Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Requirement for New Housing to be Beautiful

Monday 2 September 2024 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 1 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Blake Stephenson questioned the removal of the requirement for new housing to be beautiful in the revised national planning policy framework.
  • The Minister responded that beauty remains part of the proposals, despite changes to additional references that the Royal Institute of British Architects deemed problematic.
  • Blake Stephenson referenced a letter from the Minister explaining reductions in Sadiq Khan's London housing targets, noting the inconsistency in meeting previous targets.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Blake Stephenson Con Mid Bedfordshire
Housing
Context

The proposed revised national planning policy framework removes the requirement for new housing to be beautiful. This has caused concern among constituents in Mid Bedfordshire, where there is a mix of historic towns and villages as well as newer developments.

Question

For what reason the proposed revised national planning policy framework removes the requirement for new housing to be beautiful. In Mid Bedfordshire we have a mix of historic towns and villages, as well as newer developments such as Wixams. We take more than our fair share of development, and my constituents want to see beautiful homes with the right services that are sympathetic to the traditional character of our communities.

Answer from Angela Rayner

Beauty is always part of the proposals. The hon. Member, if he had read our proposals in the NPPF, would know that we have not removed all references to beauty; we have simply changed additional references made by the Conservatives that the Royal Institute of British Architects said could lead to development being turned down. If the hon. Member had read our proposals regarding the inconsistencies, he would know that the Government are not proposing to remove all references to beauty from the NPPF. I reiterate that the changes we are making relate to additional references to beauty inserted by the previous Government in December 2023. These are subjective in nature, difficult to define and may lead to inconsistencies in decision making.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The specific request to reinsert 'beauty' as a house building objective was not addressed directly.

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Q2 Blake Stephenson Con Mid Bedfordshire
Housing
Context

The Secretary of State has sent a letter explaining her reasons for reducing Sadiq Khan's London housing targets. This move has raised questions about the consistency in target setting across different regions.

Question

On the subject of the NPPF, I am grateful for the letter that the right hon. Lady sent to me on Saturday. I enjoyed reading it, especially her attempts to explain why she reduced Sadiq Khan's London targets and, even more, where she highlights that he has consistently under-delivered. If other local leaders miss their new housing targets, will she reduce their targets too?

Answer from Angela Rayner

I find that astonishing, when the previous Government missed their targets every single year. As the Housing Minister has already set out, our methodology is about realistic expectations that people can meet. We will not shy away from the decisions that need to be made to make sure that we build the homes that people need.

Not addressed: The specific question about reducing targets was not answered directly; instead, the answerer criticized previous government performance and shifted focus to setting realistic expectations.

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