Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many planning inspectors are qualified to run local planning examinations; and whether her Department plans to increase staffing at the Planning Inspectorate in the context of the timeframes proposed in the Planning and Infrastructure Bill.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Planning Inspectorate (PINS) currently has 60 Inspectors (55FTE) trained to carry out Local Plan Examinations.

The government is committed to achieving a more efficient and consistent local plans examination process. This includes ensuring there is sufficient resourcing in PINS to support such activity.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to ensure local planning authorities can independently verify network capacity claims where there is evidence of (a) repeated sewage discharges, (b) flooding and (c) infrastructure failure.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

As set out in Paragraph 7 of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), the purpose of the planning system is to contribute to the achievement of sustainable development, including the provision of homes, commercial development and supporting infrastructure in a sustainable manner. Sustainable development should be pursued both through the preparation and implementation of local development plans, and the application of policies in the framework.

The government is clear that housing must come with appropriate infrastructure, including appropriate water infrastructure. We believe that strategic issues such as water capacity are best dealt with at a strategic level through the plan-making process, rather than through individual planning applications.

A key function of local development plans is to guide development to the most suitable and sustainable locations and to ensure that the associated infrastructure requirements are addressed. Effective co-operation early in the plan-making process is essential to ensuring not only that housing and infrastructure need is appropriately planned for, but that they are aligned with each other. The NPPF makes it clear that local planning authorities should collaborate with each other and with other public bodies, including infrastructure providers, to identify relevant strategic matters to be addressed, including providing for sustainable water supplies.

Water companies are under a statutory duty to provide new water and sewerage connections to residential properties, as well as planning to meet the needs of growth as part of water resource management plans, and drainage and wastewater management plans. The water resources planning guidance published by the government set out how those companies should forecast demand for water based on existing customers and planned levels of household and non-household growth, with the number of planned developments being based on published local plans. Planning applications may require information from developers on how the proposed development will be drained and wastewater dealt with, especially where a connection to a public sewage treatment plant is not feasible. Local planning authorities are encouraged to phase developments so they are not occupied until any necessary improvements to the public sewage system have been carried out, ensuring sustainable infrastructure management.

Strategic Flood Risk Assessments are the primary source of flood risk information and should be used to manage flood risk from all sources. In addition, local planning authorities are encouraged to collaborate with water companies, utilise Drainage and Wastewater Management Plans, and draw on independent technical expertise where necessary to verify network capacity claims. This approach ensures that evidence of repeated sewage discharges, flooding, and infrastructure failures is robustly assessed and addressed during the planning process.

Relevant planning practice guidance sets out that good design and mitigation measures should be secured during development, both through site-specific and non-site-specific policies on water infrastructure. The revised NPPF published on 12 December 2024 makes clear that developments of all sizes should use sustainable drainage techniques when the development could have drainage impacts and should have appropriate maintenance arrangements in place. We continue to explore whether more needs to be done to ensure sustainable drainage technologies are taken up more widely in new development, either through planning policy or by commencing schedule 3 to the Flood and Water Management Act 2010, and a decision on the best way forward will be made in the coming months.

Ensuring that we take a strategic spatial planning approach to the management of water, including tackling pollution and managing pressures on the water environment at a catchment, regional and national scale, is a core objective of the ongoing independent review into the regulatory system of the water sector, launched in October 2024 by the UK and Welsh Governments. The review is expected to report next year, and we will carefully consider its findings.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what guidance her Department is providing to local planning authorities for major development applications in areas where water and sewage infrastructure is operating at or beyond capacity.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

As set out in Paragraph 7 of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), the purpose of the planning system is to contribute to the achievement of sustainable development, including the provision of homes, commercial development and supporting infrastructure in a sustainable manner. Sustainable development should be pursued both through the preparation and implementation of local development plans, and the application of policies in the framework.

The government is clear that housing must come with appropriate infrastructure, including appropriate water infrastructure. We believe that strategic issues such as water capacity are best dealt with at a strategic level through the plan-making process, rather than through individual planning applications.

A key function of local development plans is to guide development to the most suitable and sustainable locations and to ensure that the associated infrastructure requirements are addressed. Effective co-operation early in the plan-making process is essential to ensuring not only that housing and infrastructure need is appropriately planned for, but that they are aligned with each other. The NPPF makes it clear that local planning authorities should collaborate with each other and with other public bodies, including infrastructure providers, to identify relevant strategic matters to be addressed, including providing for sustainable water supplies.

