Asked by: Alex Chalk (Conservative - Cheltenham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he has undertaken an assessment of the changes to the planning system which would be required to tackle the rise of so-called trojan phone box applications.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
We are aware of concerns expressed about the impact of a proliferation of telephone kiosks with advertising panels in some areas. This raises a number of important issues, relating to permitted development rights, advertising consents, and the powers available to Electronic Communications Code Operators, which are being considered.
Asked by: Alex Chalk (Conservative - Cheltenham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps the Government is taking to (a) support and (b) incentivise local authorities to go further than their duty to hold a self-build register and actively bring forward sites for self-build properties.
Answered by Dominic Raab
The Department has published comprehensive planning guidance to support authorities in taking forward their duties under the Self-build and Custom Housebuilding legislation. MHCLG is also providing a total of £95,850 new burdens funding to each relevant authority over 3 years to set up the register and deliver permissions suitable for self and custom build housing.
The Department is supporting the National Custom and Self Build Association’s Right to Build Task Force which aims to help local authorities, community groups and other organisations across the UK deliver large, affordable custom and self-build housing projects. Officials have also delivered a programme of regional workshops for local authorities to assist them in discharging their duties and we will continue to assess what more the Department can do in this area.
Asked by: Alex Chalk (Conservative - Cheltenham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps the Government is taking to encourage more short term and pop-up commercial leases for independent and start-up retailers and small businesses.
Answered by Dominic Raab
The Government sees small and start-up businesses as a critical part of our changing town centres and high streets, and sees short-term leases as a valuable tool for local authorities to use. But we are also supporting small retailers and businesses through other policies and have established the Minister-led Future High Street Forum to help town centres adapt to changing consumer trends.
We also worked with the retail sector and local authorities on the recent draft revision of the National Planning Policy Framework to ensure planning policy supports greater diversification and change of uses where town centres are in decline.
Asked by: Alex Chalk (Conservative - Cheltenham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the Government has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing rights to light for solar generation.
Answered by Dominic Raab
The Government has not assessed the potential merits of introducing rights to light for solar generation technology. The planning system can already take into account whether a proposed development would have an unreasonable impact on the light enjoyed by neighbouring properties, in terms of its impact on living conditions.
The Government believes that sufficient protection is already afforded to existing solar arrays by the planning system which can take into account whether a proposed development would have an unreasonable impact on the light enjoyed by neighbouring properties, in terms of its impact on living conditions.
Asked by: Alex Chalk (Conservative - Cheltenham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that local authorities are able to use Council Tax data effectively for the enforcement of (a) the empty home Council Tax surcharge, (b) Empty Dwelling Management Orders and (c) other enforcement measures.
Answered by Rishi Sunak
Local authorities have powers to tackle empty homes through the council tax empty homes premium and Empty Dwelling Management Orders. Local authorities can already use data collected for the purposes of council tax administration to assist with making effective use of these powers.
Asked by: Alex Chalk (Conservative - Cheltenham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps the Government has taken to tackle owners of empty residential properties relabelling those properties as second homes to avoid the empty home Council Tax surcharge.
Answered by Rishi Sunak
The administration of council tax, including the premium on long-term empty properties, is the responsibility of local government. Local authorities have their own inspection and enforcement regimes in order to satisfy themselves as to whether a property should be subject to a premium.
Asked by: Alex Chalk (Conservative - Cheltenham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many Section 215 (Town and Country Planning Act 1990) notices have been issued by local authorities in the past year; and what proportion of those notices resulted in successful (a) remedial action and (b) direct action for non-compliance.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
Local authorities have a discretionary power under Section 215 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1980 to deal with derelict land and buildings. This information is not collected centrally.