Brownfield Land: Development Henry Smith (Crawley) (Con) 1. What
his policy is on the use of brownfield land for new
developments.(906509) The Secretary of State for Levelling Up,
Housing and Communities (Michael Gove) The Government strongly
encourage the reuse of suitable brownfield land. Our national
planning policy framework makes it clear that local authorities
should give substantial weight to the value of using suitable
brownfield land within settlements...Request free trial
Brownfield Land: Development
(Crawley) (Con)
1. What his policy is on the use of brownfield land for new
developments.(906509)
The Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
()
The Government strongly encourage the reuse of suitable
brownfield land. Our national planning policy framework makes it
clear that local authorities should give substantial weight to
the value of using suitable brownfield land within settlements
for homes and other identified needs. The Levelling Up and
Regeneration Bill will further empower local leaders to
regenerate urban centres by strengthening and adding to existing
measures.
Homes England proposes to build up to 10,000 houses on greenfield
sites west of Ifield in my constituency. What directive has my
right hon. Friend’s Department given to the executive agency
Homes England on the Department’s brownfield-first building
policy?
I am very grateful to my hon. Friend for raising that question. I
cannot go into individual planning cases, but Homes England is
leading a programme of urban regeneration. The work that we are
doing in London’s docklands and in Leeds, Sheffield,
Wolverhampton and other areas demonstrates our commitment both to
levelling up and to making sure that, for environmental and
economic reasons, we develop brownfield land first.
(Warley) (Lab)
My I help out the Secretary of State? He is aware of the Grove
Lane site on the Sandwell-Birmingham border, in which the West
Midlands Combined Authority and its Mayor are also interested. It
is opposite the new Midland Metropolitan University Hospital site
and it is an ideal brownfield site for housing. Will his
Department get on with it?
I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman, who refers to the
Mayor of the West Midlands Combined Authority, the only metro
Mayor to significantly exceed housing targets in the delivery of
new homes. He is that rare thing: a Labour MP who welcomes house
building in his own constituency. Of course I will support
him.
Mr Speaker
I call the Father of the House.
(Worthing West) (Con)
My right hon. Friend may know that, in Durrington in north-west
Worthing, more than 1,000 new homes have been built. Will he ask
his inspectors—and the Leader of the Opposition—to recognise that
Chatsmore Farm and Lansdowne Nurseries should not be built on? We
must have some green fields between one habitation and
another.
The Father of the House makes a very important point. Of course,
his beautiful constituency—situated as it is between the sea and
areas of outstanding natural beauty—has already seen significant
development and we do need to ensure that settlements have the
green belts around them protected.
(Westmorland and Lonsdale) (LD)
On developing brownfield sites, will the Secretary of State
consider giving powers to councils such as Westmorland and
Furness, and to planning authorities such as those in the
Yorkshire dales and the Lake district, to ensure exclusive
provision for affordable and social rented housing so that we do
not see communities such as ours dying out because all the houses
built end up being sold for second homes?
From his perspective as an assiduous constituency Member, the
hon. Gentleman makes a very good point, but may I commiserate
with him? At the recent Liberal Democrat conference, I am afraid
he was defeated, and his party adopted a housing policy that he
describes as Thatcherite. It is a source of sadness to me to be
outflanked on the right by the Liberal Democrats, but may I
welcome more defections to the Thatcherite cause from those who
once embraced my right hon. Friend the Member for South West
Norfolk () as one of their own?
(Witham) (Con)
My constituents are frustrated with the planning system in that,
although sites are allocated and protected in neighbourhood
plans, when applications come in, their concerns about those
sites are not listened to by local planning committees and by the
inspectorate. Will the Secretary of State tell my constituents in
Witham what measures are in place in local neighbourhood plans
and local development plans to protect these sites from being
built on, so that the focus is on brownfield sites first and
foremost?
My right hon. Friend makes a very important point. If her local
authority has an up-to-date plan, that is the best protection
against speculative development. If, however, a local authority
does not have a plan in place, there can be a presumption in
favour of sustainable development and that can be upheld by the
Planning Inspectorate, which could mean development on sites
where local communities do not wish to see it. That is why it is
so important for local authorities to adopt plans.
(Huddersfield)
(Lab/Co-op)
The Secretary of State is a very clever man, and he must know
that if there had been a large amount of brownfield land, it
would have been built on. The fact of the matter is that we in
this country must bite the bullet and build on land other than
brownfield, because there is not enough of it. Does he agree that
courage along with intellect would help us solve the housing
problem?
The hon. Gentleman is a man of independent mind, and he is
straying from Front-Bench policy by decreeing me a man of
intelligence—that is not the official Labour party position on
these issues—but I should say that he is right. It is not only
brownfield land that can be developed, but it must be brownfield
first, and there is significant room for additional brownfield
development if we invest in urban regeneration, which we are
doing.
Regional Inequalities: Coastal Communities
(Sefton Central) (Lab)
2. What assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the
Government’s levelling-up policies in reducing regional
inequalities. (906510)
(South Shields) (Lab)
17. What recent discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on
supporting coastal communities. (906525)
Mr Speaker
I welcome the Minister to the Dispatch Box.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Levelling Up,
Housing and Communities ()
Thank you very much, Mr Speaker. May I use this opportunity to
pay tribute to my predecessor, my hon. Friend the Member for
Bishop Auckland (), who bravely used this
moment to raise the challenges faced by people with chronic
migraine? I thank her for her work and wish her the best of
health. [Hon. Members: “Hear, hear!”]
We have established 12 levelling-up missions principally aimed at
tackling regional inequality and ensuring that, wherever someone
lives—in cities, towns, island, rural or coastal
communities—their opportunities are the same. Progress on the
missions will be formally reported through an annual report as
set out in our landmark Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill, which
returns to the House of Commons tomorrow.
