Homelessness

John Howell Excerpts

Tuesday 27th February 2018 Commons Chamber

[Layla Moran]

I will, of course. Any money in this area is a good thing, but I do have a concern about the supplementary estimate for 2017-18 that I want to raise with the Minister.

The estimate proposes a reduction in current spending on preventing homelessness, from £265.8 million to £263.6 million. It also proposes to remove £25 million of capital funding previously allocated for reducing homelessness that will now not be spent in 2017-18. Given that the NAO and the Public Accounts Committee were both clear that there needs to be a focus on preventing homelessness in the first place, these figures are a cause for concern.

I very much welcome the Homelessness Reduction Act 2017, as did the whole Committee. Our concern, however, was that far too much sway was put on the Minister for that Act alone to be the panacea. It is not going to work without extra funding available to councils in order to implement it and without funding for truly affordable rents, particularly social rents.

Let me highlight the case of one of my constituents, who lives in a rented house in Abingdon with her two children, one of whom has autism. She recently contacted me because, despite working full time, she cannot afford her rent and is terrified of eviction. She has looked high and low, but cannot find anywhere to live in Abingdon. This story exemplifies the crux of the issue. The report showed that the main driver of the current rise in homeless is the spiralling rents in the private rented sector. As a nation, how did we get to the stage where a mother in full-time work cannot afford a roof over her head?

[John Howell (Henley) (Con)]

Surely building more houses can help to reduce homelessness. Does the hon. Lady welcome the £9 billion that the Government have put towards building more affordable and social housing?

[Layla Moran]

I do welcome it, although I worry. As the hon. Gentleman will know, given that his constituency is in Oxfordshire, even something “affordable” in Oxfordshire is not really that affordable when people want to buy. The prices are 80% of market value, but in a grossly inflated market. The key issue is that very little social rented accommodation is being built in our county and across the nation.

Public Service Delivery: Northamptonshire

John Howell Excerpts

Tuesday 6th February 2018 Commons Chamber

[Rishi Sunak]

That is not something I am actively considering, having only been in the job for a couple of weeks. On the hon. Lady’s broader point about council tax, the Government have increased the council tax referendum limit by 1% for the forthcoming years to allow councils to raise additional funds should they see fit.

[John Howell (Henley) (Con)]

Northamptonshire has very close links with Oxfordshire at a whole number of different local government levels. Can the Minister reassure me that this crisis in Northamptonshire will not affect the deals that Northamptonshire has with Oxfordshire and the people of Oxfordshire?

[Rishi Sunak]

My hon. Friend, as a former councillor himself, will be very familiar with these issues. Obviously, the details of individual contracts will be a matter for the individual officer concerned, but nothing in the inspection process itself should change any of those contracts as of today.

People with Autism: Public Building Access

John Howell Excerpts

Wednesday 31st January 2018 Westminster Hall

[Thangam Debbonaire (Bristol West) (Lab)]

I beg to move,

That this House has considered the accessibility of public buildings for people with autism.

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Betts.

Imagine what Parliament would be like if there was less information—less information at once, anyway. Imagine if we all agreed that there could only ever be one voice speaking in our debating Chambers and Committee Rooms. I will admit that I am not completely perfect in that regard, but just imagine what that would be like. Imagine if we redesigned the atrium of Portcullis House so that it was less of a goldfish bowl of sights and cacophony of sounds. Imagine if there were quiet areas where Members, staff and members of the public could retreat if there was simply too much going on and they needed to calm their minds.

[John Howell (Henley) (Con)]

I ask the hon. Lady to give way on a point of whimsy, really. If she wants to know what it would be like to have just one voice at a time in the Chamber, she should come to the Council of Europe, where we are obliged to speak for three minutes without interruption.

[Thangam Debbonaire]

The hon. Gentleman’s intervention makes me hopeful that we might one day achieve what I desire, even though it would require a lot of self-restraint on my part.

Imagine if we had routes through the parliamentary estate that steered people logically from one place to the next with predictable and straightforward signs, few distractions and gentle lighting.

--- Later in debate ---

[Thangam Debbonaire]

I absolutely agree. Indeed, that is the top and bottom of my speech: what is good for people on the spectrum is good for us all. Private businesses and shopping centres have sometimes led the way, and public buildings need to follow suit because doing so would benefit us all.

I am sad to learn from the National Autistic Society report “Too Much Information”, which was also published in 2016, that only 16% of people with autism and their families think that the public understands autism in any meaningful way. The consequence of people’s lack of meaningful understanding is that autistic people and their families are often effectively excluded from many public spaces. Half of autistic people and their families told the NAS in that survey that they sometimes do not go out because they are worried about the public’s reaction to their autism. Some 28% have been asked to leave a public space because of behaviour associated with their autism, and 79% of autistic people reported feeling isolated. It does not have to be this way. I reiterate, along with my hon. Friends, that it is not good for anybody—people on the spectrum or the rest of us—for autistic people to feel excluded.

