Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of further regulating the fines chargeable by parking companies operating on private land.
Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
Following the introduction of the Parking (Code of Practice) Act 2019, the Government is taking action to improve the regulation of the private parking industry and is developing a new code of practice to ensure the best possible protection for motorists and parking companies alike.
We are currently considering the impact of any changes to parking charges levels and debt recovery fees before a decision is made on the appropriate level.
In due course it is the Government’s intention to consult on these elements of the code, as such we have recently concluded a call for evidence to make sure the consultation on parking charges and debt recovery fees is as well informed as possible.
The Government is working with both industry and consumer representatives to ensure the code comes into effect as quickly as possible.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what recent steps his Department has taken to help support economic growth in coastal communities.
Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Government is committed to promoting economic growth in all parts of the country including coastal communities.
We have supported coastal communities to level up through dedicated funding under the Coastal Communities Fund, the Coastal Revival Fund and additional funding under the Welcome Back Fund, while the Levelling Up Fund has provided around £1 billion to projects in coastal areas and over £400 million from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund is going to lead local authorities within or serving coastal areas in England, alongside major investment in the other nations of the UK.
But it is not just about funds. 11 out of 12 Freeports and 7 out of 20 Levelling Up Partnerships are in coastal areas, demonstrating our deep commitment to unlocking the economic potential of coastal communities.
In Southport we are investing £37.5 million through the Town Fund, which will be used to deliver the brand new 1200 seat ‘Marine Lake Events Centre’ with state of the art technical facilities, significant improvements to cycle and walking paths, upgraded road infrastructure, new public spaces and an business incubator for the Towns emerging creative/digital/tech sectors.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
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 minimise the loss of economic activity on high streets after the closure of Wilko.
Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Government recognises the pressures faced by high street businesses, announcing in the Autumn Statement 2022 a package of changes to business rates worth £13.6 billion over the next 5 years in lower bills. This is in addition to the Energy Bills Discount Scheme.
The Department for Business and Trade are working with the Retail Sector Council on the strategic issues facing the sector, including costs to businesses, the importance of place and the high street, and consumer protections. The process of administration has yet to conclude, and we understand that consideration is being given to interest from potential purchasers for some of the Wilko stores. Physical retail remains a key part of the high street and a thriving high street will need a strong retail offering. Government is clear that we want all types of retail to thrive now and in the future.
We continue to work with local leaders to support town centre regeneration, including in Southport, which was awarded £37.5 million through our Town’s Fund and a further £20 million to support the repurposing of the Strand Shopping Centre and the wider transformation of Bootle Town Centre.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what his Department's planned timetable is for the nationwide roll out of the Voluntary Right to Buy scheme for housing association tenants.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The Government remains committed to the Right to Buy, which since 1980 has enabled over two million social housing tenants to become homeowners.
Any future announcements will be set out in the usual way.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what recent steps his Department has taken to ensure that local authorities take (a) cultural heritage and (b) the skyline into account when approving new (i) housing and (ii) commercial developments.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
In making planning decisions local planning authorities must take account of national planning policy including, where relevant, that around conserving and enhancing the historic environment and achieving well-designed places. The National Planning Policy Framework emphasises that local planning policies and decisions should ensure development that is sympathetic to local character and history, including the surrounding built environment.
The supporting National Design Guide recognises that well-designed new development relates well to and enhances existing character, responding positively to the features of the site itself and the surrounding context. This includes views inwards and outwards. In addition, the National Model Design Code guides the production of local design codes and encourages local authorities to consider the impact that development will have on the skyline.
Through the Design Code Pathfinder programme, the Office for Place is supporting local councils to produce local design codes which will ensure communities will benefit from beautiful and sustainable places designed for all. The design codes and processes adopted through this programme will serve as examples for others to follow. The Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill is seeking to strengthen the requirement for the use of local design codes, so that clear rules are set locally about the design of new development.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what recent discussions he has held with the Mayor for London on the potential impact of the proposed Royal Street development on the preservation of the UNESCO World Heritage status of the Palace of Westminster and Westminster Abbey including Saint Margaret’s Church.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The Secretary of State has received a number of requests to call in this planning application. These are currently being considered against the published policy on calling in planning applications, and a decision will be issued in due course.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps her Department plans to take increase the number of homes built in 2023.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
Since 2010, over 2.2 million additional homes have been delivered across England. This includes over 232,000 homes for the last year for which data is available – over 75% of the way towards our goal of ensuring there are 300,000 new homes a year.
We have announced £10 billion investment in housing supply since the start of this Parliament, with our housing supply interventions due to ultimately unlock over 1 million new homes over the Spending Review 2021 period and beyond.
We are also investing £11.5 billion in the latest Affordable Homes Programme to provide tens of thousands of new homes across the country.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what plans his Department plans to take to increase the number of housing developments being built on brownfield sites.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
I refer the Hon Member to the answer to Question 129970 on 31 January 2023.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department have made an assessment of the potential impacts of implementing a national migration strategy on (a) planning, (b) housing and (c) house prices.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
It is obvious that a rising population due to net migration puts pressure on housing supply, ultimately leading to rising prices.
The standard method is used by councils to inform the preparation of their local plans, by considering how many new households there might be in an area in the future, as well as local wages and house prices.
The Government is committed to delivering new 300,000 homes per year to help create a more sustainable and affordable housing market. Since 2010, over 2.2 million additional homes have been delivered. Annual housing supply is up 10% compared to the previous year with over 232,000 net additional homes delivered in 2021/22. This is the third highest yearly rate for the last 30 years.
There is evidence suggesting that immigration has contributed to rising house prices. The impact on prices in a local area of course depends on local supply and a variety of other factors. The Migration Advisory Committee found in 2018 that at a local authority level a 1% increase in population due to net migration increased house prices by 1%. DLUHC internal analysis supports a link between net migration and rising house prices.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of mandating new public buildings and houses to be built in the (a) Neoclassical and Georgian-style, (b) Gothic revival and Victorian-style and (c) Art Deco style.
Answered by Michael Gove - Minister for Intergovernmental Relations
I am a strong supporter of the importance of beautiful design because we know that when homes and public buildings are beautiful they are more likely to attract community support. That is why our national planning policy stresses the importance of good design to create sustainable buildings and places. It encourages local areas to adopt their own design guides and codes, in line with the principles of the National Design Guide and National Model Design Code, including consideration of local context, identity, and the built form. Through updates to national planning policy we have placed greater emphasis on local authorities' pursuit of beautiful, and refusal of ugly development. Local areas are of course very welcome to prioritise design codes based around particular architectural styles.
Through this and forthcoming legislative reforms, I want to see local authorities, and the communities they serve, empowered to bring forward new development which respects and enhances the areas in which they live and work.
Our work in this area will be supported by the Office for Place, which will help in the preparation of design codes and research what is important to communities. We are also supporting 25 local authorities and communities to prepare design codes across England.