Asked by: Baroness Thornhill (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether regulation of property managers in the private sector would improve standards.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
There is a strong case for greater regulation of managing agents. Too many leaseholders suffer from poor quality services and abuse at the hands of unscrupulous agents, and management of some buildings has become a more complex operation. As set out in the Written Ministerial Statement of 21 November 2024, the Government will therefore strengthen regulation of managing agents to drive up the standard of their service. As a minimum, this should include mandatory professional qualifications which set a new basic standard that managing agents will be required to meet. We will consult on this matter next year.
Asked by: Baroness Thornhill (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what percentage of social homes outside London have a non-British citizen as the lead tenant.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
Using English Housing Survey data, we estimate that in 2021-22, 6.8% of social households outside London had a household reference person who was not a UK or Irish national. For London, this figure is 14.7%.
Asked by: Baroness Thornhill (Liberal Democrat - 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 report of the Home Builders Federation State of Play: Challenges and opportunities facing SME home builders, published on 22 January, regarding the number of small and medium-sized enterprise builders going out of business; what assessment they have made of the impact of this on the supply of new homes; and whether they have plans to support this subsector.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Government wants to see a diverse and competitive housebuilding sector. We are aware of the challenges that small and medium sized (SME) housebuilders are facing, which is why we are supporting them through the £1.5 billion Levelling Up Home Building Fund (LUHBF) and the £1 billion ENABLE Build guarantee programme. LUHBF provides loans to SMEs to help build around 42,000 homes across the country. The Levelling Up and Regeneration Act will also help SMEs by making the planning process easier to navigate, faster and more predictable.
Asked by: Baroness Thornhill (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much public money has been allocated to promote Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) in the past five years, and whether they intend to publish a strategy to encourage the use of MMC.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Government is committed to supporting the Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) sector and tackling the barriers to growth it faces. Our support includes funding to build MMC homes through the £11.5 billion Affordable Homes Programme, developing a Publicly Available Specification (PAS) for MMC with the British Standards Institution (BSI), and providing financial support for MMC manufacturers through the £1.5 billion Levelling Up Home Building Fund.
We are considering the Lords’ Built Environment Committee’s recommendations including the recommendation to publish the strategy.
Asked by: Baroness Thornhill (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many councils do not have an up-to-date council plan; and, of these, how many have plans that are respectively more than (1) five years, (2) 10 years, and (3) 15 years out of date.
Answered by Baroness Swinburne
The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) states that up-to-date local plans should provide a framework for addressing housing needs and other economic, social and environmental priorities.
All the information requested and more, on the status of Local Plan, is published by the Planning Inspectorate can be found on the link below:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/local-plan-monitoring-progress
Asked by: Baroness Thornhill (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many councils have withdrawn their council plan within the last year.
Answered by Baroness Swinburne
The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) states that up-to-date local plans should provide a framework for addressing housing needs and other economic, social and environmental priorities.
All the information requested and more, on the status of Local Plan, is published by the Planning Inspectorate can be found on the link below:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/local-plan-monitoring-progress
Asked by: Baroness Thornhill (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many councils have an up-to-date council plan.
Answered by Baroness Swinburne
The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) states that up-to-date local plans should provide a framework for addressing housing needs and other economic, social and environmental priorities.
All the information requested and more, on the status of Local Plan, is published by the Planning Inspectorate can be found on the link below:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/local-plan-monitoring-progress
Asked by: Baroness Thornhill (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to the extension of the public guarantee scheme for the social housing sector.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Department keeps its housing guarantee schemes, including the £3 billion Affordable Homes Guarantee Scheme 2020, under review to ensure they continue to support the housing market. When these schemes, which are demand-led, approach their maximum deployment, we will consider their extension.
Asked by: Baroness Thornhill (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to a long-term settlement for social housing rent.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Government continues to support the principle that social housing rents should be index-linked over the long-term, to support investment in both new and existing social homes.
We also intend to consult this year on social housing rent policy from April 2025.
Asked by: Baroness Thornhill (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they intend to introduce updated regulations following the consultation Sprinklers in care homes, removal of national classes, and staircases in residential buildings, published 23 December 2022; and what assessment they have made of claims that the uncertainty has led to new home construction being paused.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Sprinklers in care homes, removal of national classes, and staircases in residential buildings consultation set out proposals to amend Building Regulations statutory guidance (Approved Document B). It closed in March 2023. More than 270 responses were received from industry, trade professions, residents’ groups and others, which are being analysed now. We recognise the construction industry’s need for clarity and we will provide that to the sector as soon as possible.