Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of barring non-compliant developers from being awarded public sector contracts until cladding issues from past projects are resolved.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Major developers have already signed a Developer Remediation Contract with government, under which they are obligated to fix or pay to fix the buildings for which they are responsible. Developers who fail to comply with their contractual obligations face significant consequences, including in many cases prohibitions that would be imposed on the developer if it fails to comply with the requirements of the statutory Responsible Actos Scheme. Those prohibitions would prevent a developer from carrying out major development and from gaining building control sign-off in England, subject to limited exceptions.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that rental prices remain affordable; and whether she has considered mechanisms to stabilise rents.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Boosting the supply of homes of all tenures must be at the heart of any strategy to improve housing affordability which is why the government’s Plan for Change includes a hugely ambitious milestone of building 1.5 million safe and decent homes in England in this Parliament.
The Renters’ Rights Bill will empower private rented sector tenants to challenge unreasonable within-tenancy rent increases.
The government has been clear it does not support the introduction of rent controls, including rent stabilisation measures. We believe they could make life more difficult for private renters, both in terms of incentivising landlords to increase rents routinely up to a cap where they might otherwise not have done, and in pushing many landlords out of the market, thereby making it even harder for renters to find a home they can afford.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the debate following her oral statement of 5 February 2025 on English Devolution and Local Government, Official Report, column 780, if she will meet the hon. Members for constituencies in Surrey to discuss the potential impact of council debt in Surrey on her proposals for local government reorganisation before 21 March 2025.
Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
It is for Surrey councils to develop a proposal or proposals in line with the criteria and guidance set out in the invitation. This should include for Surrey, as an area covering a council in Best Value intervention, demonstrating how reorganisation may contribute to putting local government in the area as a whole on a firmer footing and what area-specific arrangements may be necessary to make new structures viable. The invitation is also clear that councils should engage locally and that we also expect and encourage local leaders to engage their Members of Parliament, on any proposals being developed.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help support cross-community inter-faith work in Surrey.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Ministers have been meeting a wide range of faith and belief leaders, along with interfaith practitioners, to hear more about the vital work undertaken in communities to help foster good relations.
This department was pleased to support Inter Faith Week in November, and we continue to fund a number of partners to deliver cohesion programmes in local communities which help to contribute to positive interfaith relations.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when her Department plans to make a decision on the planning application for a solar facility at the University of Surrey.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The application in question is currently being considered by Guildford Borough Council.
Following requests to call in the application, a holding Direction restricting the grant of permission was issued by MHCLG, to allow those requests to be considered.
A decision on whether to call in the application will be made in due course.
The Hon Member should note that the issuing of a holding Direction should not be taken as an indication as to whether an application will be called in or not.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on the potential merits of lowering the voting age to 16.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
As per the manifesto, the Government is committed to act during this Parliament to give 16- and 17-year-olds the right to vote in all elections, strengthening our democracy, empowering young people to participate and building an informed and empowered electorate.