Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps his Department takes to assess the adequacy of (a) funding and (b) other resources for local authorities.
Answered by Lee Rowley
I refer the Hon. Member to my answer to Question UIN 184131 on 15 May 2023.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, If he will make an assessment with Cabinet colleagues of the potential merits of introducing a system of proportional representation for Parliamentary elections.
Answered by Dehenna Davison
The Government strongly believes that it would be a profound mistake to abandon the British system of voting and move to a system more favoured on the European continent of so-called ‘proportional representation’. The Government was elected on a manifesto which included a commitment to continue to support the use of the First Past the Post voting system which “allows voters to kick out politicians who don’t deliver, both locally and nationally”.
The Government believes the First Past the Post system is a robust and secure way of electing MPs and provides for direct local accountability. It ensures a clear link between elected representatives and their electors in a manner that other voting systems do not
There was a significant vote in favour of retaining First Past the Post for Parliamentary elections at 2011 Referendum while the proposal to introduce an Alternative Vote was rejected by a significant majority (67.9%) of voters. This Government strongly believes in respecting the results of referendums.
Experience of countries across the world with so-called proportional representation (PR) voting systems show that those with that voting system risk fragmented political parties, not grounded in local accountability. PR systems can create Governments which are less stable and more fragile, where inter-party ‘back room’ deals determine policy, and where minority and arguably fringe political parties can hold the balance of power. PR can also mean that political parties’ central establishments are strengthened versus local political parties.
First Past the Post is part of the voting system of the world’s oldest, biggest and greatest democracies including in the United Kingdom, India, and the United States.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of proscribing uplift clauses in new land sale agreements.
Answered by Baroness Maclean of Redditch
We are introducing new transparency measures through the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill so that we can better understand interests in land.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps he is taking to increase the availability of affordable housing.
Answered by Baroness Maclean of Redditch
This Government is determined to increase levels of affordable housing, and as my Rt Hon Friend the Secretary of State has outlined already, we are investing £11.5 billion through our Affordable Homes Programme which will deliver tens of thousands of much needed affordable homes right across the country.
Additionally, we remain committed to delivering at least as much on-site affordable housing through our proposed new Infrastructure Levy.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how many households have received the council tax rebate as of 14 July 2022.
Answered by Paul Scully
All councils are paying the £150 council tax rebate. The Government intends to publish monitoring data outlining the progress of the scheme’s delivery shortly.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department has made a comparative regional assessment of the impact of higher temperatures on homes across England during heat waves in the context of a potential variance in the standards of building insulation.
Answered by Marcus Jones
The English Housing Survey collects a range of information about England's housing stock, including the insulation and construction of dwellings and whether occupants have reported that parts of their home get overheated. According to the 2020-21 survey, occupants in dwellings built with timber, concrete or steel frames or with insulated cavity walls were more likely to report overheating (between 9% and 18%) than those living in masonry or uninsulated solid walled dwellings (between 5% and 8%).
The findings also show that dwelling construction types vary by region. London had the lowest proportion of masonry dwellings and the highest proportion of concrete dwellings compared with other regions.