Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department plans to take steps to ensure that planning guidance issued by her Department includes measures on preserving (a) biodiversity and (b) habitats for pollinators.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The National Planning Policy framework is clear that planning policies and decisions should conserve and enhance the natural environment by minimising impacts on, and providing net gains for, biodiversity, including by establishing coherent ecological networks that are more resilient to current and future pressures and incorporating features which support priority or threatened species. Planning Practice Guidance on the Natural Environment provides further detail on how users of the planning system can implement these policies.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the likelihood that trailblazer deeper devolution deals being negotiated with West Midlands Combined Authority and Greater Manchester Combined Authority will be followed by other mayoral combined authorities.
Answered by Neil O'Brien - Shadow Minister (Education)
In our Levelling Up White Paper, Government announced it's intention to negotiate Trailblazer deals with the West Midlands Combined Authority and Greater Manchester Combined Authority which will deepen the areas' devolution settlements.
Since publishing the Levelling Up White Paper we have already begun negotiations with both Greater Manchester Combined Authority and the West Midlands Combined Authority, which will provide a blueprint for other MCAs and the GLA to follow.
Government welcomes proposals from the existing MCAs and the GLA to deepen devolution arrangements, in line with the devolution framework.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to tackle rough sleeping in the Birmingham City Council area.
Answered by Eddie Hughes
In 2020/21, we are providing over £700 million to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping across England.
Birmingham City Council have been allocated more than £2.5 million through rough sleeping programmes in 2020/21. This includes:
Birmingham City Council have been closely supported by our MHCLG Rough Sleeping Initiative and homelessness advisers. These expert advisers are pro-actively working with local areas as they adapt to the new restrictions and will continue to support these authorities beyond COVID-19.
This Government is committed to ending rough sleeping and we have taken unprecedented steps to protect rough sleepers during the pandemic. This work has not stopped, and through Everyone In, by November we had supported around 33,000 people with nearly 10,000 in emergency accommodation and over 23,000 already moved on into longer-term accommodation.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans his Department has to ensure that planning guidance issued by her Department takes into account the need to preserve biodiversity.
Answered by Esther McVey
The Government’s support for biodiversity is made clear in the National Planning Policy Framework and accompanying planning guidance. The Framework says that to protect and enhance biodiversity, planning policies and decisions should minimise impacts on and provide net gains for biodiversity, and it contains a number of policies in support of this. The accompanying planning guidance was updated on 21 July 2019 and provides advice on how development can achieve biodiversity net gains. The Environment Bill will take biodiversity net gain a stage further by making it a mandatory requirement for development.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whether, when making the decision to withdraw the direction for Birmingham City Council not to take any step in connection with the adoption of the Birmingham Development Plan 2031, his Department (a) received any submissions, whether oral or in writing, from third parties, (b) received any submissions from parties interested in or connected to the Peddimore Employment Site and Langley Sustainable Urban Extension and (c) held any meetings with third parties in relation to the decision to withdraw the Holding Direction.
Answered by Lord Barwell
In relation to your request at (a) and (b) the information requested is held by the Department and I will place a copy of these documents in the Library of the House. No oral submissions were made to the Department.
In relation to your request at (c), officials from the Department met with Birmingham City Council on 23 June 2016 at which the Council delivered a presentation and I will also place a copy of this document in the Library of the House.
Some information has been redacted. The information is the personal data, as defined by the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA), of another individual.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, with reference to the oral contribution of the Minister of State for Housing and Planning of 13 December 2016, Official Report, column 733, on the Neighbourhood Planning Bill, what steps he has taken to ask Birmingham City Council to consult the Royal Sutton Coldfield town council on the measures included in the Birmingham City Council Development Plan 2031.
Answered by Lord Barwell
Local planning authorities are required to prepare and comply with a Statement of Community Involvement throughout the preparation of a local plan. For Birmingham Development Plan this included consulting with resident associations and neighbourhood forums, parish councils and the general public, in addition to a list of other relevant consultees at the required stages to inform the production of a draft plan, to seek representations on that plan prior to it being submitted for independent examination and on modifications to the plan proposed during examination. Local groups and representatives also provided evidence to the Inspector as part of the examination process. The Inspector examining the Birmingham Development Plan confirmed that the council undertook widespread consultation and that the consultations met all the relevant legal requirements, including compliance with the Council’s Statement of Community Involvement. Notwithstanding this, I have written to Birmingham City Council to make them aware of the matters you have raised.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps were taken to identify sites of brownfield land under 600 square metres in size suitable for housing development in Birmingham prior to his decision to permit building on greenbelt land in Sutton Coldfield.
Answered by Lord Barwell
The Secretary of State appointed an independent inspector to carry out the examination of the Birmingham Development Plan 2031 as required by the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004. Examination hearings were heard between 21 October and 27 November 2014 at which you and members of the local community expressed your views. These were, of course, considered by the Inspector as part of his examination of this case.
The Inspector set out in his report that the vast majority of sites proposed in the Plan are on brownfield land and there is a density policy that ‘seeks to maximise the yield from each development site’.
With regard to exceptional circumstances for alterations to the Green Belt, our position is set out in the decision letter issued to Birmingham City Council on 24 November 2016. The Inspector’s concluded that even when taking consideration of the approach taken by the Council, the scale of potentially unmet need in the city is “exceptional” and that a “combination of factors means that exceptional circumstances exist to justify alterations to the Green Belt” and following consideration of the issues we found no reason to disagree.
Regarding the difference in price between houses built on green belt and non-Green Belt land, the Inspector was satisfied that the sites and growth areas within the Plan were justified and deliverable.
The housing capacity set out in the Plan includes a windfall allowance, an element of which includes capacity for smaller sites below 600 square metres.
