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10 Mar 2010 : Column 312W—continued
Communities and Local Government
Buildings: Energy
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many and what proportion of all domestic properties on the Domestic EPC Register have Band (a) A, (b) B, (c) C, (d) D, (e) E, (f) F and (g) G ratings. [316814]
Mr. Ian Austin: The number and proportion of properties on the Domestic EPC Register by rating band as of 8 February is:
| Rating band | Number of lodgements | Percentage of lodgements |
Empty Property: Tyne and Wear
Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many empty property management orders have been (a) applied for and (b) issued by (i) Newcastle upon Tyne council, (ii) Gateshead council, (iii) South Tyneside council and (iv) North Tyneside council to date. [321118]
Mr. Ian Austin: In total 29 interim empty dwelling management orders have been issued to date. A residential property tribunal authorised the issue of one interim empty dwelling management order by South Tyneside council in March 2009. Information on how many empty property management orders have been applied for is not held centrally.
Housing: Sales
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what proportion of houses auctioned following default on mortgage payments have been bought by individuals or companies associated with the defaulter in the last 12 months. [321046]
Mr. Ian Austin: This information is not held by Communities and Local Government.
Markets
Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what progress has been made on implementing the proposals in the Government response to the Ninth Report of the Communities and Local Government Committee, Session 2008-09, on Market Failure?: Can the traditional markets survive?, HC 308-I. [320851]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Government are taking action to support retail markets in recognition of the significant economic and social benefits they can create. Since the Committee's report was published, I have been appointed Minister for Markets and CLG has assumed the strategic lead within Government for markets in England. An inter-departmental working group has also been established to look at the issues affecting markets and has agreed a future work programme to address the Select Committee's recommendations.
Multiple Occupation
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the current definition is of a house in multiple occupation (HMO) for the purposes of (a) assessment of housing stock, (b) licensing and (c) planning permission; what change is planned for each of these definitions; and how many HMOs of each definition in each region (i) there were in each of the last five years and (ii) there are projected to be in (A) 2010-11 and (B) 2011-12. [321347]
John Healey: The definition of a House in Multiple Occupation (HMO) for housing purposes is contained in section 254 of the Housing Act 2004. An HMO is an entire house or flat which is let to three or more tenants who form two or more households and who share a kitchen, bathroom or toilet. Local authorities are under a statutory duty to license HMOs of three or more storeys housing five or more persons forming two or more households. There are no planned changes to the Housing Act 2004 definition of a HMO.
Currently planning legislation neither defines 'multiple occupation' nor HMOs as such but relies on the concept of a 'single household' and a 'family' in making distinctions for land use purposes. HMOs are unclassified by the Use Classes Order (UCO) and are therefore sui generis. Therefore as a general rule planning permission will be needed before a dwelling house could undergo a material change of use to a HMO. The current UCO uses six persons as its 'trigger' point.
My statement of 27 January 2010, Official Report, column 54WS, announced our intention to introduce a specific definition of a HMO into the UCO. This will be the same as that included in section 254 of the Housing Act 2004 with some minor amendments to reflect planning concerns.
The following table shows the estimated number of HMOs in the last five years. The changes I have announced will not be retrospective.
The Department does not hold information on the projected numbers of HMOs for 2010-11 and 2011-12.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many planning applications to change the use of (a) a property to a house in multiple occupation and (b) a house in multiple occupation to a C3 class dwelling have been (i) made and (ii) granted in each region in each of the last five years. [321348]
Mr. Ian Austin: My Department does not hold this information.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when he plans to bring forward the secondary legislation on houses in multiple occupation referred to in the written ministerial statement of 27 January 2009, Official Report, columns 54-6W, on planning. [321350]
John Healey: The Order amending the Town and Country Planning (Use Classes) Order 1987, which will create the HMO use class, was made on 8 March 2010.
The Order amending the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) Order 1995, which will make a change from a HMO to a C3 dwelling house permitted development, was also made on 8 March and will be laid before Parliament by 15 March 2010.
Both amendments will come into effect on 6 April 2010.
Non-domestic Rates: Valuation
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the answer of 6 July 2009, Official Report, column 605W, on non-domestic rates, how much was paid in each type of fee by those appealing against their rateable values in each year from 2004-05 to 2008-09. [321345]
Ian Pearson: I have been asked to reply.
There are no fees payable to valuation officers for making proposals challenging rateable values. Nor are there hearing fees payable should the proposal become an appeal to the valuation tribunal for England.
Planning Obligations
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what information his Department holds on the (a) amount and (b) proportion of funding under section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 that has been spent in (i) Aylesbury, (ii) Brighton, (iii) Darlington, (iv) Derby, (v) Exeter, (vi) Lancaster, (vii) Birmingham, (viii) Manchester, (ix) Bristol, (x) Cambridge, (xi) the West Midlands and (xii) England in each of the last five years. [321419]
Mr. Ian Austin: Information on monies collected by local authorities in this way is not held centrally. However, the Department for Communities and Local Government has produced research reports into the value of planning obligations in England for 2003-04 and 2005-06 based on a sample of authorities across the country. These reports are available on the Department's website. New research covering 2007-08 has been commissioned and will be published shortly.
Social Rented Housing: Construction
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the number of additional affordable homes for rent required to be supplied in order to meet the level of demand in (a) Birmingham, (b) the West Midlands and (c) England in the next 12 months; and if he will make a statement. [321421]
Mr. Ian Austin: The Secretary of State does not make estimates for the provision of affordable housing. However funding is being made available to enable delivery.
In England, total investment of £7.5 billion over this year and next, including the Housing Pledge of £1.5 billion, will deliver 112,000 affordable homes over the two years 2009 to 2011.
In the West Midlands funding of £576.7 million will deliver 15,706, of which a sum of £116.3 million is identified for Birmingham to provide 2,906 affordable homes over the period 2008-12.
Future levels of funding and delivery beyond 2010 will be dependent on the next spending review.
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many (a) local authority and (b) registered social landlord homes were built in (i) Birmingham, (ii) the West Midlands and (iii) England in each of the last five years; and what his latest estimate is of the numbers that will be built in each of the next three years. [321422]
Mr. Ian Austin: Information on the number of local authority and registered social landlord homes build in Birmingham, the West Midlands and England, is shown on a financial year basis in Live Table 253 on the Communities and Local Government website at the following link:
Information on planned housing is available in "Regional Spatial Strategies and Local Development Frameworks".
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