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35983

	registered interest
	date	30/01/2014
	answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
	answering dept id	7
	answering dept short name
	answering dept sort name
	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 support local planning authorities in (a) improving the viability of brownfield sites and (b) restarting stalled developments.
	tabling member constituency	York Outer
	tabling member printed	Julian Sturdy
	uin	185957
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/04/2014 answer text <p> </p><p><em>Kick-starting stalled developments</em></p><p>This Government has introduced a series of measures to support stalled house building. These include:</p><p>· The Get Britain Building investment fund, providing over £500 million of finance which has so far helped start 11,893 new homes on stalled sites (as of February 2014).</p><p>· The Growing Places Fund is providing £770 million to deliver the infrastructure needed to unlock stalled schemes that will promote economic growth, create jobs and build homes. The fund has been fully allocated to Local Enterprise Partnerships and the devolved administrations to fund local projects.</p><p>· The £474 million Local Infrastructure Fund investment fund is supporting the delivery of upfront infrastructure for locally-supported, large scale housing sites and commercial development; it also provides capacity funding and brokerage support to local authorities to help them progress major schemes through the planning process. Nearly 80,000 homes have been unlocked on fifteen different sites. A further thirteen schemes are currently being assessed for investment, which we believe have the potential to deliver nearly 40,000 homes.</p><p>· The Autumn Statement committed an additional £1 billion of Local Infrastructure Fund funding to unlock locally-led housing schemes capable of delivering up to a further 250,000 new homes, and a second round prospectus will be published in due course.</p><p>· The Growth and Infrastructure Act 2013 enables developers with any Section 106 agreement to apply for a review of the affordable housing component to ensure development is not being made unviable by unrealistic requirements. Such unviable Section 106 agreements result in no development, no regeneration and no community benefits: a sensible review can result in more housing and more affordable housing.</p><p>· As the housing market has improved, we have ended the temporary measure (introduced by the last Administration) which allowed developers to roll forward their planning permissions; this ending of the measure will increase the incentive for developers to start on site before permission expires.</p><p>· We are also seeking to tackle the inappropriate use of planning conditions and speed up the process of gaining non-planning consents.</p><p>· The Budget announced a £525 million Builders' Finance Fund to assist small and medium sized developers to access finance to support the delivery of housing schemes of between 15 and 250 units, helping kick-start stalled sites and deliver around 15,000 units over four years.</p><p><em>Supporting development on brownfield land</em></p><p>Freeing up brownfield land for regeneration and development is a key priority for my department. Our actions include:</p><p>· We have amended planning regulations to make it easier to change the use of an existing building from commercial to residential use, retail to residential use and agricultural to residential use. Permitted development rights have been expanded, including for flats above shops and allowing for new temporary uses. The Budget announced our intention to further extend these flexibilities.</p><p>· The National Planning Policy Framework makes clear that planning should encourage the effective use of land by re-using brownfield land provided that it is not of high environmental value, and that local councils can set locally appropriate targets for using brownfield land. We have also amended planning practice guidance to stress the importance of bringing brownfield land into use.</p><p>· We have abolished the last Government's Pathfinder programme which sought to demolish homes and instead we have focused on refurbishment and getting empty homes into use. We are investing £160 million specifically to bring empty homes back into use. The New Homes Bonus rewards long-term empty homes being brought back into use and we have given councils the flexibility to remove tax subsidies given to empty homes, and use the money to keep the overall rate of council tax down. The number of empty homes in England has fallen to its lowest rate ever according to the Empty Homes Agency.</p><p>· My Department has been supporting the Olympic legacy, driving renewal and regeneration in east London, replacing over 740 acres of polluted, low-grade industrial land and premises with new sports and community facilities, parks, homes, shops and transport infrastructure.</p><p>· We are working with the Mayor of London to unlock the construction of 11,000 new homes at Barking Riverside, and extend transport infrastructure.</p><p>· A new garden city will be delivered on brownfield land in Ebbsfleet, supported by an Urban Development Corporation and up to £200 million of public investment. The last Administration pledged in its 2003 Sustainable Communities Plan to regenerate Ebbsfleet but failed to deliver.</p><p>· The new Right to Contest builds 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 sites currently in use, but are not vital for operations. It gives businesses and members of the public an opportunity to challenge government on the best use of its estate.</p><p>· We have a comprehensive programme to sell surplus public sector land and property, freeing up taxpayers' money and providing land for new homes. As at the end of December we had released surplus government owned land with capacity for 68,000 homes to be built. We have strengthened the role of the Homes and Communities Agency through a targeted programme of transfers from other Government Departments and agencies. In addition, to ensure land is released efficiently, the Homes and Communities Agency will be Government's land disposal agency. This builds on the Homes and Communities Agency's expertise and experience of complex land remediation and disposals as well as their close relationships with local planning authorities.</p><p>· Through the Strategic Land and Property Review we have identified scope to generate £5 billion of receipts from government land and property between 2015 and 2020. This will put land and property into the hands of those who can exploit them for commercial purposes – creating opportunities for housing and economic development.</p><p>· Changes to Community Infrastructure Levy rules now provide an increased incentive for brownfield development, and extended exemptions for empty buildings being brought back into. We have recently published a consultation paper to lift Section 106 burdens on vacant buildings being returned to use.</p><p>· The Budget announced an Estate Regeneration fund which will provide £150 million to help kick start and accelerate the regeneration of housing estates.</p><p>I hope this outlines the decisive action that this Government is taking.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Grantham and Stamford answering member printed Nick Boles question first answered 03/04/2014 12:00:00 answering member 3995 label Biography information for Nick Boles
	tabling member	4079 label Biography information for Julian Sturdy

