Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what recent estimate he has made of the number of long-term empty properties in (a) England, (b) the North West, (c) Lancashire and (d) Pendle constituency.

Statistics on vacant dwellings in England and by local authority are published in the Department’s Live Table 615, which is available at:

www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-dwelling-stock-including-vacants

My Department does not publish regional statistics.

I would note that under this Government, the number of long-term empty homes has fallen by a third from the base line of 316,251 in October 2009 to 216,050 in October 2013. The number of empty homes overall is at a ten year low.

The Coalition Government has delivered a comprehensive package of policies to help get empty homes and buildings back into use. We have:

• provided over £200 million to fund innovative schemes run by community groups, councils and housing associations up and down the country to bring empty properties back into use. So far, our funding has enabled local groups to create almost 6,000 new homes from empty property – providing apprenticeship and training opportunities as well as more homes and better neighbourhoods for local people – with the potential to deliver more.

• Rewarded councils for bringing 100,000 empty homes back into use through the New Homes Bonus;

• Given councils new powers to remove council tax subsidies to empty homes, and use the funds to keep the overall rate of council tax down. We have also changed tax rules to discourage the use of corporate envelopes to invest in high value housing which may be left empty or under-used to avoid paying tax;

• Cancelled the Labour Government’s Pathfinder programme which sought to demolish homes, instead of focusing on refurbishment and getting empty homes into use; and revoked associated pro-demolition guidance from the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister;

• Taken forward the best practice recommendations produced by our independent empty homes adviser, George Clarke—such as refurbishment and upgrading of existing homes should be the first and preferred option, and that demolition of existing homes should be the last option after all forms of market testing and options for refurbishment are exhausted; we have embedded these principles in our housing programme funding schemes;

• Reformed Community Infrastructure Levy regulations to provide an increased incentive for brownfield development, extending exemptions for empty buildings being brought back into use. We have reduced Section 106 burdens on vacant buildings being returned to use.

• Introduced the Right to Contest, building on our existing Community Right to Reclaim Land, which lets communities ask that under-used or unused land owned by public bodies is brought back into beneficial use. This new right applies to central Government sites currently in use, but are not vital for operations.

• Amended national planning policy through the National Planning Policy Framework to encourage councils to bring back empty properties back into use;

• Funded a new business rates reoccupation relief to help bring empty shops back into use; and

• Reformed permitted development rights in a number of ways to free up the planning system and facilitate the conversion of redundant and under-used non-residential buildings into new homes.