Covid-19: Local Government Finance

Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle Excerpts

Tuesday 7th July 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh]

We are aware of the specific problems with regard to Greater Manchester. These are being exacerbated by the loss of the dividends that it normally gets from the airport, which is clearly having an effect on local authority incomes. I can commit that the department will continue to work closely with Greater Manchester councils to ensure that if a bespoke package is needed, that will provided for them.

[Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (GP) [V]]

My Lords, I declare my position as a vice-president of the LGA. I welcome the £1.57 billion rescue package for the arts that the Government announced for theatres, galleries and museums, but can the Minister tell me how much of it will be distributed by local councils? In a normal year, they put more than £1 billion into the arts around the country. Can the Minister reassure me that this money will not go to just a few large institutions, particularly in London, but will be spread around the country through local councils, so that we can hope to rescue and protect wonderful institutions, such as the theatres in Southampton and Sheffield—where I am speaking from now—and little rural arts centres up and down the country?

[Lord Greenhalgh]

I can give a commitment that funding will extend beyond a few well-known names to the important local theatres and museums that are often supported by local authorities. I cannot give the noble Baroness the precise extent to be distributed via local authorities and will have to write to her with further information on that.

Planning Process: Probity

Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle Excerpts

Tuesday 16th June 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh]

Let us be clear. It was the letter from the department that was sent out on 14 January. The determination by the Secretary of State was made a considerable time before that—certainly before the end of the year—and the planning application went on to his desk with the planning casework in December. As the noble Baroness will know, only a small proportion of decisions have ministerial involvement. Of the 447,000 applications, we are talking about 26 ministerial decisions, which is a tiny fraction. There are many occasions when the Secretary of State will decide to go against the planning inspector or the local planning authority to encourage the supply side of development—so I do not recognise what the noble Baroness says.

[Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (GP) [V]]

My Lords, I declare my position as vice-president of the Local Government Association.

Does the Minister agree that cases such as this, in which the judge found apparent bias and ruled against the Government, fuel fears that the country is not being run for the common good, and that the underlying problem is large private political donations? Is not the only way to protect Ministers to ban large private political donations?

[Lord Greenhalgh]

This is about the probity of the planning system. It is quite right that currently we do not have taxpayer funding for political parties. All the fundraising by the Conservative Party adheres to the guidelines around donations. Ministers have no part in that. That is a topic for another day, but, regarding probity in this matter, it is absolutely clear that my right honourable friend the Secretary of State followed the guidance on planning propriety, as outlined by the department, every step of the way.

Covid-19: Local Democracy

Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle Excerpts

Wednesday 3rd June 2020 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the operation of local democracy in the United Kingdom during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Question was considered in a Virtual Proceeding via video call.

[The Minister of State, Home Office and Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (Lord Greenhalgh) (Con)]

The Government recognise the impact that the Covid-19 pandemic can have on the operation of local democracy. With the devolved Administrations in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, they took action, including obtaining the necessary legislation, to postpone all local elections and polls until 6 May 2021 and to enable council meetings to be held remotely. In this way, councils can continue to operate in line with public health guidance and to uphold the principles of local democracy.

[Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (GP)]

The Minister refers to legislation and enabling councils to act, but what are the Government doing to ensure that that local democracy is functioning? Councils’ activities seem to range very widely: some are holding full meetings and planning inquiries at which members of the public are able to participate fully, but there are others, such as Peterborough, where the opposition is appealing for a full council meeting. What do the Government intend to do to encourage support and ensure that local democracy takes place, and will they listen to what those democratic considerations come up with and ensure that that guides government policy at Westminster level?

[Lord Greenhalgh]

Meetings can be held remotely, including via telephone conferencing, videoconferencing, live web chat and live streaming. The noble Baroness is right in that there has been a difference in response. As a former council leader, I know that my own local authority has decided to cancel its AGM meeting in May, whereas other London councils continue to elect mayors and carry out their annual general meetings. The noble Baroness should note that these are devolved administrations, and guidance is available through the LGA, whose website contains best practice guidance. However, we will continue to note where councils are not continuing to function as they should according to the regulations.

Covid-19: Housing

Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle Excerpts

Monday 18th May 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh]

I understand that the proposals do extend to the vulnerable, but it is their decision as to whether they go ahead. However, I will write to the noble Lord and place a copy of my specific answer in the Library.

[Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (GP)]

The noble Baroness, Lady Grender, referred to the tragic death toll from Covid-19 among construction workers. Does the Minister agree that that is just one sign of a deeply unhealthy industry that is built quite literally on the backs of the 60% of manual construction workers who are in self-employment, very often bogus self-employment, where they are actually working for just one company under its direction and with dictated rates of pay? Will the Government look to build a different kind of construction sector, one that focuses on decent pay and conditions and that looks towards moving towards modern, modular construction whereby most of the work can be done in factories and therefore in far better conditions than being out in all weathers?

[Lord Greenhalgh]

We need to ensure that construction happens safely. That is why we have engaged with the Construction Leadership Council which has issued guidance on safe construction. We also work with the Home Builders Federation. It is important to ensure that the guidance is followed and we are encouraging the whole construction industry to sign up to the guidance that has been issued by the HBF.

Yorkshire: Devolution

Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle Excerpts

Monday 10th February 2020 Lords Chamber

[Viscount Younger of Leckie]

This is exactly what we are doing. We are looking to level up across the whole of England. Some 37% of people now live within a mayorship. In the White Paper that is due to come out before long, we are looking at levelling up all other areas of England and devolving powers. It is about what they want, not what we want. It is giving them the opportunity to decide for themselves what they want.

[Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (GP)]

My Lords, the Minister just suggested that the only model of devolution available is a single elected mayor. Of course, an alternative model would be a Yorkshire parliament—a far more democratic, representative body that could be elected by proportional representation and truly represent the people of Yorkshire. Will the Minister consider that?

[Viscount Younger of Leckie]

As the noble Baroness will know, there is the so-called Yorkshire committee, consisting of Yorkshire leaders and mayors from across councils in Sheffield, Leeds, North Yorkshire, East Yorkshire, et cetera. It is up to them to decide.

Grenfell Tower Inquiry: Phase 1 Report

Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle Excerpts

Thursday 31st October 2019 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (GP)]

My Lords, I can begin only by repeating the sentiments that many noble Lords have expressed about the amazing, powerful work of Grenfell United, the victims, survivors and families, who have, through their grief and suffering, fought to say, “Never again”. Like many other noble Lords, I pay tribute to the brave work of so many firefighters and emergency staff on the ground that night.

I begin by reflecting on a personal experience. In 2007, there was a fire that in many ways presaged later tragedies. It was in a block called Bucklebury, on the Regent’s Park estate in Camden. The staircases—the fire escapes—filled with smoke because the fire doors had been removed. The firefighters had to use breathing apparatus to evacuate the residents. I know about this because, until a couple of months before, I had been a resident of Bucklebury. When using the fire stairs, I had noticed that some of the doors were missing. I rang the council, after which I assumed that the matter had been dealt with. I was moving, so I did not think about it again, yet when we heard the reports of the fire in the excellent local newspaper, the Camden New Journal, we found that those fire doors had not been fixed.

We move forward two years, to an incident that many noble Lords have referred to, the Lakanal House fire. My noble friend Lady Jones was part of the London Assembly inquiry into that fire. There were lessons from that fire: the “stay put” guidance had to be reconsidered, and it was noted that there was no plan in place to change that advice to “get out”. That was in 2009. The noble Lord, Lord Bourne, and the noble Baroness, Lady Brinton, referred to the fact that there is very strong evidence of how sprinkler systems could make an immediate difference. Yet we are two years on from the great tragedy of Grenfell and nothing has happened. We have heard again and again, on many different points, a call for action. We do not want to be here next year, the year after that and in five years’ time, making calls for the same kind of action on fire safety in tower blocks that I was calling for in 2007. I do not want to go over the same ground. Many powerful points have been made already, but I want to follow the lead of the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Durham in looking at some big systems issues behind what happened in the tragedy of Grenfell.

Your Lordships will hear me talk often about the need for transformational system change. I used to be a newspaper editor and one of the stories behind the Grenfell tragedy is the loss of local newspapers, and their local journalism and reporting. There was a very powerful website for the Grenfell Action Group blog, which drew attention to many of the issues now covered in this report. There was also a local journalist called Camilla Horrox, who reported for the Kensington and Chelsea Chronicle in 2014 on the issues around fire safety and electricals in Grenfell Tower. Later that year, the newspaper closed down and those stories disappeared from the internet. When the residents sought local journalists—we have to ask other London journalists why they had not picked this up—to report their concerns, there was nothing there. In his powerful maiden speech, the noble Lord, Lord Hendy, referred to the Leveson inquiry. The undelivered second part of that inquiry focused on the concentration of media ownership, and it might have looked at the lack of local media coverage. If we are to have democracy and safety, we need strong local media.

To address another systemic issue, I go back to February 2017, when details were posted on a government website about an anti-red-tape agenda on new-build properties. In a separate report at about the same time, the Government were boasting that fire inspections were being reduced, in some cases, from six hours to just 45 minutes. There is a very lazy phrase that we hear not just, I am afraid, from one side of this House or one side of politics: “We are going to cut red tape”. I ask your Lordships to consider Grenfell every time you hear that phrase, and think about replacing “red tape” with “the rules and regulations that keep us safe, at work and in our homes”. I really had this driven home to me back in 2014 by a meeting at the Green Party conference with the brilliant Hazards Campaign, which focuses on safety at work. It has a phrase, “Better red tape than red bandages”, which is one that I have repeated often since.

We have to focus on the issues about cladding and safety rules, and about the resources available to our emergency services. But in looking at Grenfell, we also have to look at some very broad systemic problems in our society and the need for transformational change.

Housing: Rental Market

Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle Excerpts

Monday 28th October 2019 Lords Chamber

[Viscount Younger of Leckie]

We welcome the report by the working group on regulation of property agents chaired by the noble Lord. It was published in July this year and extends to some 24,000 words, with 53 recommendations. Since then, I reassure the noble Lord and the House that officials have begun an extensive programme of evidence-gathering with over 30 interviews with key stakeholders either already or soon to be conducted. That will form the careful consideration that we will give to the point he raised. While we are open to following the evidence, it is not government policy to support regulation of short-term lets at this time.

[Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (GP)]

My Lords, the Minister may not be aware—the discussion thus far has focused on London—that in York the number of Airbnb and HomeAway listings is growing at 12% per quarter, not per year. Since 2016, there has been a 300% increase in the number of entire homes advertised in York. The Minister referred to councils acting on the law. Will he consider how councils can be assisted with laws and regulations and resources to enforce the 90-day change-of-use rule?

[Viscount Younger of Leckie]

The 90-day change-of-rule applies to London alone. York is a wonderful place to go, and it is a good thing that Airbnb operates there because short-term lets allow households to boost their income, which in turn promotes economic growth through tourism, although I agree that a balance has to be struck with impinging on the business of local hotels. Hull, which is not too far from York, appreciates having extra accommodation during peak times. During its year as City of Culture it ran an initiative with Airbnb called “Everyone Back to Ours” to help attract more people to the city, so there is a balance to be struck.