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227482

registered interest
date	16/03/2015
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Mental Health Services: Children
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many local authorities have carried out an assessment of the mental health needs of their child and adolescent populations.
tabling member constituency	Liverpool, Wavertree
tabling member printed	Luciana Berger
uin	227731
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/03/2015 answer text <p>The Government does not collect this information. However, local health and wellbeing boards are required to produce Joint Strategic Needs Assessments, which must assess current and future health and social care needs within the health and wellbeing board area. Assessments must cover the whole population, and ensure that mental health receives equal priority to physical health.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Kris Hopkins question first answered 19/03/2015 12:49:11 answering member 4043 label Biography information for Kris Hopkins
tabling member	4036 label Biography information for Luciana Berger

227483

registered interest
date	16/03/2015
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Planning Permission: Urban Areas
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of including urban planning in the Public Health Responsibility Deal.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	227724
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/03/2015 answer text <p>The National Planning Policy Framework is clear that the purpose of the planning system is to contribute to achieving sustainable development, which includes the health, social and cultural well-being of local communities. The Framework:</p><ul><li>sets out that good design is indivisible from good planning and should contribute to making places better for people;</li><li>asks planners to work to create safe and secure layouts which minimise conflicts between traffic and cyclists or pedestrians, and give priority to pedestrian and cycle movements;</li><li>enables local communities, through the preparation of local and neighbourhood plans, to identify for special protection green or open areas of particular importance to them as Local Green Space; and</li><li>seeks to conserve and enhance the natural environment and reduce pollution.</li></ul><p>The Public Health Responsibility Deal embodies the Government's ambition for a more collaborative approach to tackling the challenges caused by lifestyle choices and so it is within this context that councils and communities can help to shape their places. <br><br></p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Kris Hopkins question first answered 19/03/2015 12:46:49 answering member 4043 label Biography information for Kris Hopkins
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

227488

registered interest
date	16/03/2015
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Troubled Families Programme
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the performance of the Troubled Families scheme.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	227691
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/03/2015 answer text <p>As my rt.hon. Friend, the Secretary of State (Eric Pickles) outlined in his Oral Statement of 10 March, <em>Official Report</em>, Column 157, the Troubled Families Programme is firmly on track. As of the end of February 2015, local authorities reported that 105,671 troubled families had been turned around. This represents 90% of the national total of 117,910 troubled families targeted by the programme and there remains a final opportunity for local authorities to report results in May 2015. 10,508 of these families include a family member who had been helped off benefits and into continuous employment.</p><p> </p><p>My Department regularly publishes information about progress online. The latest breakdown, by individual local authority, is available at:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/troubled-families-programme-progress-information-at-december-2014-and-families-turned-around-at-february-2015" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/troubled-families-programme-progress-information-at-december-2014-and-families-turned-around-at-february-2015</a></p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Kris Hopkins question first answered 19/03/2015 16:41:22 answering member 4043 label Biography information for Kris Hopkins
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

227490

registered interest
date	16/03/2015
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Derelict Land
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what guidance his Department has published on use of brownfield sites in local development by local authorities.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	227693
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/03/2015 answer text <p>The National Planning Policy Framework asks local authorities to encourage the re-use of previously developed (brownfield) land, provided that it is not of high environmental value. It confirms that a local authority may set a locally appropriate target for the use of brownfield land through the Local Plan. Local authorities need to take account of the biodiversity value of a brownfield site before decisions are taken about development.</p> answering member constituency Great Yarmouth answering member printed Brandon Lewis question first answered 19/03/2015 13:00:06 answering member 4009 label Biography information for Sir Brandon Lewis
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

227492

registered interest
date	16/03/2015
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Local Enterprise Partnerships
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to promote best practice between local authorities and local enterprise partnerships.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	227695
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/03/2015 answer text <p>Since 2011 the government has funded the Local Enterprise Partnerships Network to enable them to come together to discuss issues of shared interest, provide a shared platform for the exchange of knowledge and best practice and support private sector board members to build capacity.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>We also established the What Works Centre for Local Economic Growth in October 2013. The Centre, which is co-funded by the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills, the Department for Communities and Local Government and the Economic and Social Research Council has a key objective which is to ensure that robust evidence is embedded in the development of policy on local economic growth and that new policies are effectively evaluated. As part of its work the Centre engages with an extensive network of practitioners, including local enterprise partnerships and local authorities to develop and disseminate best practice and develop communities of interest.</p><p> </p><p>Local Enterprise Partnerships, which are partnerships of local authorities and business are proactively working across their boundaries, often through the Local Government Association, on areas of shared interest.</p> answering member constituency Portsmouth North answering member printed Penny Mordaunt question first answered 19/03/2015 16:39:25 answering member 4017 label Biography information for Penny Mordaunt
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