Although I am far from being an expert, I am going to share some of what I have learned about autism and making institutions accessible. First, I have a very technical definition, so bear with me. The “International Classification of Diseases”, 10th edition—ICD-10—is the most commonly used diagnostic manual in the UK. It defines autism profiles as:

“A group of disorders characterized by qualitative abnormalities in reciprocal social interactions and in patterns of communication, and by a restricted, stereotyped, repetitive repertoire of interests and activities. These qualitative abnormalities are a pervasive feature of the individual's functioning in all situations.”

I apologise to colleagues for using a technical definition, but over the past few months and years I have felt that sometimes people think they know what autism is but may confuse it with a mental health problem or a learning difficulty. Although some people with autism do have one or other or both, those are not defining characteristics. A revised edition of the ICD is expected this year and is likely to align closely with the latest edition of the American diagnostic and statistical manual. I refer colleagues to that definition for further information, but it includes sensory difficulties and has clearer criteria.

When my cousin Sunitha, who lives in Chennai, India, found out that her young son Ricky was on the autistic spectrum, it was not a surprise. She had known that something was not right. Ricky was not speaking at age three, and there were other things that meant she knew that he understood social interaction in a different way from other people. It was a difficult adjustment at first, but I am proud of how my cousin Suni and her family—her beautiful daughter Rachael and everyone else in it—have changed how they interact with one another and with Ricky, and how they support Ricky’s interaction with the world. Their experiences in India illustrate much of what needs to and can change in public buildings in the UK and beyond.

As with many, but not all, people on the autistic spectrum, Ricky does not speak much, although he is no longer non-verbal. He has outstanding skills in listening, reading and writing in several Indian languages, but his lack of fluent speech—and that of many autistic people—could come across as stand-offish. It might make it harder for him to get information about how to use a public building. Although some of his skills are far beyond most of us, they are not typical. Making a public building accessible needs to include giving clear information visually and logically as well as a non-verbal means of gaining that information.

Again, as with many but not all people on the spectrum, Ricky likes routines and sometimes has trouble adjusting to change. Some people may ask, “Does that make me a little bit autistic? I like routines and I don’t like change.” The National Autistic Society mentions the myth that “we’re all a bit autistic” on its website, but that is a myth about autism that I am keen to scotch—no, we are not. My routines help me to organise my day. Ricky’s help to prevent him from experiencing sensory overload and to soothe him when he does.

Ricky wants to take the same route to school each day, which is fairly straightforward, but when he goes on holiday—as he does when my mum, my husband and I visit India—some experiences can be tricky for him, such as a very noisy and chaotic queue for a zoo, which we quickly left. That is an example of something we did to accommodate Ricky but which benefited us too—I did not like the queue either.

We have been able to enjoy holidays mostly because his amazing mum and the rest of the family are brilliant at facilitating what Ricky needs to be comfortable, including certain books, access to certain things on his mum’s phone and certain foods. We are all pretty much in agreement about avoiding noisy, chaotic experiences that would cause him sensory overload. We have all realised that we like spending gentle time together doing familiar things. It works for me, and it means that Suni and the family can have a holiday.

We have built up to several days’ holiday each year because we have found certain places, such as the Green Hotel in Mysore, where Ricky knows what to expect and where the staff show great understanding, without any special training, by being thoughtful and by responding to specific requests from one of us, which can help.

Although visiting a public building for the first time could be a new and upsetting experience, an organisation can help. It can provide information in advance on a website, or on arrival in a leaflet, with matching, visually clear and logical information in the building. Even without training or an explanation of autism—I do not think the staff at the Green Hotel know what Ricky’s condition is—staff can be encouraged to accept different ways of communicating, and see them as a bonus to us all rather than a limitation.

When Ricky is experiencing sensory overload, he will sometimes use repetitive movements, sounds or actions to try to bring some order and method to a stressful situation. That could be profoundly misunderstood and seen as weird, disruptive or even aggressive. The response of staff to that behaviour in autistic people may make being in a public building unwelcoming. Indeed, in the 2016 National Autistic Society survey, 28% of autistic people and their families said that they have been asked to leave a public space, which upsets me terribly.

Some people with autism have different ways of understanding non-verbal social communication from neurotypical people. They may be very literal in their interpretation of what someone says and jokes and sarcasm may not work, or may work in a different way. Again, that may be seen as weird, irritating or difficult and our responses might make a public building unwelcoming.