Water companies are under a statutory duty to provide new water and sewerage connections to residential properties, as well as planning to meet the needs of growth as part of water resource management plans, and drainage and wastewater management plans. The water resources planning guidance published by the government set out how those companies should forecast demand for water based on existing customers and planned levels of household and non-household growth, with the number of planned developments being based on published local plans. Planning applications may require information from developers on how the proposed development will be drained and wastewater dealt with, especially where a connection to a public sewage treatment plant is not feasible. Local planning authorities are encouraged to phase developments so they are not occupied until any necessary improvements to the public sewage system have been carried out, ensuring sustainable infrastructure management.

Strategic Flood Risk Assessments are the primary source of flood risk information and should be used to manage flood risk from all sources. In addition, local planning authorities are encouraged to collaborate with water companies, utilise Drainage and Wastewater Management Plans, and draw on independent technical expertise where necessary to verify network capacity claims. This approach ensures that evidence of repeated sewage discharges, flooding, and infrastructure failures is robustly assessed and addressed during the planning process.

Relevant planning practice guidance sets out that good design and mitigation measures should be secured during development, both through site-specific and non-site-specific policies on water infrastructure. The revised NPPF published on 12 December 2024 makes clear that developments of all sizes should use sustainable drainage techniques when the development could have drainage impacts and should have appropriate maintenance arrangements in place. We continue to explore whether more needs to be done to ensure sustainable drainage technologies are taken up more widely in new development, either through planning policy or by commencing schedule 3 to the Flood and Water Management Act 2010, and a decision on the best way forward will be made in the coming months.

Ensuring that we take a strategic spatial planning approach to the management of water, including tackling pollution and managing pressures on the water environment at a catchment, regional and national scale, is a core objective of the ongoing independent review into the regulatory system of the water sector, launched in October 2024 by the UK and Welsh Governments. The review is expected to report next year, and we will carefully consider its findings.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a statutory power for local flood authorities to (a) adopt and (b) maintain sustainable urban drainage systems.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government is committed to securing the delivery of high-quality sustainable drainage systems to help manage flood risk and adapt to the effects of climate change.

The revised National Planning Policy Framework we published on 12 December 2024 amended an existing paragraph regarding incorporating sustainable drainage systems in new development to make clear that developments of all sizes are expected to make use of sustainable drainage techniques where the development could have drainage impacts. These systems should be appropriate to the nature and scale of the proposed development.

We will consider whether further changes are required to manage sustainable drainage systems provision through the planning system when we consult on further reform.

National Planning Guidance is clear that local authorities should be satisfied that all Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems have clear maintenance and adoption arrangements in place for the lifetime of a development.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to help ensure that local authorities have adequate (a) powers and (b) resources to (i) adopt and (ii) manage sustainable drainage systems.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government is committed to securing the delivery of high-quality sustainable drainage systems to help manage flood risk and adapt to the effects of climate change.

The revised National Planning Policy Framework we published on 12 December 2024 amended an existing paragraph regarding incorporating sustainable drainage systems in new development to make clear that developments of all sizes are expected to make use of sustainable drainage techniques where the development could have drainage impacts. These systems should be appropriate to the nature and scale of the proposed development.

We will consider whether further changes are required to manage sustainable drainage systems provision through the planning system when we consult on further reform.

National Planning Guidance is clear that local authorities should be satisfied that all Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems have clear maintenance and adoption arrangements in place for the lifetime of a development.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of requiring developers to use sustainable urban drainage systems in new developments.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government is committed to securing the delivery of high-quality sustainable drainage systems to help manage flood risk and adapt to the effects of climate change.

The revised National Planning Policy Framework we published on 12 December 2024 amended an existing paragraph regarding incorporating sustainable drainage systems in new development to make clear that developments of all sizes are expected to make use of sustainable drainage techniques where the development could have drainage impacts. These systems should be appropriate to the nature and scale of the proposed development.

We will consider whether further changes are required to manage sustainable drainage systems provision through the planning system when we consult on further reform.

National Planning Guidance is clear that local authorities should be satisfied that all Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems have clear maintenance and adoption arrangements in place for the lifetime of a development.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether each person impacted by the Grenfell Tower fire has been permanently rehoused.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

200 of the 201 households from Grenfell Tower and Grenfell Walk have been permanently rehoused.