The Secretary of State says that we must have infrastructure that
allows us to move towards zero-emission vehicles as quickly as
possible, but the biggest 14 cities in the north of England have
fewer electric vehicle charge points than the City of Westminster
alone. How does the chasm between the number of charge points in
London and those elsewhere demonstrate levelling up?
The hon. Gentleman will know of the £20 billion reserved for
transport investment in the north, and I am sure that some of
that can be dedicated towards electric vehicles.
Mrs Lewell-Buck
A conservative think-tank recently reported that coastal
communities such as mine have lower life expectancy, inadequate
transport links and people who are comparatively poorer. After
repeated rejections for towns and levelling-up moneys, are my
constituents not right to blame the Government of the last 13
years for this deliberate levelling down?
The hon. Lady, like me, represents a north-east coastal
community, and she will be aware of our devolution agreement with
the North East Combined Authority, which hopes to address some of
the challenges in her area.
Mr Speaker
I call Sir .
Sir (Rossendale and Darwen)
(Con)
Thank you, Mr Speaker—[Interruption.]
Mr Speaker
Order. Will the hon. Member for Stone ( ) sit down, please?
Sir
I congratulate my hon. Friend the Minister on his new post. May I
remind him of the huge opportunity and pent-up potential in
former industrial mill towns such as those in my constituency?
One of the most gratifying things about the Government’s
levelling-up programme has been how it has seen the potential in
towns such as Rossendale, Rawtenstall, Bacup and Darwen and
supported that with real money, with £120 million of town deal
money for Darwen and £17.8 million for Rossendale. Does he think
that this is the right Government to drive forward the ambition
of people who live in mill towns?
I completely agree with my right hon. Friend. This morning, I met
the leaders of Lancashire County Council, Blackburn with Darwen,
and Blackpool, and they all agree with me that a devolution
agreement in Lancashire will be fantastic. I am sure that you
agree as well, Mr Speaker.
Mr Speaker
I am sure that the Minister should meet the district leaders as
well.
(Rayleigh and Wickford)
(Con)
I welcome the Minister to his new job. Several months ago, Essex
MPs met his predecessor to talk about the possibility of a
combined authority for Essex. We were overwhelmingly against it.
The people of Essex do not want this ridiculous white elephant;
there is no demand from them. This is all being brought about by
some highly ambitious Essex county councillors and some officers
who think they would do well out of it. As most people in Essex
do not even know that it is going on, will he and his boss meet
me and other Essex MPs to hear our objections?
I am happy to meet my right hon. Friend.
(Barnsley Central) (Lab)
Given the Prime Minister’s recent announcement on High Speed 2,
when will local government leaders and Metro Mayors in the
midlands and north of England get to know what additional
resource they will get as a consequence?
That question is best answered by the Department for Transport,
but I will write to the hon. Gentleman when I have further
details.
(South Ribble)
(Con)
I am absolutely delighted to hear that the Minister met the
leaders of Lancashire County Council, and Blackburn with Darwen
and Blackpool councils this morning to discuss the enormous
opportunity that devolving transport and skills responsibility to
Lancashire presents. Will he and the whole of the Treasury Bench
look favourably upon this? It is an opportunity that we are keen
to take to deliver for people in Lancashire and South Ribble.
Mr Speaker
Maybe we could have a meeting with Lancashire MPs as well as
district leaders.
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for her question and to you, Mr
Speaker, for your point. I hope to meet Lancashire MPs next week
to discuss devolution. I hope that we are able to announce a
devolution deal in advance of Lancashire Day at the end of
November.
Mr Speaker
I call the shadow Minister.
(Liverpool, Wavertree)
(Lab)
I welcome the new Minister to his place. In the Secretary of
State’s address to his party conference there was barely a
mention of levelling up, and no mention whatsoever of the
Government’s 12 missions, which were central to the original
White Paper designed to tackle regional inequalities across
England. There now exists a gaping chasm between a transformative
change promised by the rhetoric of levelling up and the actual
reality. Is the truth of the matter not that Downing Street has
totally lost interest in that agenda, while the Department’s
leadership bumbles on directionless and toothless, its bold
promises unfulfilled and, in many cases, utterly disregarded?
I thank the hon. Lady for her kind words and her question, though
I completely disagree with her. At the party conference we
announced £1 billion for our long-term plan for towns, which will
help us level up towns right across the country. I hope she
welcomes that.
First-time Buyers
(Newcastle upon Tyne Central) (Lab)
4. What steps he is taking to support first-time buyers.
(906512)
The Minister of State, Department for Levelling Up, Housing and
Communities ()
The Government have a range of schemes available to first-time
buyers, including First Homes and shared ownership. The mortgage
guarantee scheme helps to increase the supply of 95%
loan-to-value mortgages. We have also doubled the threshold at
which stamp duty land tax becomes due to £250,000, and expanded
first-time buyer relief.
In West Fenham recently, Mr and Mrs Joyce told me how their
daughter and prospective son in-law had lived with them for five
years while they tried to realise their dream of home ownership.
Even after saving a deposit, the failure of the Minister’s
Government to build houses meant that they were constantly outbid
on the few homes available. Labour has set out plans to get
Britain building again. Will the Minister match our ambition, or
is living with the in-laws the new Tory dream?
The hon. Lady asks whether we will match Labour’s ambition. I
have news for her: from what I picked up from the Labour party
conference, it announced the same targets that we are getting on
with. I draw her attention to the fact that more than 860,000
households have been helped to purchase a home since spring 2010,
through Government-backed schemes including Help to Buy, Right to
Buy and First Homes.
