Housing, Communities and Local Government Ministers were answering
questions in the Commons. Subjects covered included... Affordable
Housing Local Government Funding Midlands Engine
One Yorkshire New Homes High-rise Buildings:
Cladding Local Authority Finances Homelessness
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Housing, Communities and Local Government Ministers were answering
questions in the Commons. Subjects covered included...
To read any of these in greater detail, click on the link or see
below.
Affordable Housing
-
(Bath) (LD)
1. For what reasons his Department underspent on affordable
housing schemes in 2017-18. [905022]
-
The Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local
Government (James Brokenshire)
The affordable homes programme is a bid-led programme and
spending within a financial year may vary from budget based
on the number of bids. This is standard budget management
practice. We are investing more in affordable homes, with
an additional £2 billion provided last year, taking the
programme to over £9 billion. That funding will support
housing associations and local authorities to build more
affordable homes where they are needed most.
-
May I add my condolences to the family of the former
Speaker?
I congratulate the new Secretary of State on taking on this
important role—we all know how important it is. Some £800
million was sent back from the Department to the Treasury
this year. Will the new Secretary of State ensure that the
Department budget is actually spent, so that we can get on
with building the thousands of council homes—I stress
council homes, because we all know that only council homes
are truly affordable—we need for the millions of people who
cannot afford their own home?
-
I thank the hon. Lady for her kind words and wishes. May I
also associate myself with your words, Mr Speaker, on the
former Speaker Michael Martin? He was the Speaker when I
first joined this House, and I know what a kind and
supportive man he was to hon. Members right across the
House, in particular new Members. I know what a sad loss he
is.
In response to the hon. Lady’s question, I point to the £9
billion I highlighted, and to the fact that in 2016-17
41,530 affordable housing homes were completed, which is
27% higher than in the previous year. I underline the
commitment given by my predecessor, to whom I pay tribute
for his work. We will continue to focus on building homes
for the future, including affordable homes, and raising
aspirations.
-
(Bromley and
Chislehurst) (Con)
I too associate myself with your comments, Mr Speaker,
about the late Lord Martin. He was particularly kind to me
when I arrived here after a by-election. I especially
welcome the return of my good friend and constituency
neighbour to the Treasury Bench, which is where he
deservedly belongs.
Does my right hon. Friend agree that the key to
affordability is increasing supply? Does he recognise, as a
fellow London MP, that the Government devolved the
strategic housing pot to the Mayor of London? Does he share
my concern that while housing starts in the rest of the
country have risen, in London, under the current Labour
Mayor, they have fallen?
-
My hon. Friend makes a very important point about the
flexibilities this Government have sought to put in place
to deal with the essential issue of housing, which will be
a core priority for me in the time ahead. I thank him for
his kind wishes. Investment and flexibility will make a
difference, provided they are taken up and we have
partnership across the country, in delivering the homes
people need.
-
Ms (Wallasey) (Lab)
I welcome the right hon. Gentleman to his place. Does his
Department have any targets for the number of affordable
houses? Will he promise to take a look at the definition of
affordable, which is at far too high a price under this
Government?
-
The hon. Lady will know that our ambition is to get
building up to about 300,000 homes a year. That is the real
focus and commitment of this Government. Yes, it is about
affordability and it is about ensuring that people have a
positive sense for the future about getting into the
housing market, and that is what this Government are
determined to do.
-
Sir (New Forest West)
(Con)
Will my right hon. Friend encourage planners to negotiate
higher proportions of affordable housing in new
developments?
-
I will certainly reflect on the feedback that I receive
from across the House in the days ahead. These are just the
first few hours of my tenure in this role, but I will
listen closely to the comments from my right hon. Friend
and others, and certainly, as we look at the national
planning policy framework, we will consider those matters
carefully.
-
(Wentworth and Dearne)
(Lab)
Although all Speakers become politically neutral, Labour
Members welcome and endorse with particular strength your
tribute to our former colleague, Michael Martin, as well as
your condolences to Mary and the family, Mr Speaker.
I warmly welcome the new Housing Secretary; it is good to
see him back. He has a big job to do and the Opposition
wish him all the very best in doing it. The hon. Member for
Bath (Wera Hobhouse) was right to highlight Labour’s
analysis of his predecessor’s pathetic surrender of housing
cash to the Chancellor. It shows the new Secretary of
State’s real challenge: the huge cut in housing
investment—from £4 billion in 2010 to less than £500
million now—and the huge fall in genuinely affordable new
homes to rent and buy. Will the right hon. Gentleman at
least make the modest commitment that while he is Housing
Secretary, we will build more new social rented homes than
we lose?
-
I thank the right hon. Gentleman for his warm welcome to
me. As he will know, it has certainly been a challenging
personal few months for me, and that is why I am so
delighted to have been given this new responsibility on
such an important policy issue, as he rightly points out. I
point him to the fact that, with the £2 billion that was
added last year, this Government are investing £9 billion
in affordable homes. I also draw his attention to the fact
that more affordable homes have been delivered in the last
seven years than were in the last seven years of the last
Labour Government. We will continue to have that focus on
building more homes and on building more affordable homes,
too.
-
The record is clear: 40,000 new genuinely affordable social
rented homes were started by councils and housing
associations in Labour’s last year in government, and fewer
than 1,000 were backed by his Government last year. Does
the Secretary of State not accept that the housing crisis
demands that both central Government and local government
do much more? In this local elections week, will he confirm
a couple of important facts? Labour councils build five
times more council homes than Conservative councils, and
Labour councils get 50% more homes of all types built than
Conservative councils, so does he agree that to fix the
housing crisis, it is clear that we need more Labour
councils and more Labour councillors to be elected on
Thursday?
-
Even Labour councils build more homes under a Conservative
Government. The right hon. Gentleman does raise the
important issues of housing supply, the housing challenges
that we need to meet, and the roles of national Government
and local government. I very much look forward to working
with local government to make sure that we deliver on that
agenda, because that is what this country needs and what
will make a difference to people’s lives.
