LGA Briefing: Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill, Committee Stage, House of Commons - June 2022

The Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill acts upon long running asks from councils and the LGA for further devolution in England.

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Key messages

  • The Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill acts upon long running asks from councils and the LGA for further devolution in England. We are pleased that the Government has proposed to speed up the process and make good on its commitment to offer all of England the opportunity to benefit from a devolution deal by 2030.
  • The Bill includes (Part 1, Clause 4) information on draft metrics proposed in the Levelling Up White Paper to measure progress towards the twelve missions. This is a good first step, but they still fall short of the full breadth of what is needed to create thriving and inclusive communities. The LGA is supporting amendments which ensure that progress towards the missions is followed closely.
  • We support the measures, set out in clauses 72 and 73 of the Bill, which give councils more power to charge premium council tax for long term empty and second homes as it will give councils more power to influence local housing markets.
  • We are deeply concerned that the proposed risk-mitigation measures in clause 71 of the Bill potentially give the Secretary of State significant powers to intervene in a local authority. There is a danger that the formula-based approach outlined in the Bill could impact more widely than intended. It is vital that the Government undertakes full engagement with the sector, including full consultation before enacting the regulations arising from the Bill. Advice from the sector could assist the Government in preserving the key concept of prudential borrowing while ensuring the new arrangements address genuine government concerns. We are therefore supporting amendment 45, tabled by Alex Norris MP, which would ensure that the Government undertakes a consultation with all local authorities before making regulations for all the subsections of 12b (2).
  • The LGA supports the Government’s plans to introduce a permanent pavement licensing regime. It is welcome that officials at the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) have engaged with councils to make improvements to the temporary regime and that this Bill increases pavement licence fees, provides a longer consultation and determination period, and improved enforcement powers for councils. However, we will be seeking an amendment to the Bill to create a specific offence for pavement licence breaches to enable councils to take effective enforcement action.
  • Clause 74 sets conditions for councils when changing street names. The LGA is seeking to remove the clauses in the Bill, and replace with new clauses which allow for Regulations to be laid (or statutory guidance published), requiring local authorities to undertake a referendum in order to change street names, including setting out the precise detail for how those referenda should be run (for instance, who would be eligible to vote on an alteration; the threshold needed for the number of residents to vote; and the threshold needed for supporting the alteration). We are proposing new alternative clauses (amendments 70,71 and 72), which would require local authorities to consult residents and the wider community before making changes to street names, and to have regard to the outcomes, allowing flexibility over the method adopted to consult. The original clause would be unworkable in practice and too narrow as it may exclude those who use a street but not live there.