227496

registered interest
date	16/03/2015
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Fire and Rescue Services: Pensions
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whether firefighters aged 55 who fail a fitness test will receive an unreduced pension; and whether he plans to bring in legislative proposals to make this a statutory right.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Mr Frank Field
uin	227579
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/03/2015 answer text <p>It is not possible to introduce fitness regulations as part of the pension regulations in the absence of an agreed and universally applied national firefighter fitness standard in England. The statutory principles that we put in the Fire and Rescue National Framework for England came into force on 12 January 2015. To underpin these the National Employers have sought further discussion with the Fire Brigades Union in respect of additional guidance relating to the position already agreed in principle within the National Joint Council for Local Authority Fire and Rescue Services about the role fire authorities will take in supporting operational employees to maintain their fitness. In addition, the National Employers are looking to discuss with the unions, guidance on application of the factors set out in Pension Regulations for fire authority consideration in relation to Authority Initiated Early Retirement. Both approaches are expected to provide reassurance to operational employees that fire authorities will continue to treat their employees in a fair and consistent manner.</p><p>We will review the implementation of the National Framework principles in three years time and consider then whether further action is needed. In the meantime no firefighter will have to work beyond their current expected retirement date until 2022 at the earliest. Our expectation is that a firefighter of 55 or over who finds themselves in the situation of losing their fitness through no fault of their own, is unable to regain their fitness, and for whom there are no redeployment opportunities, should be offered an unreduced pension.</p><p>Where underlying medical reasons have been identified that restrict or prevent an individual from achieving the necessary fitness standards for undertaking their role as a firefighter, the individual should be referred to occupational health, and must receive the necessary support to facilitate a return to operational duties. The fire and rescue authority should also fully explore opportunities to enable the individual to remain in employment, including through reasonable adjustments and appropriate redeployment within the role, where it appears the medical condition prevents a return to operational duties. In those circumstances, where there are no such opportunities or suitable alternative employment is unavailable, then the fire and rescue authority will commence the formal assessment for ill-health retirement by referring the case to the Independent Qualified Medical Practitioner. Where it is determined that a firefighter is permanently unable to continue in their role as a firefighter they would become entitled to the immediate payment of a lower tier ill-health pension. In addition to this, they would also receive a higher tier ill-health enhancement if it was also determined that they could not undertake any regular employment. The definition of ill-health is wide, and includes both physical and mental conditions, including arthritis and post-traumatic stress syndrome. It is important to note that, where a firefighter is deemed eligible for medical retirement, the authority must pay the ill-health pension - there is no discretion.</p><p>Any firefighter will continue to be free to choose to retire from 55 onwards should they wish to, regardless of their fitness. In such circumstances, any benefits accrued in the 1992 and 2006 firefighters' pension schemes would be paid in full, while benefits earned in the 2015 scheme would be actuarially reduced by 21.8 per cent for a firefighter retiring on their birthday at 55, and reduced on a daily basis thereafter. The actuarial reduction of 21.8 per cent at age 55 compares very favourably with a reduction of over 40 per cent applied to firefighters at the same age in the 2006 scheme. The 2006 scheme also introduced a normal pension age of 60. Overall, our measures give firefighters one of the most generous pensions in the public sector and the strongest protections available for any public sector workforce on fitness and ageing.</p> answering member constituency Portsmouth North answering member printed Penny Mordaunt question first answered 19/03/2015 13:06:16 answering member 4017 label Biography information for Penny Mordaunt
tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