Local Government Funding
-
(Stafford) (Con)
2. What steps his Department is taking to ensure fairness
in the allocation of funding to local government. [905023]
-
(Havant) (Con)
11. What steps his Department is taking to ensure fairness
in the allocation of funding to local government. [905034]
-
The Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local
Government (James Brokenshire)
We are undertaking a fair funding review of local
authorities’ relative needs and resources to address
concerns about the fairness of the current system. We are
making good progress in collaboration with the sector to
introduce a simple, fair and transparent funding formula.
-
I congratulate my right hon. Friend on his appointment and
welcome the news on the progress of fair funding, but will
he look carefully at running more business rates retention
pilots, particularly in my area of Staffordshire and
Stoke-on-Trent, as I believe they provide at least a
short-term answer to unfair funding?
-
I thank my hon. Friend for raising this issue. I welcome
Staffordshire’s interest in future business rates retention
pilots, and I hope it applies when the prospectus for
2019-20 pilots is issued. As the prospectus is open to all
local authorities, as I think he knows, the decision on
which applications are successful can be made only once
they have all been considered, but obviously I will be
examining the matter closely.
-
I congratulate my right hon. Friend on his appointment. He
will know that about one third of households in my Havant
constituency contain an older person. Will he confirm that
under his leadership the social care precepts and the
better care fund will mean an extra £4 billion for social
care in this Parliament, and will he continue to work with
Hampshire County Council’s adult services department?
-
I know that my hon. Friend and other hon. Members from
across the House care deeply about this subject. As he will
be aware, in February my predecessor announced an
additional £150 million for adult social care, which means
that councils now have access to £9.4 billion in dedicated
adult social care funding over three years.
-
Mr (Coventry South)
(Lab)
Is the Secretary of State aware—and has he had a word with
the Secretary of State for Education about it—that there
are schools in Coventry that cannot afford school meals
provision? What is he going to do about that?
-
I know that there are pressures in areas such as children’s
social services and I am aware of the joined-up work my
Department is doing with the Education Department. I look
forward to talking to Cabinet colleagues about some of
these overlapping issues. I am sure the hon. Gentleman will
understand that, in the short time since my appointment, I
have not had a chance to do that, but I will certainly be
doing so.
-
(Hornsey and Wood
Green) (Lab)
The Office for National Statistics defines Haringey and
other similar boroughs as inner-London boroughs because of
their demographics and socioeconomic characteristics.
Despite that, Haringey is excluded from the Government’s
definition of an inner-London borough. Will the Secretary
of State look at that carefully in his funding review so
that boroughs such as Haringey can be brought up in line
with the Islingtons and Camdens?
-
I will be looking at several issues as part of the fair
funding review. The hon. Lady makes an interesting point,
which I will consider as part of the overall review, and I
am grateful to her for flagging it up.
-
(Newbury) (Con)
The business rates retention pilot has been a lifeline to
hard-pressed West Berkshire Council. Will my right hon.
Friend also continue his predecessor’s pledge to tackle
negative revenue support grant, because that will have a
huge impact on hard-pressed local authorities?
-
I am grateful to my right hon. Friend for highlighting the
business rates retention pilots. We are looking at the
issue he raises quite closely and will be making further
announcements in the coming weeks.
-
(Denton and Reddish)
(Lab)
I echo your lovely words of condolence to the family of
Michael Martin, Mr Speaker.
I welcome the right hon. Gentleman’s reappointment to
Cabinet. He has two shadow Secretaries of State to contend
with, and I look forward to working with him and holding
him and his Ministers to account on all things communities
and local government. His appointment should bring a fresh
approach to the crisis engulfing local government. He will
know that Tory Northamptonshire is effectively insolvent
and that Tory Worcestershire is now also experiencing
financial pressure, with its chief executive saying last
week that
“there comes a point where cost-cutting can’t go any
further—there has to be a solution, and I think it has to
be a national solution.”
Given that the pressures on children’s services and adult
social care, alongside a 50% cut in their Government grant
funding, are exacerbating these problems, will he now do
what his predecessor failed to do and demand of the
Chancellor of the Exchequer the funding that our
councils—all of them—so desperately need?
-
I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his welcome. In
some ways, local government is in my blood: my father was
the chief executive of a council, and some of the current
debates about councils are ones that I had as a boy,
believe it or not.
-
Mr Speaker
It sounds as though mealtimes chez Brokenshire were
enormous fun.
-
Let’s not overdo it, Mr Speaker.
I hoped that the hon. Member for Denton and Reddish (Andrew
Gwynne) would welcome the additional funds that have been
given to councils for core spending. They constitute an
important statement from the Government, who have given
councils a real-terms increase in recognition of the
challenges that they face. I hope the hon. Gentleman will
also note the forthcoming social care Green Paper, which
will enable us to engage in a further and broader debate
about long-term funding for social care.
Midlands Engine
-
(North East Derbyshire)
(Con)
3. What steps his Department is taking to deliver economic
growth through the midlands engine. [905024]
-
(Walsall North)
(Con)
5. What steps his Department is taking to deliver economic
growth through the midlands engine. [905026]
-
The Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local
Government (James Brokenshire)
In recent months, we have launched the £250 million
midlands engine investment fund and agreed on a second
devolution deal with the West Midlands combined authority.
-
I, too, congratulate the Secretary of State on his
appointment. Does he agree that the right infrastructure
must be provided to support the economic growth to which he
has referred? Although he is new to his post, may I give a
quick plug to a bid from my part of the world, north-east
Derbyshire, for a housing infrastructure fund to regenerate
the Staveley area further, and will he commit himself to
reviewing that closely when he comes to make a decision?
-
Obviously, my hon. Friend’s particular focus is on
Derbyshire. The right social and physical infrastructure is
indeed vital to driving sustainable and significant housing
growth, and the £5 billion housing infrastructure fund will
unlock up to 600,000 homes. This is a competitive process,
but I am committed to funding the projects that will have
the greatest impact.