In the consideration of reasonable alternatives to the strategic Green Belt release at Sutton Coldfield and with regard the matters above, the Inspector concluded that the evidence base is sufficient and provides adequate explanations for the Council’s decisions.
In reaching our decision to remove the holding direction we are satisfied that Birmingham City Council should be able to take further steps in connection with the adoption of the Plan and we saw no grounds to differ from the conclusions the Inspector reached. We are satisfied that Birmingham City Council has taken a robust approach that is consistent with the National Planning Policy Framework.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what alternative options he considered prior to his decision to permit building on greenbelt land in Sutton Coldfield.
Answered by Lord Barwell
The Secretary of State appointed an independent inspector to carry out the examination of the Birmingham Development Plan 2031 as required by the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004. Examination hearings were heard between 21 October and 27 November 2014 at which you and members of the local community expressed your views. These were, of course, considered by the Inspector as part of his examination of this case.
The Inspector set out in his report that the vast majority of sites proposed in the Plan are on brownfield land and there is a density policy that ‘seeks to maximise the yield from each development site’.
With regard to exceptional circumstances for alterations to the Green Belt, our position is set out in the decision letter issued to Birmingham City Council on 24 November 2016. The Inspector’s concluded that even when taking consideration of the approach taken by the Council, the scale of potentially unmet need in the city is “exceptional” and that a “combination of factors means that exceptional circumstances exist to justify alterations to the Green Belt” and following consideration of the issues we found no reason to disagree.
Regarding the difference in price between houses built on green belt and non-Green Belt land, the Inspector was satisfied that the sites and growth areas within the Plan were justified and deliverable.
The housing capacity set out in the Plan includes a windfall allowance, an element of which includes capacity for smaller sites below 600 square metres.
In the consideration of reasonable alternatives to the strategic Green Belt release at Sutton Coldfield and with regard the matters above, the Inspector concluded that the evidence base is sufficient and provides adequate explanations for the Council’s decisions.
In reaching our decision to remove the holding direction we are satisfied that Birmingham City Council should be able to take further steps in connection with the adoption of the Plan and we saw no grounds to differ from the conclusions the Inspector reached. We are satisfied that Birmingham City Council has taken a robust approach that is consistent with the National Planning Policy Framework.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps he took to prioritise the development of brownfield sites in Birmingham prior to his decision to permit building on greenbelt land in Sutton Coldfield.
Answered by Lord Barwell
The Secretary of State appointed an independent inspector to carry out the examination of the Birmingham Development Plan 2031 as required by the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004. Examination hearings were heard between 21 October and 27 November 2014 at which you and members of the local community expressed your views. These were, of course, considered by the Inspector as part of his examination of this case.
The Inspector set out in his report that the vast majority of sites proposed in the Plan are on brownfield land and there is a density policy that ‘seeks to maximise the yield from each development site’.
With regard to exceptional circumstances for alterations to the Green Belt, our position is set out in the decision letter issued to Birmingham City Council on 24 November 2016. The Inspector’s concluded that even when taking consideration of the approach taken by the Council, the scale of potentially unmet need in the city is “exceptional” and that a “combination of factors means that exceptional circumstances exist to justify alterations to the Green Belt” and following consideration of the issues we found no reason to disagree.
Regarding the difference in price between houses built on green belt and non-Green Belt land, the Inspector was satisfied that the sites and growth areas within the Plan were justified and deliverable.
The housing capacity set out in the Plan includes a windfall allowance, an element of which includes capacity for smaller sites below 600 square metres.
In the consideration of reasonable alternatives to the strategic Green Belt release at Sutton Coldfield and with regard the matters above, the Inspector concluded that the evidence base is sufficient and provides adequate explanations for the Council’s decisions.
In reaching our decision to remove the holding direction we are satisfied that Birmingham City Council should be able to take further steps in connection with the adoption of the Plan and we saw no grounds to differ from the conclusions the Inspector reached. We are satisfied that Birmingham City Council has taken a robust approach that is consistent with the National Planning Policy Framework.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the difference in price between houses built on (a) greenbelt and (b) non-greenbelt land.
Answered by Lord Barwell
The Secretary of State appointed an independent inspector to carry out the examination of the Birmingham Development Plan 2031 as required by the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004. Examination hearings were heard between 21 October and 27 November 2014 at which you and members of the local community expressed your views. These were, of course, considered by the Inspector as part of his examination of this case.
The Inspector set out in his report that the vast majority of sites proposed in the Plan are on brownfield land and there is a density policy that ‘seeks to maximise the yield from each development site’.
With regard to exceptional circumstances for alterations to the Green Belt, our position is set out in the decision letter issued to Birmingham City Council on 24 November 2016. The Inspector’s concluded that even when taking consideration of the approach taken by the Council, the scale of potentially unmet need in the city is “exceptional” and that a “combination of factors means that exceptional circumstances exist to justify alterations to the Green Belt” and following consideration of the issues we found no reason to disagree.
Regarding the difference in price between houses built on green belt and non-Green Belt land, the Inspector was satisfied that the sites and growth areas within the Plan were justified and deliverable.
The housing capacity set out in the Plan includes a windfall allowance, an element of which includes capacity for smaller sites below 600 square metres.
In the consideration of reasonable alternatives to the strategic Green Belt release at Sutton Coldfield and with regard the matters above, the Inspector concluded that the evidence base is sufficient and provides adequate explanations for the Council’s decisions.
In reaching our decision to remove the holding direction we are satisfied that Birmingham City Council should be able to take further steps in connection with the adoption of the Plan and we saw no grounds to differ from the conclusions the Inspector reached. We are satisfied that Birmingham City Council has taken a robust approach that is consistent with the National Planning Policy Framework.