Oral Answers to Questions

Emma Hardy Excerpts

Monday 17th June 2019 Commons Chamber

[Mrs Wheeler]

I am absolutely delighted that the hon. Gentleman has brought up that question, because, frankly, the answer is yes. We want councils to get on with building, which is why we have taken the cap off the housing revenue accounts. We expect at least 10,000 new council houses to be built, so I suggest that Luton gets on with it.

[Emma Hardy (Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle) (Lab)]

For any type of housing—council housing or private housing—to be built, we need to look at changing the rules around land banking. The Minister is aware that, in a Westminster Hall debate last week, I raised the problems that we have with a particular developer in Hull who is storing up different areas of land and preventing them from being developed. Will the Minister please meet me to discuss this problem in more detail and look at what legislative tweaks can be made to prevent this from happening?

[Mrs Wheeler]

The hon. Lady, as ever, puts her case terribly well. The appropriate Minister would be delighted to meet her.