My Lords, as the noble Baroness, Lady Taylor, has explained, this group of amendments concerns development corporations. I am grateful for the broadly supportive comments from noble Lords for these provisions.
Amendment 403 probes the issue of local accountability, which was a theme picked up strongly by the noble Baroness, Lady Pinnock, whose amendment I will come to in a moment. One of the key priorities of the Government’s levelling-up agenda is to empower
local leaders and communities. Introducing a new, locally led urban development corporation model will support local aspirations for regeneration without the need to establish a body accountable to central government, but which is instead accountable to local authorities. For it is local authorities—local councillors, elected by their local community—who will be the originators of the proposal and oversee the locally led development corporation, ensuring clear democratic accountability.
We completely recognise the importance of community involvement and participation in the creation of locally led development corporations. That is why we have included statutory public consultation arrangements for locally led urban and new town development corporations in the Bill, which proposing authorities must implement before submitting their proposal to the Secretary of State.
We intend also to use regulations to set out further details on the composition of board membership and aims of the oversight authority for locally led urban development corporations, as we did in relation to locally led new town development corporations in 2018. In appointing independent members, we expect the oversight authority to ensure that the board has the relevant skills and experience needed and includes those with an understanding of the local area.
I turn to Amendments 404 and 405. We recognise the importance of ensuring that appropriate scrutiny has taken place, including from the local community, where a proposal is being developed to designate the development area of a new settlement or urban development area and establishing a locally led development corporation. As I have mentioned before, we have included provisions for statutory public consultation where people can have their say on the proposals at the formative stage before it is submitted to the Secretary of State. When the proposal is received by the Secretary of State, they will look very carefully at the robustness of the plans, including at community involvement and views expressed, before making a decision on whether the proposal is expedient in the local interest and making an order to designate the development corporation’s development area.
The noble Baroness, Lady Taylor, asked whether all planning would become the responsibility of the locally led UDC and whether all powers would transfer from the local authority to the locally led urban development corporation. The answer is no—or rather, not necessarily. It is for local authorities to propose and for the Secretary of State to decide, under his discretion, whether and to what extent functions should transfer.
The noble Baroness and the noble Baroness, Lady Pinnock, also asked about the conformity of locally led UDC development with local plans. A development corporation that takes on plan-making or development management functions will be subject to the same rules as a local planning authority. I would be happy to fill out that answer in writing, if I may.
Amendments 404 and 405 are therefore an unnecessary addition to these consultation requirements. They would slow down the designation of development corporation areas. The purpose of designating the area is to determine
the area in which the locally led development corporation will operate and deliver a programme of urban regeneration or a new town. There will be further opportunities for the local community to have its say on the planning proposals for the area as proposals for development come forward through the planning system.
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Amendments 407 and 408 probe board membership. While I fully recognise that the amendments are well intentioned, they are not necessary. The appointment of board membership for locally led new town development corporations is already addressed in the New Towns Act 1981 (Local Authority Oversight) Regulations 2018. Those regulations provide that the oversight authority must have regard to the desirability of appointing one or more persons resident in, or having special knowledge of, the locality in which the new town will be situated. Addressing the point made by the noble Lord, Lord Stunell, this could include members of parish councils, local community groups or organisations which reflect the cultural, social or environmental priorities of the locality.
This is an approach that we intend to replicate for locally led urban development corporations, setting out further details on the composition of board membership in regulations which will be subject to parliamentary debate. In relation to the suggested minimum of three, it is the Government’s view that it should be up to the oversight authority to determine the appropriate board composition and numbers, based on local circumstances.
Amendment 409, which probes the issue of finance, is also not necessary, as provisions on accounting are set out in Schedule 31 to the Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 for urban development corporations. Under paragraph 13, an urban development corporation must submit a report to the Secretary of State at the end of each financial year. This must detail the corporation’s operations during the year, including a copy of its audited accounts. The Secretary of State must then lay the report before each House of Parliament.
Amendment 406 was also tabled by the noble Baroness, Lady Taylor, whom I hope will agree that England has a proud history of new town development. Well-planned, well-designed, locally led garden communities play a role, helping to meet this country’s housing and growth needs well into the future. Our garden communities programme has shown that new, locally led garden communities are delivering right across the country, with support from central government. As part of this, we are supporting 47 locally led garden communities across the country, from Cumbria to Cornwall. These schemes have the potential for over 300,000 homes by 2050. The garden communities programme is founded on the principle that new towns and villages must be locally led, not centrally imposed. It is local leaders and communities who know the specifics and needs of the area, and who can identify whether a new town is best for their area, rather than central government.
Finally, Amendment 403A, tabled by the noble Baroness, Lady Pinnock, and the noble Lord, Lord Shipley, addresses the issue of transparency and value for money of urban development corporations. Ultimately, accountability will sit firmly with either the Secretary of State, in the
case of centrally led development corporations, or with the democratically elected decision-makers for the local authority or authorities or combined authorities in charge of the scheme, in the case of locally led and mayoral development corporations. As I have already indicated, legislative safeguards are in place on accounting, auditing and board membership for all existing development corporation types. Specifically, and to repeat, accounting, reporting, auditing, financial duties and board membership provisions for centrally led urban development corporations are set out in Schedule 31 to the Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980.
Ebbsfleet urban development corporation, EDC, is the only centrally led urban development corporation. It already has a framework document, which sets out the broad framework within which the corporation should operate and the respective responsibilities and accountabilities of EDC and the department. EDC has its own independent board. As a minimum, the board should consist of the chair, four independent non-executive directors, three local authority members with one nominated by each of the three local authorities —Kent County Council, Dartford Borough Council and Gravesham Borough Council—and the chief executive. Except for the chief executive and local authority representatives, all appointments to the board will be made in line with the Governance Code on Public Appointments. The board is specifically responsible for establishing a transparency policy, which it has made publicly available, and ensuring that levels of transparency are compatible with the public bodies reform programme to increase levels of transparency in public bodies.
On locally led urban development corporations, I again emphasise that, before designating a locally led urban development area, the Secretary of State must be satisfied that it is
“expedient in the local interest”.
For the Secretary of State to be able to judge this, they will want to test the evidence on governance arrangements, value for money and deliverability to ensure that a project of such scale and complexity rests on sound foundations. As I have set out previously, we intend, as soon as possible, to set out in secondary regulations how an oversight authority is to oversee the regeneration of a locally led urban development area, including the composition of board membership, just as we did for locally led new town development corporations.
I hope that those comments reassure the noble Lord and the noble Baroness, and that they are content not to move their Amendment 403A. Equally, I hope that my remarks have been helpful to the noble Baroness, Lady Taylor, and that she feels able to withdraw Amendment 403.