Planning

  • The Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill also introduces a number of reforms to the planning system:
    • A new Infrastructure Levy. It is vital that new occupants of homes and wider communities get the infrastructure they need, and that councils can access sufficient funding for this infrastructure in line with the ambition in Local Plans. However, we would urge the government to reconsider the timing of the levy. Charging the levy at the point of the occupations is beneficial to developers, but does not help local authorities ensure infrastructure first as a key pillar of place-making.
    • New powers for councils to bring vacant properties back into use, which is also an encouraging step. We will work with the Government to ensure that these are simple, inexpensive and effective for councils to use.
    • A proposal to introduce a new approach to environmental assessment, we will be taking action to ensure that it strengthens environmental protections whilst ensuring that councils can still deliver the new homes and supporting infrastructure that the country needs.
    • Changes to neighbourhood planning and digitalising the system in an attempt to make local plans more accessible.
  • Supporting councils to build a new generation of high-quality, energy efficient council homes also has to be a national priority if levelling-up ambitions are to be met. This needs to include urgent reform of the Right to Buy scheme to allow councils to keep 100 per cent of receipts from sales of homes and the ability to set discounts locally. We will be working with MPs to seek an amendment which would remove all clauses relating to the sale of vacant higher value local authority housing in the Housing and Planning Act 2016 (Clauses 69-79). This will implement the Government’s commitment to not take forward the powers to require councils to sell higher value council homes outlined in the Social Housing Green Paper (Page 8) – “We will not require local authorities to make a payment in respect of their vacant higher value council homes and are exploring new flexibilities over how they spend Right to Buy receipts.” 
  • We are also seeking an amendment to ensure that that one of the key principles of the planning reforms - ‘a genuinely plan-led system’ - is enshrined in the Bill.  The amendment would support local democracy underpinned by community engagement. The local development plan is subject to robust and extensive testing during its preparation, which includes a thorough examination process to establish its soundness. Therefore, the development plan should carry full legal weight and particularly over policies and plans that is not subject to the same level of scrutiny. In addition, the development plan addresses specific local issues that meet the needs of communities that live in that local area. In contrast, the national development management policy will cover generic planning issues. Therefore, the amendment ensures that planning policy will be tailored to local circumstances and that the rights of communities that have shaped the local development plan are upheld. 
  • It is disappointing that no tangible powers were brought forward in the Bill to enable councils to encourage developers to build-out. We would urge the Government as a matter of urgency to empower councils to take decisive action on this issue.
  • We broadly welcome the announcement to remove the requirement for a rolling five-year land supply as it will curb speculative development and it will give more weight to local plans when making decisions on planning applications. However, we urge the Government to urgently revoke Permitted Development Rights in order to strengthen the role of Local Plans.
  • The introduction of measures that will genuinely make the Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) process more efficient for councils is an encouraging step. It is good the Government has stated its intention to reform the hope value (the term used to describe the market value of land based on the expectation of getting planning permission for development on it), which will make CPOs easier to use when required by councils. However, we urge the Government to introduce further legislation to enable regeneration by making CPOs easier to navigate.
  • We recognise that centralising policies that apply in most geographical areas in the form of National Development Management Policies will speed up the production of plan-making at local level. However, we are concerned that setting policies at national level will leave councils unable to tailor such policies to local circumstances. Flexibility must be built into the system to enable councils to respond to local, complex and changing circumstances. We are even more concerned that a determination would be made in favour of the national policy, when there is conflict with the local development plan. This undermines a local, plan-led system and the Government’s aspiration to empower local leaders and communities. We urge the Government to reconsider this proposal and we want to work with the Government to ensure that nationally set policies are workable at local level.

We support the principle of councils being able to set up locally-led urban development corporations for the purpose of supporting regeneration projects and also the principle of being directly accountable to councils, rather than the Secretary of State. It is good that the cap on the number of board members and the aggregate borrowing cap are to be removed. We have long been calling for the removal of the borrowing cap, which limits the scope of Development Corporations, creates uncertainty about investment beyond the cap and affects the delivery of Local Plans. We would also welcome powers to enable the creation of zero carbon and nature-rich places; the power to use a CPO; and ensure there is clear guidance and policy support in place for councils looking to establish successful Development

FURTHER INFORMATION

 Amendment statements

Amendments relating to risk mitigation measures to capital revenue

Amendment 45, tabled by Alex Norris MP, which would delay the implementation of clause 71 until a formal consultation has taken place with local government representatives.

LGA view

  • We support this amendment, as we are deeply concerned that the proposed risk-mitigation measures in clause 71 of the Bill potentially give the Secretary of State significant powers to intervene in a local authority and are seeking clarification as to what the proposals mean.
  • It is crucial that the proposed changes do not have unintended consequences. There is a danger that the formula based approach outlined in the Bill could impact more widely than intended. It is vital that the Government undertakes full engagement with the sector, including full consultation before enacting the regulations arising from the Bill. The sector could assist in preserving the key concept of prudential borrowing while addressing genuine government concerns.
  • The amendment would ensure that the Government undertakes a consultation before making regulations. This will set up a process that will enable the sector to highlight potential problems and unintended consequences of the proposals.

Amendments relating to street names

Amendments 70, 71 and 72, tabled by Alex Norris MP, which replaces a power to make regulations about referendums on street names with requirements for local authorities to consult residents and the wider community.

