Asked by: Jess Brown-Fuller (Liberal Democrat - Chichester)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether land allocated to (a) National Landscapes and (b) National Parks will be taken into consideration for housing requirements (i) generally and (ii) in Chichester District.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
National planning policy makes clear that land designated as National Landscapes and National Parks should be taken into account by local authorities when establishing a housing requirement for their area. Local authorities are expected to evidence and justify their approach through local plan consultation and examination.
In our consultation on proposed reforms to the National Planning Policy Framework and other changes to the planning system, we made clear that land safeguarded by existing environmental designations, including National Parks and National Landscapes, will maintain its current protections.
Asked by: Kate Osamor (Labour (Co-op) - Edmonton and Winchmore Hill)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to provide funding for (a) free or (b) subsidised parking for NHS (i) staff and (ii) patients at NHS facilities.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Hospital car parks are the responsibility of individual National Health Service trusts, with no central Government involvement. All revenue that hospitals make from car parking must be put back into front line services. The NHS Car Parking guidance states that where car parking charges exist, they should be reasonable for the area, with further information available at the following link:
Asked by: Kate Osamor (Labour (Co-op) - Edmonton and Winchmore Hill)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to support (a) NHS staff and (b) patients with car parking charges at NHS facilities.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Hospital car parks are the responsibility of individual National Health Service trusts, with no central Government involvement. All revenue that hospitals make from car parking must be put back into front line services. The NHS Car Parking guidance states that where car parking charges exist, they should be reasonable for the area, with further information available at the following link:
Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Independent - Salford)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will take steps is to promote (a) wider and (b) more accessible footpath access in (i) parks and (ii) other public spaces.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Local authorities already consider the needs of those with mobility problems when managing the public rights of way network for the area they are responsible for. They are required to produce rights of way improvement plans which must set out how the public rights of way network will provide a better experience for users including those with mobility problems.
The King Charles III England Coast Path and the new Coast to Coast National Trail will be made as accessible as possible where it is feasible to do so.
Asked by: Phil Brickell (Labour - Bolton West)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to extend the right to roam.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Our countryside and green spaces are a source of great national pride, but too many across the country are left without access to the great outdoors. That is why the last Labour Government expanded public access by introducing the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000, which provided the public a right of access to large areas of mountain, moor, heath, down, registered common land and coastal margin in England. 2024 marks 75 years since the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act, which secured public access and preserved natural beauty.
This Government will continue to increase access to nature for families to enjoy, boosting people’s mental and physical health and leaving a legacy for generations to come. We will create nine new National River Walks, plant three new National Forests and empower communities to create new parks and green spaces in their communities with a new Community Right to Buy. We will announce further details on our plans for improving access to nature in due course.
Asked by: Ayoub Khan (Independent - Birmingham Perry Barr)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the state of nature in national parks.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The new Government is committed to making Protected Landscapes greener, wilder and more accessible. We are currently considering the best way to do this.
To support this, Defra is working with the National Parks and National Landscapes to improve data on the state of nature in Protected Landscapes.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what data her Department holds on the (a) number of units of housing stock, (b) population and (c) area in square miles in each local planning authority area.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Ministry publishes an annual release entitled ‘Dwelling Stock Estimates, England’, with estimates of the number of dwellings in each local authority, as at 31 March in each year since 2001, shown in Live Table 125 at the following link.
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-dwelling-stock-including-vacants
The statistics use the Census as a baseline and apply annual net changes to the dwelling stock as measured by the related Housing supply: net additional dwellings statistics (which is collected for each local authority district, resulting in complete coverage for England).
The Ministry does not collect or hold dwelling stock estimates for those Local Planning Authorities that are National Parks or development corporations.
The Office for National Statistics hold and publish data on population and area in various administrative geographies at the following links.
https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationestimates
https://geoportal.statistics.gov.uk/
Asked by: Joshua Reynolds (Liberal Democrat - Maidenhead)
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 her Department's report entitled The impact of a change in the maximum park home sale commission, published on 16 June 2022, whether her Department has taken steps to review the efficacy of local authority enforcement for parks; and whether she plans to introduce a national enforcement body.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer I gave to Question UIN 1177 on 31 July 2024.
Asked by: Munira Wilson (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)
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 her Department’s open consultation entitled proposed reforms to the National Planning Policy Framework and other changes to the planning system, published on 2 August 2024, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending compulsory purchase compensation rules to allow local authorities to procure land for use as (a) parks and (b) playing fields.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Local authorities have powers under the Local Government Act 1972, Town and Country Planning Act 1990 and Education Act 1996 to compulsory purchase land for parks and playing fields providing there is a compelling case in the public interest. Compensation paid will reflect open market value. Under compensation rules, any increase or decrease in value caused by the compulsory purchase must be discounted from the open market value of the land taken.
Local authorities acquiring land under the Education Act 1996 can seek directions from the Secretary of State to remove ‘hope value’ from compensation where justified in the public interest. They can also seek directions to remove hope value when acquiring land under the Local Government Act 1972 or Town and Country Planning Act 1990 providing the use of the land will include provision of affordable housing. For example, a mixed-use scheme including mixed tenure housing, parks, open spaces.
Further reform of compulsory purchase compensation rules will be included in the forthcoming Planning and Infrastructure Bill. Announcements on the timing of that Bill will be made in the normal way in due course.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
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 to help ensure the protection of green spaces in the London Borough of Havering.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Havering is one of the greenest boroughs in London, this has been recognised through the MHCLG-owned Green Flag Awards Scheme, with 16 Havering sites being awarded Green Flag status. This Green Flag Award sets the national standard for parks and green spaces that are welcoming, safe, well-maintained and promote biodiversity and community participation.
The Government’s National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) allows communities to designate land as Local Green Space, in order to protect green areas that are important to them. Designating land as Local Green Space should be consistent with the local planning of sustainable development and complement investment in sufficient homes, jobs and other essential services. We are consulting on ‘golden rules’ in relation to grey and green belt release to ensure development benefits communities and nature.