(South Cambridgeshire)
(Con)
I welcome the new “young” Minister to his post. I want to attach
myself to tributes to his predecessor, my hon. Friend the Member
for Bishop Auckland (), who is sitting next to
me.
Last week, a freedom of information request showed that the Lib
Dem-Labour controlled Greater Cambridge Partnership, which
handles city deal money in my constituency, spent £4.7 million
developing plans for a congestion charge that was then dropped
because it was opposed basically by everyone. It also spent £16.5
million on the Cambridge South East Transport bus route, also now
dropped, and £18 million on new car parks, none of which are
actually open. That is a total so far of £160 million on
transport projects, and virtually none of them functioning. It is
now asking the Government for £200 million more. It is no wonder
that in Cambridge and South Cambridgeshire, people think that the
Greater Cambridge Partnership is unelected, unaccountable and a
waste of public money. Does the Minister agree that we have to
ensure public value for money? Will he meet me to talk about the
details?
Mr Speaker
Order. That question is too long, and I am not quite sure how it
fits in with first-time buyers.
I will ask the Minister later.
Mr Speaker
I don’t think you will.
Green Spaces: Protection
(Harrogate and Knaresborough)
(Con)
6. What steps his Department is taking to protect green spaces.
(906514)
(Keighley) (Con)
7. What steps his Department is taking to protect green spaces.
(906515)
(Newcastle-under-Lyme)
(Con)
13. What steps his Department is taking to protect green spaces.
(906521)
The Minister of State, Department for Levelling Up, Housing and
Communities ()
Through the Levelling Up Parks Fund we have made available £9
million for local authorities in areas of high deprivation to
create or significantly refurbish green spaces. The fund also
includes the planting and maintaining of trees and encourages
projects to work towards green flag award status.
I thank the Minister for that answer. What steps is she taking to
ensure that proposed sites for housing that are completely
unsuitable for reasons of biodiversity or lack of access or
proximity to a site of special scientific interest are not taken
forward and built upon? Although this is a national, not local,
question, I am thinking particularly of a contentious application
on Water Lane in Knaresborough, which has previously been
refused.
My hon. Friend will, I hope, understand that I cannot comment on
that specific case or situation, but it is really important that
local authorities make decisions according to their local plans,
as my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State set out earlier.
If local authorities have a plan in place, it allows them to set
out where they would like to see development that benefits their
natural environment take place.
In England, we have also set out that from January 2024
biodiversity net gain will apply to mitigate the impact of major
development. That requires developers to deliver 10% biodiversity
net gain.
In 10 days’ time Bradford Council is likely to give the green
light to yet more houses to be built in Silsden on valuable green
space. If approved, the additional 140 houses will follow many
hundreds of houses currently being built in Silsden, and many
more are awaiting planning approval. Silsden’s infrastructure
simply cannot cope. Does the Minister agree that Bradford Council
should prioritise Silsden’s infrastructure first, rather than
seeing the area as a quick win for achieving its housing
targets?
My hon. Friend is completely right. As ever, he champions his
constituents over the actions of Labour-run Bradford Council,
which obviously has a detrimental impact on his constituent’s
lives. Local authorities have an obligation to spend section 106
receipts in line with the purpose for which they were agreed, for
exactly the reasons he gives. We are committed to introducing new
measures through the Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill that will
give greater certainty to local communities about the
infrastructure that will be delivered in their area.
Newcastle-under-Lyme is going through its local plan process at
the moment. I welcome the fact that the Conservative-led
administration has reduced the overall number of new homes to
7,000, from the 11,500 in the previous, Labour-led local plan,
which would have carpeted over our green spaces, as the Leader of
the Opposition seemingly wants to do everywhere. Nevertheless,
some people are unhappy. Would the Minister join me in urging the
council in its next draft to further prioritise brownfield
development, which is the key to regeneration?
I can assure my hon. Friend that it is the Government’s policy to
strongly encourage local authorities to make the most of
brownfield land first, especially for new homes. It is right that
if local authorities want to alter a green belt boundary, they
have show exceptional circumstances. We Conservatives believe in
preserving our green spaces, and it is interesting to hear the
proclamations from the Opposition. I will be very interested to
see whether they propose concreting over the green spaces
surrounding their own constituencies.
(Strangford) (DUP)
I chair the all-party parliamentary group for healthy homes and
buildings. We have undertaken an inquiry and sent the report
through to Ministers. The recommendations from that were clear:
while it is good to have healthy, energy-efficient homes, it is
really important to have green space around those houses. Has the
Minister had an opportunity to read the report from the APPG? If
not, I will ensure that she gets a copy, and I hope that she will
then come back to me on the recommendations.
I thank the hon. Gentleman so much for his comments, and I would
be delighted to read the report from his APPG and respond to him.
I fully agree with his broader point that green spaces are vital
for mental health and wellbeing, as well as physical health.
Towns Fund: Project Delivery
(Dewsbury) (Con)
8. What steps he is taking to help ensure the delivery of
projects supported by the Towns Fund. (906516)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Levelling Up,
Housing and Communities ()
We are supporting 101 towns through our £6.1 billion towns fund,
helping to level up across the country. I thank my hon. Friend
for all his efforts locally in ensuring that the £25 million
Dewsbury town deal delivers the positive outcomes that we all
wish to see for his constituents. My Department proactively
engages with local authorities through our monitoring and
evaluation process to determine the delivery support they
require, including specialist support from the Department where
needed.
On behalf of the people of Dewsbury, I thank my hon. Friend for
the additional £20 million announced for our town centre, on top
of the £24.8 million I secured after being elected. In light of
Labour-run Kirklees Council’s financial mismanagement and failure
to deliver regeneration projects in the past, how can we ensure
that the towns fund monies are used to transform the town centre
and not squandered because of the council’s inability to deliver
anything on time or within budget?
