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Speech in Commons Chamber - Mon 14 Dec 2020
Dark Skies

"The hon. Member makes an excellent point and anticipates one of the points I hope to get on to.

The first of our recommendations concerns the Minister himself. As has been widely reported, we would like to see a designated Minister for the dark skies with cross-cutting responsibility for this …..."
Andrew Griffith - View Speech

View all Andrew Griffith (Con - Arundel and South Downs) contributions to the debate on: Dark Skies
Speech in Commons Chamber - Mon 14 Dec 2020
Dark Skies

"As ever, my hon. Friend, with his varied experience that he brings to the House, makes an excellent point. Not only can hard-pressed local councils save money that they can redirect to supporting their residents elsewhere, but there is also, surprisingly, no evidence at all that street lighting contributes to …..."
Andrew Griffith - View Speech

View all Andrew Griffith (Con - Arundel and South Downs) contributions to the debate on: Dark Skies
Written Question
Economic Growth
Friday 4th December 2020

Asked by: Andrew Griffith (Conservative - Arundel and South Downs)

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to promote local economic growth in (a) West Sussex and (b) England.

Answered by Luke Hall

We are promoting local economic growth in West Sussex through:

  • Over £16 million from the Getting Building Fund via the Coast to Capital LEP.
  • Awarding the Coast to Capital LEP with £292 million over six years through the Local Growth Fund to drive regional development.
  • Selecting Crawley as one of 101 places to develop a Town Deal with Government.

Across England, the Government is supporting local partners to deliver local economic growth through:

  • A new £4 billion Levelling Up Fund for England. This will invest in local infrastructure that has a visible impact on people and their communities and will support economic recovery, with £600 million available in 2021/22.
  • Providing £220 million additional UK funding to help local areas prepare over 2021/22 for introduction of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, to support our communities to pilot programmes and new approaches.
  • 101 prospective Town Deals across England as part of the £3.6 billion Towns Fund to level up towns and regions across England.
  • Allocating £1 billion of the Towns Fund to support the Future High Streets Fund competition, which aims to renew and reshape town centres and high streets in a way that drives growth and ensures future sustainability.
  • Delivering a minimum of 10 Freeports. Successful bidders will be announced in Spring 2021 and the first Freeports will be designated in late 2021.
Written Question
Local Government: Sussex
Tuesday 1st December 2020

Asked by: Andrew Griffith (Conservative - Arundel and South Downs)

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what fiscal steps his Department is taking to support local authorities in Sussex during the covid-19 outbreak.

Answered by Luke Hall

For 2020-21, we have now committed over £7.2 billion for local authorities to fund their response to the Covid-19 pandemic, even before the extension of the Contain Outbreak Management Fund for those authorities under the highest level of restriction – potentially worth over £200 million a month – which was announced as part of the Covid-19 Winter Plan. This is part of an unprecedented package of support for local authorities to combat the Covid-19 pandemic, including measures worth an estimated c. £3 billion of additional support next year. This takes the total support committed to councils in England to tackle the impacts of Covid-19 to over £10 billion.

Councils in the Arundel and and South Downs constituency have been allocated over £96 million in funding from Government, including over £53 million in unringfenced funding, and over £13 million from the Contain Outbreak Management Fund.

Looking ahead to next year, Spending Review 2020 provides councils with the funding and stability to support vital social care services and tackle Covid-19. Local authorities will be able to access an additional £2.2 billion in resources to support Adult and Children’s Social Care and maintain universal services. In addition, we are providing over £1.5 billion in unringfenced grant for ongoing Covid-19 pressures and extending support to offset the income losses councils are experiencing.

Provisional allocations for the annual local government finance settlement for local authorities in Sussex will be announced shortly.

Written Question
Derelict Land
Monday 19th October 2020

Asked by: Andrew Griffith (Conservative - Arundel and South Downs)

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to support development on brownfield sites.

Answered by Christopher Pincher

The National Planning Policy Framework expects local authorities to prioritise brownfield land for development wherever possible. Local authorities are best placed to assess individual sites: each authority is required to publish a register of its developable brownfield suitable for new homes. My Department will shortly issue a national map of the land identified in these registers. We also provide significant practical support for the take-up of brownfield, such as:

  • The £400 million Brownfield Fund for seven Mayoral Combined Authorities - West Midlands, Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, Liverpool City Region, Sheffield City Region, North of Tyne, and Tees Valley - that will enable around 26,000 new homes on brownfield land.
  • The £5 billion Home Building Fund, providing loans for new housing in two ways: the £2 billion long-term fund supports delivery of larger sites, mostly brownfield, through loans for infrastructure and site preparation; the £3 billion short-term loan fund supports small and medium enterprises, custom builders and construction innovators to build housing, including some on brownfield.
  • Revision of Permitted Development and Use Class rules to encourage re-use of previously developed land by allowing two new storeys for new homes on top of purpose-built blocks of flats; new space on top of houses in certain circumstances; and conversion or replacement of disused commercial, industrial and other buildings with residential, if well-designed and sustainably located.
  • The Housing Infrastructure Fund, which has allocated nearly £4.1 billion for provision of infrastructure for housing projects, including some on brownfield.
  • The £10 billion Single Housing Infrastructure Fund, to help with provision of roads, schools and other infrastructure for housing schemes, which may include some on brownfield.
  • Land Remediation Relief, which cuts tax for companies cleaning up contaminated land.
Speech in Commons Chamber - Thu 08 Oct 2020
Planning and House Building

"I thank my hon. Friend for the detailed work he has done and the figures he has shared. Does he agree that this is not about the national figure, which many Members on this side of the House fully support and want to see built, but that the test of …..."
Andrew Griffith - View Speech

View all Andrew Griffith (Con - Arundel and South Downs) contributions to the debate on: Planning and House Building
Written Question
Property Development: Floods
Monday 5th October 2020

Asked by: Andrew Griffith (Conservative - Arundel and South Downs)

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

What steps his Department is taking to discourage developers from building in areas at risk of flooding.

Answered by Christopher Pincher

There are already strong protections in the National Planning Policy Framework, and we are reviewing this to ensure that future development will be safe from floods. The review will assess whether current protections in national planning policy are enough and consider options for further reform.

Speech in Commons Chamber - Wed 30 Sep 2020
Town and Country Planning

"Does my right hon. Friend agree that it is important that the 300,000 dwellings per year target is indeed delivered, and that, as part of that, some innovation in the planning system, with the right controls, is needed? Does he also agree that we would not be in such a …..."
Andrew Griffith - View Speech

View all Andrew Griffith (Con - Arundel and South Downs) contributions to the debate on: Town and Country Planning
Speech in Commons Chamber - Wed 30 Sep 2020
Town and Country Planning

"As someone who also represents an area of national beauty, if we do not build houses in brownfield sites where dwellings already are, where does the hon. Gentleman think we will build those homes?..."
Andrew Griffith - View Speech

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Speech in Commons Chamber - Tue 22 Sep 2020
United Kingdom Internal Market Bill

"My hon. Friend is a doughty champion for trade and prosperity. Does he agree that, in these difficult times—not eased by today’s announcement—what the businesses of Britain need most are confidence and certainty, and that one thing this House can do today by passing the Bill, with only 100 days …..."
Andrew Griffith - View Speech

View all Andrew Griffith (Con - Arundel and South Downs) contributions to the debate on: United Kingdom Internal Market Bill