Asked by: Baroness Eaton (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the decision to stop funding the Neighbourhood Planning Support Programme on the creation of new neighbourhood plans, and why that decision was taken.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Following the Spending Review, my Department has announced that it is unable to commission new neighbourhood planning support services for 2025 onwards.
Technical support which has already been awarded will continue to be provided but must be completed before the end of March 2026.
The government remains of the view that neighbourhood plans can play an important role in the planning system. Communities can continue to prepare neighbourhood plans where they consider that doing so is in their best interests.
Asked by: Baroness Eaton (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their estimate of the number of uncontracted and unsold affordable homes across England; and how many housebuilders have been supported since the Section 106 Affordable Housing Clearance Service was launched in 2024.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The government does not collect or publish data on uncontracted and unsold affordable homes in England.
The Homes England clearance service launched in December 2024 to help improve the functioning of the market for affordable housing, by supporting buyers and sellers to find each other more effectively - with developers able to share details of unsold section 106 affordable homes for registered providers and local authorities to search. Since its launch, as of March 2025, 411 organisations have registered. This includes:
The government calls on all developers with uncontracted Section 106 affordable homes, as well as registered providers and local planning authorities, to engage proactively with the service.
Asked by: Baroness Eaton (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Statement by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage on 24 June (HLWS735), what assessment they have made of the administrative and financial implications for councils that will be mandated to move from a committee model to a cabinet model.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
In the statement of 24 June, we set out the Government’s intention to bring forward primary legislation when Parliamentary time allows to ensure all local authorities in England operate an executive model of governance. If Parliament agrees this legislation, councils operating the committee system will have one year following commencement of the new legislation within which to change to the leader and cabinet model. Councils which are to be abolished under local government reorganisation in their area will be exempt. This timeline gives councils which need to make the change time to prepare.
Going forward, simplifying executive governance models across the sector, and preventing the establishment of new mayoral councils, will avoid further such costs arising to local taxpayers and will provide certainty to councils as to their governance arrangements as unbudgeted costs of responding to petitions and hosting referendums will be prevented, ultimately saving councils time and taxpayers money.
Asked by: Baroness Eaton (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government, with regard to their press release “Government backs SME builders to get Britain building” published on 28 May, whether councillors on local authorities will be able to refer tier A planning applications to a planning application committee for consideration.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Our proposals to introduce a national scheme of delegation through the Planning and Infrastructure Bill would be mandatory for local planning authorities as defined in the Bill.
As set out in the technical consultation on reform of planning committees published on 28 May 2025, all applications in Tier A would be delegated to planning officers.
However, Question 5 asks for views on whether there should be a mechanism to bring a Tier A application to committee in exceptional circumstances and, if so, what would those circumstances be and how would the mechanism operate.
Applications in Tier B would be presumed to be delegated unless the chief planning officer (or equivalent officer in local planning authorities without a chief planning officer) and Chair of Committee agree it should go to Committee based on a gateway test.
The consultation is open for views until 23 July 2025.
Asked by: Baroness Eaton (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether their plans for a national scheme of delegation as referenced in documents accompanying the Planning and Infrastructure Bill will consist of guidance to local authorities or whether local authorities will be required to follow the scheme.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Our proposals to introduce a national scheme of delegation through the Planning and Infrastructure Bill would be mandatory for local planning authorities as defined in the Bill.
As set out in the technical consultation on reform of planning committees published on 28 May 2025, all applications in Tier A would be delegated to planning officers.
However, Question 5 asks for views on whether there should be a mechanism to bring a Tier A application to committee in exceptional circumstances and, if so, what would those circumstances be and how would the mechanism operate.
Applications in Tier B would be presumed to be delegated unless the chief planning officer (or equivalent officer in local planning authorities without a chief planning officer) and Chair of Committee agree it should go to Committee based on a gateway test.
The consultation is open for views until 23 July 2025.
Asked by: Baroness Eaton (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government, with regard to their press release “Government backs SME builders to get Britain building” published on 28 May, how they define tier A and tier B planning applications.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Our proposals to introduce a national scheme of delegation through the Planning and Infrastructure Bill would be mandatory for local planning authorities as defined in the Bill.
As set out in the technical consultation on reform of planning committees published on 28 May 2025, all applications in Tier A would be delegated to planning officers.
However, Question 5 asks for views on whether there should be a mechanism to bring a Tier A application to committee in exceptional circumstances and, if so, what would those circumstances be and how would the mechanism operate.
Applications in Tier B would be presumed to be delegated unless the chief planning officer (or equivalent officer in local planning authorities without a chief planning officer) and Chair of Committee agree it should go to Committee based on a gateway test.
The consultation is open for views until 23 July 2025.
Asked by: Baroness Eaton (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many local authorities charge an empty homes premium on council tax in England in 2025–26, and what are the percentage rates of those premiums.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The government annually publishes data on council taxbases including their use of any council tax premiums. Data for the 2024 snapshot is available here. Data for the 2025 snapshot will be published in November.
This data sets out that 292 billing authorities made use of the long-term empty homes premium in 2024. The data also provides a breakdown for each billing authority and the various percentages of premiums they have applied.
Councils have had the power to charge a council tax premium on second homes since April this year. Data on the number of billing authorities making use of the second home premium will be published in the 2025 council taxbase statistics in November.
Asked by: Baroness Eaton (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many local authorities charge a second home premium on council tax in England in 2025–26.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The government annually publishes data on council taxbases including their use of any council tax premiums. Data for the 2024 snapshot is available here. Data for the 2025 snapshot will be published in November.
This data sets out that 292 billing authorities made use of the long-term empty homes premium in 2024. The data also provides a breakdown for each billing authority and the various percentages of premiums they have applied.
Councils have had the power to charge a council tax premium on second homes since April this year. Data on the number of billing authorities making use of the second home premium will be published in the 2025 council taxbase statistics in November.
Asked by: Baroness Eaton (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they keep records of the embassies or consulates that have not followed the convention of following local laws and process in relation to planning issues.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
MCHLG does not record such information. Responsibility for planning enforcement rests with local planning authorities.
Asked by: Baroness Eaton (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the expected cumulative increase in band D council tax in the next four years.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Council tax levels are decided by individual local authorities. The Office for Budget Responsibility has projected a continued 5% principle for the next spending review period. However, the government determines referendum principles annually with the approval of the House of Commons to give residents the final say over excessive increases.