Asked by: Kemi Badenoch (Conservative - North West Essex)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what her planned timetable is for completion of each of the revised National Policy Statements.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
As the Chancellor set out on 8 July, the Government will review relevant National Policy Statements over the next twelve months, ensuring the planning system is simplified and improved to deliver Government missions around growth and clean energy. This is one of a number of changes the Government intends to make to build the infrastructure that we need.
Asked by: Max Wilkinson (Liberal Democrat - Cheltenham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she plans to take to ensure that (a) conservation areas and (b) listed buildings are treated sensitively during planning reform.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government will set out proposed changes to national planning policy in the forthcoming National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) update. We remain committed to conserving and enhancing areas of special architectural or historic interest and buildings of the highest significance.
Asked by: Andrew George (Liberal Democrat - St Ives)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to invite representatives of (a) Cornwall and (b) the Isles of Scilly to the Council of the Nations and Regions.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Council of Nations and Regions will bring together the Prime Minister, the First Ministers of Scotland and Wales, the First and deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland, and the Mayors of Combined Authorities. On 16 July 2024 the Deputy Prime Minister wrote to all areas that do not have a devolution deal to invite them to come forward with a proposal. New Mayors established through this process would be eligible to sit on the Council of Nations and Regions. The Government is committed to working productively with local government in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, including as part of regular, sustained engagement with councils across England.
Asked by: Charlie Dewhirst (Conservative - Bridlington and The Wolds)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of implementing a Hull and East Yorkshire devolution deal.
Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
We want to see devolution extended to every corner of England, and have invited local areas without a devolution agreement to come forward with proposals on a sensible geography.
We recognise that in some parts of the country, such as Hull and East Yorkshire, local authorities had already worked with the previous government to develop devolution deals, which were put on hold over the general election.
We will work with local leaders, members of parliament and stakeholders, including those in Hull and East Yorkshire over the coming months, to ensure that our ambition for deeper and impactful devolution is expanded across the country.
Asked by: Kemi Badenoch (Conservative - North West Essex)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to recruit additional planning inspectors to support the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project process.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government is committed to ensuring that the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects regime is capable of delivering the UK’s infrastructure needs, including sufficient resourcing in the Planning Inspectorate and government expert bodies to support infrastructure consenting.
Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans her Department has to (a) engage and (b) work with (i) cooperatives and (ii) community-led not-for-profit organisations to build new homes.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government recognises that community-led housing delivers a wide range of benefits, including additional housing supply, empowering communities, achieving high quality design and strengthening the co-operative economy.
I am committed to working with representatives of the sector - including the Co-operative housing movement and Community Land Trust Network - to consider how the Government may support the growth of community led housing over the long term.
We will shortly launch a review of the National Planning Policy Framework, and this will provide an opportunity for all organisations with an interest in community-led housing to express their views on how the planning system can support this important sector.
Asked by: Clive Lewis (Labour - Norwich South)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what her planned timescales are for banning new leasehold flats and ensuring that commonhold is the default tenure.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government is committed to bringing the feudal leasehold system to an end.
As part of that commitment, we intend to reinvigorate commonhold through a comprehensive new legal framework and ban the sale of new leasehold flats so commonhold becomes the default tenure.
As set out in the King’s Speech, draft legislation will be published on leasehold and commonhold reform during this session.
Asked by: Kemi Badenoch (Conservative - North West Essex)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the impact of net immigration on housing supply.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Immigration is one of a number of factors that impacts on housing demand and future housing supply. We will continue to monitor both and update Parliament on our commitment to build 1.5m homes over five years.
Asked by: Alistair Strathern (Labour - Hitchin)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will make an estimate of the number of households in (a) the UK and (b) Hitchin constituency that are located on estate roads that have not been adopted by their local authority as of 23 July 2023.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The requested information is not held by the department.
The Government is committed to taking steps to bring the injustice of ‘fleecehold’ private estates and unfair maintenance costs to an end and we will consult on the best way to achieve this.
In the interim, we will act quickly to provide residential freeholders with greater protections by implementing the relevant provisions of the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many postal ballots requested by overseas electors for the General Election were returned by post and received by their local council (a) before and (b) after the deadline to have the vote counted.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Returning Officers are required at elections to record the number of postal ballot packs received before and after the close of poll and this information is available for public inspection after the election. No separate record is kept by Returning Officers in Great Britain in respect of overseas electors.
The Electoral Commission will publish a report on the administration of the General Election held on 4 July later this year, and the Government will give careful consideration to any findings or recommendations made in the report in relation to the current arrangements for postal voting.