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Written Question
Empty Property
Thursday 14th December 2023

Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

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

To ask His Majesty's Government what was the total number of empty houses for each of the past three years.

Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)

As set out in publicly available information, statistics on vacant dwellings in England (as reported for the purposes of council tax) for each of the past three years are shown in Table 1 below.

Table 1. All vacant dwellings1 and Long-Term vacant dwellings2 England, 2021 to 2023.

Date

All-Vacants

Long-Term Vacants

4 Oct 2021

653,025

237,340

3 Oct 2022

676,304

248,149

2 Oct 2023

699,126

261,189

Source: Council Tax Base (https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/council-taxbase-statistics) and also published in Live Table 615 (https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-dwelling-stock-including-vacants)

1 These are defined as empty properties as classified for council tax purposes and include empty properties liable for 100% council tax and empty properties that receive a council tax exemption, discount or premium.

2 These are defined as properties liable for council tax that have been empty for more than six months and that are not subject to Empty Homes Discount class D or empty due to specific flooding events.


Written Question
Derelict Land
Wednesday 13th December 2023

Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

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

To ask His Majesty's Government what is the total amount of hectares of contaminated brownfield sites.

Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)

The figures requested are not held centrally. Brownfield Land Registers (BLRs) are currently the best resource for the amount of brownfield sites in a local authority area that are suitable for housing, irrespective of their planning status.

National planning policy expects local planning authorities to give substantial weight to the value of using suitable brownfield land within settlements; including by supporting appropriate opportunities to remediate despoiled, degraded, derelict, contaminated or unstable land.


Written Question
Derelict Land: Property Development
Wednesday 13th December 2023

Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

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

To ask His Majesty's Government what is the total amount of hectares of uncontaminated brownfield sites in England suitable for house building.

Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)

The figures requested are not held centrally. Brownfield Land Registers (BLRs) are currently the best resource for the amount of brownfield sites in a local authority area that are suitable for housing, irrespective of their planning status.

National planning policy expects local planning authorities to give substantial weight to the value of using suitable brownfield land within settlements; including by supporting appropriate opportunities to remediate despoiled, degraded, derelict, contaminated or unstable land.


Written Question
Liverpool City Council: Standards
Tuesday 10th October 2023

Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

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

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Scott of Bybrook on 14 April (HL7026), what is the total financial cost to date of the Commissioners sent to Liverpool.

Answered by Lord Evans of Rainow - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

Further to the answer provided by Baroness Scott of Bybrook on 14 April 2023, the Secretary of State is mindful of the need for Commissioner remuneration to represent value for money for local taxpayers.

The Liverpool Commissioners' pay arrangements were set out in paragraph 45 of the updated Explanatory Memorandum to the Directions made under section 15(5) and (6) of the Local Government Act 1999. In recognition of the nature and scale of the intervention at Liverpool, he has determined fees of £1200 a day for the Lead Commissioner and £1100 a day for the other Commissioners.

A full breakdown of the Commissioners' invoiced fees and expenses are published periodically on Liverpool City Council's website, available here .


Written Question
Local Government: Elections
Tuesday 2nd May 2023

Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

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

To ask His Majesty's Government whether the collection of data for the Electoral Commission by polling staff at this year's local elections will be publicly available; and if so, whether it will include (1) not only the number of electors who had no approved ID, but also those who arrived to vote with ID which is not approved, and (2) those who did not have ID or the correct ID, but returned later with the correct ID to vote.

Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

With regards to the query on data recorded at polling station, I refer to the response given on 14th March to PQ 162192 .


Written Question
Liverpool Strategic Futures Panel
Friday 14th April 2023

Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

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

To ask His Majesty's Government what role they expect to play in the Liverpool Strategic Futures Panel now that it is meeting.

Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

The Liverpool Strategic Futures Panel will provide reports to the Secretary of State, which will be published. The Panel is supported by officials from DLUHC and the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority. A wide range of stakeholders across the Liverpool City Region, including the Commissioners to Liverpool City Council, will be consulted as the Panel develops plans. Further to the answer of Baroness Scott of Bybrook on 23 March 2023, the Panel will meet monthly in private.


Written Question
Liverpool City Council: Standards
Friday 14th April 2023

Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

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

To ask His Majesty's Government what other costs (i.e. travel, hotel costs etc.) have been incurred to date by the Commissioners sent to Liverpool.

Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

On 8 November 2022, my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities updated the House on the additional appointment of a finance Commissioner and the expansion of the intervention in Liverpool City Council to cover finance, governance, and recruitment, along with updated Directions of the intervention. Following on from the answer of Lord Greenhalgh, on 5 April 2022, the Commissioners' pay arrangements were set out in paragraph 45 of the updated Explanatory Memorandum to the Directions made under section 15(5) and (6) of the Local Government Act 1999. The Directions provide that the Commissioners' reasonable expenses and such fees as the Secretary of State determines are to be paid to them by the Authority.

A full breakdown of the Commissioners' invoiced fees and expenses are published periodically on Liverpool City Council's website.


Written Question
Liverpool City Council: Standards
Friday 14th April 2023

Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

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

To ask His Majesty's Government what is the total financial cost to date of the Commissioners sent to Liverpool.

Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

On 8 November 2022, my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities updated the House on the additional appointment of a finance Commissioner and the expansion of the intervention in Liverpool City Council to cover finance, governance, and recruitment, along with updated Directions of the intervention. Following on from the answer of Lord Greenhalgh, on 5 April 2022, the Commissioners' pay arrangements were set out in paragraph 45 of the updated Explanatory Memorandum to the Directions made under section 15(5) and (6) of the Local Government Act 1999. The Directions provide that the Commissioners' reasonable expenses and such fees as the Secretary of State determines are to be paid to them by the Authority.

A full breakdown of the Commissioners' invoiced fees and expenses are published periodically on Liverpool City Council's website.


Written Question
Liverpool Strategic Futures Panel
Friday 14th April 2023

Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

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

To ask His Majesty's Government whether the papers and minutes of the meetings of the Liverpool Strategic Futures Panel will be published.

Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

The Liverpool Strategic Futures Panel will provide reports to the Secretary of State, which will be published. The Panel is supported by officials from DLUHC and the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority. A wide range of stakeholders across the Liverpool City Region, including the Commissioners to Liverpool City Council, will be consulted as the Panel develops plans. Further to the answer of Baroness Scott of Bybrook on 23 March 2023, the Panel will meet monthly in private.


Written Question
Liverpool Strategic Futures Panel
Tuesday 11th April 2023

Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

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

To ask His Majesty's Government how the Liverpool Strategic Futures Panel is supported by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.

Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) has appointed the Mayor of Liverpool Combined Authority, Steve Rotheram, to Chair the Liverpool Strategic Futures Advisory Panel, which is supported by Baroness Judith Blake and Sir Howard Bernstein. It will work with place leaders and stakeholders from across the city region. Officials at DLUHC are providing coordination and analytical support to the Panel during its evidence collection and diagnostic phase.