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for being such a fantastic
champion for Dewsbury. My officials are monitoring the town deal
and working closely with Kirklees Council and the town deal board
to ensure that projects are delivered quickly. Like my hon.
Friend, I was pleased to see that there is an extra £20 million
for Dewsbury as part of our long-term plan for towns, and I look
forward to hearing more about Dewsbury and its ambitions
soon.
(East Antrim) (DUP)
Fifty-five towns receive support from the towns fund in England,
Scotland and Wales, but none in Northern Ireland do. The excuse
has been given that the Executive is not formed, although that is
as much the responsibility of the Government as that of people in
Northern Ireland, but given that the criterion has already been
set, why has it not been possible to select towns in Northern
Ireland to benefit from the towns fund?
We want to see the Northern Ireland Executive up and running as
soon as possible, and I think that that is an ambition shared
across the House. I hope that when it is up and running, we will
be able to help it with the funds that the right hon. Gentleman
has mentioned.
Mr Speaker
I call the shadow Minister.
(Luton North) (Lab)
We all know that this Government claim a lot, but now they are
claiming that they have a long-term plan for towns while
continuing to build them without any of the infrastructure that
people want and need. Residents of Mid Bedfordshire know that all
too well: like many others, they struggle to see a GP or get a
dentist, and the council’s budget is half what it was in 2015.
The Tories have gutted the elements that make a town a home. Can
the Minister please explain why they persist in prioritising
developers in our towns over the people living in them?
I thank the hon. Lady for her question, but I completely disagree
with her. Members need only look at the measures that we are
introducing in the Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill, which will
come to the House tomorrow, to see the huge changes that we
intend to make to high streets to allow them to work better for
local people.
New Homes
(Northampton South) (Con)
9. What steps he is taking to help increase the number of new
homes. (906517)
The Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
()
We have announced £10 billion of investment in housing supply
since the start of this Parliament, and we are also investing
£11.5 billion in the latest affordable homes programme to provide
thousands of new homes across the country for people to rent or,
of course, to buy. In July we set out our long-term plan for
housing, with regeneration programmes in Cambridge, London and
Leeds.
When the Department tried to change the nutrient neutrality
rules, the Labour party fell at the first hurdle, showing that it
had changed since its claims to be the party of house building.
It blocked that, so will Ministers commit themselves to pushing
through these essential changes afresh?
Absolutely. We have just heard from the hon. Member for Luton
North () a crude nimbyist appeal to the
voters of Mid Bedfordshire, a week after the leader of the Labour
party said he was in favour of
“the builders, not the blockers”
—but who could be surprised, given that, as my hon. Friend has
rightly pointed out, when we put forward legislation for 100,000
new homes, Labour blocked it? It is unbelievable that the crew of
gangsters over there are peddling the same nonsense week in, week
out.
Mr Speaker
Order. I think we are going to moderate our language a little
bit.
rose—
Mr Speaker
So sit down, and we will move on.
Dame (Hackney South and Shoreditch) (Lab/Co-op)
For all the sound and fury from the Secretary of State, he knows
that the maths does not lie and that the Government have failed
on their targets. They have downgraded their affordable housing
targets, and have still failed on those. When will the Secretary
of State bite the bullet and provide more properly affordable
social housing for people in my constituency and others who
simply cannot afford to buy their own homes?
I withdraw the word “gangster”, Mr Speaker; I should have said
“huckster”.
I will tell the hon. Lady who has downgraded their social housing
targets: it is the hon. Lady herself. When she was running for
the deputy leadership of her party, she said that she wanted
100,000 new social homes every year. What is the target now?
Zero.
Mr Speaker
I call the shadow Minister.
(Greenwich and Woolwich)
(Lab)
It is essential that we boost the number of new homes built each
year for private sale, but just as important is the need to
significantly increase the supply of new affordable homes to buy
and rent. The National Audit Office has confirmed that the
Government’s target for its flagship 2016 to 2023 affordable
homes programme was 250,000 starts by March 2023. Can the
Secretary of State explain how on earth the public can trust this
Government to address the housing affordability crisis when
recent figures reveal that they have failed to deliver on their
share of that target outside London?
The significant increase in the affordable homes programme that I
outlined earlier is the means for that to be done, but the
difference between us is that we have a target for social and
affordable homes, while Labour has none.
Leaseholders: Residential Building Remediation
(Lewisham East) (Lab)
10. What recent progress he has made on supporting leaseholders
with (a) cladding and (b) non-cladding remediation to residential
buildings. (906518)
(Lewisham, Deptford)
(Lab)
16. What recent progress he has made on supporting leaseholders
with (a) cladding and (b) non-cladding remediation to residential
buildings. (906524)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Levelling Up,
Housing and Communities ()
The Government expect those who have caused defects to step up to
solve them. As the House is aware, 50 developers have now signed
contracts to resolve cladding and non-cladding defects in more
than 1,100 buildings. For other properties, the Government are
making extensive taxpayer subsidy available to support cladding
remediation, along with other mechanisms to pursue those who are
responsible.
Help for people living in under-11 metre buildings that have fire
safety defects does not go far enough, because of the huge amount
of money involved. One of my constituents has described her
experience as a “never-ending nightmare”. Will the Minister bring
that nightmare to an end for constituents such as mine who are
forced to pay to fix the mistakes of others?
I am grateful to the hon. Lady for raising a specific question
about under-11 metre properties. Every property, be it over or
under 11 metres, needs a fire risk assessment, and I encourage
her constituent to ensure that a fire risk appraisal of external
walls is undertaken against that property. If the FRAEW indicates
that extensive work is necessary, I would be happy to receive a
copy of it and look into it personally in order to deal with
this.