If people in public buildings are given clear information about autism—how it might present and what might contribute to that sensory overload—they can learn to adjust their responses to people who behave in ways they do not expect, without necessarily knowing that that person is on the autistic spectrum. Some people’s autism will not be noticeable, and other people may have no idea what is going on, but that does not mean that they are coping with an over-stimulating environment, sensory overload, disruption or noise.

Autism is a difference, not a disease. Understanding that difference helps people who work in public buildings to make adjustments or to change how they present the building so that even if they do not know that someone is autistic, the building and organisation are more accessible.

I have chosen to focus on public buildings because we should all have access to them as users and as potential employees. The ability of people with autism to do great work and to flourish could be even better if buildings were more accessible to them. My relationships with people with autism are a privilege. Their different interpretations of the world around us are insightful and illuminating. Making public buildings more accessible would bring those insights into public life to the benefit of us all.

Since launching the autism-friendly award in 2016, the National Autistic Society has supported over 40 public and private venues to become autism-friendly. Each organisation took steps to improve staff understanding, introduced pre-visit information, adapted its premises, consulted with autistic people and their families, and encouraged wider public awareness of autism, as my hon. Friend the Member for Stretford and Urmston (Kate Green) mentioned.

With help from the NAS, over 1,000 sites will be autism-friendly in 2019. That is fantastic and it would be great for us to be one of them. The parliamentary estate already has part of the autism award, but I would like us to go further. The NAS works with a large banking group that has more than 800 sites, so clearly there are businesses that understand the benefits of making their buildings autism-friendly to their excellent employees, potential employees, and customers who are on the spectrum. It benefits business and it benefits public space.

Public buildings and the organisations in them have no reason not to do the same. Local authorities should take a lead—hence bringing the debate to the Department’s attention—but schools, health services, the police and other public bodies should make the most of what the NAS and other autism organisations can provide.

In my own constituency, the NAS and the Bristol Autism Spectrum Service helped me to provide a more autism-accessible service and worked with me to hold what we believe was the country’s first autism-specific constituency surgery. I strongly encourage other hon. Members to do the same. We can and should lead by example in this place. In summer 2017, the Houses of Parliament received the National Autistic Society’s autism-friendly award, joining the Welsh Assembly, the Scottish Parliament and Stormont, but as I walk around I can see plenty more to do.

Restoration and renewal is an opportunity. Under the Equality Act 2010, businesses and public spaces are not allowed to discriminate against an autistic person because of their disability. I am sure that staff here and in restaurants and council buildings alike would not dream of telling someone, “You’re autistic. You must leave”, but a lack of understanding could mean that they react unhelpfully to what seems like odd behaviour. That could lead to a situation that causes them to ask the autistic person to leave, in effect, because of their autism. My experience with Ricky at the Green Hotel in Mysore shows that staff in public spaces do not need to discriminate in that way, however unintentionally.

Businesses and public bodies have an anticipatory duty under the Act to make reasonable adjustments, which means thinking in advance. In October 2017, over 5,000 restaurants, shopping centres and other venues across the UK took part in autism hour, which my hon. Friend the Member for Dewsbury (Paula Sherriff) has mentioned. For 60 minutes, they took simple steps to make their premises autism-friendly by dimming lights, reducing noise and carrying out autism-awareness activities.

[John Howell]

The hon. Lady is being generous with her time. I like the stress that she puts on the information available for people with autism. Does she have any thoughts about whether building regulations for new buildings need to be changed to make them more autism-friendly? How might we physically adapt older buildings to accommodate people with autism?

[Thangam Debbonaire]

I would love building regulations to be altered to take into account what needs to happen to make buildings not only autism-friendly, but friendly to people with dementia and learning disabilities, as my hon. Friend the Member for Stretford and Urmston has said. I hope the Minister will address that important point in her remarks.

In my constituency, local voluntary parents’ group SEND a Welcome, which provides mutual support and public-awareness raising for families with children with special needs, including but not confined to autism, has encouraged many local businesses, such as the Boston Tea Party on Gloucester Road, to do similar things. That means that their families can use local shops and businesses, and it is also good for us all.

That work is so promising and so welcome, but all public buildings should have more than an autism hour. We should have autism days, months and years. In fact, we should simply be accessible to the one in 100 people on the autistic spectrum. Everyone present seems to agree that that is in everyone’s interest. What is good for people with autism is good for us all. The findings of the NAS’s “Too Much Information” research suggest that adjustments are not happening as consistently as they should be. The NAS can help, but it needs to be supported by the Government. I hope the Minister will address that.

