Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Treasury Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215024213
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 26
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This publication sets out responses to the Committee's report on the credit card market (HCP 274, session 2004-05; ISBN 0215021711) published in February 2004, received from the Department for Trade and Industry, the Office of Fair Trading and the Financial Services Authority. Issues discussed include: transparency in charging practices; data sharing and responsible lending; and regulation of payment protection insurance.
Author: Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons. Communities and Local Government Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215526526
Category : Architecture
Languages : en
Pages : 276
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In this report the Communities and Local Government Committee says the Government must stick to its long term house building targets, despite the credit crunch, but a greater proportion of the homes built should be social housing. The Committee is concerned that the £975 million borrowed by the Government from its 2010-11 budgets to build social rented housing now is not new money, and that the Government has been unable to say how that borrowing will be replaced. The Committee urges the Department for Communities and Local Government to: put pressure on the Treasury to ensure measures to revive the mortgage markets are implemented immediately; increase construction of new social housing, both to provide for housing need and as a means of maintaining capacity in the homebuilding industry whilst the market recovers; accelerate refurbishment programmes for social housing; acquire further social housing through the purchase of unsold stock and street properties; consider the purchase of unsold family homes which have been on the market for more than a year; encourage public sector bodies to make land available for the development of new homes. The report also urges the Government to do more to help those at risk of repossession by considering sanctions against lenders who repossess too quickly and by doing more to protect tenants and homeowners from unscrupulous landlords. An Office of Fair Trading recommendation for sale-and-rent back schemes should be implemented as a matter of urgency to protect the growing number of households falling behind in mortgage payments. The Committee would like to see more done to support housing associations, including increasing social housing grant where necessary.
Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: ODPM: Housing, Planning, Local Government and the Regions Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215027122
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 104
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Incorporating HCP 680, session 2005-06.
Author: Great Britain: House of Commons
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215025227
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 344
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With corrigendum slip dated June 2005 (1 sheet).
Author: Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons. Business and Enterprise Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215530127
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 92
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This report deals with the relationship between pub companies and their lessees. It is interested, specifically, in those companies which operate a tied estate, whose operations have frequently been criticised on the grounds that they are unfair to lessees who not only have to pay rent, but are also forced to buy beer at higher prices than those they could obtain elsewhere. Those who support the system maintain that the tie gives pubcos an incentive to support their lessees and that the revenue stream from the beer tie means that basic rents are lower than they would otherwise be. The Committee prepared a report in 2004 and put forward a number of recommendations and they were interested to see the extent to which those recommendations have been implemented. They found that many of the problems identified earlier remain and that the imbalance of bargaining power persists. There are strong indications that the existence of the tie pushes up prices not just to lesses but to consumers. However they are wary of simply recommending that it be abolished as that may simply put too much power to brewers and distributors. The OFT has declined to act in the past and the Committee recommends that the Secretary of State refer the matter to the Competition Commission for urgent investigation. Provisionally they feel that the tie should be severely limited.
Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Communities and Local Government Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215035981
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 44
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Sir Michael Lyons, in his report "Place-shaping: a shared ambition for the future of local government" (2007, ISBN 9780119898545) proposed allowing local authorities to make marginal changes to the national non-domestic rate which businesses pay as their contribution to the provision of local services. The Government's recent green paper "The governance of Britain" (Cm. 7170, ISBN 9780101717021) contemplates enabling local communities to take decisions about how to use local funds, and a substantive response to the Lyons report is expected later in 2007. The Committee builds on these developments to argue that local authorities should be able to levy a supplementary business rate to increase or decrease the business rate paid by local businesses. Whilst the decision-making should be left to local authorities, the Government should set down some basic parameters to define the operation of supplementary business rates and confine the purposes to which any revenue generated might be applied. This reform to local government revenue should be seen as a first step in a development process of financial devolution.
Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Transport Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215544025
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 52
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The railways in Britain are currently experiencing historically high levels of investment. Network Rail, the monopoly owner and operator of Britain's fixed rail infrastructure, is investing about £35 billion in the railway network between 2009 and 2014. In this inquiry the Transport Committee assess the value of further investment to enhance Britain's railway network and - within the context of likely public spending reductions following the recession - to identify essential rail investment priorities for the future. Investment in rail enhancements can positively benefit the economy through reducing journey times, providing access to employment, contributing to the regeneration of local areas and, in the short-term, providing much-needed construction jobs. Failure to invest now to enhance the network, and to alleviate capacity constraints, will only damage the prosperity of the railways in the long term. The Committee believes the Government should continue to focus on enhancing the network, promoting integration of transport modes and reacting positively to proposals to develop new rail lines, or reopening old ones, serving communities with little or no access to the rail network. The report sets out which needs and schemes the Committee thinks should be considered high priorities in the medium to long-term.
Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: ODPM: Housing, Planning, Local Government and the Regions Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215027870
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 112
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The Licensing Act 2003 brought ten existing licensing schemes administered by local authorities into one new regime, and created more flexible licensing hours. This report concentrates on the technicalities of licensing: all those applying for a licence for the first time or needing a new licence under the Act had to submit applications by a certain date. The transition period was in 2005, and it soon became apparent that people involved in the 're-licensing' process were encountering difficulties. The Committee finds that the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has failed to administer the transition period effectively. Despite a two-year gap between the passing of the legislation and the implementation of the Act, regulations and guidance were issued late, and proved to be contradictory and confusing. Local authorities were unable to train staff or prepare application materials in good time. There was inadequate support from central government for local authorities. Many licensing fees rose dramatically, leading to concerns that some small businesses might abandon their licensable activities. The regulatory burden on residents, licensees and local authorities appears to have increased. The government does not appear to recognise some of the issues hindering the smooth operation of the Act. Overly-prescriptive regulations and unhelpful constraints on local government structure are both causing difficulties.
Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Northern Ireland Affairs Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215513342
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 52
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work of the Committee In 2007 : Second report of session 2007-08, report, together with formal Minutes
Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Culture, Media and Sport Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215523402
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 192
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In April 2008, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) published a Draft Heritage Bill and the Government has indicated that the Bill will be in next year's legislative programme. The Bill is designed to unify heritage protection regimes, allow greater public involvement in decisions, and place heritage at the heart of the planning system. The Committee has undertaken pre-legislative scrutiny of the bill but this was undermined by the incomplete nature of the legislation. The Committee also felt that the Government must prioritise the revision of Planning policy guidelines (PPGs) 15 & 16 to ensure that the new guidance on planning policy can be implemented at the same time as the Bill. Further serious issues of concern included the accuracy of current cost estimates & impact assessment and sufficient staffing with the necessary skills, in particular conservation officers. The Committee was also not convinced that Heritage Partnership Agreements (HPAs), a new system of management agreements for owners of large estates, were a robust business option. Nor could any evidence be found that either DCMS or English Heritage had considered any amendments to the legislation which would improve the operation or effectiveness of the enforcement powers for local authorities.