I have written to the Minister about a constituent of mine who is
a leaseholder living in an under-11 metre property and so is not
protected by the Building Safety Act 2022. The cladding costs
alone will be well over £100,000 and any non-cladding costs will
be substantial. That is completely unaffordable for my
constituent and it will bankrupt him. So when will the Minister
provide a full update, which was promised to me back on 18
August?
As I say, if the hon. Lady wishes to raise the case of this
individual building once again with me or talk to me separately
outside, I will be happy to enable that. For every under-11 metre
building we are made aware of as requiring additional
remediation, we are going through and checking things, and
compiling audits, where necessary, to get to the bottom of it.
The Government strongly believe that under-11 metre buildings do
not need extensive remediation, and we will be happy to talk more
about any buildings where these issues have been raised.
Sir (New Forest East) (Con)
Does the necessity for the Government to take that sort of action
show the danger that leaseholders are under from the abuse of
freeholders’ power? May I, through him, gently remind the
Secretary of State of an assurance he gave me when talking about
leasehold? He said:
“We need to end this feudal form of tenure and ensure individuals
have the right to enjoy their own property fully.”[—[Official
Report, 20 February 2023; Vol. 728, c.
3.]](/search/column?VolumeNumber=728&ColumnNumber=3&House=1)
Is that still intended to be in the King’s Speech?
My right hon. Friend knows that I am not able to anticipate what
will be in the King’s Speech. We are clear that, particularly
with regard to remediation, some freeholders have stepped up and
should be credited for doing so, but others have absolutely not
done so. The Secretary of State and I will not hesitate to call
out that activity where it occurs.
(Harrow East) (Con)
I congratulate my hon. Friend on the action he and the Secretary
of State are taking against developers that refuse to remediate
tall buildings. What action will he now propose to take against
developers that deliberately do not carry out this work and leave
leaseholders with their lives in peril and potentially not able
to sell or even insure their properties?
As my hon. Friend is aware, we are ensuring that developers
uphold the promises they have made, through the developer
contract and through the responsible actors scheme, which makes
sure that if they fail to do so they could, in extremis, be
banned from building in this country again. If there is any
indication what he describes is occurring, we will be happy to
take action and I will be happy to receive any information from
him or others in the House.
Mr Speaker
I call the shadow Minister.
(Weaver Vale) (Lab)
More than six years on from the Grenfell disaster, where 72
people lost their lives, Sam, a disabled resident in a Galliard
Homes building, is one of the hundreds of thousands of people
still trapped in buildings that have not been remediated. Is this
the new “do nothing” approach from the Department to building
safety that was highlighted in The Guardian today, an approach
that forced the resignation of a senior civil servant from the
Department?
I think that question is somewhat beneath the hon. Gentleman, but
let me state clearly what the Government are doing. They have
recognised that there is an issue and have legislated to resolve
that. They are working extremely hard to ensure that developers
are held to account for that, and over the past few months, they
have had success in ensuring that that process takes place. Where
developers are no longer around, they are also stepping up and
making sure that the cladding defects are covered. Hundreds of
buildings have concluded their remediation over recent months,
which demonstrates the progress that is being made.
Levelling Up across the UK
(South Basildon and East
Thurrock) (Con)
12. What steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to support
levelling-up policies across the UK. (906520)
(Burnley) (Con)
21. What steps he is taking to level up across the whole of the
United Kingdom. (906532)
The Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
()
Levelling up is a UK-wide project. That is why we have delivered
city and growth deals across Scotland, Wales and Northern
Ireland; why we have launched our investment zones programme,
including zones in the north-east of Scotland and Glasgow; and
why we are investing £4.8 billion through the levelling-up fund
in projects ranging from the transformation of Burnley’s historic
mills to the development of a cultural quarter in Peterhead.
I thank my right hon. Friend for that answer. However, as he
develops these policies further, will he remember that even in
apparently affluent areas, there are pockets that would benefit
significantly from levelling-up investment, especially across
Basildon and Thurrock? Will he therefore tell the House what
plans he has to include those areas in the next round of
investment?
My hon. Friend makes a very important point, and in particular,
it is vital to make sure that we level up that community in
Thurrock. Our plans to extend the economic development of
Docklands east to make the Thames estuary a powerhouse for
economic growth have been inspired by my hon. Friend’s work and
that of my hon. Friend the Member for Thurrock ().
It was a pleasure to welcome the Prime Minister to Burnley two
weeks ago, when he announced that Burnley was one of the many
towns getting money as part of the long-term plan for towns, on
top of more than £32 million from the levelling-up fund. I was
particularly pleased to see that a key part of the long-term plan
for towns is community engagement. Will the Secretary of State
set out what that community engagement will look like? In
particular, will it be a one-off, or can communities expect to be
consulted throughout the decade for which the £20 million is
allocated?
My hon. Friend is right to point out that this is a decade-long
investment in 55 towns across the United Kingdom. We will work
with people in Burnley, with its excellent Member of Parliament
and with other representatives to ensure that we can tackle
antisocial behaviour, revive high streets and make sure that the
pride that people have in Burnley is reflected in investment from
Government.
Sir (Rhondda) (Lab)
One of the economic sectors that provides levelling up across the
whole of the United Kingdom is the creative industries, whether
that is film production, theatre, the arts, video games or modern
high tech. Will the Secretary of State have conversations with
Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs and the Treasury about the
proposals to change business rates, which may have a dramatic
effect and curtail the opportunities for the creative
industries?
