Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they are taking, or planning to take, to address the concentration of empty homes in low-value housing markets, with specific regard to the housing markets in (1) northern England, and (2) coastal communities.

We continue to support local authorities to encourage efficient use of our existing stock, making best use of homes that have been empty long term. Local authorities have powers and incentives to tackle empty homes. Through the New Homes Bonus, they earn the same financial reward for bringing an empty home back into use as building a new one. The Ratings (Property in Common Occupation) and Council Tax (Empty Dwellings) Bill will permit a charge of up to 200 per cent of normal council tax on properties that have been empty for two years or more, instead of the current limit of 150 per cent. Great progress has been made in recent years and the number of empty homes stands at its lowest since records began. At May 2010, over 300,000 homes in England had been standing empty for longer than 6 months. As of October 2017, the number of long term empty properties had fallen to 205,293.