Parliamentary activity

Answering body: Home Office

My Noble Friend the Minister of State, Home Office and Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities (Lord Greenhalgh) has today made the following Written Ministerial Statement:

I am pleased to make a number of announcements to the House today that set out both the Government’s fire reform agenda and the introduction of a package of fire safety measures that will protect the public for years to come. Taken together, this is about:

Driving forward reform of the Fire and Rescue Service by launching the Fire Reform White Paper and consultation (CP 670).

Implementing a package of measures to improve fire safety.

Improving transparency and engaging the public.

Fire Reform White Paper and Consultation

The Fire Reform White Paper and consultation seeks to introduce system-wide reform to strengthen fire and rescue services across England. The proposals are set out under three key themes: people; professionalism; and governance. The consultation is launching today to seek views and will be open for 10 weeks.

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/reforming-our-fire-and-rescue-service

Review of the National Joint Council

As set out in the White Paper the government will launch a review of the National Joint Council for Local Authority Fire and Rescue Services. The review, which will commence later this year, will consider whether the pay negotiation mechanism in England is fit for purpose.

The Fire Safety Act 2021

The Fire Safety Act 2021 was commenced in full on 16 May 2022. This will clarify that structure, external walls and flat entrance doors of blocks of flats are within scope of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (the Fire Safety Order) and ensure that they are included in that building’s fire risk assessment.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fire-safety-act-2021

Fire Risk Assessment Prioritisation Tool

To support commencement of the Fire Safety Act 2021, the Home Office is publishing supporting guidance issued under article 50 of the Fire Safety Order and launching an online prioritisation tool. The new Fire Risk Assessment Prioritisation Tool has been developed to help Responsible Persons identify the priority for updating fire risk assessments.

Fire Risk Assessment Prioritisation Tool

Fire Safety (Regulations) 2022

The Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 will require Responsible Persons to send information on high-rise residential buildings which will help fire and rescue services better plan for and respond to a fire. They will also improve fire safety in high-rise buildings by setting a baseline on safety checks on lifts for firefighters and other key pieces of firefighting equipment and, in mid-rise buildings, on doors. They will also make residents in all multi-occupied residential buildings feel safer by providing them with fire safety instructions and information on the importance of fire doors.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fire-safety-england-regulations-2022

Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans (PEEPs) consultation response, and new consultation

We are publishing the responses to our PEEPs consultation which we ran from 8 June to 19 July 2021.

We have taken account of the substantial difficulties of mandating PEEPs in high rise residential buildings and have developed new proposals that we are confident deliver proportionality, practicality and improve safety for those vulnerable people living in the highest risk buildings. We will now consult and seek views on these proposals.

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/personal-emergency-evacuation-plans

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/emergency-evacuation-information-sharing

Fourth thematic update on Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 1 recommendations

We are publishing our latest update on progress against Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 1 recommendations. This shows progress made by Government departments, and relevant public authorities, including the London Fire Brigade, and National Fire Chiefs Council. The tracker provides a digestible, transparent way for the public to hold those responsible for delivering recommendations to account.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/quarterly-thematic-update-on-progress-against-the-grenfell-tower-inquiry-phase-1-recommendations

Fires in high-rise residential buildings in England are rare, and thankfully deaths from fires in high-rise residential buildings are extremely rare. The Government, however, is committed to learning the lessons of the tragedy at Grenfell Tower.

Answering body: Home Office

My Noble Friend the Minister of State, Home Office and Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (Lord Greenhalgh) has today made the following Written Ministerial Statement:

Today, the Government publishes a new consultation on Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans in High-rise Residential Buildings which will be open from 8 June to 19 July 2021.

This new consultation contains proposals to implement the Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 1 Report recommendations on Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans in high-rise residential buildings. These recommendations require a change in law to place new requirements on owners or managers of multi-occupied high-rise residential buildings.

This consultation supports delivery of two of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 1 recommendations and is part of the government’s package of reforms to improve building and fire safety in all regulated premises where people live, stay or work.

