Asked by: Valerie Vaz (Labour - Walsall South)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what the Government's policy is on building a battery energy storage systems on green belt land.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
This Government has a manifesto commitment to protect and enhance the Green Belt. Our National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) makes clear that most new building is inappropriate in Green Belt and should be refused permission unless in very special circumstances. When considering any planning application affecting Green Belt land, the local authority should ensure that substantial weight is given to any harm to the Green Belt. ‘Very special circumstances’ will not exist unless the potential harm is clearly outweighed by other considerations.
The latest NPPF published in July 2021 expects planning policies and decisions to support transitioning to a low carbon future by requiring renewable/low carbon energy generation and identifying areas for this infrastructure. It is rightly for the individual local authority to assess each case and judge whether an applicant has successfully argued that ‘very special circumstances’ would justify a planning permission in Green Belt.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will take steps to ensure that the City of York Local Plan includes provision for self-build and custom housing.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
The Local Plan remains at examination and the independent Inspector plays an important role in examining plans impartially to ensure that they are legally compliant and sound.
Due to the quasi-judicial role of Ministers in the plan, it would not be appropriate for me to comment on a plan at examination. It is for the independent Inspectors to address these issues.
Only in exceptional circumstances may a local authority alter a Green Belt boundary – using its local plan – and only if it can show evidenced justification that it has examined all other reasonable options for meeting its identified development needs.
The Inspectors intend to hold further hearings in line with an indicative timetable between February and June to revisit a number of topic areas in order to move the examination forward as efficiently and effectively as possible.
It is important to ensure that progress on the York local plan is maintained and the Inspectors given the opportunity to issue their final report. The Government has set a deadline for all local planning authorities to have up-to-date local plans by the end of 2023. This will help deliver the certainty that local communities and businesses deserve.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the length of time that greenbelt boundaries should endure beyond the period of the Local Plan.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
The Local Plan remains at examination and the independent Inspector plays an important role in examining plans impartially to ensure that they are legally compliant and sound.
Due to the quasi-judicial role of Ministers in the plan, it would not be appropriate for me to comment on a plan at examination. It is for the independent Inspectors to address these issues.
Only in exceptional circumstances may a local authority alter a Green Belt boundary – using its local plan – and only if it can show evidenced justification that it has examined all other reasonable options for meeting its identified development needs.
The Inspectors intend to hold further hearings in line with an indicative timetable between February and June to revisit a number of topic areas in order to move the examination forward as efficiently and effectively as possible.
It is important to ensure that progress on the York local plan is maintained and the Inspectors given the opportunity to issue their final report. The Government has set a deadline for all local planning authorities to have up-to-date local plans by the end of 2023. This will help deliver the certainty that local communities and businesses deserve.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will require the York planning inspectors to develop an evidence-based Local Plan.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
The Local Plan remains at examination and the independent Inspector plays an important role in examining plans impartially to ensure that they are legally compliant and sound.
Due to the quasi-judicial role of Ministers in the plan, it would not be appropriate for me to comment on a plan at examination. It is for the independent Inspectors to address these issues.
Only in exceptional circumstances may a local authority alter a Green Belt boundary – using its local plan – and only if it can show evidenced justification that it has examined all other reasonable options for meeting its identified development needs.
The Inspectors intend to hold further hearings in line with an indicative timetable between February and June to revisit a number of topic areas in order to move the examination forward as efficiently and effectively as possible.
It is important to ensure that progress on the York local plan is maintained and the Inspectors given the opportunity to issue their final report. The Government has set a deadline for all local planning authorities to have up-to-date local plans by the end of 2023. This will help deliver the certainty that local communities and businesses deserve.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
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 to reduce the number of residential developments taking place on green belt land.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
This Government has a manifesto commitment to protect and enhance the Green Belt. Our National Planning Policy Framework makes clear that a local authority can take development land out of Green Belt only in exceptional circumstances, through the local plan process, and only if it can demonstrate that it has explored all other reasonable options.
To reduce pressures on Green Belt land, the Government is investing significant amounts in re-using and regenerating brownfield sites. We have set up the £4.35 billion Housing Infrastructure Fund; the £4.95 billion Home Building Fund; the £400 million Brownfield Housing Fund; and the £75 million Brownfield Land Release Fund. At Autumn Budget 2021 the Chancellor announced a further £300 million of grant funding for Mayoral Combined Authorities and local authorities to unlock smaller brownfield sites.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he considers the development of carbon negative homes in the greenbelt as an exceptional circumstance.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
This Government is committed to protecting and enhancing the Green Belt. The strong protections in place for green belt land, which should be reflected in the local plan for the area, are to remain firmly in place.
