Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to his plans to extend right to buy housing association properties, what comparative assessment he has made of the (a) difference in cost to Government of one-for-one compared to like for like replacement of each social housing property sold and (b) level of potential risk that (i) properties will be sold on to buy to let private landlords in the future and (ii) the policy will contribute to a reduction in the overall number of social homes for rent; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
This Government is committed to the Right to Buy, which has helped nearly two million council tenants to realise their dream of home ownership.
Housing associations that took part in the Midlands pilot have 3 years to use the receipts from a sale for replacement affordable housing. Replacement is therefore still ongoing. 1,839 homes were sold between 2019 and 2021 under the Midlands Voluntary Right to Buy pilot. We are monitoring replacement of homes sold under the pilot, including through our annually published data collection.
The Prime Minister announced on 9 June 2022, the intention to extend the Right to Buy to housing association tenants, and that homes sold under an extended Right to Buy scheme will be replaced one-for-one.
We will be working closely with the housing association sector as we develop the scheme and will announce more details in due course.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
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 Evaluation of Midlands Voluntary Right to Buy Pilot, what steps he is taking to address the indication from housing associations that they will find meeting the collective commitment to one for one challenging, particularly without putting their own resources in to part-fund replacements.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
This Government is committed to the Right to Buy, which has helped nearly two million council tenants to realise their dream of home ownership.
Housing associations that took part in the Midlands pilot have 3 years to use the receipts from a sale for replacement affordable housing. Replacement is therefore still ongoing. 1,839 homes were sold between 2019 and 2021 under the Midlands Voluntary Right to Buy pilot. We are monitoring replacement of homes sold under the pilot, including through our annually published data collection.
The Prime Minister announced on 9 June 2022, the intention to extend the Right to Buy to housing association tenants, and that homes sold under an extended Right to Buy scheme will be replaced one-for-one.
We will be working closely with the housing association sector as we develop the scheme and will announce more details in due course.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how many of the homes sold during the Voluntary Right to Buy Midlands pilot have been replaced since the commencement of that scheme; what recent assessment he has made of whether the pilot will lead to a one-for-one replacement of the homes that have been sold; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
This Government is committed to the Right to Buy, which has helped nearly two million council tenants to realise their dream of home ownership.
Housing associations that took part in the Midlands pilot have 3 years to use the receipts from a sale for replacement affordable housing. Replacement is therefore still ongoing. 1,839 homes were sold between 2019 and 2021 under the Midlands Voluntary Right to Buy pilot. We are monitoring replacement of homes sold under the pilot, including through our annually published data collection.
The Prime Minister announced on 9 June 2022, the intention to extend the Right to Buy to housing association tenants, and that homes sold under an extended Right to Buy scheme will be replaced one-for-one.
We will be working closely with the housing association sector as we develop the scheme and will announce more details in due course.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment the Government has made of the impact of ending arrangements for local authorities to meet remotely or in hybrid format, as permitted under the powers granted by section 78 of the Coronavirus Act 2020, on democratic engagement by (a) councillors and (b) members of the public who are (i) disabled, (ii) clinically extremely vulnerable to covid-19 and (iii) carers for people who are disabled and clinically extremely vulnerable to covid-19; if he will make it his policy to permit local authorities to continue to meet remotely or in hybrid format on accessibility and equality grounds; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade
The Government launched a call for evidence last year to gather views and inform a longer-term decision about whether to make express provision for councils to meet remotely and enable councillors to attend meetings remotely, if necessary, on a permanent basis. The Department has considered the responses to the consultation and we will respond shortly.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
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 it his policy to incorporate the Community Housing Fund into the Affordable Homes Programme; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Support for the community led housing sector is already available through the Affordable Homes Programme (AHP), through which groups - or their partner organisations - registered as providers of social housing may apply for capital grant to support affordable housing. In addition, we are considering a range of options through which the Department may support the community-led housing sector.
The Government recognises that the community-led housing sector - which includes community land trusts and housing co-operatives - offers significant untapped potential for helping to meet housing need across England. In addition to helping increase the rate of delivery of new housing, it will help deliver a range of benefits including diversifying the housebuilding sector, improving design and construction quality, developing modern methods of construction and helping sustain local communities and local economies. The support and close involvement of the local community enables the community-led approach to secure planning permission and deliver housing that could not be brought forward through mainstream development.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
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 decision set out in a departmental communication to stakeholders dated 11 May 2022 not to renew the Community Housing Fund, if he will make it his policy to continue the pre-development funding that the Community Housing Fund provided, via another channel; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government recognises that the community-led housing sector – which includes community land trusts and housing co-operatives – offers significant untapped potential for helping to meet housing need across England. In addition to helping increase the rate of delivery of new housing, it will help deliver a range of benefits including diversifying the housebuilding sector, improving design and construction quality, developing modern methods of construction and helping sustain local communities and local economies. The support and close involvement of the local community enables the community-led approach to secure planning permission and deliver housing that could not be brought forward through mainstream development
We are considering a range of options through which the Department may support the community led housing sector.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, when will he will respond to the Bacon Review into scaling up self-build and custom housebuilding published on 21 August 2021.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government welcomes the independent review into scaling up self-build and custom housebuilding and is grateful to the Honourable Member for South Norfolk, and his wider review team, for the detailed and comprehensive work and for their recommendations. We expect to publish the Government's response to the Review shortly.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
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 Homes for Ukraine Scheme, if he will make an estimate of the average length of time taken for Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks for hosts after the arrival of Ukrainian refugees in their homes in the most recent period for which data is available; whether he has set a target for the timescale for processing DBS checks; what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the provision of support to local authorities to (a) fulfil safeguarding duties relating to the scheme and (b) respond to cases of homelessness where placements breakdown; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Eddie Hughes
The government will expand the data publication on the Homes for Ukraine scheme in due course.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what estimate he has made of the number of Homes for Ukraine sponsorships that will run for (a) six, (b) nine and (c) 12 months; what resources will be provided to councils to assist with supporting Ukrainian refugees following (i) the planned end of a sponsorship and (ii) any instances where a sponsorship ends early; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Eddie Hughes
The Government has set out plans which introduce a mechanism for local authorities to rematch Homes for Ukraine guests with new sponsors in certain circumstances. Councils should use the £10,500 tariff to meet all their associated costs (both for providing council services and for administering payments), including rematching costs.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
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 request to review the planning application from Rathlin Energy for four more wells and 20 years of oil extraction at the West Newton-A site in East Yorkshire; whether he plans to call in the project; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Planning permission has been granted by the local council and as such the Secretary of State cannot now call-in the application. A request seeking revocation of the planning permission is currently being considered against revocation policy.
I hope you will understand that I cannot comment on the matter further, as to do so might prejudice the Secretary of State’s position.