-
(Walsall North)
(Con)
The midlands seem to be leading the way in economic growth
and job creation. Will the Secretary of State join me in
celebrating, with , the West Midlands
combined authority and the midlands engine, the local
achievement of 6.8% of gross value added, given that the
national figure is 2.4%?
-
I will. and the West Midlands
combined authority have been pivotal to the success of the
midlands engine. The number of businesses in the west
midlands has increased by 9% since 2016, and its second
devolution deal includes a £53 million allocation to
prepare land and deliver jobs and housing throughout the
Black country, including my hon. Friend’s constituency.
One Yorkshire
-
(Keighley) (Lab)
4. What assessment he has made of the potential merits of
the proposal from 18 Yorkshire councils for a One Yorkshire
devolution settlement. [905025]
-
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Housing,
Communities and Local Government (Jake Berry)
Last month, high-level proposals were received from some
councils in Yorkshire about the so-called One Yorkshire
devolution deal. We are considering those proposals
carefully and will respond to the authorities in due
course.
-
Does the Minister accept that it is now the settled will of
the vast majority of councils in Yorkshire, and the vast
majority of the people there, that we move towards a One
Yorkshire devolution settlement, and will he encourage the
new Secretary of State to initiate talks with the Yorkshire
councils so that he will be ever remembered as the man who
delivered the first elected mayor to the white rose county?
-
The hon. Gentleman is something of a Mystic Meg of the
Labour party. Unlike him, I want the people of South
Yorkshire to have their say in the elections next Thursday.
The Conservative candidate, , has said:
“This is a golden opportunity to show what South Yorkshire
can do.”
The Labour candidate thinks that it should be a part-time
job, and the Labour authorities are fighting with each
other so much that they cannot agree on what power or money
the mayor of South Yorkshire should have.
-
(Shipley) (Con)
As the Minister will know, Yorkshire is a massive county—by
far the biggest in the country. What assessment has he made
of the ability of one mayor to cover effectively the whole
of such a big county? My dad had the privilege of being the
Mayor of Doncaster for a while, and that was a pretty
full-on job for him, so how on earth can one person do the
job effectively and look after the interests of the whole
of Yorkshire? What level of bureaucracy and cost would be
incurred by a single mayoral office for the whole of
Yorkshire?
-
I would not like to be drawn on responding to the
high-level proposals we have received, but I will say this:
later this year the city of Leeds will be the only core
city in the north of England that has not benefited from
devolution, and that is a terrible shame for everyone who
lives in West Yorkshire.
-
(Kingston upon Hull
North) (Lab)
Does the Minister recognise that the Humber economic area
has to be included in any devolution deal for Yorkshire
because of the energy estuary, which is vital to the
northern powerhouse?
-
All of these devolution deals are ground-up, and if people
from Hull and the Humber come to the Government with
proposals for devolution for that area, the Government will
of course look at them in the way that they do all
devolution proposals.
New Homes
-
Sir (Southend West) (Con)
6. What progress his Department has made on delivering more
new homes. [905027]
-
The Minister for Housing (Dominic Raab)
Last year 217,000 new homes were delivered, which is the
highest rate in all but one of the last 30 years, but we
are restless to do more and get that level up to 300,000
per year by the mid-2020s.
-
Sir
I join others in welcoming my right hon. Friend the new
Secretary of State on his return to Government, and trust
that he will not forget his Essex roots.
Conservative-controlled Southend-on-Sea Borough Council is
keen to deliver as many new affordable homes as possible,
so will my hon. Friend the Minister encourage local
authorities to engage with innovative schemes that benefit
the wider community, such as ZEDGeneration and the
Ferdinand brothers legacy project?
-
We encourage all ambitious local authorities to be as
innovative as possible, and my hon. Friend will know that
in 2016 Southend council received £122,000 and Genesis
Housing Association £420,000 for the regeneration of the
centre of Southend, and that includes Conservative plans
for more affordable homes.
-
(York Central)
(Lab/Co-op)
21. City of York Council is about to submit its local plan,
but has seriously undercut Government figures for the
number of houses to be built and has relied on transport
data that is 10 years old. So as the local plan goes
through Government processes, will the Minister ensure that
parties across the political spectrum, including Labour,
can be part of the conversation? [905046]
-
We want York to get its local plan in place; that is the
best thing for the community, as it gives certainty and a
greater chance of those homes being delivered. A local
authority statement of community involvement is an
essential part of that process and it will be tested
against the statement in due course.
-
Mr (Hertford and Stortford)
(Con)
My constituents recognise that we need more homes but are
concerned about overstretched infrastructure and public
services. What are the Government doing to ensure that
those areas that are willing to build the most homes will
get the maximum amount of funding for new infrastructure
and public services?
-
My hon. Friend is absolutely right, and that is why we have
brought forward £5 billion of approved funding for
infrastructure funding—both viability funding and forward
funding—which will unlock 600,000 new homes. The criteria
are calibrated to make sure that the investment goes where
there is the greatest demand for homes and where we can
deliver the most homes and the best bang for the taxpayers’
buck.
-
(High Peak) (Lab)
When the Minister looks at new housing, will he ensure that
it is actually affordable to constituents on average
incomes? Will he also look at the position of leasehold
homes, which are still being sold in my constituency, in
spite of commitments from the previous Secretary of State,
because those homes are not affordable on an ongoing basis?
-
The No. 1 way to improve the affordability of homes is to
increase the supply, which is why our agenda is to get the
number of new homes built per year up to 300,000. I looked
at the Labour party’s Green Paper and it seems to suggest
going back in the overall number of homes delivered each
year. As the Secretary of State has already said, we have
delivered more affordable homes in the past seven years
than were delivered in the last seven years of the previous
Labour Government.
-
Mr (South Norfolk)
(Con)
Will the Minister meet me and other members of the Right to
Build Expert Task Force—one member is one of his own civil
servants—so that we can brief him on the great work it is
doing in increasing housing numbers and improving quality
and customer choice?
-
I thank my hon. Friend for his question. We are keen to see
diversity in the housing market. It will be one of the key
drivers for building more homes and getting more affordable
homes, and I will be happy to meet him in due course.
