Asked by: Kieran Mullan (Conservative - Crewe and Nantwich)
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 protect and enhance green spaces.
Answered by Dehenna Davison
The Government is committed to protecting and enhancing the Green Belt.
The Levelling Up Parks Fund also made available £9 million for local authorities in areas which rate highly on the Index of Multiple Deprivation, to create or significantly refurbish green spaces.
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 7 February 2023 to Question 135421 on Local Plans: Green Belt, how many local authorities have stated to his Department that they are preparing their local plans in line with (a) Written Ministerial Statement HCWS415, 6 December 2022 and (b) the National Planning Policy Framework.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The information requested is not held centrally.
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 9 May 2023 to Question 183562 on Housing: Construction, what assessment he has made of whether planning appeals (a) 5/21/3194, Land North of Chiswell Green Lane: APP/B1930/W/22/3312277 and (b) 5/22/0927, Land South of Chiswell Green Lane: APP/B1930/W/22/3313110 meet the threshold for recovery as set out in the Written Ministerial Statement of 30 June 2008, column 44WS, in the context of (a) proposals which raise important or novel issues of development control, and/or legal difficulties and (b) his oral contribution of 8 December 2022, Official Report, column 546, on forthcoming changes to the National Planning Policy Framework to defend the green belt.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
In line with the practice of successive administrations, it would not be appropriate to comment on specific planning applications.
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 9 May 2023 to Question 183562 on Housing: Construction, what assessment he has made of whether planning appeals (a) 5/21/3194, Land North of Chiswell Green Lane: APP/B1930/W/22/3312277 and (b) 5/22/0927, Land South of Chiswell Green Lane: APP/B1930/W/22/3313110 meet the threshold for recovery as set out in the Written Ministerial Statement of 30 June 2008, column 44WS, in the context of proposals for significant development in the green belt.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
In line with the practice of successive administrations, it would not be appropriate to comment on specific planning applications.
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 his oral contribution of 8 December 2022, Official Report, column 546, on forthcoming changes to the National Planning Policy Framework to defend the green belt, if he will recover planning appeals (a) 5/21/3194, Land North of Chiswell Green Lane: APP/B1930/W/22/3312277 and (b) 5/22/0927, Land South of Chiswell Green Lane: APP/B1930/W/22/3313110 for his determination.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
As has been the case under successive administrations, including when Liberal Democrats served in Government, decisions on whether to recover planning appeals are made in line with policy as set out in a Written Ministerial Statement of 30 June 2008 (Column 44WS).
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, what recent correspondence his Department has received from Hertfordshire County Council on whether there have been any significant changes in circumstances since 2014 relating to the status of the greenbelt when considering the sale of public land for major infrastructure projects.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
If the Hon. Member has some specific correspondence in mind, she is welcome to contact me directly.
As has been the case for many years, inappropriate development on land within a Green Belt should be refused planning permission unless, in the authority's view, very special circumstances justify it.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
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 will take to prioritise development on brownfield land instead of on Green Belt and greenfield land.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
I refer the Hon Member to the answer to Question UIN 129970 on 31 January 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 his Written Ministerial Statement of 6 December 2022, HCWS415, on Update on the Levelling Up Bill, what guidance his Department issues on whether the Planning Inspectorate can give substantial weight to that Statement when examining appeals of a refusal of permission for a development on green belt land in instances where there is not a currently adopted local plan and when housing need as calculated by the currently calculated housing targets cannot be demonstrably satisfied.
Answered by Felicity Buchan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
Due to the Secretary of State's role in the planning system, I cannot discuss the details of an individual Local Plan or comment on the acceptability or otherwise of individual sites. Nor can I comment on specific planning applications.
The proposals set out in the Written Ministerial Statement are now subject to public consultation, and are not at this time government policy. Any final policy changes will be confirmed once the National Planning Policy Framework is updated.
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 Update on the Levelling Up Bill, HCWS415, published on 6 December 2022, whether local authorities which are developing a draft local plan are able to exclude sites submitted by landowners, developers, agents and site promoters which are located on green belt.
Answered by Felicity Buchan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
Due to the Secretary of State's role in the planning system, I cannot discuss the details of an individual Local Plan or comment on the acceptability or otherwise of individual sites. Nor can I comment on specific planning applications.
The proposals set out in the Written Ministerial Statement are now subject to public consultation, and are not at this time government policy. Any final policy changes will be confirmed once the National Planning Policy Framework is updated.
Asked by: Oliver Dowden (Conservative - Hertsmere)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of building housing on the site proposed for the Radlett Rail Freight Interchange in Hertsmere constituency.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
Because of the Secretary of State’s quasi-judicial role in the planning system, I cannot comment about the merits of particular plans or development proposals. It is for the local planning authority to consider the merits of any proposed development and any planning decision should be determined in accordance with the local development plan unless material considerations indicate otherwise. This would typically include an assessment of the site context and policies referred to in the National Planning Policy Framework, such as Green Belt, Local Green Spaces and other relevant designations.