Oral Answers to Questions

Kris Hopkins Excerpts

Monday 25th November 2013 Commons Chamber

[Ian Swales (Redcar) (LD)]

6. What planning guidelines he has issued on the minimum distance required between wind turbines and housing.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (Kris Hopkins)]

We are not encouraging local councils to set fixed separation distances between turbines and housing. Distances play a part, but so does the local context, including factors such as topography.

[Ian Swales]

I thank the Minister for that answer. On Friday, Prince Charles visited the heritage village of Kirkleatham in my constituency, which, along with the lovely conservation villages of Wilton and Yearby, forms a triangle with sides between 700 metres and 1,400 metres. Does the Minister think it right that a London-based company wants to put two wind turbines bigger than the London Eye in the middle of this triangle? Will he give local communities power over such decisions, and will he issue guidelines similar to those in Scotland?

[Kris Hopkins]

I cannot comment on individual applications, but the national planning policy is clear that any application should be approved only if the impact is, or can be, made acceptable.

[Steve McCabe (Birmingham, Selly Oak) (Lab)]

Do the Government intend to give local communities any new powers to block such developments if they consider them unwelcome?

[Kris Hopkins]

Regulations laid before the House this morning demand that developers have conversations with communities before applications are made. That is important, but having a strong local plan is also helpful.

[Chris Heaton-Harris (Daventry) (Con)]

There is best practice throughout Europe in this regard. The Danes, for instance, have an exclusion zone for dwellings that measures 10 times the radius of the blades. Surely there is some way of introducing localism-related legislation to deal with the position here.

[Kris Hopkins]

As I said a moment ago to the hon. Member for Birmingham, Selly Oak (Steve McCabe), it is important to have a local plan. Determining where renewable energy supply facilities are to be established will give some protection to communities.

[Luciana Berger (Liverpool, Wavertree) (Lab/Co-op)]

8. When he expects to announce the provisional local government finance settlement for 2013-14.

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[Mr David Lammy (Tottenham) (Lab)]

9. If he will review the operation of the new homes bonus.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (Kris Hopkins)]

The new homes bonus is already being evaluated, and a report will be published in the spring of 2014.

[Mr Lammy]

Will the Minister say something about why the scheme that his Prime Minister set up has been such a disaster? Just 1,427 homes have been built under this scheme, although we need 800,000 homes in London, because there is a huge demand problem. The average London deposit now costs our young people £100,000.

[Kris Hopkins]

I am sorry, but the right hon. Gentleman clearly does not understand the scheme. It has delivered some £1.3 billion to local authorities, including about £5.5 million for his own authority.

[Sir Peter Tapsell (Louth and Horncastle) (Con)]

May I put it to my hon. Friend that although I think everyone understands that there is an acute shortage of housing in many parts of this country because of the lamentable failure of the previous Government to build sufficient houses and because of what most people regard as excessive immigration, in the charming market towns of Louth and Horncastle in my Lincolnshire constituency there is the deepest cross-party concern about developers’ proposals to put up about 1,000 new houses in and around those two market towns? What everybody is asking is where are the jobs, the school places, the ambulances, the hospital beds and the policemen to be found for such a project, which will in fact destroy these happy communities?

[Kris Hopkins]

With all respect to my right hon. Friend, I am afraid the new homes bonus is not about encouraging people to build homes. The way to address the issues he raises is to get a strong local plan, and I suggest that he takes the challenge that he has just given to the House to his local council.

[Emma Reynolds (Wolverhampton North East) (Lab)]

I am somewhat bewildered that the Housing Minister thinks the new homes bonus is not about incentivising councils to build new homes. In fact, contrary to that, his predecessor said at least 400,000 additional homes would be built as a direct result of the new homes bonus. The truth is there has been a 26% drop in the affordable homes supply and £1.3 billion has been spent by this Government under the new homes bonus to deliver fewer than 1,500 homes. Does the Minister think spending nearly £1 million per home is good value for taxpayers’ money?

[Kris Hopkins]

The bonus itself is not for building homes. This Government have built 400,000 houses. This Government are absolutely committed to building affordable houses and have already reached 50% of our affordable housing target—over 99,000 houses—and will deliver 170,000 by the end of this period.

