Asked by: Sally-Ann Hart (Conservative - Hastings and Rye)
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 help ensure that new builds, including residential developments, are energy efficient particularly in respect of renewable energy.
Answered by Eddie Hughes
The Government remains committed to meeting its target of net zero emissions by 2050 and recognises the important contribution that the energy efficiency of buildings has to make in meeting it.
From 2025, the Future Homes Standard will ensure that new homes produce at least 75% fewer CO2 emissions compared to those built to the 2013 standards. These homes will have very high fabric standards and be extremely energy efficient. Similarly, the Future Buildings Standard will ensure that new non-domestic buildings are highly efficient and have the best fabric standards possible.
In December 2021 the Government introduced an uplift in energy efficiency standards that delivers a meaningful reduction in carbon emissions and provides a stepping-stone to the Future Homes and Buildings Standards. Once the uplift comes into force, in June 2022, new homes will be expected to produce around 30% fewer CO2 emissions and new non-domestic buildings will be expected to produce 27% fewer CO2 emissions.
Our approach remains technology-neutral and developers will therefore retain the flexibility they need to use the materials and technologies that suit the circumstances of a site and their business to achieve these targets. This includes the use of solar panels where appropriate. The development of the 2021 energy efficiency targets included consideration of solar panels and thus we expect that many new buildings, where appropriate, will use this technology to meet the new standard.
Asked by: Sally-Ann Hart (Conservative - Hastings and Rye)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how much funding will be allocated from the Community Renewal Fund to projects submitted by East Sussex County Council on 18 June 2021; and on what that funding will be disbursed.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
There has been significant interest in the UK Community Renewal Fund across the four investment priorities and bids are being assessed in line with the published assessment process. Outcomes will be announced shortly and bidders informed. We will provide further guidance on UK Community Renewal Fund as soon as possible, to enable bidders to plan for delivery once decisions have been announced.
Asked by: Sally-Ann Hart (Conservative - Hastings and Rye)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment the Government has made of the timeliness of distribution of covid-19 relief funds by (a) unitary councils, (b) two-tier councils and (c) combined authorities; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Simon Clarke
The Government has put forward a package of support for business in recognition of the disruption caused by COVID-19. As part of this, as of 28 June, £10.57 billion has been paid out to over 861,000 business properties under the Small Business Grant Fund (SBGF) and the Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grant Fund (RHLGF). Local authorities are working hard to make grant payments to eligible businesses across the country at pace and we are continuing to work closely with them to deliver the remaining funding. We have published a full breakdown of grant funding allocated to and distributed by each local authority here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-grant-funding-local-authority-payments-to-small-and-medium-businesses .
Asked by: Sally-Ann Hart (Conservative - Hastings and Rye)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent estimate his Department has made of the potential savings generated from local authorities adopting unitary status.
Answered by Simon Clarke
We believe areas moving to unitary status with more sustainable and efficient councils can have significant benefits for local people and businesses, including improved and more affordable local services, stronger and more accountable local leadership, and by removing a layer of governance enabling town and parish councils and local communities to be genuinely empowered.
Ernst & Young’s 2016 [1] study of the two-tier councils in England estimated that each existing two-tier county area moving to a single unitary could produce annual savings (post implementation costs) approaching £30 million. A number of areas are now talking to us about unitarisation and are estimating annual savings of some £50 million.
[1] Independent Analysis of Governance Scenarios and Public Service Reform in County Areas, EY, September 2016.
Asked by: Sally-Ann Hart (Conservative - Hastings and Rye)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment he has made of the potential merits for local authorities of adopting unitary status.
Answered by Simon Clarke
We believe areas moving to unitary status with more sustainable and efficient councils can have significant benefits for local people and businesses, including improved and more affordable local services, stronger and more accountable local leadership, and by removing a layer of governance enabling town and parish councils and local communities to be genuinely empowered.
Ernst & Young’s 2016 [1] study of the two-tier councils in England estimated that each existing two-tier county area moving to a single unitary could produce annual savings (post implementation costs) approaching £30 million. A number of areas are now talking to us about unitarisation and are estimating annual savings of some £50 million.
[1] Independent Analysis of Governance Scenarios and Public Service Reform in County Areas, EY, September 2016.
Asked by: Sally-Ann Hart (Conservative - Hastings and Rye)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what the Government's policy is on further devolution of powers to county councils; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Simon Clarke
Building on the success of our directly elected city region Mayors, our English Devolution and Local Recovery White Paper will set out our plans for expanding devolution, creating more elected Mayors in England, giving them and existing Mayors the powers they need to lead economic recovery and long term growth, and more unitary local authorities with stronger town and parish councils to deliver sustainable local services.
We intend to publish the White Paper in Autumn 2020.
Asked by: Sally-Ann Hart (Conservative - Hastings and Rye)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans he has to include a devolution framework for local authorities to follow in the English Devolution White Paper.
Answered by Simon Clarke
Building on the success of our directly elected city region Mayors, our English Devolution and Local Recovery White Paper will set out our plans for expanding devolution, creating more elected Mayors in England, giving them and existing Mayors the powers they need to lead economic recovery and long term growth, and more unitary local authorities with stronger town and parish councils to deliver sustainable local services.
We intend to publish the White Paper in Autumn 2020.
Asked by: Sally-Ann Hart (Conservative - Hastings and Rye)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to include proposals on the county council tier of local government in his forthcoming devolution White Paper.
Answered by Simon Clarke
Building on the success of our directly elected city region Mayors, our English Devolution and Local Recovery White Paper will set out our plans for expanding devolution, creating more elected Mayors in England, giving them and existing Mayors the powers they need to lead economic recovery and long term growth, and more unitary local authorities with stronger town and parish councils to deliver sustainable local services.
We intend to publish the White Paper in Autumn 2020.
Asked by: Sally-Ann Hart (Conservative - Hastings and Rye)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans he has to devolve further powers to metro mayors in England.
Answered by Simon Clarke
Building on the success of our directly elected city region Mayors, our English Devolution and Local Recovery White Paper will set out our plans for expanding devolution, creating more elected Mayors in England, giving them and existing Mayors the powers they need to lead economic recovery and long term growth, and more unitary local authorities with stronger town and parish councils to deliver sustainable local services.
We intend to publish the White Paper in Autumn 2020.
Asked by: Sally-Ann Hart (Conservative - Hastings and Rye)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will take steps to ensure that communities can continue to access publicly funded community assets and projects that have been subsequently bought up by private individuals and organisations.
Answered by Luke Hall - Minister of State (Education)
The key initiative which allows community groups an opportunity to take publicly or privately-owned buildings or land into community ownership is the assets of community value scheme introduced through the Localism Act 2011. The scheme however does not place any further restrictions on the asset after a sale is complete. The Government continues to recognise the value of community ownership and access to assets, and we have set out our commitment to strengthen the rights of community groups to protect and take over local assets and to introduce a £150 million Community Ownership Fund to support groups who wish to do so.