Before I draw to a close, I have some questions for the Minister. I am grateful for the commitment that I believe she has to doing better to ensure that autistic people have the right to public spaces. My constituent, “H”, is a young woman at a local mainstream state school. She is on the autistic spectrum and has been in touch with me this week and on several previous occasions about the need for greater understanding of autism. When I contacted her about this debate, she said:

“I would like to ask the Minister whether there will be a campaign to raise autism awareness in schools. I ask this because I recently went on a trip, and became distressed with the noise levels from my fellow students on the coach.”

I know how she feels—I sometimes find that myself—but this is a real problem for students with autism. She adds:

“To prevent this happening again, I would suggest a short course for students in which to learn about the signs and symptoms of autism, and how to help someone in distress due to them.”

I add to H’s question a few others. First, what support will the Minister give to local authorities to ensure that their staff can benefit from training to help them to make the physical space, atmosphere, staffing and—as the hon. Member for Henley (John Howell) mentioned—structure of public buildings such that people with autism and their families can use them comfortably?

Secondly, given the high level of social isolation experienced by autistic people, will the Government ensure that their new strategy to tackle loneliness includes a specific focus on making public spaces accessible to people with autism and their families? Thirdly, how else will the Minister encourage more businesses and all public spaces to become autism-friendly? I recognise that business is outside her Department, but good examples can have a knock-on effect.

Fourthly, what steps will she take to ensure that the renovated Parliament meets the access needs of autistic people and their families? I strongly encourage her to consider that issue and discuss it with her colleagues in other Departments. Finally, what steps will she take to ensure that managers of public buildings and organisations are aware of their Equality Act duties in relation to autistic people? I refer to schools, health centres and police stations as well as council buildings. It would be fantastic if she talked to her colleagues about that.

I began my speech by suggesting changes and asking whether they were too much for the custodians of public buildings to contemplate. They are not—and the time to contemplate them is now. Yesterday, we had a very constructive debate in this Chamber on the treatment of adults with autism by the criminal justice system, secured by my hon. Friend the Member for Cardiff West (Kevin Brennan). Today, the all-party group on autism launched its report on autism and education, based on an inquiry chaired by the hon. Members for Lewes (Maria Caulfield) and for Bexhill and Battle (Huw Merriman). I am grateful to them for their work and to the right hon. Member for Chesham and Amersham (Dame Cheryl Gillan) for her leadership of the all- party group. I also praise Mr Speaker for his personal commitment to the issue, which shows great leadership in the place. Many right hon. and hon. Members have demonstrated great commitment to autism awareness.

One in 100 people and their families deserve these changes as a matter of right, so that they can have their equal right to use public space respected. My cousin Sunitha and her family, my husband and his colleagues, the NAS, Bristol Autism Support, the SEND a Welcome parents group in Bishopston, the shopping centres mentioned by my hon. Friends the Members for Stretford and Urmston and for Dewsbury, my assistant Mike—there are so many examples. They and so many others have shown me what can be done in publicly owned buildings, and not out of pity or because being autistic is inherently a struggle.

I really urge colleagues not to refer to autism as a struggle, because being autistic means seeing the world and relationships in it in a different way. It is not a disease. Many people on the autistic spectrum value their identity as neurodiverse. We neurotypical people too often unnecessarily make things a struggle for autistic people; we create barriers where none are needed.

Autistic people are not making special pleading or asking us to feel sorry for them. They are asking for equal rights. They have a right to use public space, and it is time we made that right a reality.

Town and Village Plans

John Howell Excerpts

Tuesday 30th January 2018 Westminster Hall

[George Freeman (Mid Norfolk) (Con)]

I beg to move,

That this House has considered town and village plans.

I thank my hon. Friend the Minister for being here and for his support in the past few days as we prepared for the debate, and I thank colleagues for turning up in numbers to intervene and contribute.

I am here today to highlight a problem that we are experiencing in my constituency of Mid Norfolk and that I am aware colleagues are also experiencing. The problem is essentially that the promise of the Localism Act 2011—supported, I think, by all Government Members and probably by the whole House—is, on the ground in Mid Norfolk, being failed by what I suggest is an either accidental or deliberate, but none the less clear, exploitation of the well-intended five-year land supply rules; those were meant to ensure that councils could not put out a plan and then ignore it.

The rules are being exploited, through a legal loophole, by big out-of-town volume house builders, which are banking permissions that are clearly there in areas where the councils and communities sensibly want to build, in order to take the opportunity to force through developments in areas where one would not sensibly want to build.

[John Howell (Henley) (Con)]

Does my hon. Friend share my delight and enthusiasm about the recent decision of the High Court to accept the reduction of the five-year housing land supply to a three-year housing land supply, where there is a neighbourhood plan and where sites are allocated?

