I, too, thank my hon. Friend the Member for Stone (Sir William Cash) for taking an interest in the Bill and for working to ensure that the Bill is as strong as it can be. He suggests that there should be a statutory consultation period of three months before any guidance is issued by the Secretary of State. I thank him for raising the important issue of consultation and guidance, and for giving me the chance to explain the Government’s position, which I hope I can.
I know from the experience of our right-to-build vanguards that it is important that any national framework for the register is sufficiently flexible to reflect the considerable differences—my hon. Friend the Member for South Norfolk (Mr Bacon) outlined the differences—in the scope for custom build in different parts of the country. It is important that we seek the views of a wide range of interested parties, particularly when we are establishing the detailed framework, but I am not convinced of the need for a statutory consultation period before the issuing of guidance. I am afraid that the Government cannot support the amendment.
Statutory consultation can have a valuable role, but it is not necessary or desirable for every Government action. When used unvaryingly, it can have a detrimental impact on policy and create significant delays. That is not to underplay my understanding of the point that my hon. Friend the Member for Stone makes—I acknowledge his point.
In many instances, the Secretary of State may issue guidance to local government without being required to consult local government and other partners before doing so. For example, we are not statutorily required to consult on national planning policy guidance. In the case of the Bill, we believe that statutory consultation would only delay the implementation of the custom and self-build register that the Bill seeks to establish. The explicit requirement in the amendment for at least a three-month consultation period seems excessive, especially given that our current consultations on planning policy matters are normally around six to eight weeks, which gives local authorities and others sufficient time to respond.
My hon. Friend’s amendment would also mean that the Government must consult for a considerable period on even minor revisions to the guidance, which would clearly add unnecessary bureaucracy. Arguably, it would increase the burden on local authorities. My hon. Friend wants neither of those things and we strongly want to avoid them.
To deal with what my hon. Friend desires, local authorities have been key influences in the development of the policy, as we have demonstrated through the right-to-build vanguards. My hon. Friend the Member for South Norfolk outlined how important they have been in the development of the policy—I will return to that on Third Reading, which will I hope will happen
shortly. We fully intend to maintain this close link with local authorities and other partners in implementing this policy, including in drawing up the guidance.
With those few words of explanation, I hope my hon. Friend feels reassured enough to be able and willing to withdraw his amendment.