The Department for Communities and Local Government was created in May 2006.
It is the successor department to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM). It is an expanded department with a powerful new remit to promote building more and better homes, reducing homelessness, improving local public services, regenerating areas to create more jobs, working to produce a sustainable environment and tackling anti-social behaviour and extremism.
The Department sets UK policy on local government, housing, urban regeneration, planning and fire and rescue. They have responsibility for all race equality and community cohesion related issues across Great Britain and for building regulations, fire safety and some housing issues in England and Wales. The rest of their work applies only to England.
Here is a list of ministers who work for the Department.
Secretary of State
Responsibilities:
- departmental strategic objectives (DSOs)
- public service agreement (PSA) targets
- Comprehensive Spending Review settlement
- empowering communities and citizens
- Olympics legacy
Minister of State
Responsibilities:
- lead responsibility for: housing policy and programmes (Homebuy and shared ownership, low and zero-carbon housing, eco-towns, homelessness, HMR pathfinders, social housing, HIPs), including housing elements of the Comprehensive Spending Review and PSAs; and planning reform (town and country planning); and representing the Department in Cabinet on these areas of policy
- physical and housing-related regeneration and sponsor minister for new Homes Agency implementation
- Housing and Regeneration Bill
- urban policy and design
- sustainable development and climate change: including the code for sustainable homes and building regulations
- Minister for the Thames Gateway, new growth points and growth areas
- Olympics legacy issues
Minister of State
John Healey MP
Responsibilities:
- lead responsibility for local government policy and finance, including local government pensions and Supporting People
- cities and regions (including lead minister for the Greater London Authority Bill)
- Government Offices
- neighbourhood renewal and tackling disadvantage (including neighbourhood renewal fund; new deal for communities; LEGI)
- planning for major infrastructure, and the Planning Bill
- resilience and recovery from flooding
- overview of fire and rescue service
- community engagement and empowerment; Quirk review
- overview of liveability
- Joint Chair of the London Resilience Forum
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State
Baroness Andrews OBE
Responsibilities:
- Departmental business in the House of Lords
- responsibility for departmental contribution to the Respect agenda
- support on Supporting People (including individual budgets)
- support on neighbourhood renewal and tackling disadvantage (including neighbourhood renewal fund; new deal for communities; LEGI)
- liveability
- planning casework
- planning inspectorate sponsor
- Ordnance Survey (client minister)
- disabled facilities grant
- national strategy for an ageing society
- third sector strategy
- supporting on community engagement and empowerment; Quirk review
- digital inclusion
- champion minister for culture and regeneration
- heritage
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State
Parmjit Dhanda MP
Responsibilities:
- cohesion (including joint chair of Migration Impacts Forum)
- preventing violent extremism
- fire and rescue service
- support on local government policy and finance (including local government pensions)
- sponsor minister for Valuation Tribunal Service
- planning casework
- support on planning for major infrastructure, and the Planning Bill
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State
Iain Wright MP
Responsibilities:
- support on all aspects of housing policy and programmes and town and country planning, and physical and housing-related regeneration, including decent homes, housing market renewal, and homelessness
- support for Housing and Regeneration Bill
- support on urban policy and urban design; code for sustainable homes; building regulations
- climate change and sustainable development
- Ordnance Survey (shareholder minister)
- phone masts
- sponsor for Audit Commission
- Gypsies and Travellers
Contact department
Tel: 020 7944 4400
Fax: 0207 944 6589
Eland House
Bressenden Place
London SW1E 5DU
E-mail: contactus@communities.gsi.gov.uk(general enquiries)
Useful links
Department for Communities and Local Government (opens in new window)
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