Housing: Construction – Parliamentary Written Answer

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have for the future of the New Homes Bonus scheme.

Lord Greenhalgh: As part of the Spending Review, the Government has announced that there will be a further round of New Homes Bonus under the existing scheme in 2021/22. However, we are committed to reforming the New Homes Bonus to ensure it is focussed on incentivising homes where they are needed most and we will consult on changes to the Bonus, for 2022/23 onwards, shortly.

http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Lords/2020-11-19/HL10515

Government To Consult Over Future For New Homes Bonus

The government is to consult over the future for the New Homes Bonus, pitching the continued prospect of rewards for councils “ambitious” over housing delivery. In a written statement to the Commons, Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick said the consultation would include moving to a new, more targeted approach incentivising homes where they are needed most. And where councils were ambitious over delivery there will continue to be rewards, he said. A new round of allocations of the new homes bonus for 2020-21 amounts to £907m. Read more on 24housing.

https://www.24housing.co.uk/news/government-to-consult-over-future-for-new-homes-bonus/

Chancellor To Review Funding Bonus For New Homes

Whitehall rethink over £900m annual grants to councils that invest in housing. The Treasury is to review the measures in place to incentivise councils to plan for new homes as part of the spending review due this year. In a speech to senior council figures, Luke Hall, the local government minister, said that the pan-Whitehall spending review, due some time after the Budget in March, will decide “the best approach to incentivising local housing supply and economic growth”. Hall pointed out that the government has already committed to reform the New Homes Bonus, which gives grants to councils based on the additional housing stock delivered above a baseline of 0.4% growth. Read more on the Housing Today website.

https://www.housingtoday.co.uk/news/chancellor-to-review-funding-bonus-for-new-homes/5103606.article

Government Commits To £907m New Homes Bonus

Government has committed to scheme to “financially reward” councils to build more homes. Councils will continue to get funding rewards for building new homes. In a bid to “incentivise housing growth” the government has revealed the funding in a package of measures for local authorities. Also set out in the settlement is £1.5bn for adult and children’s social care. Read more on 24housing.

https://www.24housing.co.uk/news/government-commits-to-907m-new-homes-bonus-funding/

£900m New Homes Bonus Funding Confirmed

A further £900m for the New Homes Bonus in 2020 to 2021 has been confirmed by Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick. Outlined in a consultation document, the announcement from government sets out an increase in Core Spending Power for local authorities – expected to rise terms by 4.3% to £49.1bn in 2020 to 2021, an increase of £2.9bn. Local authorities across England will be encouraged to submit views to the government’s funding proposals for the sector in the next financial year. Read more in an MHCLG consultation.

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/836539/Local_Government_Finance_Settlement_2020-21_Technical_Consultation_.pdf

Housing: Construction – Parliamentary Written Answer

Lord Porter of Spalding: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to make any changes to the New Homes Bonus scheme in the next financial year. 

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: The Local Government Finance Settlement Technical consultation noted that the Government was not consulting on further changes to the New Homes Bonus for 2019/20 allocations but that the level of the baseline for growth, below which new allocations of the New Homes Bonus are not made, would be reviewed prior to the announcement of provisional allocations for 2019/20.

http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Lords/2018-10-26/HL11063

Councils Should Be ‘Rewarded Not Punished’ For Delivering More Homes

District councils should be rewarded and not punished for delivering more homes whilst facing the biggest cut in their spending power than any other type of council, DCN has urged. In its response to the 2019/20 Local Government Finance Settlement Technical Consultation, district council leaders argue that the New Homes Bonus (NHB) baseline should be scrapped. DCN, which represents 200 district councils across England, is also calling for decisions on council tax to be set locally – not by nationally set referendum principles – and for greater flexibility on local revenue-raising powers. Read more on 24housing.

https://www.24housing.co.uk/news/district-councils-should-be-rewarded-not-punished-for-delivering-more-homes/

Javid: ‘No Changes To New Homes Bonus’

Councils won’t see changes to the New Homes Bonus (NHB) this year. At the LGA local government finance conference, Sajid Javid acknowledged that “the appetite for change wasn’t there.” Javid stood by the near £7bn in NHB payments he said had “rewarded” the building of 1.4 million homes – confirming over £946m in NHB payments will be allocated in 2018-2019. Javid said: “The sector wanted continuity and certainty and that’s what it’s getting, no changes to the NHB this year and a baseline maintained at 0.4%.” Read more on 24housing.

