Asked by: Lord Porter of Spalding (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to allowing the addition of a separate set of Model Standards to those provided in 1983 under the Caravan Sites Control and Development Act 1960, which would recognise the distinction between caravans and motorcaravans.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
Section 5(6) of the Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960 gives the Secretary of State powers to from time to time specify model standards with respect to the lay-out and the provision of facilities, services and equipment for caravan sites or particular types of caravan site.
The planning permission for many holiday and touring caravan sites permit motorhomes to be stationed on those sites. The model standards for those sites make provision for motorhomes. We do not consider that additional model standards are necessary.
Asked by: Lord Porter of Spalding (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to work with local government to deliver national strategies for carbon reduction.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
The Government is committed to tackling climate change, and local authorities have a vital contribution to make. Their unique insight into local opportunities and priorities, their role as place-shapers, and their convening power enable them to drive carbon emissions reductions and develop climate resilient services across their whole area, with co-benefits for better public health and thriving local economies.
Tackling emissions at a local level will make an important contribution to the decarbonisation of transport, energy and buildings. As such, many parts of Government work closely with local government to deliver national strategies for carbon reduction effectively at the local level.
In 2020 the Government launched the Greenhouse Homes Grant Local Authority Delivery Scheme, the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme and the Public Sector Low Carbon Skills Fund.
The Local Energy programme also supports Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs), local authorities and communities in England to play a leading role in decarbonisation and clean growth. The Government's wider plan to work with local government to deliver national strategies for carbon reduction will be set out in our forthcoming net zero strategy.
In Spring 2021 we will be publishing a bold and ambitious Transport Decarbonisation Plan which will set out how to achieve net zero emissions across all modes of transport. Different decarbonisation solutions will be required and will work best in different places across the UK, and we have engaged with local government at all levels in developing this Plan
The Government will continue to work closely with local authorities, now and over the course of the net zero transition.
Asked by: Lord Porter of Spalding (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to give councils long-term, devolved infrastructure and public transport budgets.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
The Government is committed to levelling up the country and giving communities more control over how investment is spent so that they can decide what is best for them. The forthcoming White Paper on devolution will set out the framework for future local growth funding, ensuring budgets are devolved to the right spatial level to unleash the potential of our regions and deliver on levelling up. In 2020/21, the Government is allocating over £1.7 billion for local highways maintenance and improvements to local highways authorities in England, outside London, through the Transport Infrastructure Investment Fund. We will also provide £4.2 billion from 2022-23 for five-year funding settlements for eight Mayoral Combined Authorities, building on the success of the Transforming Cities Fund, as set out in the Budget earlier this year.
Asked by: Lord Porter of Spalding (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the role of council-run recreational facilities such as leisure centres, parks, and green spaces in tackling obesity; and what plans they have to invest in these services to support their continued financial viability.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
Exposure to the natural environment and green space is associated with lower levels of obesity and higher levels of physical activity, but there is unequal access across the population, with those living in the most deprived areas less likely to live in the greenest areas. The Government’s 25 Year Environment Plan promotes a sustainable natural environment as a pathway to good health and wellbeing. In the last 2 years Government has also invested £16.3 million on various initiatives to support parks and green spaces, including the Local Authority Parks Improvement Fund; Pocket Parks and Pocket Parks Plus programmes; and the Future Parks Accelerator programme to test and pilot new management and funding models for parks.
Grassroots sports facilities like leisure centres are also important parts of their communities and deliver vital health and wellbeing benefits. Sport England announced a £195 million package of support to help community clubs through this crisis. It recently boosted its Community Emergency Fund by a further £15 million to meet the demand, taking the total up to £210 million. The government are continuing to work closely with the sector to understand the issues they face and discuss how we can support them further.
Asked by: Lord Porter of Spalding (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to extending the timeframe in which local authorities must spend retained Right to Buy receipts from three years to five years.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
We have listened to concerns raised by local authorities about the effects of Covid 19 on their house building programmes and the difficulties of spending Right to Buy receipts to the three year deadlines. On 12 June, we agreed to a temporary extension of the next expenditure deadline of 30 June by six months, and wrote to local authorities to inform them of this change. More broadly, the Government has consulted on ways we can change the Right to Buy receipts system to help councils build more homes. The proposals included extending the period for local authorities to spend their receipts from three to five years, and the Government’s response to this consultation will be published in due course.
Asked by: Lord Porter of Spalding (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have plans to amend the Local Authorities and Police and Crime Panels (Coronavirus) (Flexibility of Local Authority Police and Crime Panel Meetings) (England and Wales) Regulations 2020 to allow local councils in England to return to physical meetings while maintaining social distancing; and whether any proposed amendments to the regulations will include a hybrid form of meeting.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
The Local Authorities and Police and Crime Panels (Coronavirus) (Flexibility of Local Authority and Police and Crime Panel Meetings) (England and Wales) Regulations 2020 enable all local authority meetings to be held remotely and do not preclude physical meetings or a hybrid form of meeting where these can be held in accordance with public health regulations and guidance. It is for each local authority to determine what is appropriate in their specific circumstances, taking legal advice as necessary.
Asked by: Lord Porter of Spalding (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to work with local government to develop and implement their proposals for English devolution; and if so, how.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government’s ambition is for full devolution across England including through more devolution deals that level up powers and invest further in infrastructure. That is why it has been working with local authority leaders to unlock the Sheffield City Region and continues discussions with West Yorkshire leaders on a new devolution deal. The Government also engages with a wide range of local government partners on the future of devolution in England and looks forward to continuing this as it develops the English Devolution White Paper.
Asked by: Lord Porter of Spalding (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government when they expect to issue guidance for local areas to give clarity on the details of the new UK Shared Prosperity Fund.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
The government recognises the importance of reassuring local areas on the future of local growth funding and providing clarity on the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. Therefore, we will consult widely on the Fund.
Decisions on the allocation and quantum of the Fund are due to be made following the Spending Review.
Asked by: Lord Porter of Spalding (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the legal liability of (1) door manufacturers, (2) third party certification bodies, and (3) the providers of test houses, for the failure of glass-reinforced plastic fire doors.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
Fire doors should meet the requirements of Building Regulations. Those involved in the design, manufacture, testing and installation of fire doors are responsible for ensuring that those requirements are met.
Asked by: Lord Porter of Spalding (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the risk of manufacturers of glass-reinforced plastic composite fire doors becoming insolvent in order to avoid any potential liabilities.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
We are not party to details of the financial situation of companies manufacturing GRP composite fire doors.
The Association of Composite Door Manufacturers (ACDM) have committed to developing an industry-led action plan for repair and replacement of fire doors which do not meet the required standard. The ACDM are engaging with the Local Government Association (LGA) and other key stakeholders directly in development of their plan.