LGA view

  • It is important for members of the community to be consulted about changes to street names. Councils are already doing this and are listening to the results. Research by the LGA demonstrates that in the very small number of cases where street name changes have been announced, residents have been consulted. Of 26 cases referred to by the Government only one street-name change has been implemented as originally planned following consultation and none have been implemented without consultation.
  • The change the Government is seeking to impose through the clause as drafted is not that communities be consulted, but that a referendum of residents be required in which any proposed change could require a majority of two thirds of those eligible to vote (as suggested in the Government’s consultation document). This would introduce a time-consuming and expensive process which could have the unintended consequences of removing the power of councils to change the name of a street entirely as the bar of a two-thirds majority is set so high. In our view the decision to rename a street is precisely the sort of decision councils are there to make and while we have no objection to a requirement to consult, it should not be removed by central government.
  • Currently, the legislation on consultation differs between areas. The proposed new alternative clauses ensure a consistent requirement on local authorities to consult residents and the wider community before making changes to street names, and to have regard to the outcomes, allowing flexibility over the method adopted to consult, meaning the same process does not have to be adopted for a cul-de-sac as a town square. This guarantees the existing safeguards remain while providing a clear and simple legal position and a workable process in the very rare event of a street name change being put forward.

Amendments relating to CCAs

Amendment 60, tabled by Alex Norris MP, would prevent the Secretary of State providing for a CCA mayor without the consent of the constituent authorities of that CCA.

LGA view

  • We support this amendment. While supportive of greater devolution across England, the LGA strongly believes that local governance arrangements are a matter for local leaders and their communities.
  • It follows that the process of negotiating devolved governance arrangements must be based on local consent free from the prospect of imposition by national government.
  • Many existing devolution deal areas have chosen to adopt a mayoral arrangement and it seems likely that many of the forthcoming county combined authorities will also have a directly elected equivalent. However, those that choose a different path should be free to do so.

Amendments relating to progress of levelling-up missions

NC1 tabled by Judith Cummins MP, which would require the Secretary of State to establish an independent body that can provide reports on the Government’s progress on levelling-up missions and outline recommendations for their future delivery.

LGA view

  • The LGA supports these amendments which relate to monitoring the progress of the Government’s levelling-up missions.
  • The draft metrics proposed in the Levelling Up White Paper to measure progress towards the twelve missions are a good first step. However, we have previously stated we are concerned they still fall short of the full breadth of what is needed to create thriving and inclusive communities.
  • The establishment of an independent body that can provide reports on the Government’s progress on levelling-up missions and outline recommendations for their future delivery will further ensure that progress towards the missions is followed closely.
  • We want to work with the Government to ensure that the metrics used to produce an annual report on the Levelling Up missions are fully consulted on and reflect the diverse needs and aspirations of communities across the country.

Amendments relating to council tax

NC21, tabled by Theresa Villiers MP, would make uncompleted dwellings subject to Council Tax from the day that planning permission required them to be completed.  

LGA view

  • To improve the build-out rates of homes with planning permission and reduce the number of stalled sites, councils should be able to charge developers or landowners full Band D council tax for every unbuilt development in these situations, as opposed to having to wait for the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) to list developments following their completion.
  • LGA analysis suggests that over one million homes granted planning permission since 2010 have not yet been built. This is equivalent to three years’ worth of Government’s target number of homes to be delivered each year.

Amendment 61, tabled by Alex Norris MP, would raise the maximum level at which local authorities can set council tax on long-term empty dwellings. 

LGA view

  • This amendment would increase the maximum additional council tax for a long term empty home from 100 per cent to 300 per cent from the time it becomes classified as a long term empty home which by this clause will decrease from 2 years to 1 year. 
  • The LGA supports this amendment as it would increase the scope for council discretion - not all councils would be expected to charge the maximum.

Amendment 62, which would raise the maximum level at which local authorities can set council tax on dwellings occupied periodically

LGA view

  • This would increase the maximum that can be charged on dwellings classed as second homes from 100 per cent to 300 per cent.  This would be a discretionary power.  The LGA supports increasing council discretionary powers on second homes.

Amendment 78, tabled by Rachel Maskell MP, would reduce length of time before the Local Authority could charge the higher rate of Council Tax on long-term empty dwellings.

