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45517

	registered interest
	date	27/03/2014
	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
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment he has made made of the accuracy of the ONS index of rental prices; and what recent assessment he has of the changes in the cost of private renting in Slough since 2010.
	tabling member constituency	Slough
	tabling member printed	Fiona Mactaggart
	uin	194133
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/04/2014 answer text <p> </p><p>The Office for National Statistics responded quickly to the need for better data by developing the quarterly Index of Private Housing Rental Prices, first published in June 2013 and dating back to January 2005 for England.</p><p>Currently the Office for National Statistics is consulting users of the index to identify improvements. The index is produced with a robust methodology, which is published and is based on extensive administrative data on rental values including both on-going and newly agreed tenancy agreements. Once the methodology is further tested and assessed, and the publication meets user needs, the Index of Private Housing Rental Prices will be assessed against the Code of Practice to achieve National Statistic status.</p><p>The index is available for Great Britain and its constituent countries; however it is not available at local authority district level. According to most recent figures the average cost of privately renting housing in England increased by 1.0 per cent in the 12 months to December 2013 – a fall in real terms.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Kris Hopkins question first answered 08/04/2014 12:00:00 answering member 4043 label Biography information for Kris Hopkins
	tabling member	12 label Biography information for Fiona Mactaggart

46049

	registered interest
	date	31/03/2014
	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
	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 first time buyers have been helped by the Government's Help to Buy scheme (a) nationally and (b) in Morecambe and Lunesdale constituency.
	tabling member constituency	Morecambe and Lunesdale
	tabling member printed	David Morris
	uin	194542
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/04/2014 answer text <p>This Government is committed to supporting people's aspirations to own their own home.</p><p>In the first eleven months of the scheme, 16,465 households purchased a new build home with the support of the Help to Buy: Equity Loan scheme.</p><p>By January 2014, the time of the last quarterly statistical release, first time buyers accounted for 89% of sales nationally. In Lancaster there were 16 sales by the end of January and first-time buyers accounted for 88% of all Help to Buy: equity loan sales in the area.</p><p>Home owners will also have been supported by the Help to Buy mortgage guarantee scheme, which is overseen by HM Treasury.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Kris Hopkins question first answered 07/04/2014 12:00:00 answering member 4043 label Biography information for Kris Hopkins
	tabling member	4135 label Biography information for David Morris

46054

	registered interest
	date	31/03/2014
	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
	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 council houses or social housing new builds have been built by Lancaster District Council, and in which areas, since 1997.
	tabling member constituency	Morecambe and Lunesdale
	tabling member printed	David Morris
	uin	194539
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/04/2014 answer text <p> </p><p>Statistics on house building completions by tenure in each local authority district are published in the Department's live tables 253 (annual) and 253a (quarterly), which are available at the following link:</p><p><a href="http://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-house-building" target="_blank">http://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-house-building</a></p><p>Taken together, the Private Registered Provider (housing association) and local authority tenures provide estimates of total social housing completions, but these figures understate total affordable supply. This is because the house building figures are categorised by the type of developer rather than the intended final tenure, leading to under recording of affordable housing, and a corresponding over recording of private enterprise figures.</p><p>More comprehensive statistics on affordable housing completions funded by the Homes and Communities Agency since 2009-10 by local authority district are available at the following link:</p><p><a href="http://www.homesandcommunities.co.uk/housing-statistics" target="_blank">http://www.homesandcommunities.co.uk/housing-statistics</a></p><p>These statistics include both newly built housing and acquisitions but exclude delivery of affordable housing not funded by Homes and Communities Agency programmes that are reported in local authority returns to the Department. A fuller picture of all affordable housing completions is published in the Department's live tables 1006, 1006a, 1007 and 1008, which are available at the following link:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-affordable-housing-supply" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-affordable-housing-supply</a></p><p>There is no data source that provides information on affordable homes delivery at any geography smaller than local authority district.</p><p>Over 170,000 new affordable homes have been delivered in England since April 2010 (to the end of September 2013). Our Affordable Homes Programme will lever in £19.5 billion of public and private investment over the current spending review period. Over 2015-18, we will be investing a further £23 billion in public and private funding for affordable housing.</p><p> </p><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Kris Hopkins question first answered 07/04/2014 12:00:00 answering member 4043 label Biography information for Kris Hopkins
	tabling member	4135 label Biography information for David Morris

