Housing and Planning: Policy Changes

Lord Rooker Excerpts

Monday 24th July 2023 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Swinburne (Con)]

The regeneration and renaissance of 20 cities is the fundamental cornerstone of today’s announcements and of those made previously, to accelerate the transformation, intensification and regeneration of our cities, building on the work that we have already seen and started in Wolverhampton and Sheffield. This Government will allocate £800 million from the £1.5 billion brownfield, infrastructure and land fund, to unlock some 56,000 new homes on brownfield sites, taking the infrastructure-first approach to build up our cities, in addition to a further £550 million for Homes England to deploy nationally. They are therefore providing Greater Manchester with some £150 million going to Andy Burnham to unlock some 7,000 new homes, and in the West Midlands some £100 million is going to Andy Street to unlock some 4,000 new homes. They are also creating a new partnership with Leeds City Council to drive housing and regeneration, building up the financial services sector and the new Bank of England presence. All of this is building on brownfield rather than greenfield and of course, as and when necessary, all of these things will come to this House.

[Lord Rooker (Lab)]

Would the Minister care to give us the percentage of land in England covered by national parks, areas of outstanding natural beauty and the green belt?

[Baroness Swinburne (Con)]

I will have to get back to the noble Lord with those specific figures from the department.