LGA view

  • This amendment would reduce the period before a dwelling becomes classified as a long term empty home from the one year proposed in the clause to 6 months. 
  • The LGA supports this amendment as it will allow councils to have powers to influence the local housing market sooner than is proposed in the clause. The power would be discretionary.

Amendment 81 tabled by Rachael Maskell MP, would reduce length of time before the Local Authority could charge the higher rate of Council Tax.

LGA view

  • This would reduce the notice period to implement the new rate for council tax for second homes from one year to six months. 
  • The LGA has heard from councils that they would like a lower period of notice and so we support this amendment. We believe six months ought to be sufficient for second home owners to become aware of the new arrangements.

Amendment 82, tabled by Rachael Maskell MP, would provide for fines to be issued to those who fail to provide correct and accurate information regarding the occupancy of their dwellings as an anti-fraud measure.

LGA view

  • This amendment would provide for regulations to be made which would allow fines to be issued to those who fail to provide correct and accurate information regarding the occupancy of their dwellings as an anti-fraud measure.
  • The LGA supports giving councils more power to combat possible council tax as well as business rates avoidance. We would note that this would apply to all categories of council tax payers not just second home owners.

Amendments relating to flood management and mitigation

Amendment NC2 tabled by Emma Hardy MP which would require the Government to set minimum standards for flood resilience, flood mitigation and flood waste management in building regulations.

LGA view

  • We support this amendment. It reflects LGA’s past calls to ensure building regulations include mandatory flood protection measures in new builds such as raised electrical sockets, fuse boxes and sealed floors.

Amendment NC3 tabled by Emma Hardy MP which would place a duty on the Government and local authorities to make data about flood prevention and risk available for the purpose of assisting insurers and property owners.

LGA view

  • The LGA does not support this amendment. We are concerned that local authorities are already facing funding and resourcing pressures, and this would place an additional duty on councils to publish data.
  • We are additionally unsure of how much data councils would be able to provide on flood risk. Residents are already able to request data from the Environment Agency about the flooding history of their property, and many councils provide flood risk maps and data to guide residents. Data from strategic level flood risk assessments may not be suitable for use at the individual property level.

Amendments relating to rough sleeping

Amendment 1 tabled by Nickie Aiken MP, which would leave out clause 187, which allows the Government to use regulations to create criminal offences similar to those under the Vagrancy Act 1824, disregarding the repeal of that Act by the Police, Crime, Courts and Sentencing Act 2022.

LGA view

  • Every instance of homelessness is a tragedy, and councils work hard to prevent rough sleeping and homelessness from happening and offer support to those who unfortunately find themselves in a difficult situation. We support an approach that ensures that people are offered the right support at the right time, rather than criminalisation.
  • Some of the people rough sleeping, especially in large urban areas, are not homeless but are taking part in a street-based lifestyle which can have aspects of anti-social behaviour such as drug use and aggressive begging.
  • Individuals who are not homeless, and not meeting the threshold for ASB intervention from councils often fall outside of the remit of local authority services. This can make enforcement difficult where an individual is adequately housed but engages in street-based activities.
  • The Government held a consultation on an effective replacement for the Vagrancy Act – (which closed in May 2022)– and we await the Government response outlining the proposed next steps. We would welcome clarification whether the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill is the vehicle in which the Government are using to replace the Vagrancy Act, despite it being repealed in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act, which reached Royal Assent in April 2022.
  • We want to work with the Government on the urgent implementation of a cross-government homelessness prevention strategy, associated multi-year funding, that looks at tackling the drivers and levers of homelessness within central government policy.

Standard method

  • We would also urge the Government to consider how the “Standard Method” is currently used. While it is welcome that the Government are urging communities to have more say over planning matters, the “Standard Method”, which uses a formula to identify the minimum number of homes expected to be planned for, is still used by the Government and councils are also expected to use it. Algorithms and formulas can never be a substitute for local knowledge and decision-making by councils and communities who know their areas best. We would urge the Government to consider how this Method fits with the Government’s messaging on involving communities in planning decisions.