46055

	registered interest
	date	31/03/2014
	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
	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 his Department has provided to Lancaster City Council to ensure affordable homes are built in rural areas in Morecambe and Lunesdale constituency.
	tabling member constituency	Morecambe and Lunesdale
	tabling member printed	David Morris
	uin	194541
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/04/2014 answer text <p> </p><p>There will be 228 affordable homes delivered in Lancaster area as a result of £6.9 million of government funding through the 2011 to 2015 Affordable Homes Programme of which 27 homes are in rural areas (defined as settlements with populations of less than 3,000 people).</p><p>In 2011-12, half of the affordable homes built outside London were in rural local authorities and we have delivered over 5,000 affordable homes in the smallest rural communities (under 3,000 people) in the first two years of the current programme.</p><p>The Homes and Communities Agency's funding prospectus for the 2015-18 Affordable Homes Programme sets out how the Agency will continue to pay particular attention to the importance of delivery in rural areas in providing funding. The work of the Agency is also supported by a network of rural champions. The National Planning Policy Framework and Rural Exception Sites also help to address the housing needs of rural communities.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Kris Hopkins question first answered 28/04/2014 12:00:00 answering member 4043 label Biography information for Kris Hopkins
	tabling member	4135 label Biography information for David Morris

46204

	registered interest
	date	01/04/2014
	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
	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 affordable homes have been (a) started and (b) completed in (i) Peterborough constituency and (ii) North West Cambridgeshire constituency since May 2010.
	tabling member constituency	Peterborough
	tabling member printed	Mr Stewart Jackson
	uin	194639
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/04/2014 answer text <p> </p><p>The Homes and Communities Agency publishes information every six months about the number of affordable housing starts on site and completions for programmes it funds, broken down by local authority district. This information is not available by parliamentary constituency. The published information can be found at:</p><p><a href="http://www.homesandcommunities.co.uk/housing-statistics" target="_blank">http://www.homesandcommunities.co.uk/housing-statistics</a></p><p>These statistics do not include information on any affordable housing that has not been reported to the Homes and Communities Agency, such as some affordable housing funded solely through developer contributions.</p><p>Over 170,000 new affordable homes have been delivered in England since April 2010 (to the end of September 2013). Our Affordable Homes Programme will lever in £19.5 billion of public and private investment over the current spending review period. Over 2015-18, we will be investing a further £23 billion in public and private funding for affordable housing.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Kris Hopkins question first answered 08/04/2014 12:00:00 answering member 4043 label Biography information for Kris Hopkins
	tabling member	1551 label Biography information for Lord Jackson of Peterborough

46472

	registered interest
	date	02/04/2014
	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
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how self-reported data from local authorities on the Troubled Families programme is audited.
	tabling member constituency	Leeds Central
	tabling member printed	Hilary Benn
	uin	194861
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/04/2014 answer text <p> </p><p>All results are approved within each local authority's internal audit arrangements and under the statutory authority of the Chief Executive. My Department then undertakes a verification process on a sample of claims made.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Kris Hopkins question first answered 09/04/2014 12:00:00 answering member 4043 label Biography information for Kris Hopkins
	tabling member	413 label Biography information for Hilary Benn

46480

	registered interest
	date	02/04/2014
	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
	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 the Answer of 18 March 2014, Official Report, column 533W, on wind power, how his Department makes decisions on planning and recoveries without centrally holding the capacity of energy schemes.
	tabling member constituency	Sunderland Central
	tabling member printed	Julie Elliott
	uin	194931
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/04/2014 answer text <p> </p><p>The main consideration in the recovery of wind turbine appeals is the potential impact of the development on the surrounding area, in the particular circumstances of each appeal and its location. The generation capacity of the appeal is not a driver in the decision on whether or not the appeal should be recovered.</p><p>As I said in my earlier answer my Department does not centrally hold details of the generation capacity of wind turbine appeals.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Kris Hopkins grouped question UIN 194930 question first answered 07/04/2014 12:00:00 answering member 4043 label Biography information for Kris Hopkins
	tabling member	4127 label Biography information for Julie Elliott