One household is currently living in a high quality temporary home within the borough.

We continue to work closely with the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, which is responsible for housing decisions in the borough and supporting each person impacted by the tragedy to settle into permanent homes.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will make it her policy to allow almshouses to access housing-related grants.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Almshouse charities can bid for grant funding from the Affordable Homes Programme if they are registered social housing providers, subject to oversight by the Regulator of Social Housing. 264 out of 1,600 almshouses charities have already taken this step.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department provides guidance on the (a) core principles and (b) culture expected of local development boards.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I would kindly ask the hon. Member to write to me with more details on ‘local development boards’, so my officials can look into this matter.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she has received recent representations from (a) Birmingham City Council and (b) the Commissioner on the provision of additional public funds to settle their dispute with striking bin collection workers.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government has been working intensively with Birmingham City Council in relation to the ongoing disruption in its waste service. While the response is being locally led by the Council as is appropriate, at their request, we have deployed operational and logistical expertise to help address the backlog of waste on Birmingham’s streets.

This backlog presented real risks to public health, particularly for the most vulnerable. As a result of concerted and ongoing effort by Birmingham City Council, and with the support of other local authorities, we are pleased that the large accumulations of street waste in badly affected areas have been removed and that levels are approaching normal, and this is under daily review.

The residents of Birmingham need to see a fair and sustainable resolution to this dispute, and we continue to encourage both parties to come to a negotiated settlement that ensures a fit-for-purpose waste service and does not risk the important progress made on equal pay at BCC.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department has provided additional (a) funding and (b) other resources to councils bordering Birmingham to help tackle additional fly-tipping resulting from bin strikes in Birmingham.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government has been working intensively with Birmingham City Council in relation to the ongoing disruption in its waste service. While the response is being locally led by the Council as is appropriate, at their request, we have deployed operational and logistical expertise to help address the backlog of waste on Birmingham’s streets.

This backlog presented real risks to public health, particularly for the most vulnerable. As a result of concerted and ongoing effort by Birmingham City Council, and with the support of other local authorities, we are pleased that the large accumulations of street waste in badly affected areas have been removed and that levels are approaching normal, and this is under daily review.

The residents of Birmingham need to see a fair and sustainable resolution to this dispute, and we continue to encourage both parties to come to a negotiated settlement that ensures a fit-for-purpose waste service and does not risk the important progress made on equal pay at BCC.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department plans to take steps to help support Birmingham City Council to ensure the long-term (a) sustainability and (b) resilience of the city’s waste management services.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government has been working intensively with Birmingham City Council in relation to the ongoing disruption in its waste service. While the response is being locally led by the Council as is appropriate, at their request, we have deployed operational and logistical expertise to help address the backlog of waste on Birmingham’s streets.

This backlog presented real risks to public health, particularly for the most vulnerable. As a result of concerted and ongoing effort by Birmingham City Council, and with the support of other local authorities, we are pleased that the large accumulations of street waste in badly affected areas have been removed and that levels are approaching normal, and this is under daily review.

The residents of Birmingham need to see a fair and sustainable resolution to this dispute, and we continue to encourage both parties to come to a negotiated settlement that ensures a fit-for-purpose waste service and does not risk the important progress made on equal pay at BCC.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department has provided additional (a) funding and (b) resources to Birmingham City Council to help tackle waste management issues resulting from the recent bin strikes.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government has been working intensively with Birmingham City Council in relation to the ongoing disruption in its waste service. While the response is being locally led by the Council as is appropriate, at their request, we have deployed operational and logistical expertise to help address the backlog of waste on Birmingham’s streets.

This backlog presented real risks to public health, particularly for the most vulnerable. As a result of concerted and ongoing effort by Birmingham City Council, and with the support of other local authorities, we are pleased that the large accumulations of street waste in badly affected areas have been removed and that levels are approaching normal, and this is under daily review.

The residents of Birmingham need to see a fair and sustainable resolution to this dispute, and we continue to encourage both parties to come to a negotiated settlement that ensures a fit-for-purpose waste service and does not risk the important progress made on equal pay at BCC.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions she has had with Birmingham City Council on the potential impact of the bin strikes on (a) public health and (b) the environment in affected areas.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government has been working intensively with Birmingham City Council in relation to the ongoing disruption in its waste service. While the response is being locally led by the Council as is appropriate, at their request, we have deployed operational and logistical expertise to help address the backlog of waste on Birmingham’s streets.