Absolutely. The vital role that our creative industries play
across the United Kingdom in levelling up is one we need to not
just protect, but enhance.
(North Shropshire) (LD)
The delivery of local services is so important to levelling up
all areas of Britain. The Secretary of State will be aware that
in rural areas, the cost of delivering public services is much
higher than in their urban counterparts. In rural counties such
as Shropshire, for example, the cost of providing social care is
much higher and the proportion of people who need that care is
higher, because there are older residents. Will the Secretary of
State consider taking into account the cost of providing those
services when determining the local government settlement in the
future?
It is a very fair point, and absolutely, on the Government side
of the House, we understand that rural communities need
additional investment, not least when it comes to the cost of
adult social care.
(Lichfield) (Con)
As my hon. Friend the Member for South Basildon and East Thurrock
() has said, there are
pockets of deprivation even in wealthier areas, including
Lichfield. Will the Secretary of State give some indication of
what sort of timescale there is for the next round of
applications?
I simply cannot believe that there are any pockets of deprivation
in Lichfield, given who has been representing that constituency
since 1992. The idea that there is any home unvisited by its
Member of Parliament or that there is any hearth where there is a
chill seems to be inconceivable. But nevertheless, we will make
sure that levelling-up fund round 3 is brought forward just in
advance of the autumn statement, and Staffordshire, I hope, will
have its voice heard.
(Kingston upon Hull East)
(Lab)
We understand that the Secretary of State is planning some
rushed, back-of-a-cigarette-packet devolution deal with Hull and
the East Riding. Can I urge caution? After 13 years of
deliberate, sustained and savage cuts to our city, the last thing
we need now is a botched deal ahead of the general election. The
very least I expect the Secretary of State to guarantee is proper
consultation, so that the people of Hull, who have been badly let
down by this Tory Government, get the opportunity to understand
the implications and to speak on the issue. Will he guarantee
that?
I have a lot of respect for the hon. Gentleman, but we are not
rushing or embarking on any botched process. We are talking to
representatives from both the East Riding and Kingston upon Hull
councils in order to ensure that we can get a devolution deal
that works. We have devolution in York and North Yorkshire, West
Yorkshire and South Yorkshire; as far as we are concerned, east
Yorkshire should not be left out in that progress, but it is
important that we get that right. In the meantime, we are
developing a levelling-up partnership with Hull, in order to
ensure that vital investment, not least in transport, matches the
investment that we have already secured on the south bank of the
Humber.
Mr Speaker
I call the spokesperson for the Scottish National party.
Ms Anum Qaisar (Airdrie and Shotts) (SNP)
Prior to Scotland’s being dragged out of the European Union
against its will, EU regional development policies allocated up
to £827 million from 2014 to 2020. Crucially, the Scottish
Government played a key role in directing the funding, in stark
contrast to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and
Communities, which bypasses Scotland’s Parliament and undermines
devolution. Will the Secretary of State and his Cabinet
colleagues stop playing politics and devolve levelling up to
Holyrood?
We are devolving levelling up—we are devolving it to local
government. That is why our recent towns fund announcement was
welcomed by all councils, including SNP-led councils. I say to
the hon. Lady, with respect, that the SNP conference, meeting in
Aberdeen today, has decided that if the SNP gets 29 MPs, that is
a mandate for independence. Given the rate at which the SNP is
losing MPs to defection and by-election, it will be at 29 by
Christmas, so let us discuss it then.
Voter Identification: Minority Groups
(Sheffield, Brightside and
Hillsborough) (Lab)
14. What assessment he has made of the impact of the Government’s
voter identification policies on the turnout of minority groups
at elections. (906522)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Levelling Up,
Housing and Communities ()
As we committed to doing in legislation, we are conducting an
evaluation of the impact of voter identification at the May
polls. We will publish that evaluation no later than November
this year.
The Electoral Commission’s report into voter ID is utterly
damning. It found that awareness of the new rules was lowest
among black and minority ethnic communities, and take-up of voter
authority certificates was minimal. Even the Government’s own MPs
can see the reality of this failed experiment. The right hon.
Member for North East Somerset (Sir ) said:
“Parties that try and gerrymander end up finding their clever
scheme comes back to bite them”.
Does the Minister agree with her own Conservative colleagues?
I remind the hon. Lady that 99.75% of the electorate were able to
vote successfully. I also remind her that it was the Electoral
Commission that called for voter identification. It has existed
in Northern Ireland for two decades and was introduced under a
Labour Government, and it exists in most European countries.
On the hon. Lady’s point about ethnic minorities, everyone
deserves fair and free elections, and it has been ethnic
minorities in areas such as Tower Hamlets and Birmingham who have
been the victims of electoral fraud.
Social Housing: Accountability to Tenants
(Carshalton and Wallington)
(Con)
15. Whether his Department is taking steps to help ensure that
social housing providers are accountable to tenants. (906523)
The Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
()
We are taking action to improve the quality of social housing.
The Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023, which received Royal
Assent in July, will deliver transformative change across the
sector, introducing proactive consumer regulation and rebalancing
the relationships between landlords and tenants, ensuring that
landlords are properly held to account for their performance.
I welcome the steps the Government are taking to support people
living in social housing, but many people in Carshalton and
Wallington who live in social housing are still concerned about
the level of service they receive from their providers. I have
received complaints about a number of housing associations,
including Liberal Democrat-run Sutton Council’s housing arm,
Sutton Housing Partnership, and Metropolitan Thames Valley, which
provides housing in Roundshaw. Will the Secretary of State assure
those residents that they have somewhere to go when things go
wrong?
Yes, those residents absolutely do have somewhere to go. My hon.
