PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
Housing: Construction (19 February 2019)

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment he has made of the quality of new build homes produced by (a) large house builders, (b) medium house builders and (c) small house builders and (d) micro house builders.

Asked by:
Sir John Hayes (Conservative)

The design quality of homes and places are determined by the revised National Planning Policy Framework and Building Regulations, to which all house builders have to adhere. It is for local planning authorities to assess the design quality of schemes submitted to them, on the basis of national and local policy, and regulation.

It is also vital that, as housing supply increases, the build quality of new build homes continues to improve. We know more needs to be done to strengthen consumer redress for purchasers of new build homes delivered by all sizes of developers, which is why on 1 October, we announced our intention for there to be a New Homes Ombudsman to protect the rights of homebuyers and hold developers to account. When Parliamentary time allows, we intend to introduce legislation to require developers of new build homes to belong to a New Homes Ombudsman, which will be underpinned in statute.

Answered by:
Kit Malthouse (Conservative)
27 February 2019