[George Freeman]

I absolutely welcome that and will in due course list some of the very good things that the Government have been doing to try to help. I am here today to flag a problem and offer the Minister some suggestions to try to help find a solution.

At its heart, this is about the difference between rural and urban planning; in government, in Parliament, we tend to legislate as if the two are the same. In my patch, Mid Norfolk, we could build many more houses if we were able to get the essence of the localism promise right—build where we want, build how we want, build for local people as well as those moving into the area, and build in a way that supports the grassroots. I am talking about development being seen to be done by and for communities, not to communities by those far away.

There is real frustration in Mid Norfolk; I would be lying if I said that this was not the No. 1 issue in the recent election. In fact, in that election campaign, I promised to come to Parliament, talk to colleagues and Ministers, and see whether we could find a way to deal with it.

If I may, I will briefly set the scene by setting out my very strong support for the Localism Act and for what the Government have been trying to do in promoting a much more bottom-up model of local planning; by signalling where I think the national planning policy framework has helped but is also hindering in relation to the five-year land supply; and by describing some of what is going on in Mid Norfolk at the moment and some ideas about how we might deal with it.

When the Localism Act was introduced, the then coalition Government were stunned by the level of support for it. The Minister, like me, welcomed it strongly, because in essence it says that development is something that should be owned and valued by local communities. Despite the previous Government’s well intended desire to get houses built, we took the view that it was a flawed approach to sit in London and allocate numbers by region, by county, by district, and that numbers allocated from London were unlikely to motivate the towns, villages and communities that we wanted to embrace development. Instead, we said, “No, the better way is to ensure that every area has to put together a local plan.”

There is no number for Mid Norfolk in some filing cabinet in Whitehall, which I am delighted about. My area and colleagues’ areas have to put together their own local plans, taking into account their own population dynamics and economy, and put out a 20-year plan. To prevent councils from simply doing the plan but not actually building, the five-year land supply was introduced to ensure that houses were actually built, in accordance with the plan.

--- Later in debate ---

[John Howell (Henley) (Con)]

I helped invent neighbourhood plans, and I am the Government’s neighbourhood planning champion. It is exciting to see neighbourhood plans, as my right hon. Friend the Member for Arundel and South Downs (Nick Herbert) said, produce more housing than they were asked to produce. If we look at it in contractual terms, they have gone beyond the contract set up.

What happens when a village decides to produce a neighbourhood plan? First, it needs to see whether the district council has a five-year land supply. This morning, I happened to be with a number of people considering development in the Thames valley. They produced a map of district councils that do and do not have a five-year housing land supply. It is unfortunate that so many district councils do not. That leaves them open, the moment they put down their name to make a neighbourhood plan, to developers moving in ahead of the plan to take advantage. I have asked in an Adjournment debate that when someone seriously puts their name down to start a neighbourhood plan, no more housing should be built until it has come to fruition, so that it can be taken fully into account.

I agree totally with what colleagues have said about certain firms of developers, such as Gladman, which aggressively game the system, as it has been described. It was partly to overcome that that a Planning Minister two Ministers before this one, Gavin Barwell, decided to reduce the land supply figure from five years, because people did not have a five-year land supply, to three years, for a two-year period from the end of the neighbourhood plan where sites were allocated. That was challenged in the High Court and, as I said in an intervention, the recent decision, in a very detailed judgment, has confirmed it. We are still waiting to see whether it goes to appeal, but the chances are that it will not.

The Government are tightening up the national planning policy framework, and it is about time. All I would say is that the presumption in favour of sustainable development is not itself new; it has been there since the beginning of planning. The only thing that is new is the word “sustainable”.

Space Industry Bill [Lords]

John Howell Excerpts

2nd reading: House of Commons
Monday 15th January 2018 Commons Chamber

[Joseph Johnson]

My hon. Friend raises an extremely important point that was the subject of considerable discussion when the Bill was in the other place, and we will return to it in detail in Committee. For the time being, I can say that we recognise that launch from the UK is an important new activity, and, given the risks involved, further work needs to be carried out on the appropriateness of capping either liability to Government or to third parties in prescribed circumstances. State aid issues must also be considered in relation to any such cap that we might want to introduce. However, we plan to announce a call for evidence on all issues relating to insurance and liabilities early this year following the Bill’s Royal Assent.

[John Howell (Henley) (Con)]

Does the Minister share my view that companies such as Reaction Engines, which is based in my constituency, hold the future for space vehicles that can be used over and over again?

[Joseph Johnson]

Indeed. Reaction Engines is a great example of the kind of British company that is well placed to take advantage of all the opportunities that the Bill will enable. We have been supporting Reaction Engines and its SABRE technology through Innovate UK and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, and, from memory, I believe that it has received around £55 million over recent years. We want it to be a great success, and have every confidence that it will be.

