyst for locally-led growth and regeneration at proposed station locations, with the potential to support new homes and new jobs, benefiting from the new high-speed connections. This is illustrated by how High Speed 1 has helped extend regeneration and growth across East London and Kent. The Government will in due course be responding to the High Speed 2 Growth Taskforce Report on how best to work with local councils and Local Enterprise Partnerships to seize the regeneration opportunities from the new line.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>This Government is a strong advocate of locally-led development. The Local Plan process helps councils shape where new development should and should not go. In that context, it does not make sense to exempt councils along the route from having an up to date Local Plan; councils should be in the driving seat to determine what it best for their local communities.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Grantham and Stamford answering member printed Nick Boles question first answered 10/07/2014 16:20:31 answering member 3995 label Biography information for Nick Boles
tabling member	1507 label Biography information for Natascha Engel

65662

registered interest
date	03/07/2014
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Community Assets
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what recent steps he has taken to promote community rights under the Localism Act 2011.
tabling member constituency	Thirsk and Malton
tabling member printed	Miss Anne McIntosh
uin	203922
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/07/2014 answer text <p> </p><p>This Government wants to put communities in control; giving people more power to make decisions about their local area. The community rights are promoted through local, national and consumer press, broadcast media (tv and radio), ministerial visits, conferences, workshops and social media.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Over 1,200 assets of community value have been listed and we have helped 150 organisations to acquire a community asset or obtain significant investment towards doing so. More than 900 neighbourhood planning areas have been designated, and all 21 plans which have reached referendum so far have passed with significant majorities in favour. Our network of 50 neighbourhood planning champions host awareness raising events and provide informal local advice based upon their experiences to promote and support neighbourhood planning.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>In March we ran two ‘Information Exchange' events focussed on the community rights for local councillors in Essex and Buckinghamshire and will be offering these out across the country. We are also running a series of workshops for local authorities focused on the Community Right to Bid and Asset Transfer.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>But the rights form just one part of the wider package of policies which drive our ‘communities in control' agenda.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>We are supporting 21 local campaigns for new parish councils covering local populations of more than half a million people. Over 100 new Our Place areas are starting work within their communities to transform neighbourhood level service delivery. Community share issues have raised over £24 million for community ventures.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Over £60 million has been made available, across a number of different programmes, to help communities take more control of their areas. This encompasses grants, advice and professional expertise to use the community rights, setting up an Our Place area, campaigning for a new parish, supporting community pubs, promoting the use of community shares and empowering tenants to ensure their landlord provides the services they want.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Bristol West answering member printed Stephen Williams question first answered 15/07/2014 14:29:34 answering member 1492 label Biography information for Stephen Williams attachment 1 file name 0298 McIntosh - Table.docx title Table
tabling member	384 label Biography information for Baroness McIntosh of Pickering

65663

registered interest
date	03/07/2014
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Emergency Services: Crimes of Violence
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to better protect emergency services from attacks by youths.
tabling member constituency	Upper Bann
tabling member printed	David Simpson
uin	203967
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/07/2014 answer text <p> </p><p>On 20 February 2007, the Emergency Workers (Obstruction) Act 2006 came into force. This Act, which specifically includes firefighters, makes it an offence to obstruct or hinder an emergency worker responding to emergency circumstances.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Fire and rescue authorities have in place various measures to engage with young people in their areas. While any attack on firefighters while carrying out their duties is one too many, the number of attacks in England continues to fall.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Great Yarmouth answering member printed Brandon Lewis question first answered 10/07/2014 14:27:58 answering member 4009 label Biography information for Sir Brandon Lewis
tabling member	1597 label Biography information for David Simpson