We are consulting on the following proposals:

Proposal 1: We propose to require the Responsible Person to prepare a Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan for every resident who self-identifies to them as unable to self-evacuate (subject to the resident’s voluntary self-identification) and to do so in consultation with them.

Proposal 2: We propose to provide a template to assist the Responsible Person and the residents in completing the plan, and to support consistency at a national level.

Proposal 3: We propose to require the Responsible Person to complete and keep up to date information about residents in their building who would have difficulty self-evacuating in the event of a fire (and who have voluntarily self-identified as such), and to place it in an information box on the premises to assist effective evacuation during a rescue by the fire service.

Proposal 4: We propose, in order to assist the Responsible Person and support consistency at a national level, to provide a template, most likely in a one-page format, to capture the key information to be provided in the information box.

Further details can be found in the consultation and its supportive documents available at: www.gov.uk/government/consultations/personal-emergency-evacuation-plans. A copy of the consultation will also be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Answering body: Home Office

My Noble Friend the Minister of State, Home Office and Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (Lord Greenhalgh) has today made the following Written Ministerial Statement:

Today, the Government publishes its response to the Fire Safety Consultation held from 20 July -12 October 2020.

This public consultation was a vital step in a process to ensure that the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (the ‘Fire Safety Order’) continues to be fit for purpose as part of the Government’s consideration of the reform of the wider building safety landscape. The consultation sought views on a number of proposals to:

Strengthen the FSO and improve compliance in all regulated premises (section 1).

Implement the Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 1 Report recommendations that require a change in the law (section 2).

Improve the effectiveness of consultation between building control bodies and fire and rescue authorities on planning for building work and the arrangements for the handover of fire safety information (section 3).

We received feedback from over 250 stakeholders with an interest in building and fire safety, including residents, responsible persons and enforcing authorities, which we have used to inform our response. The Government has listened, and now we are taking action.

We will be bringing forward a number of changes to the Fire Safety Order, legislating where necessary primarily via the Building Safety Bill, as well as through building regulations fire safety guidance, to strengthen fire safety in all regulated buildings. We will:

Improve the quality of fire risk assessments by requiring that a Responsible Person (RP) must not appoint a person to assist them with undertaking a fire risk assessment unless they are competent and a requirement on all RPs to record their completed fire risk assessments and prescribed information. The name and/or organisation of any person engaged by the RP to undertake all or part of the fire risk assessment will also need to be recorded to assist enforcing authorities undertaking enforcement action to establish compliance.

Improve the identification of RPs by requiring them to record (and update as necessary) who they are, and the extent of their responsibility under the Fire Safety Order, and to include a UK based address. This will sit alongside a further proposal to require all RPs to take reasonable steps to identify themselves to each other where they share or have duties in respect of the same premises. A new requirement will also be introduced to ensure that information is transferred effectively between outgoing RPs and their replacements.

Amend existing provision relating to statutory guidance for RPs to include provision that failure to follow such guidance may be considered in court proceedings for breaches of the Order as evidence of such a breach, and conversely proof of following guidance may be considered as evidence of compliance.

Increase the level of fines from Level 3 (£1,000) to Level 5 (unlimited) for offences in relation to the impersonation of an inspector, failure to comply with specific requirements imposed by an inspector, and failure to comply with requirements relating to the installation of luminous tube signs.

Amend the guidance in Approved Document B of the Building Regulations to require all new buildings above 11 metres to provide a readily locatable, accessible and secure Premises Information Box, to tie in with the height threshold for new buildings to require sprinklers and signage.

The Fire Safety Consultation consulted on a range of areas to strengthen fire safety. Where further work is required to develop policy, we will continue to consider the findings of the consultation and engage with the sector and stakeholders to inform ongoing policy development in these areas.

The Fire Safety Consultation also included proposals to implement recommendations from the Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 1 Report requiring changes to the law. We will consider these proposals further in light of the consultation responses and – subject to the Fire Safety Bill gaining Royal Assent – intend to lay Regulations before the second anniversary of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase One Report which will deliver on the Inquiry’s recommendations. These will include measures around checking fire doors and lifts.

