1. How is the Welsh Government supporting the development of social housing in areas of high demand? OQ58682

Diolch. The Welsh Government supports this process through oversight of the new local housing market assessments. Local authorities must carry out such assessments, but, from April 2022, their product will be reviewed and signed off by the Welsh Government.

The Minister will be glad to know that Caerphilly is currently working on its local development plan, and she'll remember how that went in the past. So, I'm really pleased today to have had a meeting with the deputy leader of the council, Councillor James Pritchard, who took me through some of the plans that they're making with regard to housing. They're keen to see housing in the mid and north of the Caerphilly borough, and mid and north of my constituency too, which is really important to take the pressure of the south. One of the things he said is they are now also building in those areas council housing for the first time in a generation, which is something that I think should be praised immeasurably. He also said that, in the development of their plan, he wants to include healthcare, education and infrastructure as key components that go beyond simple housing demand in meeting housing need. Will the Minister therefore support them, using Welsh Government's resources, in that ambition?

Thank you. Well, it's certainly very good to hear that Caerphilly County Borough Council is once again building council houses. I think there's a lot of expertise that we've lost over the past 30 years in relation to building council houses, and it's been good to see our partners come together right across the country in relation to that. So, I am sure it is something that Welsh Government will be very happy to support, and, obviously, the Minister for Climate Change, who has responsibility for housing, will be very pleased to hear about that too. I think the point you make around infrastructure and public services is really important when local authorities are planning housing developments. 

I'd like to thank my colleague, Hefin David, for raising this question. Minister, shop-level vacancies in Wales remain amongst the highest in Wales. According to the Welsh Retail Consortium, in the second quarter of this year, the vacancy rate was 16.7 per cent. In England, a package of measures has been introduced to regenerate high streets and shopping areas by introducing a new permitted development right, allowing empty shops and other commercial premises to be converted to residential use without having to go through the full planning process. In July, it was reported that Welsh Government Ministers would actively consider converting offices into accommodation if high-quality plans for doing so were actually put forward. So, Minister, could you update the Senedd on this issue and advise if it is the intention of your Government to introduce measures to speed up conversions of commercial premises to residential use, to provide more social housing, regenerate our high streets and remove the blight of empty buildings from the environment? Thank you.

Well, certainly, Welsh Government support change of use, if you like, in our town centres. I think we all recognise that shopping habits have changed probably for ever, and we certainly need to do something around many empty premises in our town centres. Obviously, we've got the Transforming Towns fund, which I think has been well used by the Government, and it's certainly something we will continue to support. 

Good afternoon, Minister, hope you're well. I just wanted to raise the issue of affordable housing within rural areas. We've heard from Caerphilly, we've heard about the issues around shop frontage as well. The region I represent, in mid and west Wales, as many of us do here, is particularly affected by the lack of affordable properties, and, as you'll know, a further challenge is that local authorities have not been able to build because of the phosphate issue. There clearly has to be that onus on local authorities to build more social housing, but I just wonder also if we could look at the issue around private sector leasing schemes, and what work can be done to support councils to increase the number of properties being made available through the private sector leasing scheme. Thank you. Diolch yn fawr iawn. 

Thank you. Well, certainly, rural areas do have their very own unique challenges, and also opportunities, and I think the rural housing enablers have certainly played an important role. I know the Minister for Climate Change is looking at pilot schemes in these areas as well. And in relation to the PRS leasing scheme, that seeks to bring existing and empty properties owned by landlords onto the scheme, and, obviously, the current approach for that scheme will continue.