British-based scientists will benefit through increased access to microgravity and investment in institutional capability in launch, spaceflight and related sciences, attracting world-class scientists to the UK. Young people seeking careers in science, technology, engineering and maths will gain new opportunities and greater inspiration from an expanding UK space sector. The UK as a whole will benefit from access to a strategic small-satellite launch capability, contributing to our understanding of the world, the provision of public and commercial services, the delivery of national security and new opportunities for investment and export.

Housing and Infrastructure: Chilterns

John Howell Excerpts

Tuesday 9th January 2018 Commons Chamber

[Dame Cheryl Gillan (Chesham and Amersham) (Con)]

I am delighted to have secured this Adjournment debate today, as it will give me the opportunity to highlight some of the fears that have been expressed to me, and that I share, about the proposals for housing and infrastructure development in Buckinghamshire and its effect on the Chilterns area of outstanding natural beauty.

May I welcome the Under-Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, my hon. Friend the Member for Rossendale and Darwen (Jake Berry), to his place? I gather that he is going to respond to this half-hour Adjournment debate. If there are any matters on which he needs clarification, I hope that he will write to me afterwards following this brief debate.

I preface my remarks by saying that I am neither against building more homes nor against modernising our infrastructure, but our policies must be pursued without sacrificing the environment, countryside and wildlife, all of which are coming under increasing pressure, no more so than in the Chilterns. If Members will forgive the history lesson, the idea of areas of outstanding natural beauty was born in 1945. John Dower, in his role as Secretary of the Standing Committee on National Parks in England and Wales, determined what they would look like. He said that

“a National Park is an extensive area of beautiful and relatively wild country in which, for the nation’s benefit and by appropriate national decision and action, (a) the characteristic landscape beauty is strictly preserved, (b) access and facilities for public open-air enjoyment are amply provided, (c) wildlife and buildings and places of architectural and historical interest are suitably protected, while (d) established farming use is effectively maintained.”

[John Howell (Henley) (Con)]

Will my right hon. Friend give way?

[Dame Cheryl Gillan]

If I must this early on.

[John Howell]

I thank my right hon. Friend for graciously giving way. Will she comment on the Campaign to Protect Rural England’s position that AONBs should be used only for affordable housing? How does that fit into the rural set-up for AONBs?

[Dame Cheryl Gillan]

My hon. Friend will have to hold fire. I will come to such matters later in my speech, but I thank him for his intervention.

The report laid the foundations for the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949, under which protections for AONBs were set out. Subsequently, in 1965, the Chilterns were designated an AONB. I am delighted to see on the Treasury Bench two of my colleagues who, like you, Mr Speaker, are Buckinghamshire MPs. I hope that they will nod in agreement with some of the points I am going to make.

John Dower basically said that two most important aspects of AONB status are preservation and protection. Of the 46 UK AONBs, 34 are in England, covering approximately 15% of the country. If we wish to conserve and enhance these landscapes, we need continuous and co-ordinated action from successive Governments. We are incredibly fortunate in the UK to have such a collection of beautiful protected landscapes, and all AONBs should be protected for future generations to enjoy now and for posterity.

We will need AONBs more than ever as the population grows and urban areas expand, reducing our green spaces, particularly in proximity to concentrations of people in the south-east. The Chilterns, for example, already have 1.6 million people living within 8 km and 10 million within an hour’s drive. People will need these green islands in our increasingly densely populated country. Despite this, many of England’s AONBs are under growing pressure, particularly from housing development, with a leap in the number of units approved corresponding with the amount of land lost. In the Chilterns AONB, an average of 138 units a year were approved between 2012 and 2015. This number almost trebled to 386 during the shorter period of 2015 to 2017. That is a worrying trend.

Unlike national parks, which have their own independent planning authority, AONBs rely solely on their local authorities and planning inspectors for their protection, and the planning appeals process often results in local planners’ decisions being overturned. With housing and infrastructure pressure so severe in the south, can a protected landscape near London really no longer be protected to the same degree as landscapes elsewhere?

The Chiltern District Council area is around 70% AONB. It is producing a local plan jointly with South Bucks District Council, but they need to demonstrate that they will meet the target of 14,900 new dwellings by 2036, with sufficient land for employment and other accommodation. Under current Government proposals, the number of new dwellings could increase to 16,300. It is vital that housing numbers and locations are determined locally and not imposed top-down by central Government, as unfortunately seems increasingly to be the case under the proposed new objectively assessed housing need formula, which will dramatically increase the number of houses required in Buckinghamshire.