Three of these proposals related to Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans (PEEPs). The Government’s commitment to implementing the Inquiry’s recommendations remains undimmed, as does our commitment to ensure those most affected by the tragic events at Grenfell Tower – the bereaved and survivors – continue to have a voice in their implementation. It is important that we get this right and ensure the voice of residents and those likely to be affected by the proposals are heard. That is why we have decided to undertake a further consultation this spring to seek additional views on the complex issue of personal emergency evacuation plans in relation to the proposals to implement the relevant Grenfell recommendations. Further details about this will be available soon on the Government’s website.

Finally, proposals to improve the engagement between Building Control Bodies and Fire Authorities in reviewing plans for building work and for the handover of fire safety information to the Responsible Person on completion will be implemented through changes to legislation and guidance.

We are determined to ensure that the public feel safe and are safe from fire in all regulated premises regardless of where they live, stay or work. These changes, alongside the Fire Safety Bill, Building Safety Bill and planned overhaul of the statutory guidance provided under the Fire Safety Order are important steps needed to strengthen the whole regulatory system for building and fire safety. Taken together they will help to ensure there is greater accountability and responsibility for fire and structural safety issues throughout the lifecycle of all buildings regulated by the Fire Safety Order.

Further detail of the changes we are making can be found in the consultation response. The consultation response will be available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/fire-safety. A copy will also be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Answering body: Home Office

I wish to set out to the House details of a review into the role of Police and Crime Commissioners.

The Government’s manifesto committed to strengthening the accountability of PCCs and expanding their role. Police and Crime Commissioners were introduced in 2012 to give the public a direct say over policing in their area. Since coming into post, they have brought real local accountability to policing and are working to give local communities a stronger voice.

After eight years it is right that we step back and consider how we can continue to evolve the PCC model. It is important that PCCs are strong, visible leaders in the fight against crime and have the legitimacy and tools to hold their police forces to account effectively.

To deliver this commitment, I am today announcing a two-part internal review into the role of PCCs.

Part one will commence in late July and report to the Home Secretary and myself by October 2020. It will be focussed on changes required to strengthen the model which, where possible, can be delivered ahead of the 2021 PCC elections. In particular, it will: consider how to strengthen the accountability, resilience, legitimacy and scrutiny mechanisms of the existing model to drive up standards; identify and share best practice across the sector; and examine the effectiveness of the relationship between PCCs and Chief Constables and the checks and balances currently in place.

We will also use part one of the review to help us map out our longer-term ambition for the expansion of the PCC role. In relation to fire, the Government is clear that further reform of fire and rescue services is required in order to respond to the recommendations from Phase 1 of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry and to build on the findings from Sir Tom Winsor’s State of Fire and Rescue Report, both of which demonstrate the clear challenges and improvements required in professionalism, people and governance. The review will consider further options and opportunities to strengthen fire governance and accountability, drawing on the lessons from the first cycle of fire governance transfers to PCCs.

The review will also be fully aligned with the Government’s commitment to expand the benefits of devolution across England through the Local Recovery and Devolution White Paper. Mayors of Combined Authorities should be powerful local figures with the ability to drive public safety, as well as economic growth and local recovery. We plan to develop the role of PCCs with that longer-term trajectory in mind, building on the models in London and Greater Manchester.

I would like to be clear that neither Part one or Part two of the review will consider a wholly new governance model for policing or examine the 43 police force model.

An Advisory Group will support part one of the review, comprising senior external stakeholders with expertise in the policing and fire sectors. It will also be important that the public’s views on those who represent them in policing are heard and the review team will seek to engage a sample of citizens and local and national victims’ groups as appropriate.

Part two of the review will commence after the 2021 elections and will allow us to consider further ways to strengthen and expand the role of PCCs, including the role PCCs play in tackling re-offending to help reduce crime. It will focus on longer-term reforms and the potential for wider efficiencies to be made within the system with a view to implementation ahead of the 2024 elections.

I will place a copy of the Terms of Reference for part one of the review in the Libraries of both Houses.