Author: admin

  • MiDavies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    MiDavies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by MiDavies on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the strength of a designation as a Site of Special Scientific Interest in determining planning applications.

    Gavin Barwell

    The National Planning Policy Framework provides strong protection for Sites of Special Scientific Interest. It makes clear that proposed development likely to have an adverse effect on a Site of Special Scientific Interest should not normally be permitted. Planning law requires local planning authorities to consult Natural England on applications for development in or likely to affect Sites of Special Scientific Interest.

  • MiDavies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    MiDavies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by MiDavies on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the use of air quality management areas by local authorities.

    Dr Thérèse Coffey

    Air quality has improved significantly in recent decades and we are working at local, national and international levels to continue those improvements. The UK currently meets legal limits for almost all pollutants; however, reducing levels for nitrogen dioxide (NO2) remains the most challenging.

    Local authorities (LAs) have opportunities to improve air quality for the protection of public health and the environment through decisions they make on land use planning, permitting, roads and air quality management areas (AQMAs).

    Across the UK, 259 LAs declared 715 AQMAs since 1999. Most AQMAs in the UK are in urban areas and have been established to address the contribution to air pollution from traffic emissions of NO2 or particulate matter (PM10). Details of the current AQMAs declared by LAs, broken down by region and pollutant, are set out in the table below.

    Region

    Total LAs

    Number of LAs with AQMAs

    For NO2

    For PM10

    For SO2

    England (outside London)

    294

    193

    497

    38

    6

    London

    33

    33

    33

    29

    0

    Scotland

    32

    14

    25

    21

    1

    Wales

    22

    10

    37

    1

    0

    N. Ireland

    11

    9

    20

    7

    0

    TOTAL

    393

    259

    612

    96

    7

  • Roberta Blackman-Woods – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Roberta Blackman-Woods – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roberta Blackman-Woods on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate his Department has made of the number of domestic violence refuges that will be potentially close as a result of changes to housing benefit.

    Caroline Nokes

    The Secretary of State has confirmed that the Government expects to make an announcement on the way forward for supported housing in early autumn. Full impact and equality impact assessments will be undertaken in due course.

  • Steve Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Steve Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve Reed on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much his Department provided to each London borough in Homeless Prevention Grant for 2016-17.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    One person without a home is one too many. That is why we have maintained and protected homelessness prevention funding for local authorities through the local government finance settlement totalling £315 million by 2019/20. We have also increased central government funding to tackle homelessness to £139 million over the next four years.

    The spreadsheet showing individual authority allocations was published on 8 February and can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/core-spending-power-final-local-government-finance-settlement-2016-to-2017.

  • MiDavies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    MiDavies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by MiDavies on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many councils do not currently have a five-year land supply.

    Gavin Barwell

    We do not hold information centrally on how many local planning authorities do not have a five-year land supply for housing. A local planning authority’s five-year land supply position changes frequently and is subject to market conditions. The National Planning Policy Framework requires local planning authorities to keep their land supply under regular review.

  • Clive Efford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Clive Efford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Clive Efford on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to assess public safety on beaches in England; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    Safety at public beaches is generally the responsibility of the local authority, who carry out risk assessments to determine appropriate safety measures. Generic guidance for the safe use of beaches is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/keeping-safe-at-the-coast-beach-safety-advice

    “

  • Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Tomlinson on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will make it his policy to encourage local authorities to include information about the New Enterprise Allowance, Small Business Rate Relief and Disability Confident with the business rate summaries sent to businesses.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    The Government has no plans to encourage local authorities to include information about the New Enterprise Allowance and Disability Confident with business rates demand notices. Demand Notices are the statutory means by which local authorities inform non-domestic ratepayers of their rate liability for the year ahead. The demand notice also provides useful information about rate bills.

    Small Business Rate Relief information is directly related to business rates and is already included on demand notices.

  • Royston Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Royston Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Royston Smith on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what provisions there are for tenants to ensure that they able to recover security deposits that have been returned to the letting agents by the MyDeposit scheme.

    Gavin Barwell

    If a tenant meets all their obligations at the end of the tenancy, the deposit will be returned to them in full by the agent (under the insured scheme) or by the tenancy deposit scheme (under the custodial scheme).

    If there is a dispute about the amount of deposit to be returned to the tenant, both parties can either agree to use the free alternative dispute resolution (ADR) service provided by the schemes or go to court. If they decide to use the ADR service, the case will be considered by an independent adjudicator and the decision will be binding on both parties.

    The disputed amount will be held by the scheme until the court or adjudicator makes a decision on how the amount should be apportioned between the parties.

  • Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Tomlinson on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will take steps to ensure that planning permission for major housing developments can only be granted if the application includes the appropriate provision of green space for sporting and recreation use.

    Gavin Barwell

    The National Planning Policy Framework makes clear that local planning policies should take account of the needs for open space, sports and recreation facilities, and opportunities for new provision. It is for local councils to apply these policies when determining applications for housing development, taking into account existing provision for sport and recreation in the area, and other material considerations.

  • Karin Smyth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Karin Smyth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Karin Smyth on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if his Department will take steps to provide additional support for people who need to dispose of a property after the death of a relative by reviewing existing council tax liabilities.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    The Government provides an exemption from council tax for up to 6 months to people who have inherited properties which are left empty due to the death of the occupier. This applies after the granting of probate, or after letters of administration have been signed. Local authorities additionally have discretion to offer discounts of between 0% and 100% for empty homes. Authorities can also defer payment of council tax until the proceeds of a sale are made available.

    The Government has no plans to change this support.