227497

registered interest
date	16/03/2015
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Non-domestic Rates
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the amount of unpaid business rates owed to local authorities in (a) England, (b) West Yorkshire and (c) Leeds in each year from 2010 to 2014.
tabling member constituency	Leeds North West
tabling member printed	Greg Mulholland
uin	227591
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/03/2015 answer text <p>The table below shows, in £ millions, the amount of business rates not collected in-year by local authorities in (a) England, (b) West Yorkshire and (c) Leeds in each year from 2009-10 to 2013-14.</p><table><tbody><tr><td> </td><td>Leeds</td><td>West Yorkshire</td><td>England</td></tr><tr><td> </td><td> </td><td> </td><td> </td></tr><tr><td>2009-10</td><td>7.3</td><td>18.6</td><td>432.1</td></tr><tr><td>2010-11</td><td>6.8</td><td>17.2</td><td>409.4</td></tr><tr><td>2011-12</td><td>8.7</td><td>22.0</td><td>466.5</td></tr><tr><td>2012-13</td><td>8.5</td><td>21.0</td><td>507.7</td></tr><tr><td>2013-14</td><td>11.1</td><td>22.3</td><td>478.0</td></tr></tbody></table><p>West Yorkshire comprises of the metroploitan districts of Bradford, Calderdale, Kirklees, Leeds and Wakefield.</p><p>This information is derived from the final Quarterly Return of Council Taxes and Non-Domestic Rates (QRC4) returns submitted for all 326 billing authorities in England in April and May each year. This information is published in statistical releases available at:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/council-tax-statistics" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/council-tax-statistics</a></p><p> </p><p>The figures are calculated by subtracting the amount of business rates local authorities collected in the year up until 31 March of the year in question from the amount of business rates that were expected to be collected for the year. It includes prepayments made in advance of the year in question but does not include prepayments made within the year for future years nor does it include the payment of any arrears.</p><p> </p><p>Collection of business rates continues once the financial year to which they relate has ended. This means the final amount not collected for the year may be different to the amount shown in the table</p><p> </p><p>This shows there is significant scope for councils to generate revenue by improving their collection rates.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Kris Hopkins question first answered 19/03/2015 17:03:43 answering member 4043 label Biography information for Kris Hopkins
tabling member	1540 label Biography information for Greg Mulholland

227498

registered interest
date	16/03/2015
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Planning Permission
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the average cost to the public purse of a request for him to call in a planning application in each of the last five years.
tabling member constituency	Totnes
tabling member printed	Dr Sarah Wollaston
uin	227592
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/03/2015 answer text <p>Very few planning applications are called in each year - an average of only 8 cases in each of the last five years. In all these cases the parties who take part in the planning inquiry are expected to meet their own costs in preparing and presenting evidence. The cost to the public purse is therefore limited. It varies considerably between cases, depending on factors including the complexity of each project and the length of the planning inquiry, and whether there is any litigation following the issue of a decision.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Great Yarmouth answering member printed Brandon Lewis question first answered 19/03/2015 13:01:20 answering member 4009 label Biography information for Sir Brandon Lewis
tabling member	4073 label Biography information for Dr Sarah Wollaston

227500

registered interest
date	16/03/2015
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Non-domestic Rates
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what support and advice is available to companies which require assistance in paying business rates.
tabling member constituency	Leeds North West
tabling member printed	Greg Mulholland
uin	227598
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/03/2015 answer text <p>We announced at the 2014 Autumn Statement an extra £650 million of support for 2015-16 bills, bringing the total support of 2013 and 2014 Autumn Statement polices to £1.4 billion. This help includes:</p><p> </p><ul><li>doubling small business rate relief for a further year. In England, this means an estimated 400,000 properties will pay no rates at all, while a further 200,000 properties will benefit from tapered relief;</li><li>a 2% cap on the increase of the small business rates multiplier. This is a continuation of the 2% cap introduced in 2014-15 as part of Autumn Statement 2013 measures;</li><li>increasing the temporary discount for shops, pubs and restaurants with rateable values below £50,000 from £1,000 to £1,500 for 2015-16, benefitting an estimated 200,000 properties in England; and</li><li>extending the existing transitional relief scheme for two years for properties with a rateable value up to and including £50,000.</li></ul><p> </p><p>These measures are in addition to previous Autumn Statement measures that continue into 2015-16, including:</p><p> </p><ul><li>a 50 per cent discount for 18 months to new occupants of vacant shops;</li><li>allowing businesses to keep their small business rate relief for a year where they take on an additional property;</li><li>business rates relief for empty new builds; and</li><li>allowing businesses to pay their business rate bills over 12 months, in order to assist with their cash flow.</li></ul><p> </p><p> </p><p>We have also given councils powers to grant their own discounts and we now fund 50% of any local discount granted. Authorities also have powers to grant hardship relief.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Kris Hopkins question first answered 19/03/2015 13:10:28 answering member 4043 label Biography information for Kris Hopkins
tabling member	1540 label Biography information for Greg Mulholland

227269

registered interest
date	13/03/2015
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Housing: Construction
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to his Answer of 12 March 2015 to Question 226673, whether starter homes provided under his proposed exceptions policy could be counted towards off-site affordable housing obligations owed by developers under section 106 agreements made in respect of other development sites.
tabling member constituency	Greenwich and Woolwich
tabling member printed	Mr Nick Raynsford
uin	227520
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/03/2015 answer text <p>I refer the rt. hon Member to my answer to him of 12 March 2015, Question 226673, and the associated guidance which outlines the exceptions policy in place.</p> answering member constituency Great Yarmouth answering member printed Brandon Lewis question first answered 19/03/2015 16:37:27 answering member 4009 label Biography information for Sir Brandon Lewis
tabling member	171 label Biography information for Mr Nick Raynsford