Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the findings of the Coastal Powerhouse Manifesto published on 16 September 2021 by Maritime UK and the Local Government Association Coastal Special Interest Group.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
We appreciate Maritime UK and the Local Government Association Coastal Special Interest Group's detailed and insightful Coastal Powerhouse manifesto and we recognise the value of the recommendations made. We welcome the continuous engagement of the sector as we are progressing with our levelling up agenda. In this respect, we share the view expressed on the need to continue the strong partnership that exists between Government and key stakeholder groups.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what support he is providing to the UK’s coastal communities.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
We have continued to make significant progress in supporting coastal communities in a number of areas, demonstrated by the Coastal Communities Fund now having supported 359 projects, totalling over £229 million since 2012, spreading jobs, investment and opportunity to towns and cities across the country including in coastal areas.
Further to this, our coastal areas have already benefited from over £600 million through successful bids into Town Deals and the Future High Streets Fund. Of the 101 towns receiving a Town Deal, 22 of them are coastal towns.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of creating a £7 billion sustainable urban futures fund to support local leaders to invest in (a) infrastructure improvements, (b) new housing projects and (c) town centres to support the economic recovery from the covid-19 outbreak in urban areas.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
This Government is committed to supporting local leaders to create sustainable urban centres following Covid-19. For example, the National Home Building Fund (NHBF) was announced at the 2020 Spending Review and brings together existing housing land and infrastructure funding streams into a single, flexible, more powerful pot. This will support the government's ambition to deliver 1 million homes over the Parliamentary term and the 300k homes per year. £4.8 billion of the funding brings together existing capital programmes across land and infrastructure and confirms a continued commitment to the £400 million Brownfield Fund
The department is investing over £10 billion in local growth funds, including the Towns Fund and Levelling Up Fund, to deliver regeneration across the UK. Additionally, the Build Back Better High Streets strategy was published in July which sets out Government's long-term plan to support the evolution and regeneration of all high streets across every part of the UK.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the findings in the report published on 10 September 2021 by the Local Government Association, entitled A vision for urban growth and recovery, comparing the impact of the covid-19 outbreak on local and rural areas and the long-term fiscal security of urban communities.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
We appreciate the Local Government Association detailed and insightful ‘Vision for Urban Growth and Recovery’ report and we recognise the value of the recommendations made. We welcome the continuous engagement with the sector as we are progressing our levelling up agenda. In this respect, we share the view expressed on the need to continue the strong partnership that exists between Government and key stakeholder groups.
Britain’s cities are at the heart of our national economy, accounting for more than 60% of jobs, productivity and taxes, despite accounting for less than a tenth of land. As we look towards the new normal, cities and towns across the UK will continue to be powerhouses across the UK, driving economic growth and of crucial importance to the Government’s levelling up agenda.
The report highlights the significant and more pronounced impact of covid-19 on urban centres than non-urban centres. We recognise that the impacts of covid-19 have been significant on health, the economy and our society, but most keenly felt across our urban centres. The immediate focus of policy making in the last eighteen months has been to support individuals and businesses through the pandemic and to promote the quickest recovery and is therefore why our package of support for businesses through this period totals over £352billion, including through business grants, the coronavirus loan schemes and Job Retention Scheme.
In Government, we are keen to continue working with the Local Government Association and partners from right across the public and private sectors to deliver our levelling up agenda for our urban centres and beyond, and continue to welcome such insightful, relevant and comprehensive engagement.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on the rate of recovery of footfall in retail premises in urban areas and the impact of that rate of recovery on urban economies following the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
The Department engages regularly at both Ministerial and official level with the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on a range of joint issues affecting urban areas, including the recovery of footfall in the retail sector and recovery following the covid-19 pandemic.
The Government is providing support to local leadership with a High Streets Task Force, giving them expert advice to support their high streets and town centres to adapt and thrive. Over five years this is providing hands-on support to local areas to develop data-driven innovative strategies and connect local areas to relevant experts. The Task Force has set up a Sector Leaders Group and a Professional Research and Data Group, who are playing a vital role in supporting the recovery of our local economies by providing intelligence and evidence to support the High Street Tasks Force and Government in its response to the pandemic. The Professional Research and Data Group provides regular data analysis, including footfall trends, on the Task Force website (https://www.highstreetstaskforce.org.uk/).
