Asked by: Lord Mann (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to prevent the use of fraudulent roofing materials in the building of new houses.
Answered by Lord Wharton of Yarm
Building Regulations require that building work is carried out with adequate and proper materials which are appropriate for the circumstances in which they are used. Building control bodies are responsible for checking compliance as with any other Building Regulations’ requirements. In addition, if a building material is covered by a harmonised European standard, the requirements of the European Construction Products Regulation will apply. This Regulation is enforced by local authorities (trading standards in England, Scotland and Wales and District Councils in Northern Ireland).
Asked by: Lord Mann (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, which local authorities have had their local development framework rejected by his Department in 2014.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
None, I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him on 23 June, Official Report, Column 109W.
Asked by: Lord Mann (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what housing target has been set under the regional spatial strategy for each local authority in (a) the East Midlands and (b) Yorkshire and the Humber.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
None, as they have been abolished.
Asked by: Lord Mann (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, of how many local authority plans arising from which authorities he has rejected the proposed local development framework and required additional housing supply in excess of that specified in the regional spatial strategy.
Answered by Nick Boles
[Holding Reply: Monday 9 June 2014]
The Secretary of State has not rejected any Local Plan.
The Coalition Government has put Local Plans and local councils at the heart of planning. We have abolished the unpopular and ineffective top-down targets in Regional Strategies, shifting power and responsibility for housing and planning to local councils and local communities. Regional Strategies are no longer relevant for Local Plans coming forward for examination.
The Localism Act 2011 removed planning inspectors' powers to impose changes on local authorities' draft Local Plans. Instead, independent planning inspectors now report to the local authority and identify any conflicts between a draft Local Plan and national policy and regulatory process. They are able to recommend modifications to overcome these issues if they are asked to do so by the council itself. The local authority is free to choose to accept the inspector's modifications and adopt the draft plan, or resubmit a new plan. This approach is aimed at encouraging a more collaborative process as the public examination proceeds.
Asked by: Lord Mann (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what criteria his Department uses to assess the saleability of new houses when determining the potential for five-year housing supply.
Answered by Nick Boles
The National Planning Policy Framework requires local authorities to identify and update annually a supply of specific, deliverable sites sufficient to provide five years worth of housing against their housing requirements with an additional buffer of 5% (moved forward from later in the plan period) to ensure choice and competition in the market for land.
Footnote 11 of the Framework sets out that, to be considered deliverable, sites should be available now, offer a suitable location for development now, and be achievable with a realistic prospect that housing will be delivered on the site within five years and in particular that development of the site is viable. Further guidance on viability is available at: http://planningguidance.planningportal.gov.uk/blog/guidance/viability-guidance/
Asked by: Lord Mann (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what account he takes of local referendums on the desirability of specific sites being allocated to new housing.
Answered by Nick Boles
This Coalition Government have given communities radical new rights to plan for their areas, deliver the development they want and control their future. Over 1,000 communities have applied for a neighbourhood planning area to be designated, and neighbourhood plans are receiving overwhelming support through local referendums. So far we have had 17 successful referendums on neighbourhood plans.
A neighbourhood plan (including any specific sites within it) which has been supported by the majority of those voting in a referendum can form the basis for decisions on development in the local area.
A neighbourhood development order, if endorsed by a local referendum, can also grant permission for specified developments in a neighbourhood area.
Asked by: Lord Mann (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many new houses are under construction in Bassetlaw district.
Answered by Kris Hopkins
The Department does not hold data centrally on the number of homes currently under construction. Data is recorded when a building is started, defined as the laying of the foundations and when the residence is completed, defined as when ready for occupation or supplied with a completion certificate. The length of time between these two points will vary and therefore we cannot know how many are currently under construction.
Statistics on house building starts in Bassetlaw District are published in the Department's live tables 253 (annually) and 253a (quarterly), which are available at the following link:
http://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-house-building
Asked by: Lord Mann (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many new houses have been built in Bassetlaw district in each of the last five years.
Answered by Kris Hopkins
Statistics on house building completions in Bassetlaw District are published in the Department's live table 253, which is available at the following link:
http://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-house-building