Asked by: Theresa Villiers (Conservative - Chipping Barnet)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will publish a revised version of his Department's Planning Policy Guidance to reflect recent changes to the National Planning Policy Framework.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
Since 19 December 2023, we have updated Planning Practice Guidance multiple times to include new guidance on Biodiversity Net Gain, and updated existing guidance on the Community Infrastructure Levy, Housing Supply and Delivery, the Green Belt, Natural Environment and Viability. Further guidance updates will be published as necessary in due course.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following reports of stabilisation and growth in the housing market, what steps they are taking to ensure that this translates into an increased housing supply, particularly in areas facing housing shortages.
Answered by Baroness Swinburne - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
Housebuilding is a priority for this Government, and we are on track to meet our manifesto commitment to deliver one million homes over this Parliament. In December, the revised National Planning Policy Framework was published, making clear that a core purpose of the planning system is planning for the homes and other development that our communities need. With both the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act and the new Framework now in place, alongside the additional resources for planning departments the Government has recently announced, our planning reforms will accelerate the delivery of new homes.
We are spending billions to support housebuilding, including through our £1 billion Brownfield Infrastructure and Land Fund and our £1.5 billion Levelling Up Homebuilding Fund (LUHBF). We have scaled up the delivery of affordable housing by investing £11.5 billion through the Affordable Homes Programme, which will provide thousands of new homes for rent and sale across the country.
In February, we announced that we are consulting on a range of new measures to boost housebuilding while protecting the Green Belt, through strengthening planning support for brownfield housing development. Legislation was also laid to extend current permitted development rights to support the conversion of commercial buildings of any size into new homes, and we announced an expansion of the ENABLE Build scheme to increase availability of SME finance to the sector.
Asked by: Mark Eastwood (Conservative - Dewsbury)
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 help support people to submit objections to planning proposals for (a) the proposed installation of solar farms near Overton, Wooley and Kirkburton and (b) other proposed renewable energy projects on the green belt.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
This Government is committed to protecting and enhancing the Green Belt. Our National Planning Policy Framework makes clear that structures that spoil the openness of Green Belt should be refused permission unless in very special circumstances.
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 11 March 2024 to Question 16914 on Green Belt: Planning Permission and with reference to the consultation entitled Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill: reforms to national planning policy, published on 22 December 2022, and paragraph 35(a) of the National Planning Policy Framework, published in December 2023, if he will publish the justification for not incorporating the words 'Green Belt boundaries are not required to be reviewed and altered if this would be the only means of meeting the objectively assessed need for housing over the plan period' in that Framework.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer I gave to Question UIN 16908 on 11 March 2024.
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 11 March 2024 to Question 16908 on Green Belt: Planning Permission and with reference to the revisions made to the National Planning Policy Framework on 19 December 2023 and the Written Ministerial Statement of 19 December 2023 on The Next Stage in Our Long Term Plan for Housing Update, HCWS161, if he will publish specific guidance clarifying whether local authorities being located wholly within the green belt can represent an exceptional circumstance to justify an alternative approach to using the standard method calculation when assessing housing need for the purposes of making a local plan.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer I gave to Question UIN 16908 on 11 March 2024.
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, with reference to paragraph 61 of the National Planning Policy Framework, published in December 2023, whether it his policy that a local authority area being located wholly within the green belt should represent an exceptional circumstance to justify an alternative approach to using the standard method calculation when assessing housing need for the purposes of making a local plan.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
I refer the Hon Member to the written statement made by my Rt Hon Friend The Secretary of State (HCWS161) and the revisions made to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) on 19th December 2023.
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, with reference to the consultation entitled Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill: reforms to national planning policy, published on 22 December 2022, and to paragraph 35(a) of the National Planning Policy Framework, published in December 2023, for what reason the words 'Green Belt boundaries are not required to be reviewed and altered if this would be the only means of meeting the objectively assessed need for housing over the plan period' were omitted from that Framework.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
I refer the Hon Member to the written statement made by my Rt Hon Friend The Secretary of State (HCWS161) and the revisions made to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) on 19th December 2023.
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, with reference to paragraph 145 of the National Planning Policy Framework, published in December 2023, whether it his policy that the threshold for an exceptional circumstance would be met by a local authority area seeking to alter green belt boundaries for the purposes of making a local plan in circumstances where housing need as calculated by the standard method cannot be met having exhausted all development opportunities (a) not in the green belt and (b) in existing brownfield sites within the existing green belt boundaries.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
I refer the Hon Member to the written statement made by my Rt Hon Friend The Secretary of State (HCWS161) and the revisions made to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) on 19th December 2023.
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, with reference to the Written Ministerial Statement entitled The Next Stage in Our Long Term Plan for Housing Update, HCWS161, published on 19 December 2023, and paragraph 145 of the National Planning Policy Framework, published in December 2023, whether local authorities are required to include green belt sites in their local plan to meet housing needs targets as calculated by the Standard Method.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
I refer the Hon Member to the written statement made by my Rt Hon Friend The Secretary of State (HCWS161) and the revisions made to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) on 19th December 2023.
Asked by: Chris Grayling (Conservative - Epsom and Ewell)
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 18 January 2024 to Question 9443 on Local Plans: Green Belt, what steps he is taking to ensure that planning inspectors apply the provisions of the new National Planning Policy Framework in their decisions.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
The Secretary of State appoints an independent Planning Inspector to examine a revised Local Plan (including any Green Belt boundary change) and check that it is legally compliant and sound. Plans must be positively prepared, justified, effective, and consistent with the National Planning Policy Framework. If requested by the local authority, Inspectors may recommend modifications to the Plan they consider necessary for it to be sound. The Framework is not law, simply requiring compliance: examining Inspectors have regard to its policies insofar as they are a material consideration.
As Annex 1 makes clear, the revised Framework will come into effect where a revised Plan reaches pre-submission stage after 19 March 2024. However, for the purposes of determining planning applications, the new Framework’s policies came into effect on 19 December 2023.
The Secretary of State has a range of intervention powers available to him in relation to the Plan-making process. Decisions to intervene are exceptional and made on a case-by-case basis once all the facts and any relevant legal advice have been considered.