Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of social housing provision in Ely and East Cambridgeshire constituency.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Members to the Written Ministerial Statement made on 2 July (HCWS771).
Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she plans to take to ensure that new housing developments have adequate access to infrastructure.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The National Planning Policy Framework sets out that the purpose of the planning system is to contribute to the achievement of sustainable development, including the provision of supporting infrastructure in a sustainable manner.
Local development plans should address needs and opportunities in relation to infrastructure and identify what infrastructure is required and how it can be funded and brought forward. When preparing a Local Plan, Planning Practice Guidance recommends that local planning authorities use available evidence of infrastructure requirements to prepare an Infrastructure Funding Statement. Such Statements can be used to demonstrate the delivery of infrastructure throughout the plan-period.
The government provides financial support for essential infrastructure in areas of greatest housing demand through Land and Infrastructure funding programmes, such as the Housing Infrastructure Fund.
The revised National Planning Policy Framework published on 12 December 2024 will also support the increased provision and modernisation of various types of public infrastructure.
The government is also committed to strengthening the existing system of developer contributions to ensure new developments provide necessary affordable homes and infrastructure. Further details will be set out in due course.
Our Planning and Infrastructure Bill includes various provisions designed to streamline the delivery of new homes and critical infrastructure.
Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of abolishing residential leaseholds.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement made on 21 November 2024 (HCWS244).
Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to protect nature through the planning process.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The National Planning Policy Framework is clear about the importance of conserving and enhancing the natural environment.
Planning policies and decisions should contribute to and enhance the natural and local environment by minimising impacts on and providing net gains for biodiversity, including by establishing coherent ecological networks that are more resilient to current and future pressures and incorporating features which support priority or threatened species such as swifts, bats, and hedgehogs.
We are considering using a new suite of national policies for decision making, which we will be consulting on later this year, to require swift bricks to be incorporated into new buildings, unless there are compelling reasons that preclude their use or that would make them ineffective. As an interim step ahead of the planned consultation, we published updated Planning Practice Guidance setting out how swift bricks are expected to be used in new developments.
Under the new statutory framework for Biodiversity Net Gain, every grant of planning permission (subject to some exemptions) is subject to the condition that the development must deliver at least a 10% increase in biodiversity value relative to the pre-development biodiversity value of the onsite habitat.
When it comes to development and the environment, we know we can do better than the status quo, which too often sees both sustainable housebuilding and nature recovery stall. Instead of environmental protections being seen as barriers to growth, we want to unlock a win-win for the economy and for nature. Part 3 of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill introduces a new Nature Restoration Fund that will unlock and accelerate development while going beyond neutrality to unlock the positive impact development can have in driving nature recovery.
Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to support first time buyers.
Answered by Rushanara Ali
The affordability challenges facing prospective first-time buyers mean that too many people are now locked out of homeownership. This government is determined to change that, ensuring that young families and hardworking renters can buy a home of their own.
Boosting the supply of homes of all tenures must be at the heart of any strategy to improve housing affordability which is why the government’s Plan for Change includes a hugely ambitious milestone of building 1.5 million safe and decent homes in England in this Parliament.
In addition to increasing the supply of homes of all tenures, we are committed to introducing a permanent, comprehensive mortgage guarantee scheme, to support first-time buyers who struggle to save for a large deposit, with lower mortgage costs.
Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to review voter identification requirements ahead of the May 2024 local elections.
Answered by Rushanara Ali
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 33335 answered on 27 February 2025.
Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the research by her Department entitled The impact of a change in the maximum park home sale commission, published on 16 June 2022.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The park homes sector is an important part of the housing market.
The government recognises that there are longstanding concerns about the requirement to pay site owners a commission upon sale of a park home.
We will set out plans in due course to seek further evidence from the sector on the rationale for the commission.
Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to ensure that planning decisions support the Government’s climate targets.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Climate change is one of the greatest challenges facing the world today, and the planning system can play a powerful role in helping to mitigate and adapt to its effects.
The revised National Planning Policy Framework published on 12 December 2024 made some immediate changes to support climate change mitigation and adaptation through increased deployment of renewables and sustainable drainage systems, amendments to transport policy and changes to emphasise the importance of climate considerations in planning.
The Framework also makes clear that the need to mitigate and adapt to climate change should be considered in preparing and assessing planning applications.
Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to implement the recommendations of the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities's report entitled The impact of a change in the maximum park home sale commission: executive summary, published on 16 June 2022.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The park homes sector is an important part of the housing market.
The government recognises that there are longstanding concerns about the requirement to pay site owners a commission upon sale of a park home.
We will set out plans in due course to seek further evidence from the sector on the rationale for the commission.
Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of delays to the implementation of the Future Homes Standard on home efficiency standards.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government understands the urgency of introducing new energy efficiency standards so that as many homes as possible are built to be zero-carbon ready. We are committed to implementing the Future Homes Standard this year, and are taking the time to set the technical requirements at a level which is ambitious and keeps us on track to achieve our net zero ambitions, while also being achievable across all sites.
In the meantime, please rest assured that an uplift to the energy efficiency standards in 2021, which came into effect in June 2022, set high standards for home energy efficiency. New homes built between now and the Future Homes Standard coming into force will likely be built to these 2021 standards. They should therefore have excellent fabric quality, including insulation, and are likely to include low-carbon technologies, such as solar panels or heat pumps.