Friend, the excellent Member of Parliament for Carshalton and
Wallington, stands up not just for his constituents, but for the
most vulnerable in society, with clarity and moral authority. Our
legislation will make sure that Metropolitan Thames Valley
Housing and, indeed, Liberal Democrat-led Sutton Council are held
to account for any failures.
Topical Questions
(Kingston upon Hull North)
(Lab)
T1. If he will make a statement on his departmental
responsibilities.(906534)
The Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
()
Last Thursday, I was privileged to be invited to join a meeting
chaired by the Prime Minister and the Home Secretary at which we
heard from the Community Security Trust about the deeply
unfortunate rise in antisemitic incidents following the terrorist
attack that we marked at the start of today’s sitting. The
increase in antisemitic incidents recorded by the Community
Security Trust and its partner, Tell MAMA, is 494%. It is a
melancholy trend, and I know that everyone in this House will
join me in doing everything we can to defeat antisemitism and to
promote peace and justice.
I welcome the comments that the Secretary of State has just made,
but may I take him to task about some of the comments that he
made earlier? He talked about having conversations with Hull City
Council about transport. This comes after the Government’s
decade-long refusal to back the electrification of a line to
Hull. It also comes after the exclusion of the northern Mayors in
the decision to scrap the northern leg of HS2. Why should any of
the people in Hull and East Riding—
Mr Speaker
Order. Topicals should be short and sweet. The right hon. Lady
should just finish her question very quickly.
Why should the people of Hull and East Yorkshire trust what this
Government ever say?
I am a huge fan of the right hon. Lady. The proof of the pudding
will be in the continued engagement that we have with the people
of Hull and, indeed, with their Liberal Democrat council.
(Harrogate and Knaresborough)
(Con)
I have been running a “fair deal for new estates” campaign in my
constituency to ensure that new estates are completed in a timely
manner. I am talking about not just the housing, but the play
areas, the planting, the drainage and the pavements. Will my hon.
Friend meet me to discuss this campaign, which is important
locally and is achieving progress for residents in Harrogate and
Knaresborough?
The Minister of State, Department for Levelling Up, Housing and
Communities ()
My hon. Friend is doing an excellent job in raising the concerns
of his constituents on the Floor of the House. I know that those
concerns are also raised with many other colleagues. That is why,
in the Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill, we are strengthening
planning enforcement powers, including powers to tackle
uncompleted developments. I hope his constituents will welcome
that, and I would be pleased to meet him and discuss it in more
detail.
Mr Speaker
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
(Ashton-under-Lyne)
(Lab)
It is a pleasure to face the right hon. Gentleman for our first
questions. I hope he enjoyed his party conference, cancelling a
meat tax that nobody had planned, abolishing seven bins that do
not exist and announcing that they would build a series of
transport links that already do exist—not so much conference
season as panto season. I shall keep my question to a problem
that definitely does exist. One million families are waiting for
social housing. How can he justify handing back to the Treasury
billions of pounds that are desperately needed to tackle the
housing crisis?
It is because we spend our money effectively. The affordable
homes programme—the £11.5 billion investment that we are
making—will lead, and has led, to investment in social and
affordable housing across the country. The right hon. Lady has a
challenge when it comes to credibility on social housing. She
secured the deputy leadership of her party by saying that the
Labour party should be building 100,000 social homes every year,
and yet its current target is zero. Why did she retreat?
The right hon. Gentleman just comes out with flannel—I think he
is auditioning for panto season this afternoon. He can dress it
up however he likes, but the truth is that he could not spend
this vital funding quickly enough in the middle of a housing
crisis. It is clear that the Prime Minister shares his disregard
for struggling families. In his hour-long speech in Manchester,
the Prime Minister did not mention housing a single time—not
once—but the Housing Minister did tell conference that renters
are not all weed-smoking gangsters, which I am sure the right
hon. Gentleman knows all about, as he mentioned gangsters earlier
today. Can the Secretary of State assure us that, despite the
tone of those remarks, the Renters (Reform) Bill will not be
scrapped before the King’s Speech?
Yes, we are bringing reform to the rental market, but I note that
at her own party conference the right hon. Lady shared with the
public not just her policies but her recipe for a cocktail called
Venom, which apparently contains a bottle of vodka, a bottle of
Southern Comfort, 10 Blue WKDs and a litre of orange juice. We
know what the real lethal cocktail from the Labour party is: a
mix of unfunded spending commitments, massive borrowing,
greenbelt development and hypocrisy on housing.
Dame (South Northamptonshire)
(Con)
T7. Next year marks the 50th anniversary of the amazing Hope
Centre in Northampton, which for 50 years has been turning the
lives around of people who have been homeless, getting them into
a home of their own and into a secure job. Will the Minister join
me in congratulating all the staff and volunteers at that amazing
charity?(906541)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Levelling Up,
Housing and Communities ()
I am delighted to congratulate the staff and volunteers at the
Hope Centre on 50 amazing years of supporting venerable people in
Northampton. That work is critical in meeting the Government’s
commitment to reduce homelessness and to end rough sleeping for
good, which is backed by a Government investment of £2 billion
over three years.
Mr Speaker
I call the SNP spokesperson.
Ms Anum Qaisar (Airdrie and Shotts) (SNP)
Antisemitism is abhorrent and hateful, and there must be
meaningful legislation to protect Jewish people. I appreciate
that the Department introduced the anti-boycott Bill to help to
tackle that, but as the Minister may recall, in Committee the
Bill was not supported by many human rights organisations and no
Opposition amendments were accepted. We need to work on a
cross-party basis, so will the Secretary of State and the
Minister meet with me to discuss what support the SNP can provide
to tackle the hatred of antisemitism?