1687358

	registered interest
	date	05/02/2024
	answering body	Department for Business and Trade
	answering dept id	214
	answering dept short name	Business and Trade
	answering dept sort name	Business and Trade
	hansard heading	Small Businesses
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps her Department is taking to help support the development of new small businesses.
	tabling member constituency	York Outer
	tabling member printed	Julian Sturdy
	uin	12953
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/02/2024 answer text <p>The Government reaffirmed its commitment to all the UK’s 5.5 million small businesses with the creation of a new Small Business Council. The Council builds on the Department’s existing support for SMEs and will provide a bespoke forum for small businesses to have their voices represented within Government.</p><p> </p><p>The Help to Grow website is a one-stop shop for small businesses to clearly identify what funding they can access, webinars as well as the basics of setting up a business.</p><p> </p><p>Businesses can still access government-backed financial support from the Start Up Loans Company, which provides loans and support to new entrepreneurs.</p> answering member constituency Thirsk and Malton answering member printed Kevin Hollinrake question first answered 12/02/2024 16:55:42 answering member 4474 label Biography information for Kevin Hollinrake
	tabling member	4079 label Biography information for Julian Sturdy

1584875

	registered interest
	date	07/02/2023
	answering body	Department for Business and Trade
	answering dept id	214
	answering dept short name	Business and Trade
	answering dept sort name	Business and Trade
	hansard heading	Conditions of Employment: Standards
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps her Department has taken to help improve workers’ rights in the period since the UK's departure from the EU.
	tabling member constituency	York Outer
	tabling member printed	Julian Sturdy
	uin	141413
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/02/2023 answer text <p>Protecting and enhancing workers’ rights whilst supporting business to grow remains a priority for this Government.</p><p>The Government is backing six Private Members’ Bills helping new parents, unpaid carers, hospitality workers, giving all employees easier access to flexible working, and giving workers’ a right to request a more predictable contract.</p><p>This is in addition to previous reforms we have delivered since leaving the EU including; increasing pay for around 2.5 million workers, extending the ban on exclusivity clauses, quadrupling the maximum fine for employers who treat their workers badly, and creating a new statutory leave for parents who suffer the loss of a child.</p> answering member constituency Thirsk and Malton answering member printed Kevin Hollinrake question first answered 15/02/2023 14:47:02 answering member 4474 label Biography information for Kevin Hollinrake
	tabling member	4079 label Biography information for Julian Sturdy

