Oral Answers to Questions

Trudy Harrison Excerpts

Monday 4th March 2019 Commons Chamber

[The Minister for Housing (Kit Malthouse)]

Permitted development rights have produced 46,000 homes over the past three years. Those homes have to come from somewhere. They are not, as the hon. Lady said, slums. All permitted developments have to comply with building regulations. As she knows, we are currently reviewing building regulations to see what can be required. As part of the work on the social housing Green Paper, we may well also look at the decent home standards that could, in time, apply to the private rented sector.

[Trudy Harrison (Copeland) (Con)]

T5. When the last bank in town moves out, as is happening in Millom in my constituency, what is being done to ensure that remote and rural communities do not suffer economic and social hardship?

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government (Jake Berry)]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. She is passionate about the high streets in Millom and more widely across her constituency. The loss of the last bank is of concern. That is why we are supporting the Post Office banking framework, which will ensure that 99% of personal banking customers will be able to keep their face-to-face banking at their local post office.