Javid Announces New Homes Bonus Backtrack

Unveiling the provisional local government finance settlement, Javid has said there will be no changes made to the existing New Homes Bonus model. Changes were due, as announced year earlier this year, would see a reduction in the amount of New Homes Bonus payments that would be made. But after hearing “concerns about proposed changes”, Javid said he had been “persuaded of the importance of continuity and certainty in this area”. He added: “..no new changes will be made to the way New Homes Bonus works and that the baseline will be maintained at 0.4%.” Read more on 24housing.

Empty Homes Review Service Brings 9,000 Homes Back Into Use

Over 9,000 empty homes from 73 local authorities were last year helped brought back into use by an Empty Homes Review service. The service is looked to have made local authorities millions in terms of New Homes Bonus revenue, which allows money to be put back into the local community. Since its launch in 2011, the EHR service has helped 156 local authorities in England bring over 40,000 properties back into use, achieving on average nearly £1m in New Homes Bonus per review for each local authority. This accounts for approximately 40% of the long-term empty homes brought back into use since the launch of the New Homes Bonus. Read more on 24housing.

Housing: Construction – Parliamentary Written Answer

Justin Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if his Department will provide transitional loss protection for local authorities affected by the new taper on New Homes Bonus.

What assessment has he made of the potential effect of the new taper on New Homes Bonus on local authorities who approve and build a high volume of houses.

Gavin Barwell: The changes to the scheme are being made to increase the focus of the Bonus on delivery of new homes, to reward those authorities who are really committed to growth whilst also freeing up resources to be recycled within the local government settlement to support authorities with particular pressures, such as adult social care. Those areas who deliver the most housing growth will continue to benefit most from the Bonus under the new scheme. The payments for the Bonus in 2017/18 are £1.2 billion and will still be worth £900 million in 2018/19.

The Housing White Paper Revealed

Here is a section by section guide to the document.

·         PRS tenancies - “ensure more longer-term tenancies are available in private rented schemes”.

·         Affordable rent - a reaffirmed commitment to build more affordable homes

·         Planning - councils will be “expected to use land more efficiently” by building homes at higher density

·         Ownership – the aim is for 200,000 more home owners by the end of the parliament and the introduction of the Lifetime ISA will help achieve that

·         Empty Homes - local authorities have the power to tackle empty homes as they earn the same financial reward through the New Homes Bonus as building a new one

·         Leaseholders - The White Paper sets out that there will be a consultation on a range of measures to “tackle all unfair and unreasonable abuses of leasehold.”

·         Green belt back down - no change to the policy which only allows building on the green belt in exceptional circumstances.

Read more on 24housing.

Government Urged To Reverse New Homes Bonus Reductions

The Local Government Association (LGA) wants New Homes Bonus (NHB) reductions reversed to ease the squeeze on cash-strapped councils facing further savings. The LGA is calling on government to reverse unexpected reductions in NHB payments to councils in 2017/18 and find “genuinely new” money to properly fund social care. A provisional Local Government Finance Settlement, published in December, failed to provide any additional new government funding for councils in 2017/18. Instead, the government brought forward already announced council tax raising powers for social care authorities and redistributed £241m in NHB payments through a new Adult Social Care Services Support Grant. Read more on 24housing.

