Asked by: Roz Savage (Liberal Democrat - South Cotswolds)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the role that district councils will have in a potential devolution deal for Gloucestershire.
Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
This Government believes that the benefits of devolution are best achieved through the establishment of combined authorities or combined county authorities over sensible economic geographies and supported by a mayor.
The Government recognises the vital role district councils play and strongly encourages their involvement in combined county authorities in a number of ways, including non-constituent membership, positions on overview and scrutiny and audit committees, and via local joint working on key issues.
Asked by: Roz Savage (Liberal Democrat - South Cotswolds)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of changes in the level public sector pay on district council budgets over the last three years.
Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Local authorities are independent employers responsible for the management and organisation of their own workforces, including remuneration. The Government recognises the challenges local authorities are facing as demand increases for critical services. Future local authority funding decisions will be a matter for the Budget and Local Government Finance Settlement in which we are engaged.
Asked by: Roz Savage (Liberal Democrat - South Cotswolds)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of (a) building more social housing and (b) keeping families out of temporary accommodation on the economy.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government is clear that homelessness is too high and that too many families are living in temporary accommodation. We intend to take a long-term approach to prevent and end homelessness. Working with Mayors and councils across the country, we will develop a new cross-government strategy to get us back on track to ending homelessness. The Deputy Prime Minister will chair an Inter-Ministerial Group to drive this forward.
We are also tackling the root causes of homelessness, including by delivering the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation. Our aspiration is to ensure that, in the first full financial year of this Parliament (2025-26), the number of Social Rent homes is rising rather than falling.
Our proposed changes to the National Planning Policy Framework include setting a clear expectation that housing needs assessments must consider the needs of those requiring Social Rent homes, and that local authorities should specify their expectations on Social Rent delivery as part of broader affordable housing policies.
We have asked Homes England and the Greater London Authority to maximise the number of Social Rent homes in allocating the remaining Affordable Homes Programme funding. The Government has started to review the increased Right to Buy discounts introduced in 2012, on which we will bring forward more details and secondary legislation to implement changes in the autumn. We have also announced new flexibilities for how councils can use their Right to Buy receipts to deliver replacement homes; these flexibilities will be in place for an initial 24 months, subject to review.
We are committed to setting out details of future Government investment in social and affordable housing at the Spending Review.
Asked by: Roz Savage (Liberal Democrat - South Cotswolds)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to continue funding for previously agreed (a) Town Deals and (b) Levelling Up Round 3 awards.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
All 101 places selected for Town Deals are now well progressed into delivery, using their share of £2.35 billion to support projects that boost economic regeneration. All Town Deal project business cases have been approved and all monies are now fully allocated. Annual payments are scheduled to be made as planned and the programme is due to close in March 2026. I refer the hon Member to my answer to Question UIN 3603 on 9 September 2024 pertaining to Round 3 of the Levelling Up Fund.
Asked by: Roz Savage (Liberal Democrat - South Cotswolds)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what additional steps she plans to take to support district councils to reduce the levels of homelessness.
Answered by Rushanara Ali - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government is clear that homelessness is too high and too many families are living in temporary accommodation. We want to take a long-term approach and, working with Mayors and councils across the country, we will develop a new cross-government strategy to get us back on track to ending homelessness. The Deputy Prime Minister will chair an Inter-Ministerial Group to drive this forward.
We are also tackling the root causes of homelessness, including by delivering the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation. We will abolish Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions with immediate effect, preventing private renters being exploited and discriminated against, and empowering people to challenge unreasonable rent increases.