This backlog presented real risks to public health, particularly for the most vulnerable. As a result of concerted and ongoing effort by Birmingham City Council, and with the support of other local authorities, we are pleased that the large accumulations of street waste in badly affected areas have been removed and that levels are approaching normal, and this is under daily review.

The residents of Birmingham need to see a fair and sustainable resolution to this dispute, and we continue to encourage both parties to come to a negotiated settlement that ensures a fit-for-purpose waste service and does not risk the important progress made on equal pay at BCC.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she is taking steps to help support (a) Birmingham City Council and (b) other local authorities to resolve disputes with bin collection workers.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government has been working intensively with Birmingham City Council in relation to the ongoing disruption in its waste service. While the response is being locally led by the Council as is appropriate, at their request, we have deployed operational and logistical expertise to help address the backlog of waste on Birmingham’s streets.

This backlog presented real risks to public health, particularly for the most vulnerable. As a result of concerted and ongoing effort by Birmingham City Council, and with the support of other local authorities, we are pleased that the large accumulations of street waste in badly affected areas have been removed and that levels are approaching normal, and this is under daily review.

The residents of Birmingham need to see a fair and sustainable resolution to this dispute, and we continue to encourage both parties to come to a negotiated settlement that ensures a fit-for-purpose waste service and does not risk the important progress made on equal pay at BCC.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department plans to simplify the application process for the Disability Facilities Grant.

Answered by Rushanara Ali - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Government recognises how important home adaptations are in enabling disabled people to live as independently as possible in a safe and suitable environment. This is why government awarded an £86 million in-year uplift to the DFG for 2024-25, bringing the total funding for 2024-25 to £711 million. Government has also confirmed £711 million for the DFG for 2025-26.

In March 2022 government published guidance for local authorities in England on the effective and efficient delivery of the grant, including best practice in setting out the application process. A link to the guidance can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/disabled-facilities-grant-dfg-delivery-guidance-for-local-authorities-in-england. It is for each local authority to decide its own application processes in line with the legislative requirements, but the guidance makes clear that local authorities should ensure the needs of applicants are at the heart of the grant application process.

Government continues to keep all aspects of the DFG under consideration. As part of this, the suitability of the current £30,000 upper limit is being reviewed. Government is also reviewing the allocations formula for the DFG to ensure the funding is aligned with local needs and will consult on a new approach during 2025. Any changes in policy that require additional funding would be subject to the Spending Review.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she plans to take to ensure that the specific needs of (a) Torbay and (b) other deprived areas are considered following mergers into larger sub-regional authorities as part of local government reorganisation.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

On 5 February I formally invited unitary proposals from all the councils in two tier areas and their neighbouring small unitaries. It is for councils to develop robust and sustainable proposals that are in the best interests of their whole area.

As set out in the published criteria, unitary structures must prioritise the delivery of high quality and sustainable public services to citizens, and proposals should show how councils in the area have sought to work together in coming to a view that meets local needs and is informed by local views.

We expect local leaders to ensure there is wide engagement with local partners and stakeholders, residents and businesses in working through options. This engagement should both inform the development of robust proposals and build a shared understanding of the improvements they expect to deliver through reorganisation.

Following submission of these proposals to government, we will consider proposals carefully before taking decisions on how to proceed. It would be inappropriate for me to comment or give a view on specific unitary proposals, or to pre-empt future decisions under the statutory process.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will publish the minutes of her meeting with Birmingham City Council on 5 April 2025; and what the conclusions were of the meeting.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government has been in frequent dialogue with the leadership of the City Council to ensure the welfare of Birmingham residents and a swift resolution to the dispute. The 5 April meeting provided an update on the clean-up of the waste backlog and industrial relations negotiations. The government will continue to support the Council in creating the sustainable, fair and reliable waste service that its residents deserve. In line with normal practice, the minutes of the meeting will not be published.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 24 March 2025, to Question 38621, on Combined Authorities, and with reference to the publication of the report by Professor Alice Sullivan, Independent review of data, statistics and research on sex and gender, published in March 2025, if she will ensure that questions about the sex of a respondent ask for their sex.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 38621 on 24 March 2025.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what meetings (a) she and (b) Ministers in her Department have had to discuss the potential spread of leptospirosis, in the context of the bin strikes in Birmingham.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Government has been supporting Birmingham City Council (BCC) in its efforts to address the backlog of waste that had been building up on the city’s streets. MHCLG has worked with a number of key Government Departments to provide support to BCC including engagement with both DHSC and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA). UKHSA has been monitoring any potential health impacts and BCC have undertaken regular public health assessments lead by BCC’s Director of Public Health.

