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1520887

registered interest
date	11/10/2022
answering body	Department for Transport
answering dept id	27
answering dept short name	Transport
answering dept sort name	Transport
hansard heading	Railways
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to introduce double decker trains to the UK rail network.
tabling member printed	Lord Kennedy of Southwark
uin	HL2490
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/10/2022 answer text <p>The Government does not have any plans to introduce double decker trains to the UK national rail network.</p><p>Double decker trains would require significant civil engineering investment including modifications to station roofs, electrification equipment, signal gantries, bridges, platforms and many other structures close to the line which would be costly and disruptive to passengers.</p> answering member printed Baroness Vere of Norbiton question first answered 24/10/2022 11:27:46 answering member 4580 label Biography information for Baroness Vere of Norbiton
tabling member	4153 label Biography information for Lord Kennedy of Southwark

1520888

registered interest
date	11/10/2022
answering body	Department for Transport
answering dept id	27
answering dept short name	Transport
answering dept sort name	Transport
hansard heading	Railways: Unmanned Air Vehicles
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to introduce unmanned aerial vehicle technology for general data acquisition on the rail network.
tabling member printed	Lord Kennedy of Southwark
uin	HL2491
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/10/2022 answer text <p>The use of drone technology for data acquisition is already prevalent on the rail network.</p><p>Network Rail drones gather data, videos and images of the railway for regular maintenance purposes. Drones can reach areas which are usually difficult to access, such as roofs, bridges, coastal areas, the overhead wires that power electric trains and communication masts.</p><p>Inspecting the railway in this way also means lines can be kept open to train services and keep workers safe as engineers are not out on the track unnecessarily.</p> answering member printed Baroness Vere of Norbiton question first answered 24/10/2022 11:32:42 answering member 4580 label Biography information for Baroness Vere of Norbiton
tabling member	4153 label Biography information for Lord Kennedy of Southwark

1520889

registered interest
date	11/10/2022
answering body	Department for Transport
answering dept id	27
answering dept short name	Transport
answering dept sort name	Transport
hansard heading	Railways: Sustainable Development
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with governments around the world regarding sustainable construction for large scale railway projects; and how these discussions will inform future infrastructure.
tabling member printed	Lord Kennedy of Southwark
uin	HL2492
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/10/2022 answer text <p>The Department regularly engages with foreign governments to identify areas for future trade and growth, closer collaboration and knowledge sharing on large infrastructure projects, and to identify opportunities to promote the UK rail supply chain.</p><p> </p><p>Using international engagement as a key driver for growth, the Department also ensures that its priorities are reflected in discussions with other governments. These include decarbonisation, pursuing trade opportunities, promoting British business and knowledge sharing.</p> answering member printed Baroness Vere of Norbiton question first answered 21/10/2022 11:26:55 answering member 4580 label Biography information for Baroness Vere of Norbiton
tabling member	4153 label Biography information for Lord Kennedy of Southwark

1520890

registered interest
date	11/10/2022
answering body	Department for Transport
answering dept id	27
answering dept short name	Transport
answering dept sort name	Transport
hansard heading	Railways: Freight
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the use of digital rail freight technologies in the UK freight network.
tabling member printed	Lord Kennedy of Southwark
uin	HL2493
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/10/2022 answer text <p>The adoption of digital technologies, along with targeted conventional interventions, is a cost-effective way to potentially release additional capacity on the existing network.</p><p>Under the Future of Freight plan, the government has committed £7 million to the Freight Innovation Fund to drive the commercialisation of technology, including digital, across all freight modes. It has also provided early stage research and development funding through Transport Research and Innovation Grants (TRIG), the latest awards included funding to develop a web platform for short notice freight train wagon booking to maximise freight capacity.</p><p>Government is also encouraging further innovation through the First of a Kind scheme. This year, bids were invited to address a range of potential challenges, including those where digital technologies could provide solutions, such as timetabling and scheduling, routing and tracking, automation of freight handling and modal interchanges, and asset maintenance.</p> answering member printed Baroness Vere of Norbiton question first answered 25/10/2022 10:56:54 answering member 4580 label Biography information for Baroness Vere of Norbiton
tabling member	4153 label Biography information for Lord Kennedy of Southwark

