Asked by: Tim Loughton (Conservative - East Worthing and Shoreham)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what progress he has made on enabling local authorities to issue fines for (a) inconsiderate driving and (b) pavement parking.
Answered by Simon Clarke
These are important issues about which the Hon Member should contact the Department for Transport for further information.
Asked by: Tim Loughton (Conservative - East Worthing and Shoreham)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, for what reasons his Department has not made a determination on whether to call in Adur District Council planning application AWDM/0961/17 on New Monks farm; and when he plans to make an announcement on that application.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
The application in question is one of three closely linked applications relating to New Monks Farm itself, development at Shoreham Airport and the public right of way network in the area. Ministers are carefully considering these cases against their policy on calling in planning applications and expect to issue a decision in due course.
Asked by: Tim Loughton (Conservative - East Worthing and Shoreham)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what business rate relief is available to independent nursery providers; and on what basis that relief is calculated.
Answered by Rishi Sunak - Prime Minister, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service, and Minister for the Union
Since Budget 2016 the Government has introduced a range of business rates measures in England worth £13 billion over the next five years. This includes switching the annual indexation of business rates from the retail price index to the consumer price index, representing a cut in business rates every year to all ratepayers, including nurseries, and saving businesses over £6 billion over the next five years. It also includes doubling small business rate relief from 50 per cent to 100 per cent for eligible businesses and raising the threshold for 100 per cent relief from £6,000 to £12,000. Eligible businesses with a rateable value between £12,000 and £15,000 will be entitled to tapered relief. Independent nursery providers may therefore be eligible for small business rate relief if they occupy a single property with a rateable value below £15,000. After the 2017 revaluation, the Government established a £300 million fund to enable local authorities to provide additional targeted support to their local businesses.
Asked by: Tim Loughton (Conservative - East Worthing and Shoreham)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to his letter of 24 October 2018 to the hon. Member for East Worthing and Shoreham, when he plans to make a decision on the call-in of the New Monks Farm planning application in Lancing West Sussex.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
As stated in the Secretary of State's letter of 24 October 2018, he is considering whether the application for land west of New Monks Farm, Marsh Barn Lane, Lancing should be called in for his own decision. The application is still being considered and a decision will be released as soon as possible.
Asked by: Tim Loughton (Conservative - East Worthing and Shoreham)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 10 January 2019 to Question 205785 on New Monks Farm: Construction, whether he has issued a holding direction to delay Adur District Council's granting of planning permission for the Monks Farm development; and what the timeframe is for determining whether to call in that decision.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
Adur District Council have referred planning application AWDM/0961/17 to the Secretary of State under the Town and Country Planning (Consultation) (England) Direction 2009. Adur Council have agreed not to issue a planning notice while the Secretary of State's consideration is ongoing, and a holding direction has not been issued.
A decision will be issued to Adur District Council as soon as possible.
Asked by: Tim Loughton (Conservative - East Worthing and Shoreham)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many representations he has received to (a) call in and (b) not to call in the New Monks Farm development in Lancing, West Sussex.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
To date, the Secretary of State has received a total of 225 representations objecting to the application for land west of new Monks Farm, Marsh Barn Lane, Lancing, and to the related application at Shoreham Airport, Lancing and 14 representations in support.
Asked by: Tim Loughton (Conservative - East Worthing and Shoreham)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when he plans to announce a decision on calling in the planning application for the New Monks Farm development in Lancing, West Sussex.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
The Secretary of State is currently considering planning application AWDM/0961/17 regarding land west of New Monks Farm, Marsh Barn Lane, Lancing, and is currently considering all relevant documentation and representations. A decision will be announced as soon as possible.
Asked by: Tim Loughton (Conservative - East Worthing and Shoreham)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, which regulations govern the rental of houseboats; and whether he plans to amend those regulations.
Answered by Dominic Raab
The use of inland waterways in England is regulated by the appropriate navigation authority with responsibility for the waterway. Residential boats moored or used for continuous cruising are subject to licensing by the authority. As houseboats are chattel (and not fixed to ground), regulations applying to rented dwellings in England do not extend to them.
Asked by: Tim Loughton (Conservative - East Worthing and Shoreham)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the level of council tax paid by care leavers under the age of 25.
Answered by Marcus Jones - Treasurer of HM Household (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Commons)
The Department does not collect council tax data which identifies taxpayers under the age of 25.
Asked by: Tim Loughton (Conservative - East Worthing and Shoreham)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of exempting care leavers under the age of 25 from paying council tax.
Answered by Marcus Jones - Treasurer of HM Household (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Commons)
The Government is committed to assisting care leavers. It has given councils the flexibility to support vulnerable groups, including care leavers, to help manage their council tax bills. We wrote to all councils in 2016 to remind them of the powers they had under the Local Government Finance Act 1992 to support vulnerable groups. A number of councils have already taken the decision to support care leavers through an exemption or discount on their council tax bills.