Asked by: Scott Benton (Independent - Blackpool South)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps he is taking with Blackpool Council to deliver regeneration projects in Blackpool.
Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
Since 2019, my department has invested £39.5 million in Blackpool’s Town Deal, £40 million of Levelling Up Fund and £5.8 million of Shared Prosperity Fund into Blackpool.
In February 2022, my department undertook a deep dive with Blackpool Council to better understand Blackpool’s regeneration needs, including relocating the court buildings. I thank my Honourable Friend for his continued support for regeneration in Blackpool
Asked by: Scott Benton (Independent - Blackpool South)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what business rate relief Blackpool Council received during the covid-19 pandemic.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
The Department does not collect information on the amount of relief by property occupier and is not able to answer questions about individual entities. Public sector bodies should be able to offer proportionate responses to data requests as per their Freedom of Information obligations.
Asked by: Scott Benton (Independent - Blackpool South)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how much funding his Department has provided to Blackpool Council for housing interventions to help reduce rough sleeping and homelessness since December 2019; and through which schemes this funding was provided.
Answered by Felicity Buchan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
Since 2019, Blackpool has received £3,469,343 in Government funding to help tackle homelessness and rough sleeping. This includes funding from the Homelessness Prevention Grant, and its predecessors the Flexible Homelessness Support Grant and Homelessness Reduction Grant, and the Rough Sleeping Initiative, and includes its allocation for the three-year Rough Sleeping Initiative from 2022-2025.
Asked by: Scott Benton (Independent - Blackpool South)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what additional funding was provided to Blackpool Council (a) to support businesses, and b) for public service provision during the covid-19 pandemic.
Answered by Dehenna Davison
During the Covid-19 pandemic, the Government delivered an unprecedented package of support for business. Nearly £27 billion was allocated to local authorities throughout England for Business Grant Support in 2020-21 and 2021-22, including over £135 million to Blackpool Council
During this period the Government also allocated over £15 billion directly to local authorities in England in 2020-21 and 2021-22 to tackle the impacts of Covid-19. Blackpool Council received £56.7 million in direct funding, of which £21.8 million was un-ringfenced.
Asked by: Scott Benton (Independent - Blackpool South)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, which Local Authorities have yet to reach an agreement on a housing Local Development Plan with his Department.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) states that local plans should provide a framework for addressing housing needs, as well as other economic, social and environmental priorities.
Having an effective, up to date plan in place is essential to planning for and meeting housing requirements; in ways that make good use of land and result in well-designed and attractive places to live. The Government expects local authorities to work together to plan for and deliver the housing and infrastructure our communities and businesses need.
On 19 January 2021, a Written Ministerial Statement was made in the House of Commons which set out the importance of maintaining progress to get up-to-date local plans in place by the Government's deadline of December 2023.
Authorities that fail to ensure an up-to-date plan is in place are failing their communities by not recognising the homes and other facilities that local people need. Without an up-to-date plan, homes can end up being built on a speculative basis, with no co-ordination and limited buy-in from local people.
As of 31 December 2021, 22 local planning authorities (7%) do not have an adopted local plan (under the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004). Most are at an advanced stage of preparing plans: 12 have submitted their plan for examination in public; and 1 has had the plan found sound following examination and is expected to vote on adopting it shortly. The authorities that have no plan in place are:
Amber Valley
Ashfield
Basildon
Brentwood
Bury
Calderdale
Castle Point
Eastleigh
Epping Forest
Liverpool
Medway
North Hertfordshire
Northumberland
Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation
Salford
St Albans
Tameside
Uttlesford
Welwyn Hatfield
Windsor and Maidenhead
Wirral
York
Asked by: Scott Benton (Independent - Blackpool South)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether guidance for the forthcoming £1.5bn business rates relief fund for previously excluded sectors will include a specific reference to the amusement machine industry supply chain as a sector which is eligible for support.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade
The £1.5 billion fund will be allocated to local authorities based on the stock of properties in the area whose sectors have been affected by COVID-19 and are ineligible for existing support linked to business rates. My Department will publish guidance to help local authorities set up their local schemes once the legislation relating to COVID-19 Material Change of Circumstances provisions has passed.
Asked by: Scott Benton (Independent - Blackpool South)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans he has for further Town Deals in addition to the (a) Towns Fund and (b) Future High Street programmes.
Answered by Luke Hall - Minister of State (Education)
I am delighted that Blackpool in my Honourable friend’s constituency is one of the initial places that yesterday had its Town Deal offer announced for a transformative funding package worth up to £39.5 million. This Town Deal will help give a new lease of life to much loved tourist attractions as well as supporting the local business community to grow and thrive.
My officials are continuing to review Blackpool’s Future High Street Fund bid and I hope to make an announcement later in the Autumn.
In due course we will bring forward a further competitive round of the Towns Fund, building on lessons learned from the first Town Deals and Future High Streets Fund. We want to make sure that more places can benefit from investment that will improve our towns and high streets and drive long-term economic growth.
Asked by: Scott Benton (Independent - Blackpool South)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will announce when businesses that are currently closed under covid-19 restrictions in (a) Blackpool and (b) the UK may open again.
Answered by Simon Clarke
To reduce social contact and the spread of infection, the Government previously ordered certain businesses and venues to close to members of the public across England. This list of closures was in line with advice from medical professionals. Though there has been tragic loss of life, thanks to the hard work and sacrifice of the British people, the UK has slowed the spread of Coronavirus.
Following earlier easements in May and June, as part of Step Three of the government’s plan to return life to as near normal as we can, further businesses and venues were allowed to open from 4, 11 and 13 July.
Certain premises have been required to remain closed beyond 13 July, due to the higher risk of infection in those premises. The Prime Minister gave an oral statement on 17 July to set out the next chapter in the UK’s Government’s COVID-19 recovery strategy. From 25 July, subject to assessment of the evidence at the time regarding the rates of transmission, it is proposed that sports facilities and venues, such as indoor gyms, fitness and dance studios, indoor swimming pools and indoor facilities at water parks will be permitted to open.
From 1 August, subject to assessment of the evidence at the time regarding the rates of transmission, it is proposed that most remaining leisure settings, including bowling alleys, indoor skating rinks, and casinos will be permitted to reopen.
The venues where people are likely to be very close to each other and are particularly challenging to reopen in a safe way at the present time due to the high transmission risk, will be required to remain closed after 1 August. This includes nightclubs, soft play areas, and sexual entertainment venues. These will be kept under review.
The COVID-19 recovery strategy applies to England only. The Devolved Administrations are making their own assessments about the lifting of measures in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Scott Benton (Independent - Blackpool South)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many new (a) houses and (b) social houses have been constructed in Blackpool in each year since 2011.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
The number of new homes built by local authority area since 2012-13 is published in Live Table 123, which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-net-supply-of-housing.
The number of new affordable homes by local authority area, type (new build or acquisition) and tenure (e.g. social rent) since 1991-92 is published in Live Table 1011, which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-affordable-housing-supply.
Asked by: Scott Benton (Independent - Blackpool South)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what representations he has received from the (a) Chief Executive of Blackpool Council and (b) Leader of Blackpool Council on (i) the local government finance settlement and (ii) Government funding of local authorities.
Answered by Luke Hall - Minister of State (Education)
There is no record of written representations or correspondence from either the Chief Executive of Blackpool Council or the Leader of Blackpool Council on the local government finance settlement or Government funding of local authorities. However, I can confirm that through this year’s Local Government Finance Settlement, Blackpool’s spending power will increase by £8.5 million, or 6.4 per cent since 2019-20.