1490068

registered interest
date	18/07/2022
answering body	Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
answering dept id	211
answering dept short name	Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
answering dept sort name	Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
hansard heading	Private Rented Housing: Rents
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the number of private renters who pay (1) energy bills, and (2) council tax, as part of their rent.
tabling member printed	Lord Kennedy of Southwark
uin	HL1871
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/07/2022 answer text <p>The English Housing Survey provides information on the number of private renting households who pay energy bills or council tax as part of their rent. In 2021, 162,000 households, or 3.7% of private renting households, pay their electricity bills as part of their rent; 131,000 households (3%) pay their gas bills as part of their rent; and 120,000 households (2.8%) have their council tax included as part of their rent.</p> answering member printed Lord Harrington of Watford question first answered 26/07/2022 13:49:00 answering member 4068 label Biography information for Lord Harrington of Watford
tabling member	4153 label Biography information for Lord Kennedy of Southwark

1490069

registered interest
date	18/07/2022
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Sexual Offences: Private Rented Housing
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government when the consultation on sex for rent will be launched; and whether stakeholders and relevant organisations will be invited to take part.
tabling member printed	Lord Kennedy of Southwark
uin	HL1872
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/08/2022 answer text <p>The Government is clear that exploitation through ‘sex for rent’ has no place in our society.</p><p>Under the Sexual Offences Act 2003, there are two existing offences which can be used to prosecute this practice. In 2019, the CPS amended their guidance on ‘Prostitution and Exploitation of Prostitution’ to include specific reference to the potential availability of charges for offences under sections 52 and 53 of the 2003 Act when there is evidence to support the existence of ‘sex for rent’ arrangements. Both offences carry a maximum penalty of seven years’ imprisonment.</p><p>In January 2021, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) authorised the first charge for ‘sex for rent’ allegations under Section 52. The individual against whom these allegations were made pleaded guilty to two counts of inciting prostitution for gain earlier this year.</p><p>These offences have also been included in Schedule 7 of the Online Safety Bill, which reflects the most serious and prevalent illegal content online. This will mean that services will be under a duty to proactively search for, remove and limit people’s exposure to this content, while also protecting users’ freedom of expression.</p><p>We are committed to improving the protection of vulnerable people from exploitation. In the cross-Government Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy, which was published in July 2021, we committed to working with partners inside and outside of Government on the issue of sex-for-rent.</p><p>We have also committed to launching a public consultation on the issue of sex-for-rent to hear as wide a range of views as possible on the nature of sex-for-rent; the existing response and what more could be done to prevent exploitation and protect victims. We are working to launch this consultation soon.</p> answering member printed Baroness Williams of Trafford question first answered 01/08/2022 14:30:29 answering member 4311 label Biography information for Baroness Williams of Trafford
tabling member	4153 label Biography information for Lord Kennedy of Southwark

1490070

registered interest
date	18/07/2022
answering body	Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept id	201
answering dept short name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept sort name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
hansard heading	Private Rented Housing: Energy Bills Rebate
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government how private tenants who pay their council tax or energy bills as part of their rent will be able to claim their energy bills support grant if (1) their rent has already risen this year, and (2) it has not already risen this year.
tabling member printed	Lord Kennedy of Southwark
uin	HL1873
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/07/2022 answer text <p>There are rules which can protect tenants and ensure they receive the benefit of this policy. A copy of Ofgem’s guidance on how to ensure customers are being charged no more than they should when they buy the electricity through their landlord, including what to do if they think there has been a mistake, is attached.</p> answering member printed Lord Callanan question first answered 26/07/2022 13:42:24 answering member 4336 label Biography information for Lord Callanan attachment 1 file name HL1873 Resale of gas and electricity.pdf title HL1873 Resale of gas and electricity
tabling member	4153 label Biography information for Lord Kennedy of Southwark