1603485

	registered interest
	date	13/03/2023
	answering body	Department for Business and Trade
	answering dept id	214
	answering dept short name	Business and Trade
	answering dept sort name	Business and Trade
	hansard heading	Post Offices: Closures
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps she is taking to mitigate the effects of the closure of Post Office collection points.
	tabling member constituency	York Outer
	tabling member printed	Julian Sturdy
	uin	163785
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/03/2023 answer text <p>I believe that my Honourable Friend is referring to Royal Mail customer service points rather than Post Office collection points. I understand that Royal Mail has completed the first stage of its review of customer service points and decided to maintain the current estate.</p><p>Decisions on the provision of Royal Mail customer service points are an operational matter for the business, provided they meet Ofcom’s regulatory requirement on Royal Mail, as the Designated Universal Service Provider, to provide access points for the universal postal service.</p> answering member constituency Thirsk and Malton answering member printed Kevin Hollinrake question first answered 21/03/2023 15:38:57 answering member 4474 label Biography information for Kevin Hollinrake
	tabling member	4079 label Biography information for Julian Sturdy

1275886

	registered interest
	date	12/01/2021
	answering body	Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
	answering dept id	201
	answering dept short name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
	answering dept sort name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
	hansard heading	Public Houses: Coronavirus
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of easing regulations to allows pubs to temporarily trade as off-licenses during the covid-19 lockdown announced in January 2021 to give consumers the option of buying bottled and canned alcoholic products from their local pubs.
	tabling member constituency	York Outer
	tabling member printed	Julian Sturdy
	uin	136511
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/01/2021 answer text <p>While hospitality venues are not allowed to sell alcohol for takeaway under the new National Lockdown restrictions, they are allowed to continue to sell food and non-alcoholic drinks for takeaway until 11pm. All food and drink (including alcohol) can continue to be provided by delivery.</p> answering member constituency Sutton and Cheam answering member printed Paul Scully question first answered 20/01/2021 16:34:02 answering member 4414 label Biography information for Paul Scully
	tabling member	4079 label Biography information for Julian Sturdy

1064730

	registered interest
	date	21/02/2019
	answering body	Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
	answering dept id	201
	answering dept short name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
	answering dept sort name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
	hansard heading	Solar Power: Feed-in Tariffs
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what representations his Department has received from (a) members of the public and (b) civil society groups on the decision to end the export tariff for solar installations.
	tabling member constituency	York Outer
	tabling member printed	Julian Sturdy
	uin	224328
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/02/2019 answer text <p>We received 345 responses to the consultation on the proposed closure of the Feed-in Tariffs scheme held last year. Of these, 169 were from members of the public and 43 were from civil society groups.</p><p> </p><p>Since the Government response was published on 18 December 2018, confirming closure of the scheme, we have received further representations on the issue from over 60 members of the public via their MP (46 in response to a civil society group campaign) and three civil society groups.</p> answering member constituency Devizes answering member printed Claire Perry question first answered 27/02/2019 13:28:38 answering member 3974 label Biography information for Claire Perry
	tabling member	4079 label Biography information for Julian Sturdy