46506

	registered interest
	date	02/04/2014
	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
	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 the Answer of 18 March 2014, Official Report, column 533W, on wind power, how much onshore wind capacity was recovered in each month in 2013.
	tabling member constituency	Sunderland Central
	tabling member printed	Julie Elliott
	uin	194930
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/04/2014 answer text <p> </p><p>The main consideration in the recovery of wind turbine appeals is the potential impact of the development on the surrounding area, in the particular circumstances of each appeal and its location. The generation capacity of the appeal is not a driver in the decision on whether or not the appeal should be recovered.</p><p>As I said in my earlier answer my Department does not centrally hold details of the generation capacity of wind turbine appeals.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Kris Hopkins grouped question UIN 194931 question first answered 07/04/2014 12:00:00 answering member 4043 label Biography information for Kris Hopkins
	tabling member	4127 label Biography information for Julie Elliott

46856

	registered interest
	date	03/04/2014
	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
	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 has he made of the effect of buy-to-leave investments on the proportion of homes standing empty.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
	tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
	uin	195186
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/05/2014 answer text <p> </p><p><em>[Holding Reply: Tuesday 8 April 2014]</em></p><p><em>Action on empty homes</em></p><p>The Coalition Government has a comprehensive package of policies to help get empty homes back into use. They include:</p><p>· A £235 million empty homes funding programme, which will deliver 12,000 homes from empty properties by March 2015 – with apprenticeships on offer to make this happen.</p><p>· Rewarding councils for bringing empty homes back into use through the New Homes Bonus – since April 2011, councils have received over £2.2 billion for bringing over 93,000 empty homes back into use, which they can then use to benefit the wider community.</p><p>· Giving councils new powers to remove council tax subsidies to empty homes, and use the funds to keep the overall rate of council tax down.</p><p>· Cancelling the last Administration's Pathfinder programme which sought to demolish homes, instead focusing on refurbishment and getting empty homes into use.</p><p><br> <em>The evidence base</em></p><p>This approach is working. The number of empty homes has fallen year-on-year since 2009, and at now at the lowest level since 2004. Similarly, the number of long-term vacant properties has fallen by around a third since 2009.</p><p>I note that Islington Borough Council's recent discussion paper on so-called “Buy to Leave” tried to use the electoral roll as a proxy for measurement – yet many UK residents of foreign nationality may not be legally eligible to be on the electoral roll, or it simply may not be a priority for such individuals to register.</p><p>Moreover, in relation to London, I have placed in the Library a table showing how the number of empty homes has fallen by 30 per cent since 2009 and by 18 per cent in the last year, including a breakdown by London borough, which broadly shows falls across both central, inner and outer London boroughs. Islington has seen a drop in the number of empty homes of 26 per cent since 2009.</p><p>In that context, the evidence that “Buy to Leave” is a widespread problem is weak. Fundamentally, even where property is purchased by someone of foreign nationality, it will generally be either occupied or rented out, generating an ongoing return for the investor. It is not particularly rational for any investor not to rent out an unused flat and lose rental income, given the strong demand for private rented accommodation, especially in London.</p><p><em>The small number of foreign buyers</em></p><p>Even then, the Bank of England recently estimated that foreign buyers represent just 3% of total residential property transactions in London (Bank of England, <em>Financial Stability Report</em>, November 2013). Knight Frank have estimated that between 85% and 90% of new-build sales in Greater London are sold to domestic buyers, and there is no indication of a shift towards higher non-resident purchases in the last two years (Knight Frank, <em>International Buyers in London</em>, October 2013). Savills have reported that the proportion of sales to overseas buyers in ‘prime' London markets is no higher than it was in 1990. But they also estimate that, in 2012, foreign investment helped to finance 3,000 new affordable homes and added a further 3,000 much needed new homes to the market-rented sector (Savills, <em>Spotlight: The World in London</em>, 2013).</p><p><em>How foreign investment helps build new housing</em></p><p>Both domestic and foreign investment in new housing has been helping to provide the finance needed to build it, particularly in a global city like London. Without upfront investment, financiers would not have released the cash needed for development to go ahead, and building would have stalled. These new developments not only provide homes for people to live and work, they also unlock associated affordable housing development. A good example is the Battersea Power Station redevelopment which, having laid derelict for thirty years, is now being taken forward thanks to the combination of private investment from Malaysia and public infrastructure support from the UK Government. Both were essential to move the project forward.</p><p><em>Marketing new build to local residents</em></p><p>I would add that the Government has actively encouraged the property industry to ensure that homes for sale are marketed in the United Kingdom, and not solely overseas. In response, the Home Builders Federation announced in December 2013 a new industry initiative which commits signatories to ensure that housing developments in London are marketed in the UK either at the same time as, or in advance of, any overseas launch.</p><p>The Mayor of London has also recently launched a Mayoral Concordat on new homes in the capital, writing to key developers across the UK, asking them to sign up to commit to selling new homes on every development to Londoners before, or at the same time as they are available to overseas buyers. The Concordat is already supported by the Major Developer Group, London First, the London Chamber of Commerce and the Home Builders Federation and signed by fifty developers in London.</p><p><em>Tackling tax avoidance</em></p><p>Of course, it is important that overseas owners of property pay their way. That is why this Government has taken action to tackle tax avoidance by reforming taxation of higher-value UK residential property held by non-natural persons, and also levelling the playing field by introducing capital gains tax on future gains made by non-residents disposing of UK residential property. Last month's Budget took further steps to discourage the use of corporate envelopes to invest in high value housing to avoid paying tax.</p><p><em>More new housing to buy and rent</em></p><p>As well as tackling empty homes, the Government's long-term economic plan is increasing investment and building more homes. According to the NHBC, in 2013, new housing registrations rose by 30 per cent in England on the year before and registrations are the highest since 2007; in London, new registrations rose 60 per cent, the highest annual total since their records began 26 years ago.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Kris Hopkins question first answered 06/05/2014 12:00:00 answering member 4043 label Biography information for Kris Hopkins previous answer version 5260 answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Kris Hopkins answering member 4043 label Biography information for Kris Hopkins
	tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