High-rise Buildings: Cladding
-
(Hammersmith)
(Lab)
7. What estimate he has made of the number of high-rise
residential buildings that have had dangerous cladding
removed and replaced. [905028]
-
The Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local
Government (James Brokenshire)
Our first priority is the safety of residents. The
remediation of buildings with aluminium composite material
cladding is a complex process, and it is important that we
get this right. Of the 158 social housing buildings, 104
have started remediation, and seven of those have finished
the remediation work.
-
With his new authority, would the Secretary of State agree
that it would give more certainty and speed up the process
if he were to say that only non-combustible class A1
materials should be used for external construction, as is
the case in the rest of Europe? I doubt that he would live
in a building that was clad in combustible or partially
combustible material, so why should my constituents do so?
-
I understand the reasons for the hon. Gentleman making
those points. At the outset, I want to underline my
commitment to giving priority to these issues. This has
been an utter tragedy, and our priority has to be—as it was
with my predecessor—to ensure that survivors and
communities receive all the support that they need. He will
be aware that the Hackitt review is looking at a range of
issues, and I would not want to prejudge that review, but
he makes an important point and I am sure that it will be
examined.
-
(Worthing West)
(Con)
The Secretary of State has referred to his father, who was
respected for his work in the Local Government Commission
and the Audit Commission, and as chief executive of the
London Borough of Greenwich, where, when I was there, he
helped to get cladding for the Nightingale Vale tower
block, enabling people to spend £5 a week to be warm rather
than £30 a week to be cold. When the Secretary of State is
bedded in, will he look at the problem of
tenant/leaseholders in private blocks, where freeholders
and others who own the freehold such as developers seem to
fail to understand that tenants cannot be expected to pay
the cost of recladding their buildings?
-
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his comments about my
father and his sense of focus and dedication as a public
servant. My hon. Friend makes a point about the private
sector and about landlords and those who own buildings
seeking to pass on those costs. I would say clearly that
the costs should not be passed on to leaseholders. They
should be borne by the owners in the same way that local
authorities and public sector buildings are maintaining
that approach. I welcome the decision from one property
developer, Barratt, to pay for remediation costs, and I
hope that others will follow its lead.
-
(Great Grimsby)
(Lab)
On 17 June last year, the Prime Minister said:
“My Government will do whatever it takes to…keep our people
safe.”
Plymouth Community Homes says that its request for funding
to replace cladding has been turned down, and it is not
alone. We have heard the same thing from local authorities
up and down the country. Will the Secretary of State update
the House today on how many funding applications to replace
cladding have been approved by his Department, in order to
demonstrate that it is doing all it takes?
-
As the hon. Lady will know, I am relatively new in post,
but I will investigate the specific question that she has
raised and respond to her. Obviously our commitment remains
to working with local councils on this important issue.
Local Authority Finances
-
(Manchester, Withington)
(Lab)
8. What assessment he has made of the financial
sustainability of local authorities in 2018-19. [905030]
-
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Housing,
Communities and Local Government (Rishi Sunak)
Local government will have access to more than £45 billion
in core spending power in this financial year. In addition,
local authorities estimate that they will keep around £2.4
billion in business rates growth.
-
I watched the Secretary of State’s impressive and moving
speech in an Adjournment debate last week, and I know that
the whole House will be pleased to see him in good health
and back in his place. However, he is going to have to do
better than his predecessor at supporting local government,
because councils across the country are in
crisis-management mode. They are raiding reserves to
support revenue expenditure, and that is simply not
sustainable. As Tory councils go bust, will he join me in
congratulating Manchester’s Labour council on its excellent
financial management in the face of some of the harshest
and most unfair Government cuts faced by any council in the
country under the Tories and the Liberal Democrats?
-
I hope that Manchester is willing to thank this
Conservative Government for backing it with the resources
it needs: £13 million in housing infrastructure funds, £30
million for adult social care and, indeed, a business rates
pilot that is delivering £20 million, benefiting businesses
across Manchester. Those are the actions of a Conservative
Government who are delivering for people across the
country.
-
Neil O’Brien (Harborough) (Con)
If Leicestershire was as well funded as London’s Camden
Council, it would be £350 million a year better off. Does
the Minister agree that the only way of making good
councils financially sustainable is to have a fair funding
formula, with transparent formulae and up-to-date data?
Will he look closely at the Leicestershire model for
bringing that about?
-
I could not agree more, and it was a pleasure to meet his
local council to understand its model. It has a lot to
commend it, and we will consider it as part of our fair
funding consultation.
-
(Kingston upon Hull West
and Hessle) (Lab)
I am pleased that Labour’s Hull City Council rejected the
Secretary of State’s predecessor and the local Liberal
Democrat councillors’ proposal to spend all its reserves,
because we have seen in Northamptonshire how badly that can
go wrong. Does the new Secretary of State accept that
spending the reserves is an incredibly bad idea?
-
It is worth pointing out that council reserves across the
country have actually increased over the past few years and
that it is of course for local authorities to decide what
prudent level of drawing down may be possible in any given
year.
-
Mr (Wellingborough)
(Con)
The previous Secretary of State was minded to put
commissioners into Northamptonshire County Council. Will
the excellent Minister update the House on when that may
happen and by what method the House will be notified?
-
I thank my hon. Friend for his question; I know that he is
following this matter carefully, as are his colleagues from
across Northamptonshire. The Department and the new
Secretary of State will consider all the representations
received over the past couple of weeks, and we will be
making an announcement shortly, most likely through a
written ministerial statement.
-
Mr (Sheffield South East)
(Lab)
I wish the Secretary of State all the best in his new role
and for his future health.
Despite the figures that the Minister has given, the Local
Government Association says that there is a £5 billion
funding gap in local government finances from 2020, and the
National Audit Office says that the position is financially
unsustainable. Will he therefore look carefully at the
Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee’s
recommendation about business rate retention? When business
rate retention changes from 50% to 75%, instead of using
that to cut public health grants and other grants, we say
that local authorities should be allowed to keep the extra
money so that they can properly meet the rising demand for
social care for the elderly, for looked-after children and
for people with disabilities.
