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 publish additional planning guidance to supplement the definition of affordable housing set out in the glossary of the revised National Planning Policy Framework, published on 24 July 2018, to ensure that it specifies affordable rent to buy.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
Rent to buy is identified as a type of affordable housing in the revised National Planning Policy Framework. We intend to update planning guidance on affordable housing 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 what steps they are taking to ensure that councils can make use of any additional flexibility made possible by the removal of the cap on councils' borrowing against their Housing Revenue Account assets to finance the construction of new homes without undue bureaucracy.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
The Autumn Budget announced the complete abolition of the Housing Revenue Account borrowing cap with immediate effect. Following consultation, we have issued a determination that revoked the previous determinations specifying local authority limits on indebtedness, and as a result local authorities can now borrow for housebuilding in accordance with the Prudential Code. We want to see local authorities seize this opportunity and build a new generation of council housing.
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 make any changes to the New Homes Bonus scheme in the next financial year.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
The Local Government Finance Settlement Technical consultation noted that the Government was not consulting on further changes to the New Homes Bonus for 2019/20 allocations but that the level of the baseline for growth, below which new allocations of the New Homes Bonus are not made, would be reviewed prior to the announcement of provisional allocations for 2019/20. As outlined in the Technical consultation, any changes to the baseline in 2019/20 will be announced at the time of the provisional Local Government Finance Settlement.
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 extent of the current delays in the production of written reports by the Building Research Establishment following BS8414 tests on the performance of external fire cladding systems; and what are the implications of these delays for fire safety in the UK.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
The Government is not aware of any delays in the production of written reports by the Building Research Establishment (BRE) or any other commercial laboratories. Officials from the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government are in regular contact with building owners and the wider construction industry to identify anything that might prevent remediation of buildings with potentially unsafe ACM cladding systems.
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 is their estimate of the number of non-disclosure agreements that have been agreed between building owners and contractors relating to the correction of poorly installed cladding systems on high-rise buildings following the Grenfell Tower fire.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
The government does not hold information on or records of non-disclosure agreements between private building owners and contractors.
Asked by: Lord Porter of Spalding (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth on 30 April (HL6940), which organisation performed the original fire safety tests as specified in BS 476–22:1987 or BS EN 1634–1:2014 on the Manse Masterdor fire doors and gave authorisation that those fire doors could be made available for general sale.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
Information on fire doors from Grenfell Tower is part of the Metropolitan Police on-going investigations and it would not be appropriate for us to comment while investigations are under way.
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 including housing support other than Housing Revenue Account as a service-specific formula when setting new funding baselines for councils as part of the Fair Funding Review.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
Our fair funding review of local authorities’ relative needs and resources will deliver a thorough, evidence based review of funding allocations to English local authorities through close collaboration with the sector. In response to the views expressed by the sector, we are committed to implementing an approach with enhanced levels of simplicity and transparency, but recognise that this should not be at the expense of accuracy and fairness.
Our public consultation on the overall shape of the needs assessment recently closed, and sought views on service areas which may require a specific approach to allocations. We are currently considering the many representations made, including those who argued for a specific housing formula. Decisions on all this will form the basis for further consultation later 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 progress they have made with the research commissioned by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and the Department for Education as part of the Fair Funding Review on children's services costs; and when they expect to publish the final conclusion of that research.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
Our research project on children’s services, which was commissioned by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and the Department for Education, is an important part of our fair funding review of relative needs and resources. The review will set new baseline funding allocations for local authorities in England with a target implementation date of 2020/21.
The research project has made good progress to better understand cost and demand pressures, in order to deliver a robust funding formula for what is a complex and critical service area. We will continue to work closely with the LGA and others in local government to provide updates and seek support where required. The project is aiming to be completed by Summer 2019 for implementation alongside the 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 how they intend to ensure that work to be progressed under the Social Care Green Paper, and parallel work on working age adults, feeds into the Fair Funding Review of councils’ relative needs and plans for 75 per cent business rates retention.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
In developing the Social Care Green Paper, the Government is taking the time needed to debate the many complex issues and listen to the perspectives of experts and care users, in order to build consensus around reforms which can succeed. The Green Paper will inevitably cover a range of issues that are common to all adults with care and support needs. We are also committed to making sure that any issues relating to social care that are only relevant for adults of working age are identified.
MHCLG Ministers and officials have close working relationships with DHSC Ministers and officials leading on the Green Paper, and both departments are jointly leading our work on working-age care. The emerging impacts of both areas of work will be considered when taking forward the review of local authorities’ relative needs and resources and increased business rates retention.
Asked by: Lord Porter of Spalding (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government who undertook the British Standard 476 fire test for a 30 minute fire door on the Manse Masterdor fire doors installed in Grenfell Tower.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
Any doors tested from Grenfell Tower have been commissioned by the Metropolitan Police as part of their investigation and it is not for the Department to comment on. Tests of doors from the same manufacturer commissioned by MHCLG have to date been undertaken by BRE Global Ltd and Exova Group plc.