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Written Question
Ventilation
Thursday 18th January 2024

Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to page 40 of Ventilation: Approved Document F of the Building Regulations 2010, published in June 2022, if he will update table B1 using the World Health Organisation’s air quality guidelines published in September 2021.

Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)

The Department has a wide and reforming programme to improve the quality and liveability of the housing stock within the United Kingdom. The Government’s policies have been set out and we will bring forward any new proposals in due course.

We welcome all contributions to the public debate on building quality, building use and building safety.


Written Question
Air Pollution
Thursday 18th January 2024

Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will make an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of the interventions listed in section 6.2 of the UK Parliament POST brief entitled Indoor Air Quality, published on 26 September 2023.

Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)

The Department has a wide and reforming programme to improve the quality and liveability of the housing stock within the United Kingdom. The Government’s policies have been set out and we will bring forward any new proposals in due course.

We welcome all contributions to the public debate on building quality, building use and building safety.


Written Question
Neighbourhood Plans
Wednesday 17th January 2024

Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether neighbourhood forums are required to publish design codes.

Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)

The Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023 introduces a requirement for local planning authorities to produce a design code for the whole of their area. While this requirement does not apply to neighbourhood planning forums, provisions in the Act do allow for neighbourhood development plans to include requirements with respect to the design of development, in the same way that new-style local plans can.

Furthermore, to support neighbourhood forums to prepare their own design codes, we are supporting Locality to develop bespoke guidance for these groups, drawing on the lessons learned as part of the Department’s design code pathfinder programme.


Written Question
Buildings: Health And Safety
Friday 22nd December 2023

Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to the Answer of 23 May 2023 to Question 185728 on Buildings: Health and Safety, whether officials have concluded their review of British Standard BS 40102-1:2023 entitled Health and well-being and indoor environmental quality in buildings.

Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)

The Building Safety Regulator has a duty to keep the safety and standard of buildings under review. As part of this work the Regulator has considered the content of BS 40102-1:2023. The Regulator does not consider that any actions are needed at this time as a result of this assessment.


Written Question
Social Rented Housing: Standards
Tuesday 19th December 2023

Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)

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 adequacy of social housing stock to meet the standards set out in the Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023, known as Awaab's law; and what it will cost to achieve those standards.

Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

Social landlords are responsible for remedying disrepair and ensuring homes are fit for human habitation. They must also ensure homes meet the Decent Homes Standard and are free of category 1 hazards. 10% of homes in the social rented sector do not meet these standards and continue to be non-decent. The tragic and avoidable death of two-year-old Awaab Ishak highlighted the need for government to take proactive action to make clear to social landlords the timescales in which they must respond to hazards. That’s why powers for Awaab's Law were introduced through the Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023.

The details of the requirements to be introduced under Awaab's Law, including time limits for action, will be settled through the government's upcoming consultation. Alongside that consultation we will publish an impact assessment setting out the estimated costs of Awaab’s Law and we will seek further views and evidence on that assessment.


Written Question
Energy Performance Certificates: Reform
Thursday 7th December 2023

Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will publish his response to Lord Deben’s letter of 2 February 2023 on reform of domestic energy performance certificate rating metrics.

Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)

Government is committed to reforming the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) regime. Further announcements will be set out in the usual way.


Written Question
Housing: Air Pollution
Tuesday 30th May 2023

Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he is taking steps to help improve indoor air quality in (a) social housing, (b) the private rented sector and (c) for homeowners through changes to planning regulations.

Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)

For properties in the private and social rented sectors we will use recommendations from the reviews of the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) and Decent Home Standard to support effective enforcement of quality and safety standards, including standards related to indoor air quality.


Written Question
Buildings: Health and Safety
Tuesday 23rd May 2023

Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he has made an assessment of the implications for his policies of the British Standard BS 40102-1:2023 entitled Health and well-being and indoor environmental quality in buildings.

Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)

I am aware that the British Standard Institute have recently published this new standard and officials are currently reviewing the content.


Written Question
Air Pollution
Friday 28th April 2023

Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he has had discussions with property developers on the potential merits of creating legal requirements for air pollution monitors to be built onto new properties or estates for the provision of localised data.

Answered by Rachel Maclean

There are already strong protections in place in national planning policy to safeguard people from unacceptable risks from air pollution. These will be material considerations for a local council when determining a planning application, as will the planning concerns of the local community.

The National Planning Policy Framework is clear that new development should be appropriate for its location, taking account of the effects of pollution on people's health. The planning guidance which supports the National Planning Policy Framework sets out when air quality could be relevant to a planning decision, including requirements for an Environmental Impact Assessment.

There are currently more than 500 air quality monitoring sites, managed at least partly by the Environment Agency, across the United Kingdom, made up of 14 networks measuring a range of pollutants, which provide information to the public. These are managed by the Environment Agency on behalf of Defra.


Written Question
Incinerators: Location
Wednesday 19th April 2023

Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)

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 guidance on the distance between an industrial incinerator and (a) residential buildings and (b) schools.

Answered by Rachel Maclean

This is a devolved matter and the information provided relates to England only.

The National Planning Policy Framework requires that planning policies and decisions should ensure that new development is appropriate for its location taking into account the likely effects (including cumulative effects) of pollution on health, living conditions and the natural environment, as well as the potential sensitivity of the site or the wider area to impacts that could arise from the development.