UKHSA undertakes routine surveillance for leptospirosis infections in humans and publishes a quarterly report on the common animal-associated infections - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/common-animal-associated-infections-2024/common-animal-associated-infections-england-second-quarter-2024#leptospirosis

The Council have reported that all on street waste and fly tipping waste has been cleared, waste estimated to be held at properties is now back to near normal levels. Around 100 to 120 Council waste collection vehicles are out daily collecting around 1,300 tonnes of waste. This is near normal levels of waste collection and normal household collection for all Birmingham residents has resumed.

BCC will continue to assess levels of rubbish and their potential impact on the local area, and the government continues to monitor the situation on a daily basis.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of uncollected rubbish on the risk of fire in Birmingham.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Government has been supporting Birmingham City Council (BCC) in its efforts to address the backlog of waste that had been building up on the city’s streets. MHCLG has worked with a number of key Government Departments to provide support to BCC including engagement with both DHSC and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA). UKHSA has been monitoring any potential health impacts and BCC have undertaken regular public health assessments lead by BCC’s Director of Public Health.

UKHSA undertakes routine surveillance for leptospirosis infections in humans and publishes a quarterly report on the common animal-associated infections - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/common-animal-associated-infections-2024/common-animal-associated-infections-england-second-quarter-2024#leptospirosis

The Council have reported that all on street waste and fly tipping waste has been cleared, waste estimated to be held at properties is now back to near normal levels. Around 100 to 120 Council waste collection vehicles are out daily collecting around 1,300 tonnes of waste. This is near normal levels of waste collection and normal household collection for all Birmingham residents has resumed.

BCC will continue to assess levels of rubbish and their potential impact on the local area, and the government continues to monitor the situation on a daily basis.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many hectares of land were designated as green belt in each year since 1997.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Department publishes an annual release entitled 'Local authority green belt statistics for England', which includes information on hectares of land designated as Green Belt in England, as well as by local authority.

An accompanying live table entitled 'Area since 1997' describes the hectares of land in England designated as Green Belt since 1997, and is available here. Figures for the last year will be published in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 14 April 2025 to Question 43564 on Waste Disposal: Birmingham, if she will publish the minutes of the meeting with Unite.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

In line with normal practice, the minutes of the meeting will not be published.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to support local authorities to bring forward brownfield land for housing development in areas where flooding presents a significant barrier to delivery.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The National Planning Policy Framework expects proposals for homes and other identified needs to be approved where they would use suitable brownfield land, unless substantial harm would be caused.

At the same time, the Framework recognises the importance of minimising the risk of flooding, and so it steers development away from areas of relatively high flood risk, while recognising that some land where significant flood risk exists will be unsuitable for housing.

Where development is, exceptionally, found to be justified in areas at risk of flooding, the Framework requires that it be appropriately flood resistant and resilient, and safe for its lifetime.

This may apply to some brownfield land but would need to be considered on a site-by-site basis taking into consideration information on flood risk and opportunities for mitigation and ensuring safety.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment has she made of the potential merits of using a Special Development Order in order to speed up delivery of the new Universal Studios Theme Park in Bedfordshire.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

No proposal has been submitted to the Secretary of State. Should the Secretary of State receive such a proposal then she will consider the case on its individual merits.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will direct the Planning Inspector to give greater consideration to draft local plans that have met early submission deadlines during the examination stage.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The National Planning Policy Framework sets out expectations in relation to the examination of local plans.

I also refer the hon. Member to my July 2024 letter to the Planning Inspectorate about the examination of local plans, which remains in force and can be found on gov.uk here.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the Town Deal Board model will be used as a foundation for the development of Plan for Neighbourhoods Board;, and what changes to (a) structure and (b) governance would be required to achieve this.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Neighbourhood Boards should bring together residents, local businesses, grassroots campaigners, workplace representatives, faith, and community leaders and those with a deep connection to their area to work with the local authority to develop their Regeneration Plan. The governance and boundary guidance provides information specific to the strategic objectives and governance of the Neighbourhood Board. The parameters for these are different to those for Town Deal Boards, but pre-existing boards can be built on, or altered, to meet the new guidance.

