Asked by: Mike Thornton (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many appeals against planning application refusals by local planning authorities have been (a) upheld and (b) dismissed by the Planning Inspectorate since 2010.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
Planning is a quasi-judicial process; it is a long-standing feature of the planning system that there is a right of appeal, just as there are with other local quasi-judicial decisions such as on licensing applications, gambling applications or parking fines.
The Localism Act 2011 has strengthened the role of Local Plans and abolished the last Administration’s top-down Regional Strategies. Our streamlined National Planning Policy Framework strongly encourages areas to get up-to-date Local Plans in place, and we have been actively supporting councils in doing so. Local Plans now set the framework in which decisions on particular applications are taken, whether locally or at appeal, unless material considerations indicate otherwise. We have also allowed local communities to draw up Neighbourhood Plans, which also become part of the area’s statutory development plan.
The table below shows the number of appeals since 2009-10:
Appeal decisions | Allowed | Dismissed |
2009-10 | 5,852 | 11,443 |
2010-11 | 5,195 | 10,633 |
2011-12 | 5,021 | 9,475 |
2012-13 | 4,757 | 8,705 |
2013-14 | 4,884 | 8,995 |
Note: Planning inspectorate decisions, including written representations, hearings and inquiries.
The table shows that since the National Planning Policy Framework was introduced in March 2012, the number of appeals is lower, as is the number allowed. 99% of decisions are made locally with only approximately 1% of planning applications overturned on appeal. This is in the context of rising housing starts, higher housing construction and rising planning permissions. This means there is more local decision-making, and our reforms are supporting badly-needed new homes within a locally-led planning system.
Asked by: Mike Thornton (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what plans he has to ensure that residents can veto proposals to extract minerals in their localities.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
Without minerals, the country cannot provide the raw materials for construction, to help build and maintain homes, roads and railway lines. Traditional materials are also needed to maintain historic buildings. Hence, some extraction will always need to take place.
However, as with housing, this Government has abolished top-down regional targets in the Regional Strategies, and given councils more power and discretion through Local Plans to determine where development should and should not go.
Asked by: Mike Thornton (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what recent research his Department has undertaken on retaliatory evictions in the private rented sector.
Answered by Kris Hopkins
There is no hard evidence that retaliatory eviction is a widespread problem in the private rented sector and the English Housing Survey shows that only 9% of tenancies are ended by the landlord. However, we are aware that this is an issue for some people. We recently published a discussion document on property conditions which invited views on whether restrictions should be placed on issue of possession notices where a tenant has requested a repair. The closing date for replies was 28 March and we are now considering the responses.