I am grateful to the hon. Lady for the way in which she couched
her question. I take this opportunity to thank the First Minister
of Scotland who, in his visit to a synagogue in Edinburgh last
week, I think spoke for all of Scotland in expressing his
solidarity with the pain being felt by Scotland’s Jewish
community. I look forward to working together on a cross-party
basis if we can.
(Vale of Glamorgan) (Con)
T9. The new Levelling Up Minister has got off to a flying start
by awarding £20 million to Barry in the Vale of Glamorgan. Barry
is Wales’s largest town and has been ignored by the Welsh
Government for decades. What reassurance can my hon. Friend give
me that local priorities will determine how that money should be
spent?(906543)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Levelling Up,
Housing and Communities ()
I am grateful to my right hon. Friend, who is a persistent
champion of Barry in his constituency. I am delighted that Barry
has been chosen as one of the 55 towns and will receive £20
million to deliver its plan. I look forward to working with him
to see Barry’s potential realised.
(City of Chester) (Lab)
T2. Chester, like city centres up and down the country, as well
as rural and coastal areas, is seeing rents going up and the
supply of long-term private rented lets going down. The
Government consulted on short-term lets earlier this year. What
progress has been made in tackling the issue?(906535)
I am grateful to the hon. Lady for raising that question. As she
rightly points out, the abuse of short-term lets is a significant
issue in rural and coastal areas, and we will respond to the
consultation shortly.
(Ipswich) (Con)
Over 200 of my constituents at the Mill development in Ipswich
have been living in a cruel form of limbo for over 10 years. The
building has deep cladding and structural problems. RSM, the
administrator, could run out of money next March or April. My
constituents fear that they could be turfed out of their homes.
What steps are the Government taking to support my residents,
give them clarity over their future, and come to a lasting
settlement that funds the problems of the building and allows
residents to move on with their lives?
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Levelling Up,
Housing and Communities ()
Like my hon. Friend, the Department and the Government want to
see a resolution to the Mill, which is complex and challenging.
We accept the points that he makes. I look forward to continue
meeting with him, and we will try to find a positive
resolution.
(Tiverton and Honiton)
(LD)
T3. Local authorities are struggling to retrofit ageing rural
council housing stock, which has allowed mould to set in. What
will the Minister do to avoid councils having to spend huge sums
of council taxpayers’ money on positive input ventilation units
to provide mould-free homes?(906536)
The scourge of damp and mould, particularly but not exclusively
in the social and private rented sector, is an issue that the
Government recognise that we need to tackle. That is why we are
providing additional support to local government and to housing
associations in order to deal with that issue. I look forward in
particular to dealing with the hon. Gentleman to assess the
situation in Tiverton and Honiton.
(Blackpool South) (Ind)
I thank the Secretary of State for the tremendous support he has
provided to Blackpool, with more than £140 million in
levelling-up moneys allocated so far. Is he able to provide an
update on the plans for further housing-led regeneration in the
Bond Street and Revoe areas of my constituency?
I fully recognise the importance of supporting Blackpool and
places across the country in their ambitions for regeneration.
Homes England and my Department are continuing to work closely
with Blackpool Council to level up the town and improve the
quality of housing. I look forward to my Department’s saying more
about that in the future.
(Glasgow South West)
(SNP)
T5. The Secretary of State, in our consideration of his
Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill tomorrow, intends to remove
reducing child poverty as a levelling-up mission. Does he think
it is possible to level up without reducing child poverty, or is
it just the case that the Government do not care?(906539)
That is a fair question. Of course we care about reducing child
poverty; that is why the steps we are taking across 12
levelling-up missions, including on education and welfare, are
designed to reduce poverty across the United Kingdom.
(Stroud) (Con)
Berkeley Town Council has created a much-needed regeneration plan
that will make the town worthy of the tourist attractions nearby,
such as Berkeley castle and the Dr Jenner’s House museum, but we
have little faith that the Green and Labour-led district council
will get the levelling-up bid over the line. It failed before and
its local plans have also been withdrawn. Will the Minister meet
me to discuss the issue?
I look forward to meeting my hon. Friend and visiting her
constituency.
(Westminster North) (Lab)
T6. Some 4,240 households in London alone were evicted last year
using the no-fault possession grounds that the Government first
promised to scrap four years ago. How many more households will
be evicted before the Government meet their promise?(906540)
We are committed to introducing our Renters (Reform) Bill, which
will end section 21—something that, when Labour were in
government, it did not do.
(Gillingham and Rainham)
(Con)
Levelling up is about levelling up all parts of the United
Kingdom—north, south, east and west, including areas that did not
get levelling-up funding in rounds 1 or 2 or the recent
announcements, such as Gillingham town centre. Will the Secretary
of State visit Gillingham with me and ensure that we get our fair
share and allocation of resources?
Either I or one of my junior Ministers will join my hon. Friend
in Gillingham.
Fleur Anderson (Putney) (Lab)
T8. Some 54 months ago, the Government promised the Renters
(Reform) Bill. Since then, 10,000 Londoners have been threatened
with eviction and renting is simply too insecure. We are trying
again to ask this: when will the Government be bringing in the
Bill?(906542)
That is a good question; I liked it even better when the hon.
Member for Westminster North (Ms Buck) asked it. As I explained,
we will be bringing forward our legislation shortly.
(Norwich North) (Con)
As he is reforming the national planning policy framework and
introducing a new infrastructure levy, how will my right hon.
Friend ensure that our constituents get the doctors and dentists
capacity that must go with new homes?
The infrastructure levy that we are bringing forward will ensure,
through the Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill, that the money is
there to provide services when new development takes place. We
will work with the NHS to ensure that GP and dental provision is
part of that. We have a plan for an infrastructure levy; Labour
has no plan.
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