Asked by: Stephen McPartland (Conservative - Stevenage)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 21 January 2016 to Question 23515, what estimate he has made of the total cost to people who pay council tax in (a) Stevenage, (b) Hertfordshire and (c) England of the potential increase in council tax; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Marcus Jones - Treasurer of HM Household (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Commons)
Council tax rates are completely up to local councils. All local authorities have the power to freeze council tax if they wish. Any council that wants to raise council tax above the referendum principle needs to go to their local area for consent.
Given the pressures councils face providing adult social care we are giving them the freedom to levy a 2 percent precept to help cover costs. Again, it is up to the responsible authority if they wish to exercise this.
Even if all authorities increase by the maximum under the referendum principles, council tax will still be lower in 2019-20 in real terms compared to 2010.
Asked by: Stephen McPartland (Conservative - Stevenage)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whether he plans to reduce the council tax referendum level from 2 per cent to take account of his policy on the social care precept; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Marcus Jones - Treasurer of HM Household (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Commons)
My rt. hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (Greg Clark) set out his proposed Council Tax Referendum principles for 2016-17 alongside the provisional local government finance settlement on 17 December 2015 [Official Report, Column 1722]. The full proposals are available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/council-tax-in-2016-to-2017. Final referendum principles for 2016-17 will be laid before the House for approval in due course.
Asked by: Stephen McPartland (Conservative - Stevenage)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whether a local authority's revenue surplus from off-street car parking may be used for general purposes or is restricted in the same manner as an on-street parking revenue surplus.
Answered by Marcus Jones - Treasurer of HM Household (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Commons)
A local authority’s revenue from civil enforcement in off-street car parks is restricted and can only be spent on off-street parking, transport and environmental improvements.
Asked by: Stephen McPartland (Conservative - Stevenage)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what plans he has to reduce the number of local government elected representatives.
Answered by Marcus Jones - Treasurer of HM Household (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Commons)
Provisions we are seeking in the Cities and Local Government Devolution Bill, if enacted, will allow a local authority to propose a reduction in the number of councillors as part of a devolution deal.
Asked by: Stephen McPartland (Conservative - Stevenage)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the annual cost of remuneration, payments and expenses for local government elected representatives.
Answered by Marcus Jones - Treasurer of HM Household (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Commons)
It is for each council to decide the scheme of allowances for its members, which is legally required to be published. We make no estimate of the annual cost of these allowances or of other expenses for local government elected representatives. A council is accountable to its local electorate for its decisions on these matters, and needs to ensure all allowances and expenses are wholly justifiable and represent value for money for local taxpayers.
Asked by: Stephen McPartland (Conservative - Stevenage)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to reduce the cost to the public purse of local government elected representatives.
Answered by Marcus Jones - Treasurer of HM Household (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Commons)
Provisions we are seeking in the Cities and Local Government Devolution Bill, if enacted, will allow the processes for effecting local governance changes to be streamlined where councils agree. This includes changes involving reductions in the number of councillors, hence reducing the cost to the public purse of local government representatives.
Asked by: Stephen McPartland (Conservative - Stevenage)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the number of properties that will not be completed upon the expiry of permitted development rights in May 2016; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
The office to residential permitted development rights were introduced in May 2013 for a three year period. Our intention in bringing forward this relaxation was that it would act as a stimulus to economic growth and provide new homes. Use of the new right suggests there is great interest from owners and developers in undertaking residential conversions of office accommodation.
I refer my hon. Friend to the Written Ministerial Statement of 25 March 2015, Official Report, Columns 131-138WS, (HCWS488), where we said that we would keep under review the case for extending the office to residential permitted development right, which is helping provide much needed new homes on brownfield land. This remains the case.
Asked by: Stephen McPartland (Conservative - Stevenage)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effect on the housing market of the expiration of permitted development rights in May 2016; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
The office to residential permitted development rights were introduced in May 2013 for a three year period. Our intention in bringing forward this relaxation was that it would act as a stimulus to economic growth and provide new homes. Use of the new right suggests there is great interest from owners and developers in undertaking residential conversions of office accommodation.
I refer my hon. Friend to the Written Ministerial Statement of 25 March 2015, Official Report, Columns 131-138WS, (HCWS488), where we said that we would keep under review the case for extending the office to residential permitted development right, which is helping provide much needed new homes on brownfield land. This remains the case.