All 75 boards have been asked to confirm their proposed chair, membership and boundary by 22^nd April.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of funding for local authorities for the 2025-26 financial year.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Local Government Finance Settlement for 2025-26 makes available over £69 billion for local government, which is a 6.8% cash terms increase in councils’ Core Spending Power on 2024-25.

Taken together, the additional funding announced by the Chancellor at the Autumn Budget and through the 2025-26 Local Government Finance Settlement will provide over £5 billion of new funding for local services over and above local council tax. This includes: an additional £2 billion of grant through the Settlement; a guarantee that local authorities in England will receive at least £1.1 billion in total in 2025-26 from the new Extended Producer Responsibility for packaging (pEPR) scheme; and a further £233 million of additional funding for homelessness services.

We are also taking immediate action to begin addressing the significant challenges facing local government by ensuring that funding goes to the places that need it most in 2025-26.

The Ministry works closely with local government and other government departments to understand specific demand and cost pressures facing local government on an ongoing basis.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether HM Land Registry has offered apprenticeships since 2010.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Civil Service is committed to using apprenticeships to break down barriers to opportunity, support skills development and deliver more effective public services.

HM Land Registry has offered 800 apprenticeships across England and Wales since 2014.

Those apprenticeships have ranged from Level 2 to Level 7 to support personal development and increase organisational capability while also supporting apprentices to join Government Professions such as Digital, Data & Technology, Legal, HR and Finance.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to grant additional powers to Plan for Neighbourhoods Boards beyond those of Town Deal Boards.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Government set out a comprehensive, non-exhaustive list of the existing powers available to boards and local authorities in England in the published ‘policy toolkit’. The toolkit gives communities the tools and information they need to make informed decisions, empowering local people to have ownership over the future of their neighbourhood and local area. Similar toolkits for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will be published shortly.

The Plan for Neighbourhoods programme focuses on three long-term aims - building thriving places, strengthening communities and empowering people to taking back control instead of sticking plaster policies. In addition to the list of powers available to boards, we have doubled the number of interventions on which communities can spend the money, compared to the previous government’s programme, to ensure areas can deliver on the objectives of the programme.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 20 March to Question 37889 on High Rise Flats: Insulation, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of increased insurance premiums due to cladding on the finances of leaseholders in buildings under 11 metres in height.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

We do not hold information on insurance premiums for buildings under 11 metres in height. However, insurers should offer affordable premiums in line with risk, where life safety fire risk is generally proportional to the height of buildings. The department has been examining buildings under 11 metres on a case-by-case basis. To date, we have only identified a small number of under 11 metre buildings that require cladding remediation works. In the rare cases where remediation work is required, the department has engaged the relevant developers in conversations about funding these works so that leaseholders do not pay. Regardless of the height of the building, the responsibility for the costs of fixing such defects should rest with building owners, and not leaseholders.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what guidance her Department has issued on whether board members of local development boards should have (a) full access to and (b) summaries of (i) tenders and (ii) business plans.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I would kindly ask the hon. Member to write to me with more details on ‘local development boards’, so my officials can look into this matter.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department plans to introduce a statutory exemption from the long-term empty homes council tax premium for properties that have been inherited and are being marketed for sale.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

When a property has been left empty following the death of its owner or occupant, it is exempt from council tax for as long as it remains unoccupied and until probate is granted. Following a grant of probate (or the signing of letters of administration), a further six months exemption is possible, so long as the property remains unoccupied and has not been sold or transferred to someone else.

Furthermore, the government has regulated to introduce an exception, to council tax premiums, for up to 12 months following a grant of probate. A further 12-month exception is available for dwellings actively marketed for sale or let. Exceptions to premiums may apply concurrently where the dwelling qualifies for both.

The government does not collect data on the number of properties which are empty due to probate. However, we do collect data on the number of dwellings which are exempt from council tax due to the death of the occupant. As of the latest available data, 132,883 dwellings were receiving this exemption.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to ensure that local government reorganisation will not undermine progress made in improving healthcare outcomes in (a) Torbay and (b) other areas.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Government is committed to building a fairer Britain, to ensure people can live well for longer, and spend less time in ill health, regardless of where they are born or their financial circumstances.