1170768

	registered interest
	date	14/01/2020
	answering body	Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
	answering dept id	201
	answering dept short name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
	answering dept sort name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
	hansard heading	Fireworks: Regulation
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what representations she has received from members of the public and civil society groups on tighter restrictions on the use of fireworks; and what she steps she is taking in response to those representations.
	tabling member constituency	York Outer
	tabling member printed	Julian Sturdy
	uin	3187
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/01/2020 answer text <p>We receive representations from a wide range of stakeholders, including members of the public, organisations and charities, all with ranging views on what the issues are and what action they would like to see.</p><p> </p><p>The Office for Product Safety and Standards is developing a fact-based evidence base on the key issues that have been raised around fireworks, including noise, anti-social behaviour, non-compliance, environmental impact, and the impact on humans and animals. This will build a fuller picture of the data around fireworks in order to identify whether further action is appropriate. This work is an ongoing exercise, which is not time limited and we will report in due course.</p> answering member constituency Rochester and Strood answering member printed Kelly Tolhurst question first answered 20/01/2020 16:40:29 answering member 4487 label Biography information for Kelly Tolhurst
	tabling member	4079 label Biography information for Julian Sturdy

1190232

	registered interest
	date	24/04/2020
	answering body	Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
	answering dept id	201
	answering dept short name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
	answering dept sort name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
	hansard heading	Businesses: Coronavirus
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what notice the Government plans to give businesses closed due to covid-19 on reopening, when appropriate, to allow them to undertake necessary forward planning; and what discussions the Government is having with business representatives on planning for reopening.
	tabling member constituency	York Outer
	tabling member printed	Julian Sturdy
	uin	39653
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/05/2020 answer text <p>We have set out five clear tests that will need to be met before making any changes to our current approach. As my Rt. Hon. Friend the Prime Minister has said, we will gradually refine the economic and social restrictions at the appropriate time.</p><p> </p><p>The Department has been looking at how we can ensure workplaces are safe - for those in work now and for those who will go back to work once the measures in place are relaxed.</p><p> </p><p>As this work is complex and multifaceted, we are working with industry, business representative organisations, unions, Public Health England, and the Health and Safety Executive. Together, we are considering what is needed to adapt workplaces to further improve safety, thereby minimising the risk of transmission.</p><p> </p><p>Through this engagement activity, we are welcoming views and best practice that might support us in ensuring that businesses can reopen whilst adhering to the social distancing guidelines. We will continue to engage with businesses and industry stakeholders throughout the process to gain a better understanding of wider implications and what needs to be put in place for businesses to reopen.</p> answering member constituency Stratford-on-Avon answering member printed Nadhim Zahawi question first answered 05/05/2020 16:45:13 answering member 4113 label Biography information for Nadhim Zahawi
	tabling member	4079 label Biography information for Julian Sturdy

1304952

	registered interest
	date	23/03/2021
	answering body	Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
	answering dept id	201
	answering dept short name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
	answering dept sort name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
	hansard heading	Research
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	What steps his department is taking to support UK research and development.
	tabling member constituency	York Outer
	tabling member printed	Julian Sturdy
	uin	913813
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/03/2021 answer text <p>We have announced an investment of £14.6 billion in R&amp;D for 2021/22, and we are taking forward the ambitious commitments in our R&amp;D Roadmap.</p><p> </p><p>As announced in the Plan for Growth at Budget 2021 we will publish a new Innovation Strategy in the summer to unleash innovation across the UK to complement this investment.</p> answering member constituency Spelthorne answering member printed Kwasi Kwarteng question first answered 23/03/2021 13:14:34 answering member 4134 label Biography information for Kwasi Kwarteng
	tabling member	4079 label Biography information for Julian Sturdy

756167

	registered interest
	date	04/09/2017
	answering body	Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
	answering dept id	201
	answering dept short name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
	answering dept sort name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
	hansard heading	Groceries Code Adjudicator
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, when his Department plans to publish its response to its call for evidence on extending the remit of the Groceries Code Adjudicator.
	tabling member constituency	York Outer
	tabling member printed	Julian Sturdy
	uin	6864
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/09/2017 answer text <p>We are planning to publish the Government response to the Call for Evidence on extending the Groceries Code Adjudicator’s remit in the autumn.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Stourbridge answering member printed Margot James question first answered 11/09/2017 13:19:53 answering member 4115 label Biography information for Margot James
	tabling member	4079 label Biography information for Julian Sturdy