1489790

registered interest
date	15/07/2022
answering body	Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
answering dept id	211
answering dept short name	Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
answering dept sort name	Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
hansard heading	Private Rented Housing: Evictions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they made (1) to inform their plans for two-month eviction periods to be set out in the upcoming Renters Reform Bill, and (2) of whether this is sufficient notice for a family with children in school to find a new home in their local area.
tabling member printed	Lord Kennedy of Southwark
uin	HL1802
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/07/2022 answer text <p>The Government is committed to delivering a fairer and more effective rental market that works for both tenants and landlords. As set out in our 'A Fairer Private Rented Sector' White Paper, the Government has committed to ending Section 21 no fault evictions. At the same time, we will reform the grounds for evictions to ensure that landlords are able to get possession of their properties when they need to, these reforms will include mandatory grounds for if a landlord wishes to sell or move into the property with two months’ notice periods. To protect tenants' security, landlords will not be able to use these grounds in the first six months of a tenancy and to prevent misuse they will not be able to relet the property in the 3 months following the end of the tenancy.</p><p>The notice period we are proposing balances the needs of both tenants and landlords, giving tenants and their families time to find a new home while ensuring landlords can manage their assets when they need to do so. However, we encourage landlords to work flexibly with their tenants and notify them of their intentions as far in advance as possible. We encourage tenants who receive notice to consider their options as soon as possible and to contact their local authority if they are at risk of homelessness.</p> answering member printed Baroness Bloomfield of Hinton Waldrist question first answered 28/07/2022 13:11:04 answering member 4582 label Biography information for Baroness Bloomfield of Hinton Waldrist
tabling member	4153 label Biography information for Lord Kennedy of Southwark

1489791

registered interest
date	15/07/2022
answering body	Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
answering dept id	211
answering dept short name	Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
answering dept sort name	Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
hansard heading	Private Rented Housing: Evictions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they made (1) to inform their plans for a no-let period of three months, after an eviction for sale, and (2) of whether this is long enough to deter unscrupulous landlords from abusing the grounds for sale.
tabling member printed	Lord Kennedy of Southwark
uin	HL1803
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/07/2022 answer text <p>The Government is clear that misuse of the new grounds of possession and any attempt to find loopholes within our reforms will not be tolerated. We are engaging widely with stakeholders to assess the impact of our enforcement proposals and consider what action is necessary to prevent landlords misusing grounds for possession.</p><p>Where a landlord wishes to gain possession to sell their property, they will need to be prepared to provide evidence in court to prove that this is their intention. Introducing a ban on re-marketing and re-letting will allow tenants to more easily demonstrate misuse of the grounds – they can, for example, show that a property has been marketed online. Our assessment is that a three-month restriction acts as an additional deterrent by increasing the costs of misusing a ground substantially and is likely sufficient to prevent a rogue landlord from profiting by immediately re-letting the property at a higher rent. However, we recognise that landlords’ circumstances can legitimately change and the three-month restriction provides a balanced and proportionate approach, ensuring that good landlords are not unfairly burdened if this happens.</p><p>The three-month restriction is one part of a comprehensive approach to enforcing the new tenancy regime. Other proposals include giving local authorities the powers to issue fines to landlords and allowing tenants to seek redress through a new Ombudsman covering all private landlords.</p> answering member printed Baroness Bloomfield of Hinton Waldrist question first answered 29/07/2022 09:05:36 answering member 4582 label Biography information for Baroness Bloomfield of Hinton Waldrist
tabling member	4153 label Biography information for Lord Kennedy of Southwark

1489792

registered interest
date	15/07/2022
answering body	Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
answering dept id	211
answering dept short name	Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
answering dept sort name	Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
hansard heading	Private Rented Housing: Evictions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what kind of proof a landlord will be obliged to provide to prove that they intend to sell or move themselves or families back into a property, under plans to be set out in the Renters Reform Bill.
tabling member printed	Lord Kennedy of Southwark
uin	HL1804
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/07/2022 answer text <p>Where landlords want to use the new moving or selling grounds to seek possession, they will need to be prepared to prove their intention in a court. We will share further guidance on what evidence could be used to demonstrate their intent in due course, and will consider how to ensure this is as simple as possible while protecting tenants from unlawful eviction.</p><p>We encourage landlords to communicate with tenants about their intentions early, and share evidence where possible, to avoid unnecessary disputes about the legitimacy of eviction notices arising. Tenants may wish to request further information from their landlord or seek independent advice.</p><p>We are clear that attempts to misuse these grounds are unacceptable, and we will restrict landlords from remarketing or reletting the property within three months of using these grounds.</p> answering member printed Baroness Bloomfield of Hinton Waldrist question first answered 28/07/2022 13:22:41 answering member 4582 label Biography information for Baroness Bloomfield of Hinton Waldrist
tabling member	4153 label Biography information for Lord Kennedy of Southwark