As set out in the English Devolution White Paper, government recognises the benefits that aligned geographical boundaries can have for improving co-ordination between public services. Within Integrated Care Systems, collaboration between local government and health partners is crucial to the delivery of high quality and efficient services for communities and patients.

On 5 February 2025 I formally invited unitary proposals from all the councils in two tier areas and their neighbouring small unitaries, including Torbay Council. It is for councils to develop robust and sustainable proposals that are in the best interests of their whole area. As set out in the published statutory guidance, unitary structures must prioritise the delivery of high quality and sustainable public services to citizens, and the views of other public sector providers will be crucial to understanding the best way to structure local government.

Following submission of proposals to government, we will consider proposals carefully before taking decisions on how to proceed. Ministers regularly have meetings with colleagues across government.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 3 April 2025 to Question 44062 on Members: correspondence, if she will meet with the hon. Member for Torbay to discuss the potential impact of local government reorganisation on (a) Torbay and (b) the South West.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

We are happy to meet with the member on local government reorganisation and will be in touch to arrange this.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the exceptional financial support regime for local authorities.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government is under no illusion about the fragile state of the sector and the pressures that some councils are facing to deliver for residents. We also recognise the potential for continued instability as we work to fix the foundations of local government. That is why we confirmed in the autumn that we will continue to have a framework in place to support councils in the most difficult financial positions.

However, this government has been clear that we will take a different approach to supporting councils in financial difficulty, to ensure it is effective, collaborative and delivers value for money – while still protecting the interests of taxpayers. For example, we have been clear that we do not believe in punishing councils and have removed the punitive approach of making borrowing more expensive where a council seeking additional financial support has no other choice.

On council tax flexibility for areas seeking exceptional financial support, we have put taxpayers at the forefront by avoiding excessively high increases and only agreeing increases where councils have comparatively low existing levels of tax and plans to protect the lowest income residents.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department monitors the number of households charged the council tax premium on long-term empty homes following (a) bereavement and (b) inheritance.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

When a property has been left empty following the death of its owner or occupant, it is exempt from council tax for as long as it remains unoccupied and until probate is granted. Following a grant of probate (or the signing of letters of administration), a further six months exemption is possible, so long as the property remains unoccupied and has not been sold or transferred to someone else.

Furthermore, the government has regulated to introduce an exception, to council tax premiums, for up to 12 months following a grant of probate. A further 12-month exception is available for dwellings actively marketed for sale or let. Exceptions to premiums may apply concurrently where the dwelling qualifies for both.

The government does not collect data on the number of properties which are empty due to probate. However, we do collect data on the number of dwellings which are exempt from council tax due to the death of the occupant. As of the latest available data, 132,883 dwellings were receiving this exemption.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of sanctions available to local government standards committees for the actions of town and parish councillors.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

In December the Government launched a consultation seeking views on a range of measures to strengthen the standards and conduct framework that applies to all types and tiers of local authorities in England. The proposals consulted upon included a requirement for all principal authorities to convene formal standards committees to make decisions on code of conduct breaches, and the introduction of suspension of members for serious misconduct. We are now in the process of analysing the responses to the consultation to ensure we are taking full account of sector views on all of the measures proposed, and the Government Response will be issued in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department plans to commission research on the potential impact of the (a) second homes and (b) higher empty homes premium on (i) house prices, (ii) housing markets, (iii) the local economy and (iv) tourism.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

It is for councils to decide whether it is appropriate or effective to use the premium. The government collects data on the use of premiums and the number of empty and second homes, which is published in the government’s council taxbase statistics. However the data does not make any other assessment based on the use of the premiums.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many homes are empty due to probate.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government does not collect data on the number of properties which are empty due to probate. However, we do collect data on the number of dwellings which are exempt from council tax due to the death of the occupant. As of the latest available data, 132,883 dwellings were receiving this exemption.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions she is having with the Secretary of Health and Social Care to ensure that successful integrated care organisations (a) in Torbay and (b) in England are (i) preserved and (ii) not disrupted by local government restructuring.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Government is committed to building a fairer Britain, to ensure people can live well for longer, and spend less time in ill health, regardless of where they are born or their financial circumstances.

As set out in the English Devolution White Paper, government recognises the benefits that aligned geographical boundaries can have for improving co-ordination between public services. Within Integrated Care Systems, collaboration between local government and health partners is crucial to the delivery of high quality and efficient services for communities and patients.