More broadly, our ambition is to ensure that town and city centres continue to flourish now and in the future. On 15 July, we published the Build Back Better High Streets Strategy, where we committed to continue working with the sector on its long-term strategic needs to ensure that businesses are profitable, resilient, innovative and support local economies in socially and environmentally responsible ways.
The Government also set up the Urban Centre Recovery Task Force last year to consider the impact of covid-19 on our cities and offer recommendations on practical measures that government could take to help cities adapt and take advantage of new opportunities. This includes the permanence of any changes, how to support city economies to adapt and how to take advantage of any opportunities, with a focus on regeneration, repurposing, housing and other relevant areas such as planning.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what plans his Department has for increasing clarity in the planning system on housing options for older people.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
This Government seeks to unite and level up the country, ensuring opportunity is available for all, and our plans to modernise the planning system are an important part of this.
We are continuing to reflect on the 43,000 consultation responses and engage with stakeholders across the system. The Response will be published shortly and I look forward to engaging with Members on it.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps his Department is taking to increase the supply of housing with care.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
Offering vulnerable people a better choice of accommodation to suit their changing needs can help them live independently and feel more connected to their communities. This Government is committed to the provision of suitable homes for older people, including extra care housing, which contributes to levelling up across communities. Housing-with-care allows individuals to choose where they want to live, with whom, how they can best be supported, and what happens in their home. Both the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and the Department of Health and Social Care provide capital funding to incentivise their supply. Our planning rules already mean councils must consider the needs of older people when planning for new homes. In 2019, we published guidance to help councils implement the National Planning Policy Framework policies.
We are investing over £12 billion in affordable housing over 5 years, the largest investment in affordable housing in a decade. This includes the new £11.5 billion Affordable Homes Programme, where 10 per cent of delivery over the course of the programme will be used to increase the supply of much needed specialist or supported housing, including retirement housing. The Department of Health and Social Care are also continuing to subsidise new supply of specialist housing for older and disabled people through the Care and Support Specialised Housing (CASSH) Fund.
The Government's plan for health and social care, announced on Tuesday 7 September, also recognised the important role of housing, and supported housing in particular, in providing care and support to people in the community.
We continue to work closely with the older people's housing sector and across Government to look at how we can further support its growth. I look forward to engaging with representatives in the sector further and value their insight.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to the debate on Covid-19: Effect on Retirement Communities of 1 July 2021, Official Report, column 147WH, if he will establish a task force on housing-with-care.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
Both my Department and the Department of Health and Social Care are committed to further improving the diversity of housing options available to older people. We are engaging closely with both the sector and a range of other stakeholders on this issue. This includes considering the merits of different engagement and delivery models including proposals from the sector for a cross-Government taskforce.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to work with the Department of Health and Social Care to expand housing-based care options for older people; and whether he is considering a cross-government Housing with Care Task Force to help deliver that expansion of options.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
The Department has noted the open letter sent by the Associated Retirement Community Operators (ARCO) to the Prime Minister on 29 March 2021. Housing-with-care has a vital role in enabling older people to live independently, with the necessary care and support available if required. Both the Department of Health and Social Care, and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government are committed to further improving the diversity of housing options available to older people, including housing-with-care, and are engaging closely with the sector and a range of other stakeholders on this issue. This includes considering the merits of different engagement and delivery models including proposals from the sector for a cross-government taskforce.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will respond to the open letter of 29 March 2021 sent to the Prime Minister calling on the Government to take steps to help increase the supply of housing-with-care provision for older people.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
The Department has noted the open letter sent by the Associated Retirement Community Operators (ARCO) to the Prime Minister on 29 March 2021. Housing-with-care has a vital role in enabling older people to live independently, with the necessary care and support available if required. Both the Department of Health and Social Care, and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government are committed to further improving the diversity of housing options available to older people, including housing-with-care, and are engaging closely with the sector and a range of other stakeholders on this issue. This includes considering the merits of different engagement and delivery models including proposals from the sector for a cross-government taskforce.