-
It was a pleasure to work with the hon. Gentleman’s
Committee, and I look forward to reading its report in
detail—I thank the Committee for its work. As for the
quantum of funding, he tempts me to pre-empt the results of
the spending review, which is due next year. That will be
the time to consider his point.
Homelessness
-
(Thornbury and Yate)
(Con)
9. What steps his Department is taking to reduce
homelessness. [905031]
-
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Housing,
Communities and Local Government (Mrs Heather
Wheeler)
Tackling homelessness is a key priority for this
Government, which is why we are spending over £1.2 billion
through to 2020, we have implemented the most ambitious
legislative reform in decades—the Homelessness Reduction
Act 2017 —and we will be publishing our rough sleeping
strategy by July this year.
-
I welcome the Minister’s response and the update on the
Government’s work. Will she update the House on the
progress of the “Housing First” pilots?
-
Mrs Wheeler
The pilots will support some of the most entrenched rough
sleepers in our society to end their homelessness. We are
nearing the end of a detailed implementation and planning
process with the three regions, and I look forward to
updating the House further in due course.
-
(Dulwich and West
Norwood) (Lab)
The Homelessness Reduction Act came into force this month,
but many councils have raised concerns that the new burdens
funding that the Government have allocated is simply not
sufficient for the full implementation of the Act. The
Secretary of State is new in his post, but the causes of
homelessness under this Government are not going away, so
may I urge him to take an early look at the Government’s
decision to review the funding only at the end of the
current two-year period?
-
Mrs Wheeler
I thank the hon. Lady for that rant. Unfortunately, I have
a feeling that she might be—what is the word we are looking
for? [Interruption.] Some of the most important parts of
the Act will be implemented in October, so councils have
six months to get their places in order.
-
Mr Speaker
We probably will not reach the end of the Order Paper and
it would be sad to be deprived of the intellect and
eloquence of the right hon. Member for Harlow (Robert
Halfon), so if he wishes to come in now, he can.
-
(Harlow) (Con)
20. My hon. Friend the Minister will be aware of the
excellent homeless shelter in Harlow called Streets2Homes.
What measures is she taking to support local homeless
shelters? [905045]
-
Mrs Wheeler
Homeless shelters will form part of the rough sleeping
strategy we are bringing out at the end of June or the
beginning of July. We expect there to be a sea change in
how all the different parts of the social sector, the
charitable sector and local government deal with rough
sleeping and homelessness. I think my right hon. Friend
will enjoy reading the rough sleeping strategy.
-
(Glasgow Central)
(SNP)
On behalf of the Scottish National party, I pay tribute to
Michael Martin. He was the MP for Dennistoun, where I
lived, and I pass on my own and my party’s condolences to
his friends and family and to the Glasgow Labour family,
who will miss him very much.
I welcome the Secretary of State back to the Government. He
is the third Secretary of State I have faced, which I am
sure everyone will agree is a clear sign of a strong and
stable Government.
Homelessness is soaring in England, but in Scotland there
has been a 38% reduction over the past 10 years. The
Minister recently visited Glasgow to discuss some of the
projects happening in the city I represent. Will she tell
the House a little more about what she learned on her
visit?
-
Mrs Wheeler
That is a very useful question—a fiver is in the post. One
of the reasons I went up to Glasgow is that, although
homelessness and rough sleeping had been reducing for four
years, there has been a blip and Glasgow and other areas
were not sure why there has been an increase in rough
sleeping, particularly in Glasgow. I was hugely impressed
by the work being done on rough sleeping by the charitable
sector and Glasgow City Council, particularly in
implementing their own version of Housing First. Glasgow
City Council and the charities are doing very innovative
work.
-
I thank the Minister for her kind words. I am sure the
sector in Glasgow will be pleased to hear what she has
learned.
Another group who struggle to get housing and therefore end
up in homelessness are those with insecure immigration
status, who often have no recourse to public funds. Can the
Minister tell us more about what her Government intend to
do to ensure that vulnerable men and women do not end up
sleeping in the streets because of the policies of the Home
Office?
-
Mrs Wheeler
The situation differs slightly in different parts of the
UK. There is Government funding for projects in England
that look after people who have indeterminate national
status. I honestly do not know whether the situation in
Scotland is a UK matter or a Scottish matter. I will have
to write to the hon. Lady on that issue.
Affordable Housing
-
(Brentford and
Isleworth) (Lab)
10. What assessment he has made of trends in the level of
central Government funding for affordable housing since
2010. [905033]
-
The Minister for Housing (Dominic Raab)
Over the past seven years the Government have delivered
357,000 affordable homes, more than in the last seven years
of the previous Government. Last year, the number of
affordable homes delivered was up by 27%.
-
The new Secretary of State skirted the opportunity to
address questions on social rented housing posed by my
right hon. Friend the Member for Wentworth and Dearne (John
Healey), so I will try again. In London in particular, for
those on average incomes and below, affordable housing
means only social rented housing—housing in which this
Government are now investing virtually nothing for the
first time since records began—so will the Secretary of
State work with the Treasury to ensure that the Government
go back to investing in social rented housing so that
councils and housing associations provide truly affordable,
good-quality homes and, by the way, cut the housing benefit
bill that is currently going to rip-off private landlords?
-
I gently remind the hon. Lady that more than 10,000 local
authority homes have been built since 2010, which is three
times more than were built under the last Labour
Government. We are investing a further £9 billion in
affordable homes up to 2021, we have raised the borrowing
caps on councils by £1 billion and we are giving local
authorities greater rental certainty from 2020.
-
(Chippenham)
(Con)
We must deliver more homes in my constituency, especially
affordable ones, so I would like to plug Chippenham’s
housing infrastructure fund bid. Does the Minister agree
that these new homes would serve as a vehicle to boost our
communities with the infrastructure and services that we
much need?