46857

	registered interest
	date	03/04/2014
	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
	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 social housing units were built in Brighton, Kemptown constituency in the most recent five-year period for which figures are available.
	tabling member constituency	Brighton, Kemptown
	tabling member printed	Simon Kirby
	uin	195160
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/04/2014 answer text <p> </p><p>Statistics on house building completions by tenure in each local authority district are published in the Department's live tables 253 (annual) and 253a (quarterly), which are available at the following link:</p><p><a href="http://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-house-building" target="_blank">http://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-house-building</a></p><p>Taken together, the Private Registered Provider (housing association) and local authority tenures provide estimates of total social housing completions, but these figures understate total affordable supply. This is because the house building figures are categorised by the type of developer rather than the intended final tenure, leading to under recording of affordable housing, and a corresponding over recording of private enterprise figures.</p><p>More comprehensive statistics on affordable housing completions funded by the Homes and Communities Agency since 2009-10 by local authority district are available at the following link:</p><p><a href="http://www.homesandcommunities.co.uk/housing-statistics" target="_blank">http://www.homesandcommunities.co.uk/housing-statistics</a></p><p>These statistics include both newly built housing and acquisitions but exclude delivery of affordable housing not funded by Homes and Communities Agency programmes that are reported in local authority returns to the Department. A fuller picture of all affordable housing completions is published in the Department's live tables 1006, 1006a, 1007 and 1008, which are available at the following link:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-affordable-housing-supply" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-affordable-housing-supply</a></p><p>There is no data source that provides information on affordable homes delivery by parliamentary constituency.</p><p>Over 170,000 new affordable homes have been delivered in England since April 2010 (to the end of September 2013). Our Affordable Homes Programme will lever in £19.5 billion of public and private investment over the current spending review period. Over 2015-18, we will be investing a further £23 billion in public and private funding for affordable housing.</p><p> </p><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Kris Hopkins question first answered 10/04/2014 12:00:00 answering member 4043 label Biography information for Kris Hopkins
	tabling member	3929 label Biography information for Simon Kirby