District Councils 'To Lose £75m' With New Homes Bonus Reforms

The planned introduction of a housing growth baseline for the New Homes Bonus has been slammed by councils that believe they could lose £75m. The changes to the payments, which give financial rewards to councils for new housing developments, were proposed by ministers in December and include the introduction of a 0.4% housing growth “baseline”, below which no bonus is awarded. The network, which represents all 201 English district councils, estimates that alongside the impact of the New Homes Bonus loss, districts’ spending power is to reduce by 5.2% between 2016/17 and 2017/18, which compares with the average reduction of 1.1% across wider local government. Read more on Inside Housing.

Councils Could Lose Out On Billions Unless They Allow Building On New Land

Councils which fail to free up extra land for new homes could miss out on a £4.8 billion Government fund. The Tories are likely to use the New Homes Bonus fund as “a stick to beat” councils with if they do not allocate more land for houses, a local government insider told HuffPost UK. The fund is paid out to councils as a reward for building affordable houses and filling empty homes.  But the Conservatives may now threaten to withdraw the extra money, in a “tough new drive to get more houses built”, a government source said. Read more on the Huffington Post website.

Councils Fury At New Homes Bonus Cut

The announcement that funding for older people would come out of the New Homes Bonus resulted in an angry response from councils who called it a “sticking plaster” solution. Cllr Neil Clarke, chairman of the District Councils’ Network (DCN) said: “The New Homes Bonus (NHB) scheme has provided a powerful and popular growth incentive in localities, enabling councils to grant more planning permissions, making development more acceptable for local communities – which have seen the benefits of growth through investment in supporting infrastructure and the delivery of homes where they are needed most. Some district councils will receive no New Homes Bonus as a result of this change, contrary to the government’s aspiration to encourage growth, and we call on the government to reduce the level of the baseline, to reduce the impact on all district councils.” Read more on 24housing.

New Homes Bonus ‘Top-Sliced’ To Fund Adult Social Care

Savings from reforms to the New Homes Bonus can be retained by councils to fund adult social care, parliament has heard. The announcement effectively means the government can top slice the New Homes Bonus to fund care for the elderly and vulnerable. This confirmation has raised questions as to how local authorities will work to help meet the government’s radical home building targets. Read more on 24housing.

£1.5bn Of New Homes Bonus Cash Allocated

The government has announced New Homes Bonus grant allocations worth a total of £1.5bn for 2016/17. The CLG has revealed the amount of bonus each English local authority will receive. The New Homes Bonus currently rewards councils with a payment equivalent to six years’ council tax for each additional new home they add to their housing stock. The allocations are set to be the last based on six years of council tax. The government has proposed reducing this to four years from 2017/18. It has also suggested changing the scheme so that payments are reduced if planning permission for new homes is granted on appeal and that councils without a Local Plan do not receive any bonus. Find details of the allocations on the CLG website.

Councils Hit Out At New Homes Bonus Changes

Councils have warned that proposed cuts and changes to the New Homes Bonus could make it more difficult for them to build new homes. Under consultation proposals published in December new payments to councils will be reduced from six to four years, payments will be reduced if planning permission for new homes is only granted on appeal and councils without a Local Plan would not receive any bonus. The New Homes Bonus currently rewards councils with a payment equivalent to six years’ council tax for each additional new home they add to their housing stock. Several councils warned the proposals could make it more difficult to increase house-building. Download the Consultation from the GovUK website.

New Homes Bonus Withheld If No Local Plan

The New Homes Bonus will be withheld from councils that do not have a Local Plan in place, under new government proposals. The CLG is consulting on changes to the New Homes Bonus, which include reducing payments from six to four years in order to cut costs and reducing payments to councils where planning permission was only granted on appeal. The bonus rewards local authorities for each additional new build and conversion using the national average council tax in each band. Long-term empty properties brought back into use are also included and there is a premium for affordable homes. The consultation states that councils have had “more than a decade” to produce Local Plans. Read more on Inside Housing.