-
I thank my hon. Friend for that. She is absolutely right:
where local authorities have the ambition to get homes
built, it is right that they get support from central
Government infrastructure funding, so that we do not just
build the homes that our country needs but build up
stronger local communities with them.
Homelessness
-
(Torbay) (Con)
12. If he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of
steps to reduce street homelessness in Torbay. [905035]
-
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Housing,
Communities and Local Government (Mrs Heather
Wheeler)
As part of achieving our commitment to halve rough sleeping
by 2022 and eliminate it by 2027, we are working with local
authorities to deliver effective interventions. We recently
launched an expert multi- disciplinary team to support
local areas in reducing rough sleeping quickly. Our
homelessness advice and support team has also been
supporting local areas on the implementation of the
Homelessness Reduction Act 2017.
-
I thank my hon. Friend for her answer. She will be aware of
the work being done by the Torbay End Street Homelessness
campaign, based on a £400,000 grant from her Department for
a project to examine ways to end street homelessness. What
assessment has she made of the work done so far? What
further support will be available to reduce street
homelessness in Torbay?
-
Mrs Wheeler
I thank my hon. Friend for his follow-up question. We have
been working with Torbay on this project, which has
supported 70 rough sleepers into accommodation since its
launch in December 2016. The impact of the grant programme
will be evaluated. As I mentioned, we will be working
closely with areas through our new team and the forthcoming
cross-Government rough sleeping strategy. The team will be
visiting local areas in the coming weeks to discuss this
further.
-
(Vale of Clwyd)
(Lab)
rose—
-
Mr Speaker
The question was about Torbay, but as the Minister’s reply,
perfectly properly, broadened the subject matter, it is
legitimate to hear about the experience of the people of
the Vale of Clwyd.
-
When the right hon. Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip
(Boris Johnson) was London Mayor, he described Tory housing
policy in poor areas as “social cleansing”. Many of the
victims of that social cleansing have ended up on the
streets of Torbay, Rhyl, Prestatyn, Blackpool and other
seaside towns. What specific additional funds has the
Department made available to those seaside towns to deal
with that appalling legacy?
-
Mrs Wheeler
I think the hon. Gentleman will find it is a devolved
matter for the Welsh Government.
Adult Social Care
-
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Housing,
Communities and Local Government (Rishi Sunak)
Through the social care precept, the spring Budget last
year and the recent local government finance settlement,
councils will have access to £9.4 billion in dedicated
funding for adult social care over the three years 2017 to
2020.
-
May I associate myself with your kind words on the sad
passing of Michael Martin, Mr Speaker?
Does the Minister believe it is economically viable for
councils to continue to use what little reserves they have
left in the delivery of adult social care in their area?
-
I gently remind the hon. Gentleman of my earlier answer,
which was that council reserves are some £20 billion across
the country and are actually higher today than they were
when we came into office. Councils will be able to increase
spending on social care in real terms every year up to the
end of this Parliament, and we are already seeing the
results in action: delayed transfers of care are down by
34% in England. This is a Government who are delivering for
people across the country.
-
Mr (Kettering)
(Con)
Of the 575 beds in Kettering General Hospital, about 200
are occupied by patients, many of them elderly, who have
completed their treatment but await transfer to social and
other care. What can be done when the local county council
simply is not up to the job of making sure that social care
assessments are done in a timely way?
-
I am sure my hon. Friend will forgive me for not being
drawn on Northamptonshire specifically, given the
circumstances there and the decision to be made. In
general, he is absolutely right to highlight the importance
of getting people swiftly transferred to appropriate social
care. That has been a focus of the funding that the
Government have put in, and the better care fund is
ensuring that joined-up care is happening. As I have said,
delayed transfers of care are down by almost a third in the
past year.
-
(Halton) (Lab)
May I ask the Minister how many local authorities his
Department believes are close to not being able to carry
out their statutory responsibilities for adult social care?
-
None.
Northern Powerhouse
-
Mrs (South Shields)
(Lab)
14. What progress the Government have made on the delivery
of the northern powerhouse. [905037]
-
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Housing,
Communities and Local Government (Jake Berry)
Growing the whole north is crucial to the delivery of our
northern powerhouse. Since the northern powerhouse strategy
was launched, direct foreign investment in the north has
increased at a rate double that of the national average,
and unemployment throughout the north is now lower than the
national average.
-
Mrs Lewell-Buck
I thank the Minister for his response and extend to the new
Secretary of State an invitation to come to Shields and
explain to my constituents why, when the Government
launched the northern powerhouse four years ago, they
promised increased growth and increased employment, yet in
the time since, growth in Shields has been painfully slow
and unemployment stubbornly remains higher than in the rest
of the north-east.
-
I am a bit more optimistic for the north-east than the hon.
Lady, because we are now entering a new golden era for the
north-east, which can be seen in the Government’s
commitment of more than £300 million—[Interruption.] Does
the hon. Lady want to hear about what we are doing for the
north-east? That new golden era can be seen in the
Government’s commitment of more than £300 million to the
Tyne and Wear metro, which the hon. Lady campaigned for,
and in the historic devolution deal north of the Tyne. On
top of that, this summer the first great exhibition in this
country for 160 years will take place in
Newcastle-Gateshead, showing that the north-east is at the
heart of our northern powerhouse.
-
(Cleethorpes)
(Con)
17. Although the people of northern Lincolnshire want
nothing to do with the recreation of County Humberside or
being linked into Yorkshire, they are very happy to be part
of the northern powerhouse initiative. What specific
proposals does the Minister have that would benefit my
constituency? [905041]
-
We are already investing some £67 million in the Humber and
the Greater Lincolnshire local enterprise partnership, and
I note that £20 million of that is going into my hon.
Friend’s constituency. He will be aware that we committed
in the industrial strategy to work on a business case for a
Grimsby and Cleethorpes town deal. I hope that, in
demonstrating that success, we can put our northern power
towns at the heart of the northern powerhouse.
