Planning matters

4 MARCH 2015 UPDATE: As anticipated, the amendments to the Housing and Planning Bill described below were agreed to and incorporated on 3 March 2015 at the 3^rd sitting of Committee Stage in the House of Lords.  During proceedings the Lords pressed Baroness Williams of Trafford to confirm the date for the government’s forthcoming consultation on starter homes regulations.  Baroness Williams said that she could not confirm a date, but it would be ‘in the next few weeks’.

Most of the proposed amendments to the Housing and Planning Bill 2015-16 to be moved at Committee Stage in the Lords (starting next week) have been proposed by Liberal Democrat, Labour or Cross Bench Members of the House of Lords and are unlikely to succeed as Bill changes.

However, we would like to draw your attention to starter homes amendments published yesterday and proposed by Baroness Williams of Trafford, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government.

These additions to the Bill are much more likely to be agreed to and incorporated.

In short, the amendments would require the government to consult councils and communities on any proposed changes to be made (via Regulations) to the starter homes’ price caps (set in the Bill as £450,000 inside London and £250,000 elsewhere).

Otherwise, the proposed Bill amendments would allow the government to:

• change the definition of ‘first time buyers’, with no limitations;
• define when a starter home can be purchased jointly, with not everyone being under 40; and
• change any aspect of the Bill’s starter homes content via Regulations (i.e. primary legislation would not be required).

Here are the details of the new clauses (new text in bold and quotes):

1. Clause 2 sub-clause 7:

(7) The Secretary of State may by regulations –

“(a)” amend the definition of “first-time buyer”

NLP comment: the ‘specified categories of people’ referred to in sub-clause (7)(b) are not defined.  It is possible that it would include ‘Protected Groups’, against which it illegal to discriminate.  Proposed sub-clause (7)(c) might allow ‘the Bank of Mum and Dad’, for example, to be named as joint purchasers (and we think this is the most likely objective, taking into account the lack of affordability of starter homes that has been argued by many stakeholders). But its scope could be much wider and intended to include e.g. older partners.

2. New sub-clause at the end of Clause 2   

NLP comment: we believe this new sub-clause is intended to respond to criticisms of the imposition of the starter homes price caps that are in the Bill and it also allowing central government to change them at any time through Regulations, without further consultation.

3. A second new sub-clause at the end of Clause 2

NLP comment:  this addition to the Bill would allow any aspect of the starter homes chapter of the Bill to be amended by Regulations

Please contact our Policy & Law team if you have any queries.