The Framework applies a test when inappropriate development – including most housing – is proposed for land within a green belt. It says that inappropriate development is harmful to the openness of green belt and should be refused planning permission unless there are very special circumstances in the case, as judged by the local authority.
Whether assessing the need to adjust a green belt boundary to accommodate essential development, or considering an individual planning application, it is for the local decision-makers to determine which matters are relevant and how much weight to attach to each.
The Framework does expect local authorities to mitigate climate change by minimising greenhouse gas emissions; designing beautiful and sustainable places resilient to climate change; and ensuring the provision and retention of green infrastructure.
To help meet our net zero carbon target the Government is encouraging local authorities to deliver energy-efficient housing, wherever it is located; and from 2025 the Future Homes Standard will make sure that new homes produce at least 75% lower CO2 emissions compared to those built to current standards.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the future of the green belt with respect to (a) future homebuilding and (b) delivering carbon neutral homes.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
This Government is committed to protecting and enhancing the Green Belt. The strong protections in place for green belt land, which should be reflected in the local plan for the area, are to remain firmly in place.
The Framework applies a test when inappropriate development – including most housing – is proposed for land within a green belt. It says that inappropriate development is harmful to the openness of green belt and should be refused planning permission unless there are very special circumstances in the case, as judged by the local authority.
Whether assessing the need to adjust a green belt boundary to accommodate essential development, or considering an individual planning application, it is for the local decision-makers to determine which matters are relevant and how much weight to attach to each.
The Framework does expect local authorities to mitigate climate change by minimising greenhouse gas emissions; designing beautiful and sustainable places resilient to climate change; and ensuring the provision and retention of green infrastructure.
To help meet our net zero carbon target the Government is encouraging local authorities to deliver energy-efficient housing, wherever it is located; and from 2025 the Future Homes Standard will make sure that new homes produce at least 75% lower CO2 emissions compared to those built to current standards.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, pursuant to the Answer of 23 September 2021 to Question 50144, on Planning Permission, if he will urgently issue guidance on determining appeals to the Planning Inspector that a greater weighting should be attached to the National Planning Policy Framework’s objective to protect greenbelt land than to the standard housing need methodology calculation in the event that a local authority does not have a Local Plan in place.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
Paragraph 11 of the National Planning Policy Framework already sets out that where plan policies are out of date, an application may be refused where our national policies that protect areas or assets of particular importance, such as Green Belt, provide a clear reason for doing so.
The Government is firmly committed to protecting and enhancing Green Belt land for future generations as set out in our manifesto. That is why, for decision-taking, local authorities should regard the construction of buildings in the Green Belt as inappropriate and refuse planning permission, unless there are exceptional circumstances as determined by the local authority.
Each application is judged on its own individual merit and the weight attached to a particular consideration is a matter of judgment for the local authority as the decision-maker in the first instance.
Asked by: Jonathan Lord (Conservative - Woking)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps his Department is taking to (a) encourage housebuilding on brownfield sites and (b) protect the green belt.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
Our National Planning Policy Framework strongly encourages housebuilding by prioritising the regeneration of brownfield land wherever practicable. To support this, Government has significantly invested in unlocking brownfield sites: for instance, the £4.35 billion Housing Infrastructure Fund; the £4.95 billion Home Building Fund; the £400 million Brownfield Housing Fund; and the £75 million Brownfield Land Release Fund.
We have a manifesto commitment to protect and enhance the Green Belt. The Framework states that a local authority can propose to alter a Green Belt boundary only in exceptional circumstances and only if it can show that it has examined all other reasonable options for meeting its identified development needs. A local authority should therefore make as much use as possible of suitable brownfield land; optimise density of development; and discuss with neighbouring authorities whether they could take some of the development required. The Framework also makes clear that most types of new building are inappropriate in Green Belt, and should be refused planning permission unless justified by very special circumstances.
Asked by: Henry Smith (Conservative - Crawley)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps his Department is taking to help build new homes on brownfield sites.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
The Government is taking a “brownfield first” approach as part of our regeneration efforts and our commitment to preserving the Green Belt and our treasured green spaces and countryside.
Last week we allocated over £57 million to 53 councils through the Brownfield Land Release Fund, which will unlock over 5,600 new homes.
This investment builds on the £400 million Brownfield Housing Fund we announced last year to help deliver 26,000 homes in the North and Midlands.