-
(Oldham West and Royton)
(Lab/Co-op)
There is no surprise that the lived experience of people in
Shields is of growth not happening, because when the
northern powerhouse was launched in 2014, Government
capital spending per person was £543 higher in London than
in the north-east. London has seen its investment increase
to £1,352 per person but, instead of the Government’s
closing the gap, the north-east saw a cut in capital
spending that increased the gap by 17% to £634 per person.
How can the Government credibly claim to be the champions
of the northern powerhouse when the evidence says that the
money has not followed?
-
I am certainly not going to take any lectures on the
northern powerhouse from the hon. Gentleman, because after
his election he described it as the “northern poorhouse”.
Unlike Opposition Members, the Government are behind the
north, not least by investing £13 billion in northern
transport—more than any Government in history, including
the Labour Government.
Topical Questions
-
(Blaydon) (Lab)
T1. If he will make a statement on his departmental
responsibilities. [905047]
-
The Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local
Government (James Brokenshire)
I am delighted to have been appointed to this new role to
deliver on housing—one of the Government’s top priorities
is creating great places to live. In the past few weeks, my
Department has announced important plans to tackle
unprofessional estate agents and rogue managing and letting
agents, as well as landlords who rent out dangerous and
overcrowded homes.
I applaud my Department’s contribution to the magnificent
Millicent Fawcett statue. The integrated communities
strategy and the recent very moving anti-Semitism debate
highlight the vital work being done to create a more united
country, free from bigotry.
-
I thank the new Secretary of State for his reply. Many
people in Blaydon constituency feel strongly that
green-belt land should be preserved, but without support
for remediation it can be difficult to build houses on
brownfield sites in former industrial areas, especially as
the housing infrastructure grant is competitive. What steps
is the Secretary of State taking to protect our green belt,
to encourage building on brownfield sites, and to prevent
building on parks and green spaces, as Bexley Council
proposes?
-
I am grateful to the hon. Lady for highlighting the
importance of the green belt, about which I agree, and I
share her desire to see more development on brownfield
land. Yes, there are issues relating to funding for
remediation, but there will obviously be careful
consideration of the national planning policy framework,
too.
-
Mr (Kettering)
(Con)
T2. The potholes in Kettering and across Northamptonshire
are absolutely terrible. What role does the Minister’s
Department have in liaising with the Department for
Transport to ensure that the millions of extra pounds that
local councils have been given to fill in potholes are
actually being spent and used correctly? [905049]
-
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Housing,
Communities and Local Government (Rishi Sunak)
My hon. Friend raises an absolutely excellent point. I know
that he will welcome the Government’s increased funding for
pothole remediation after the winter that we have had, but
I will take his point on board and ensure that local
authorities are deploying those funds as quickly as
possible.
-
(Makerfield)
(Lab)
A recent survey, the first of its kind, into the working
conditions of wellbeing and social workers, commissioned by
the British Association of Social Workers, makes for sorry
reading. Working conditions are described as extremely
poor, and it is noted that nine out of 10 social workers
work an average of almost 10 extra hours a week and that
more than half are looking to leave the profession. What is
the Minister doing to reduce the demands faced by social
workers to avoid a disastrous exodus of talent and
expertise?
-
The hon. Lady is right to point out the important work that
social workers do across the country in caring for some of
the more vulnerable in our society. I know that our
colleagues in the Department of Health and Social Care are
examining the exact issue that she mentions, and I am sure
they will be making a report in due course.
-
(Crawley) (Con)
T3. I very much welcome my right hon. Friend to his well
deserved position as Secretary of State; it is a good
appointment. In Crawley, Forge Wood is the newest
neighbourhood currently being developed, and will deliver
almost 2,000 houses. However, the infrastructure lag from
Persimmon Homes and Taylor Wimpey is too long. What can be
done to encourage developers to speed up the delivery of
that infrastructure? [905050]
-
The Minister for Housing (Dominic Raab)
I thank my hon. Friend. He will know that the Government
are putting £4.5 million infrastructure funding into the
Forge Wood scheme, but he is absolutely right that
developers must do their bit and keep their commitments. We
are looking at this both in the consultation on the
national planning policy framework and in developer
contributions. We want to see those developer contributions
treated more like contracts for delivery and less like the
starting point for an endless haggle with local councils.
-
(Linlithgow and East
Falkirk) (SNP)
T4. The chief inspector of borders and immigration
concluded in a report in March that the Government’s right
to rent scheme had failed “to demonstrate its worth” in
encouraging immigration compliance. Other research has
shown that 51% of landlords are now less likely to consider
letting to foreign nationals, so when will the Minister
scrap this discriminatory policy? [905051]
-
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Housing,
Communities and Local Government (Mrs Heather
Wheeler)
I will write to the hon. Gentleman.
-
(Kingswood)
(Con)
T5. More than 2,000 local residents signed my petition to
protect Hanham cricket club from the threat of development,
yet South Gloucestershire Council did not grant the site
local green space designation in their policies, sites and
places document due to a single objection from the
landowner. Will the Minister confirm that, on its own, a
landowner objection should not prevent treasured green
spaces from being granted local green space designation?
[905052]
-
The designation of a local green space needs to be
consistent with the local planning framework. Landowners
have an opportunity to make representations, but the final
decision on designation rests with the local authority.
-
(North West Durham)
(Lab)
T7. I am still in a bit of shock about the announcement
that it is a golden era for the north-east. Labour’s
housing Green Paper highlighted how 12,000 council and
housing association homes in the north-east, and almost
250,000 nationally, are classed as unfit for human
habitation. Can the Secretary of State explain why his
Government cut support for local authorities through the
decent homes programme, which saw repairs and improvements
on 1.4 million council homes? [905054]
-
In fact the latest figures show more people getting on to
the council housing ladder. Council waiting lists have been
reduced, and 95% of all local authority stock meets the
decent homes standard.
-
(Waveney) (Con)
T6. The all-party group on housing and care for older
people, which I co-chair with the noble , is launching later
this afternoon its report on the housing needs of older
people in rural areas, and it concludes that more work is
required. Will my right hon. Friend meet the noble lord, me
and the other inquiry members to consider how best to
implement the report’s recommendations? [905053]
-
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for flagging up this
important issue. I will certainly listen to the points that
have been made, look at the report and see what
consideration either I or my hon. Friend the Minister for
Housing can provide to engage in its recommendations.
