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Written Question
Park Homes: Regulation
Wednesday 7th February 2024

Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)

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 Government response to the call for evidence on the review of park homes legislation, published in October 2018, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to help tackle the use of complex and opaque company structures to (a) limit park home residents' security of tenure and (b) avoid liability for enforcement action; and if he will make an assessment of trends in the level of the use of such company structures since 2018.

Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

The Department has published two guidance documents relating to the fit and proper person test.

My Department continues to work closely with the four national residents’ associations to address their members’ concerns about rights and responsibilities in the sector.

We remain committed to improving the sector further and will introduce primary legislation when parliamentary time allows, to prevent the use of complex company structures, clarify the definition of a pitch fee and prevent the use of variable service charges in written agreements.


Written Question
Park Homes: Regulation
Wednesday 7th February 2024

Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)

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 Government response to the call for evidence on the review of park homes legislation, published in October 2018, whether his Department has taken recent steps to (a) help raise awareness of the rights and responsibilities of park home residents and (b) issue guidance on best practice to local authorities.

Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

The Department has published two guidance documents relating to the fit and proper person test.

My Department continues to work closely with the four national residents’ associations to address their members’ concerns about rights and responsibilities in the sector.

We remain committed to improving the sector further and will introduce primary legislation when parliamentary time allows, to prevent the use of complex company structures, clarify the definition of a pitch fee and prevent the use of variable service charges in written agreements.


Written Question
Park Homes: Fees and Charges
Wednesday 7th February 2024

Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)

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 Government response to the call for evidence on the review of park homes legislation, published in October 2018, whether he plans to bring forward legislative proposals to (a) amend and clarify the definition of a park home pitch fee and (b) prevent the use of variable service charges in written agreements.

Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

The Department has published two guidance documents relating to the fit and proper person test.

My Department continues to work closely with the four national residents’ associations to address their members’ concerns about rights and responsibilities in the sector.

We remain committed to improving the sector further and will introduce primary legislation when parliamentary time allows, to prevent the use of complex company structures, clarify the definition of a pitch fee and prevent the use of variable service charges in written agreements.


Written Question
Park Homes: RoyaleLife
Wednesday 7th February 2024

Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)

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 adequacy of the legal rights to redress for park home residents that have been adversely impacted by (a) companies in the Royale Life Group being put into administration and (b) the bankruptcy of Robert Bull.

Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

My Department has provided the national park home residents’ associations with advice to share with their members, about the rights and protections in place for those affected by those companies that have gone to administration.

My Department has also written to the relevant local authorities to remind them of their site licensing duties and to ensure the administrators continue to meet their legal obligations.


Written Question
Park Homes: RoyaleLife
Wednesday 7th February 2024

Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will take steps to help support park home residents that have been adversely impacted by (a) companies in the Royale Life Group being put into administration and (b) the bankruptcy of Robert Bull.

Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

My Department has provided the national park home residents’ associations with advice to share with their members, about the rights and protections in place for those affected by those companies that have gone to administration.

My Department has also written to the relevant local authorities to remind them of their site licensing duties and to ensure the administrators continue to meet their legal obligations.


Written Question
Housing: Planning
Monday 27th November 2023

Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department is taking steps to help ensure that new homes are built in areas subject to a ban on residential development solely due to a nearby river catchment having excess phosphates in the water; and if he will differentiate developments already the subject of planning applications approvals from proposals not yet submitted.

Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)

The Government was very disappointed with the decision of the House of Lords voting against proposals that would have unlocked over 100,000 homes.

Given that they have, the responsible approach is to look at alternative ways in which we can ensure that people still have the opportunity of home ownership and a roof over their heads, whilst still being good stewards of the environment (as, indeed, the legislation was previously trying to do). As a result, we are, for now, focusing on making progress within the existing legal framework, keeping us on track to meet our manifesto commitment to build one million homes over this Parliament. This includes making available £110 million through the Local Nutrient Mitigation Fund and to help planning authorities in affected areas deliver tens of thousands more homes before the end of the decade.

Provisions in the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act mean that local planning authorities and developers will assume that wastewater treatment work upgrades will be completed by 2030 and should factor that assumption into any relevant decision-making for the purposes of an assessment under the Habitats Regulations. This will benefit both new applications and developments already approved.

Further details of the Government’s measures to address the challenge of nutrient neutrality can be found – www.gov.uk/guidance/nutrient-neutrality-update.


Written Question
Park Homes: Licensing
Thursday 23rd November 2023

Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)

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 allowing a person who has a power of attorney on behalf of a park home resident to appeal against a site licence condition which has been imposed by a local council.

Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

It remains appropriate that site owners, not residents or their representatives, have the right to appeal against conditions imposed on them by local authorities. Site licences and any conditions attached to them, are issued to site owners by local authorities, to ensure sites and amenities on them are adequately maintained.


Written Question
Renters (Reform) Bill
Tuesday 18th July 2023

Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what the (a) business and (b) social net present value is of the impact of the policies enacted through the Renters (Reform) Bill which do not require secondary legislation.

Answered by Rachel Maclean

The Impact Assessment for the Renters (Reform) Bill sets out the Net Present Social Value and impacts on business for all the policies in the Bill, including those which do not require secondary legislation. The full Impact Assessment can be found here.


Written Question
Park Homes: Fees and Charges
Monday 19th June 2023

Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps he is taking to implement its commitment in 2018 to (a) legislate to simplify complex company and opaque structures used to limit the security of tenure of park home residents and (b) amend the definition of pitch fees to prevent the use of variable service charges for park home residents in pitch fee agreements.

Answered by Rachel Maclean

We have made significant progress on the implementation of our 2018 commitments, including supporting my Honourable Friend's Private Member's Bill which will change the inflationary index used in pitch fee reviews from the retail price index to the lower consumer price index.

We remain focused on improving the sector and will introduce primary legislation to implement our remaining commitments, when the parliamentary timetable allows.


Written Question
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council
Thursday 8th June 2023

Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, when he received the independent assurance review of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council; and when he plans to publish (a) that review and (b) his response to it.

Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)

The independent assurance review of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council is being finalised. The final report will be published on the gov.uk website. I will write to the council and local Members of Parliament following publication.