Adjacent, in Aylesbury Vale, we are seeing an enormous amount of housing development and the steady march on the green belt. In fairness, it has been accepted that Aylesbury, which is outside the AONB, is a good candidate for such development and it may absorb some of the housing requirement imposed on Chiltern and South Bucks, but Slough is also facing housing demands and is seeking to offset some of its housing into the South Buckinghamshire area, which would increase the squeeze on our fragile protected landscape.

There are some more factors to add to the mix. First—as will be eagerly anticipated by my colleagues and you, Mr Speaker—is HS2. I opposed HS2 being routed through the Chilterns AONB and have campaigned relentlessly for it to be, at best, abandoned or, at worst, tunnelled under the entire AONB. My right hon. Friend the Member for Aylesbury (Mr Lidington) is particularly affected by the fact that the tunnel stops prematurely, before the end of the AONB. Although I obtained two tunnel extensions, I think we were all disappointed when the decision was taken not to tunnel the entire AONB.

The precedent HS2 has set for other developments in AONBs, or for other designated landscapes in the country that are supposedly protected by law, is very worrying. Sadly, the problem may not stop at the railway. HS2 has purchased property and land under the HS2 schemes, and I am concerned that as future Governments seek to offset the rising costs of this horrible project, this land will be used for further, as yet unplanned, development in the Chilterns AONB, bypassing and overruling local planning objections and opinions. In Buckinghamshire, we will also have one of the largest numbers of HS2 construction vehicle movements in the country. So far, 548,834 journeys have been estimated, which will have a severe impact on our roads and place financial pressure on our local councils and their resources, and their ability to protect our landscape.

I wish I could say that that was the only major project on the horizon in the AONB, but on top of the pressure from HS2 and the national housing requirements, the recently published National Infrastructure Commission report on the Cambridge-Milton Keynes-Oxford arc further threatens the future of the Chilterns. The NIC’s report offers a significant opportunity for economic growth, but the proposals include building 1 million new homes in the corridor by 2050, and could lead to 150,000 houses or more built in central Buckinghamshire in close proximity to the Chilterns AONB, with knock-on consequences. They also include a new rail link and an east-west expressway.

Economic growth naturally leads to additional housing. That is likely to be built mainly in Aylesbury Vale, but south Buckinghamshire will no doubt experience significant additional pressure for more housing. Already we have problems. One problem is that too many houses receive planning permission only for developers to sit on the permissions to maximise their profits. We should ensure that sites with permission are actually built, so that we really know where we are on house building locally. The focus is always on housing numbers, with much less weight being given to quality and place shaping, which should be given much greater emphasis. Chesham Renaissance Community Interest Company, for example, has produced an innovative local plan for Chesham to reinforce its historical centre and complement local economic needs without sacrificing the environment and landscape. The grassroots organisations across our county should be listened to.

I would also like the Government to commit to delivering the essential accompanying infrastructure with any development that comes following the NIC report. This must include funding, or funding mechanisms, for items such as local roads, parks, schools, doctors’ surgeries, broadband, mobile coverage and so on, which will make new developments desirable places to live—but they will not be if the environment is substantially damaged.

The NIC defines the Oxford-Cambridge arc very tightly, but in reality growth in the area will have major impacts beyond and into adjoining areas such as south Buckinghamshire. The route of East West Rail is agreed through Buckinghamshire, although not through Bedfordshire, but the route of the proposed road expressway has not yet been identified, and is likely to impact on future housing and transport demand. New capacity on and off the expressway will be required, with knock-on congestion consequences for the Chilterns, together with potential major increases in traffic commuting into London. The economic growth in the corridor will also lead to increased demand for links to an expanded Heathrow and the M4 corridor, which in turn will lead to pressures for land to be released for development in these areas and for improvements to roads such as the A4010 through the AONB.

The proposal for 15,000 houses, with room to grow thereafter, is a major proposition that would completely transform Buckinghamshire. It is, in effect, a new city. Buckinghamshire has already accommodated the major new town of Milton Keynes, and we must not forget that Slough was once a Buckinghamshire town as well. Much of northern historical Bucks is now urbanised by Milton Keynes, and its growth to a population of “at least 500,000”, as proposed by the NIC, will increase that urbanisation. On our western border, Bicester is growing fast as a major new garden town. A new central Bucks city risks leading to the merging of urban areas between Bicester and Milton Keynes, which is also close to Luton. If it is anticipated to grow to be larger than Milton Keynes today, that will irrevocably change the nature of Buckinghamshire into a far more urban environment. Any proposal for a new city is likely to be strongly opposed, quite rightly, by local residents, whose recent experiences with HS2 have left an indelible mark.

