The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 22nd March 2025:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked Her Majesty’s Government when they intend to publish a summary of responses to their Raising accessibility standards for new homes consultation, which closed on 1 December 2020.
Lord Greenhalgh (Con, MHCLG): The Government response to the consultation on raising accessibility standards for new homes will be published later this year and it will include a summary of responses.
The Bishop of London received the following written answer on 22nd March 2021:
The Lord Bishop of London asked Her Majesty’s Government what steps they will take to ensure that leaseholders are not required to pay for the removal of unsafe cladding from residential blocks before the Building Safety Bill 2019–2021 becomes law.
Continue reading “Bishop of London asks about removal of unsafe cladding from buildings”
The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 24th February 2021:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of whether current council tax bands in England adequately reflect changes to property prices since 1991.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about re-banding council tax”
On 26th January 2021, the Archbishop of Canterbury asked a question on the criteria used by the government to define affordable housing, in advance of a Church of England report on housing and communities:
The Lord Archbishop of Canterbury: My Lords, I declare non-financial interests in various Church lands through numerous charities of which I am a member. The Church will be publishing a housing, church and communities report in February. Can the Minister tell us what criteria Her Majesty’s Government use to define affordable housing? Is it genuinely affordable in the sense that most people would use the word?
Continue reading “Archbishop of Canterbury asks about criteria for defining affordable housing”
The Bishop of St Albans took part in a debate on a report from the Select Committee on Intergenerational Unfairness on 25th January 2021, focusing on access to and provision of housing:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans [V]: My Lords, the decrease in the rates of home ownership for the younger generation is a major issue and not one of their own making. As this excellent report demonstrates, it is an important factor in addressing issues of intergenerational fairness. For many years, there has been a failure to supply housing adequately—an issue exacerbated by a cycle of stagnation fuelled by low market absorption rates and stalled developments.
The Letwin report suggests that one of the most important reasons for this is that developers will build new homes only at a rate that the market can absorb and that, by diversifying housing products, rates of absorption will increase. However, when I put down Written Questions to Her Majesty’s Government on this topic, never once has it been acknowledged that it might be in the interest of developers to land bank, as increased supply is likely to reduce house prices. While I believe that this has contributed to the lack of supply, I agree that low absorption remains a real issue. However, I do not think that diversification alone will solve it.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans raises issue of housing in debate on intergenerational unfairness”
On 3rd December 2020 the Bishop of St Albans received a written answer to a question on the effect of quantative easing on wages and house prices:
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about wages and house prices”
On 19th November the House of Lords heard a statement from Government on the Towns Fund. The Bishop of St Albans asked a follow-up question:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans [V]: My Lords, I am also delighted that the Government have set up the towns fund, which will make a significant contribution to many poorer communities. Nevertheless, it still remains that the Public Accounts Committee has expressed concerns about why some towns were chosen and some were not. In future, will Her Majesty’s Government undertake to publish the objective criteria and evidence that will be used for selection so that everyone can be assured that there is no political influence in making these selections and choices? Continue reading “Bishop of Government asks Government about process for selecting beneficiaries for Towns Fund”
On 16th November the Bishop of St Albans received a written answer in response to a question on house prices, sales and diversification:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answers by Lord Greenhalgh on 1 October (HL8296), 6 October (HL8828), and 28 October (HL9442), what assessment they have made of the impact of (1) fears of negative equity on existing house purchases, and (2) house prices rising faster than wage increases, on the effectiveness of diversification. [HL9871] Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about housing market”
On 12th November 2020 the House of Lords asked questions of Government on the Covid-19 lockdown and its impact on homelessness and rough sleepers. The Bishop of Durham asked a question:
The Lord Bishop of Durham [V]: The Salvation Army has an innovative project for short-term housing solutions by using “meanwhile use” land to provide high-quality modular homes rooted in church communities and supported by wider community groups. This gives the residents the provision of a flat and the relational support of the community. What consideration have Her Majesty’s Government given to the Salvation Army’s innovative approach to homelessness and similar projects? Continue reading “Bishop of Durham asks about innovative solutions to homelessness”
On 12th November 2020 the Bishop of St Albans received a written answer to a question on rural infrastructure investment:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to their decision to launch a one-year Spending Review, whether their multi-year capital allocation for priority infrastructure projects includes projects in rural areas, in particular (1) the Community Housing Fund, especially for rural affordable housing schemes, and (2) the Village Hall Improvement Grant Fund. [HL9791] Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about rural infrastructure investment”
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