[Mrs Linda Riordan (Halifax) (Lab/Co-op)]

10. What assessment he has made of the effect of changes in the level of his Department’s grant on the operations of Calderdale council.

--- Later in debate ---

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (Kris Hopkins)]

Up to September, Help to Buy had already helped 44 households to complete their purchase of a new home in Plymouth. Across England, it has generated more than 18,000 reservations for new homes.

[Oliver Colvile]

I thank my hon. Friend for that excellent reply. How does his Department propose to promote the Help to Buy initiative with those council and housing association tenants who qualify to buy their homes under Mrs Thatcher’s excellent right to buy scheme?

[Kris Hopkins]

We have increased the discount available to those exercising their right to buy, and I am delighted with the results. Since April 2012, almost 13,500 families have been helped to buy their own home through the scheme. The level of discount assists potential buyers outside the Help to Buy scheme, which is designed to help those with lower deposits.

[Nic Dakin (Scunthorpe) (Lab)]

14. What recent assessment he has made of the supply of one-bedroom social homes; and if he will make a statement.

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[Mark Pawsey (Rugby) (Con)]

18. What steps he is taking to encourage the delivery of more private rented sector accommodation.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (Kris Hopkins)]

This Government are committed to a bigger and better private rented sector which is why, following the Montague review, we have put in place the £1 billion build to rent fund and the £10 billion housing guarantee schemes, to deliver the rented sector that my hon. Friend supports.

[Mark Pawsey]

Many of my constituents enjoy the flexibility of living in the private rented sector, but if we are to keep the cost of renting down and ensure that those who want to rent a home can do so, action needs to be taken to increase supply. Does the Minister agree that initiatives from this Government, such as the Build to Rent fund and the Montague report, will ensure the provision of much-needed private rented homes?

[Kris Hopkins]

I completely agree with my hon. Friend’s point. It is important that we expand the rented housing sector, and we are doing so. The huge amount of money that we have put in—bearing in mind the limited resources that this Government have to spend—is bringing dividends. We have 14 applications at the moment, which will deliver 2,800 extra houses. I look forward to visiting his constituency in the near future, where I hope to see some of those new houses.

[Tom Blenkinsop (Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland) (Lab)]

19. What recent assessment he has made of levels of business rates for small and medium-sized businesses.

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[Graham Jones (Hyndburn) (Lab)]

T6. Some moments ago, the Housing Minister said in response to my hon. Friend the Member for Wolverhampton North East (Emma Reynolds) that the new homes bonus is not a payment for building new houses. Will he explain what it is for?

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (Kris Hopkins)]

One way it could be used it is to reduce council tax.

[David T. C. Davies (Monmouth) (Con)]

T8. It has been widely reported in the press that Ministers have been instructed by a higher authority to get rid of the green nonsense, or words to that effect. Could that welcome advice be imparted to the local authority leaders who insist on employing an army of climate change and sustainable development advisers at great expense to council tax payers?

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[Oliver Colvile (Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport) (Con)]

T10. Given that large numbers of local authorities, such as Plymouth city council, have transferred their housing stock to housing associations, how does my hon. Friend the Minister propose to make those housing associations more accountable to their tenants rather than just being answerable to their board and to the Homes and Communities Agency?

[Kris Hopkins]

We have done it already. In the Localism Act 2011, we changed how housing associations were regulated, giving back power to tenants to hold their landlords to account.

[Robert Flello (Stoke-on-Trent South) (Lab)]

Will the Secretary of State reassure local authorities that they will not need to spend millions of pounds of much-needed funds on duplicating IT equipment because of the end user devices security guidance issued by CESG? Will he look into that and reassure local authorities that they will not need to spend that money?

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[Stephen Phillips (Sleaford and North Hykeham) (Con)]

My right hon. Friend will know that there appears to be a growing desire on the part of developers to carpet rural Lincolnshire with wind turbines, most recently at Temple Hill in my constituency. What advice can he give those of my constituents who for very good reasons properly oppose the siting of these turbines in their local communities?

[Kris Hopkins]

Although I cannot comment on individual cases, we have put regulations before the House today which demand that developers speak to local communities. Also, as I have said before, communities should make sure that their local council has a robust local plan.