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Written Question
Regional Planning and Development: Islands
Monday 23rd May 2022

Asked by: Bob Seely (Conservative - Isle of Wight)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what progress he has made on establishing an Islands Forum; when that forum will become the responsibility of specific Ministers; which Ministers will be responsible for that forum; and when he expects that forum will start playing a role in levelling up UK islands.

Answered by Neil O'Brien

The Secretary of State for the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities is responsible for the Islands Forum. Since the Forum was announced in the Levelling Up White Paper, UK Government officials have been working with local councils to identify the appropriate leaders from island communities to be involved in the Forum. The Secretary of State will be setting out further details about the Forum soon.


Written Question
Regional Planning and Development: Islands
Friday 25th February 2022

Asked by: Bob Seely (Conservative - Isle of Wight)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, which Minister in his Department will be responsible for the Islands Forum scheme.

Answered by Neil O'Brien

The Secretary of State for the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities will be responsible for the Islands Forum. The Forum will provide a regular means of engagement with island communities across the UK and provide the UK Government with the opportunity to better understand the unique challenges faced, as well as create space to discuss potential resolutions and shared opportunities.


Written Question
Regional Planning and Development: Rural Areas
Friday 14th January 2022

Asked by: Bob Seely (Conservative - Isle of Wight)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what progress he has made on delivering levelling up outcomes in (a) the Isle of Wight and (b) other isolated communities.

Answered by Neil O'Brien

The UK Government is committed to levelling up areas across the UK to ensure that no community, however isolated, is left behind.

I am delighted that the Isle of Wight Council has recently been awarded £5.8 million from the Levelling Up Fund in round one for East Cowes Marine Hub. Details of other successful bids can be found at www.gov.uk/government/publications/levelling-up-fund-first-round-successful-bidders.

This is not the only way we will level up. The forthcoming Levelling Up White Paper will contain further detail on our policies, including driving further devolution through County Deals, future rounds of the Levelling Up Fund, and The UK Shared Prosperity Fund. That fund, worth over £2.6 billion, is one of the government's flagship programmes for delivering on Levelling Up objectives and will help people access opportunity in places in need, such as ex-industrial areas, deprived towns and rural and coastal communities, and people in disadvantaged groups across the UK.


Written Question
Property Development: Derelict Land
Tuesday 11th January 2022

Asked by: Bob Seely (Conservative - Isle of Wight)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that brownfield development is prioritised ahead of greenfield developments.

Answered by Christopher Pincher

This Government strongly encourages the re-use of suitable brownfield land – especially for development to meet housing need and regenerate our high streets and town centres. We have introduced a number of planning reforms to support our brownfield approach including uplifting local housing need by 35% in the top 20 most populated cities and urban centres, successfully requiring every local authority to publish a register of local brownfield land suitable for housing in their area, introducing “Permission in Principle” to speed housing-led development on land included in brownfield registers and revising Permitted Development and Use Class rules so yet more homes can be created. Brownfield sites vary greatly, and we recognise that local authorities are best placed to assess the suitability of each for redevelopment.

We are also providing significant financial support for the take-up and completion of brownfield redevelopment. This includes through the £4.3 billion Housing Infrastructure Fund; the £4.95 billion Home Building Fund; the £400 million Brownfield Housing Fund and the £75 million Brownfield Land Release Fund. The Chancellor announced at the Autumn Budget and Spending Review a further £300 million of locally-led grant funding that will be distributed to Mayoral Combined Authorities and local authorities to unlock smaller brownfield sites for housing and improve communities in line with their priorities.


Written Question
Property Development: Sites of Special Scientific Interest
Tuesday 13th April 2021

Asked by: Bob Seely (Conservative - Isle of Wight)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans he has to close loopholes in legislation that allow developers to destroy areas classed as Sites of Special Scientific Interest.

Answered by Christopher Pincher

The National Planning Policy Framework is clear that development on land within or outside a Site of Special Scientific Interest, and which is likely to have an adverse effect on it should not normally be permitted. The only exception is where the benefits of the development in the location proposed clearly outweigh both its likely impact on the features of the site that make it of special scientific interest, and any broader impacts on the national network of Sites of Special Scientific Interest.


Written Question
Planning Permission: Local Press
Tuesday 17th November 2020

Asked by: Bob Seely (Conservative - Isle of Wight)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the contribution of the statutory requirement to publicise planning applications in local newspapers to ensuring that there is (a) transparency and (b) democratic engagement in the planning process; and if he will make a statement.

Answered by Christopher Pincher

Local planning authorities are required to publicise certain types of planning applications in local newspapers as set out in Article 15 of the Town and Country Planning (Development Management Procedure) (England) Order 2015.

In response to coronavirus restrictions, temporary regulations have been introduced to supplement the existing statutory publicity arrangements for planning applications.

Local planning authorities now have the flexibility to take other reasonable steps to publicise applications if they cannot discharge the specific requirement for newspaper publicity – for instance, if the local newspaper is not now in circulation. These steps can include the use of social media and other electronic communications, such as local online news portals, and must be proportionate to the scale and nature of the proposed development.

However, if a local planning authority is required to publicise a planning application in a local newspaper, and that paper is still in circulation, then they must continue to do so.


Written Question
Planning
Wednesday 23rd September 2020

Asked by: Bob Seely (Conservative - Isle of Wight)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans he has to bring forward legislative proposals to implement reforms on the planning system outlined in the Planning for the Future consultation, updated on 6 August 2020.

Answered by Christopher Pincher

The proposals are out for consultation until 29 October 2020. Following consideration of the consultation responses received, the Government will publish a response in due course. The response will set out any decisions and any associated proposed implementation.


Written Question
Housing: Construction
Wednesday 23rd September 2020

Asked by: Bob Seely (Conservative - Isle of Wight)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will ensure that potential implementation of proposal 4 of the consultation Planning for the Future, updated on 6 August 2020, on a standard method of establishing housing requirement, will be subject to approval by the House.

Answered by Christopher Pincher

The proposals are out for consultation until 29 October 2020. Following consideration of the consultation responses received, the Government will publish a response in due course. The response will set out any decisions and any associated proposed implementation.


Written Question
Housing: Construction
Wednesday 23rd September 2020

Asked by: Bob Seely (Conservative - Isle of Wight)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will ensure that temporary changes to the standard method for assessing local housing need proposed in the consultation Planning for the Future, updated on 6 August 2020, will be subject to approval by the House.

Answered by Christopher Pincher

The proposals are out for consultation until 29 October 2020. Following consideration of the consultation responses received, the Government will publish a response in due course. The response will set out any decisions and any associated proposed implementation.


Written Question
Combined Authorities
Monday 31st July 2017

Asked by: Bob Seely (Conservative - Isle of Wight)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what further plans he has to introduce combined authorities in non-metropolitan or unitary authority areas.

Answered by Jake Berry

The Government’s manifesto commitment is to support councils that wish to combine to serve their communities better and we will consider any proposals councils put forward for a combined authority.