Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, for what reason appointments to the New Homes Quality Board were not subject to open applications.
The New Homes Quality Board is independent of Government and was established through an industry-led initiative. The Government had no role in making appointments to the Board or the appointment of the Chair. The Board brings together a wealth of relevant experience from across the housing industry and includes consumer protection groups. We are supportive of the Board’s aims and we have been kept appraised of its work, including on a code of practice. However, the Government has not been involved in the code’s development.
The Government is bringing forward legislation, through the Building Safety Bill, to provide for the New Homes Ombudsman which will resolve disputes, provide effective protection for new build home-buyers and will set out the arrangements for the New Homes Ombudsman scheme. Legislation will also underpin a developers’ code of practice to cover the standards of conduct and quality of work expected of developers, including fire safety issues.