-
(Brighton,
Kemptown) (Lab/Co-op)
T8. We are facing a housing crisis in both quantity and
quality. The Housing, Communities and Local Government
Committee outlined that one way to solve it would be
selective licensing. Brighton and Hove put in an
application in January, but five months later we are still
waiting for the Secretary of State’s approval for the
scheme. Will he make it one of his first acts in office to
sign off the scheme, so that we can get on with improving
our housing stock? [905055]
-
Mrs Wheeler
I thank the hon. Gentleman for his question on this very
important matter. We are actually reviewing all licensing
schemes across the whole country, and we will look into
this one and get a decision to him as quickly as possible.
-
Mr (Hazel Grove)
(Con)
What plans has my hon. Friend to tackle unfair leaseholds
retrospectively, so that my constituents on new-build
estates in Offerton and Strines get a better deal?
-
Mrs Wheeler
My family will be delighted by how much exercise I am
getting, jumping up and down.
We are committed to tackling unfair leasehold practices,
which is why we are working with the Law Commission to make
buying a freehold or extending a lease easier, faster,
fairer and cheaper. We want to ensure that leaseholders
have the right support to deal with onerous ground rent,
and will consider further action if developers’ schemes to
compensate individuals do not go far enough.
-
(Wythenshawe and Sale East)
(Lab)
T9. Given that local services face a funding gap of at
least £5.8 billion by 2019-20, when will the Minister
provide an update on the roll-out of the 100% business
rates retention pilots and end the uncertainty faced by
Manchester City Council and Trafford Council, which cover
my constituency? [905056]
-
I am delighted that Manchester, like several other
authorities, is a beneficiary of the Government’s 100%
business rates retention pilot, which is ensuring that
local authorities keep an extra £1 billion this year. We
will announce plans for a further round of pilots shortly
after the local elections.
-
Several hon. Members rose—
-
Mr Speaker
Ah, yes—the good doctor. I call .
-
(New Forest East)
(Con)
Thank you, Mr Speaker.
May I welcome the substantial central Government grants
that have been made in order to enable Jewish buildings to
be better protected? But given that three quarters of all
anti-Semitic incidents happen in Greater London and Greater
Manchester, will the new Secretary of State seek out the
Mayors of those two cities to see what more can be done to
protect their Jewish communities?
-
I am grateful to my right hon. Friend for raising this
significant and important issue. I pay tribute to the
Community Security Trust for its work in providing safety
and security in this area. I will certainly engage further
not just with my right hon. Friend but with local
government to ensure that we continue to make progress.
-
(Delyn) (Lab)
May I ask the Northern Powerhouse Minister when he expects
to make a further announcement about the northern
powerhouse commitment in relation to the growth deal in
north Wales?
-
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Housing,
Communities and Local Government (Jake Berry)
The north Wales growth deal is primarily the responsibility
of the Secretary of State for Wales. I am happy to update
the right hon. Gentleman by saying that we are making good
progress in looking at the proposals from local
authorities. Once we have completed that work, we will make
an announcement shortly about the next steps for all local
authorities involved.
-
Mr (Nuneaton) (Con)
There are five district councils in Warwickshire. Four are
Conservative-led and one—Nuneaton and Bedworth—is run by
Labour. Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council has the
highest district council tax precept of the five, and one
of the lowest satisfaction ratings. Does my right hon.
Friend therefore agree that Conservative councils deliver
better-quality services at a lower cost?
-
Absolutely. My hon. Friend makes a powerful and important
point about the benefits of Conservatives leading local
government.
-
(Enfield,
Southgate) (Lab)
Will the Minister acknowledge that youth offending teams
have achieved huge success in working with and supporting
young people to prevent them from getting involved in
crime? Will he therefore tell me why their funding has been
halved from £145 million in 2010-11 to just £72 million in
2017-18, and why councils are still waiting to receive
their youth justice grant allocations for 2018-19?
-
I am not aware of the particular grant mentioned by the
hon. Gentleman, but I am happy to look into it and write to
him in due course.
-
(Redditch) (Con)
The hon. Member for Denton and Reddish (Andrew Gwynne) has
now twice mentioned Worcestershire County Council and
Northamptonshire County Council in the same breath in this
place. Unfortunately, he seems to be trying to establish a
false narrative. Is the Secretary of State aware that I have
met Worcestershire County Council and received assurances
that its finances are on a stable footing? To suggest
otherwise seems simply to be scaremongering.
-
My hon. Friend puts it very well, as she has done on previous
occasions. It is not right to come to this place and
scaremonger with regard to ordinary residents’ services.
Worcestershire is delivering, and she is right to defend it.
-
(Garston and Halewood)
(Lab)
May I welcome the new Secretary of State to his post and wish
him well? Does he agree that no new house should be sold
leasehold? There is no excuse for it. What steps will he take
to help the many hundreds of thousands of people, including
my constituents, who are now being financially exploited by
their freeholds being sold on to dodgy characters?
-
Mrs Wheeler
I thank the hon. Lady for her very important question. The
scandal over feudal leaseholds on new build is absolutely
disgraceful. We are working very hard with the Law Commission
to change the rules as to how this should go forward. I am
delighted to say that some developers have got the point. In
South Derbyshire, we now have big signs up on new build
saying, “Freehold houses for sale here”.
-
(Harrogate and
Knaresborough) (Con)
Harrogate Borough Council recently dedicated an additional
£150,000 to tackle the root causes of local long-term
homelessness. The Harrogate Homeless Project runs the
initiative, which is called SAFE—Service for Adults Facing
Exclusion. It has been widely praised and we are already
seeing results. May I invite my right hon. Friend the
Secretary of State to come and visit the project to see for
himself the amazing results it is achieving?
-
I would be delighted to hear more about this project, which
sounds as though it is making a big difference. That is what
it is about: delivering on the ground.
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