There are further threats from the administrative structures in Buckinghamshire. I am leaving aside the problem of cross-departmental co-ordination, which those of us who have been or are still in government know is one of the most difficult things to manage. The NIC’s proposals are ambitious, but at a time when we face possible local government restructuring and have two overlapping local enterprise partnerships—the South East Midlands LEP and the Bucks Thames Valley LEP—the challenges the proposals present to the AONB and our area could be exacerbated.

There is no agreement on how the NIC’s proposals will be managed. Although there is general acceptance that Oxfordshire and Cambridgeshire will have their own growth boards, a SEMLEP group of district councils and unitary authorities have argued for a very large central bloc encompassing the whole of Buckinghamshire, Milton Keynes, Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire, plus their LEPs. I hope that the Department is not banking on such a grouping, thinking it would be simple to manage or is the answer.

Buckinghamshire County Council and the Bucks LEP have opposed the idea on the grounds that this area is far too large and heterogeneous. It would involve some 20 councils and organisations, and it is doubtful whether these would all agree when difficult decisions were required. If decisions were made on a majority vote basis, it could result in key decisions for our county being made without the support of any Bucks councils or the LEP, leading to a lack of legitimacy for important decisions and potential damage to our AONB. Buckinghamshire County Council has argued that a Bucks growth board would best reflect the specific needs of Bucks. I would like the Department to look seriously at this option, as it is likely to offer much better protection for the AONB and surrounding area.

Returning to the AONB, the national planning policy framework sets out that great weight should be given to conserving AONBs for their landscape and scenic beauty, and that major development should be refused except in exceptional circumstances and where it is in the public interest. We have to ask what the terms, “great weight”, “exceptional circumstance” and “public interest” actually mean. They are open to interpretation and there is no uniformity between local authorities and, therefore, nationally. Any development in AONBs sets a precedent for more development, and faith in the protections given to our AONBs has waned. It needs to be reaffirmed and strengthened for every person in this country who wants their children to grow up with the guarantee that the wildlife and open spaces that we take for granted are truly protected.

The Chilterns AONB contains rare habitats, not least our chalk streams. The River Chess, which surfaces just north of Chesham, is a groundwater-fed chalk stream of precious environmental importance. The unique character of chalk streams means they provide a very rich habitat for wildlife, which makes the Chess an ideal habitat for several species listed in the Government’s UK biodiversity action plan, including the water vole, the grey heron and the kingfisher. Wildlife is dependent on the Chess, which, as part of the Colne area, is already designated both over-licensed and over-abstracted due to the high levels of water taken out of it, mostly for homes. This classification was given over a decade ago, when it was already considered problematic. It has dried up several times since then, and this is before the potential damage to the aquifer from HS2 tunnelling. I am concerned that, on top of this, the mass building of new homes in this area, all of which will of course need water, would not take account of an ecologically valuable river.

I welcome the Government’s announcement over the weekend about the plans to create a new northern forest, and the Minister is the champion for the north. We will see 50 million trees planted over the next 25 years, but we should not let this distract us from the more pressing issue of our policy on preservation and protection for our existing irreplaceable landscapes. Some 700 ancient woodlands are under threat across the UK, and it is imperative that the Government use the upcoming review of the national planning policy framework to close the loophole in paragraph 118, which currently allows ancient woodland, even within AONBs, to be destroyed or damaged, and to give it the same protection as, for example, our built heritage.

I am honoured to be the president of the Bucks Campaign to Protect Rural England. It, too, would like increased protections in the NPPF review. It would like to see a clear presumption against proposals for large housing developments in AONBs, incorporation of the statutory duty of regard—that would ensure all planning authorities had regard to the purpose of the AONB—and publication of annual statistics on the rate of development and other change of land use in AONBs. Housing requirements could be adjusted to reflect the designated landscape in the area. I cannot emphasise enough the word “designated”, as the Chilterns AONB is nationally designated as worthy of protection and preservation, but we are in danger of making a mockery of John Dower’s original vision to ensure that we do not concrete over this green and pleasant land.

The multiplicity of proposals and changes that now hang over the Chilterns need to be co-ordinated. I mentioned earlier the problems with cross-departmental operations, and when preparing for this debate I have had input from our district and county councils, the Chiltern Conservative Board, the Chiltern Society, the River Chess Association, Bucks Campaign to Protect Rural England, the local wildlife trust, the Woodland Trust and many others who reflect the wide interest and concern for our area. So many Departments of State will also be involved in a development of this kind, and it must be co-ordinated at the highest possible level to ensure the minimum damage.

I hope that the Minister has some optimistic words and proposals for me when he responds to this debate. The Chilterns AONB lies at the heart of an area that, if this Government fail adequately to protect it from development, will result in this country losing one of its environmental jewels and this beautiful landscape will become a concrete jungle.