On 5 February 2025 I formally invited unitary proposals from all the councils in two tier areas and their neighbouring small unitaries, including Torbay Council. It is for councils to develop robust and sustainable proposals that are in the best interests of their whole area. As set out in the published statutory guidance, unitary structures must prioritise the delivery of high quality and sustainable public services to citizens, and the views of other public sector providers will be crucial to understanding the best way to structure local government.

Following submission of proposals to government, we will consider proposals carefully before taking decisions on how to proceed. Ministers regularly have meetings with colleagues across government.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she has recused herself from discussions on the Birmingham City Council bin strike.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Secretary of State, the department, and I have been in regular contact with Birmingham City Council since 31 March to support the Council’s efforts to clear the backlog of waste on the streets. However, any talks to settle the equal pay dispute are solely between the employer (Birmingham City Council) and trade union (Unite). The Government has rightly not been involved in these negotiations.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what percentage of the new 1,500,000 homes will be (a) social housing and (b) affordable housing.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government has not set an affordable housing target to date, but we are committed to delivering the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation.

At Spring statement, the government announced an immediate injection of £2 billion to support delivery of the biggest boost in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation and contribute to our ambitious Plan for Change milestone of building 1.5 million safe and decent homes in this Parliament. Further detail can be found in the Written Ministerial Statement made on 25 March 2025 (HCWS549).

The investment made at Spring statement follows the £800 million in new in-year funding which has been made available for the 2021-26 Affordable Homes Programme and that will support the delivery of up to 7,800 new homes, with more than half of them being Social Rent homes.

We will set out set details of new investment to succeed the 2021-26 Affordable Homes Programme at the Spending Review. This new investment will deliver a mix of homes for sub-market rent and homeownership, with a particular focus on delivering homes for social rent.

The government has also announced the £450m third round of the Local Authority Housing Fund, followed by an uplift of £50m, enabling councils to grow their housing stock.

We also confirmed a range of new flexibilities for councils and housing associations, both within the Affordable Homes Programme and in relation to how councils can use their Right to Buy receipts. Having reduced Right to Buy discounts to their pre-2012 regional levels, we have allowed councils to retain 100% of the receipts generated by Right to Buy sales.

The government recognise that Registered Providers need support to build their capacity and make a greater contribution to affordable housing supply. Between 30 October 2024 and 23 December 2024, the government consulted on a new 5-year social housing rent settlement, to give Registered Providers the certainty they need to invest in new social and affordable housing.

The revised National Planning Policy Framework published on 12 December 2024 includes a number of changes that make the planning system more supportive of affordable housing, in particular Social Rent homes. These include new Golden Rules for development on the Green Belt. Prior to development plan policies for affordable housing being updated in accordance with the revised NPPF, the affordable housing contribution required to satisfy the ‘Golden Rules’ is 15 percentage points above the highest existing affordable housing requirement that would otherwise apply to the development, subject to a cap of 50%. We estimate that under this model, the median Green Belt local planning authority affordable housing requirement will be 50%.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the impact of poor housing on the transmission of tuberculosis; and what discussions she has had with (a) the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care and (b) local authorities in areas of high TB incidence on this matter.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Everyone deserves to live in a decent, safe, and warm home.

The government is therefore bringing forward a consultation in early 2025, setting out plans for a reformed Decent Homes Standard that will apply to both the social and private rented sectors to ensure safe and secure housing is the standard across the country.

Housing association tenants who think their house or flat is in a seriously dangerous condition – including due to overcrowding – can inform their local authority. Local authorities have a legal duty to take enforcement action under the Housing Act 2004 if they find health and safety hazards including overcrowding at the most dangerous ‘category 1’ level, using the HHSRS. Landlords are also obligated to ensure that any dwelling they rent out is free of hazards which may jeopardise the health or safety of tenants. Statutory guidance recommends that local authorities consider giving ‘high priority’ for alternative housing to families in severe overcrowding which poses a serious health hazard.

We continue to work closely with the Department for Health and Social Care to ensure that housing supports the health and wellbeing of residents.

The UK Health Security Agency collects statutory TB incidence notifications in England and uses this to support service planning and public health action - we suggest contacting them about their work with local authorities.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether there was a cost to the public purse for the hire of Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club for the roundtable event she attended on 4 April 2025.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

There was no cost to the public purse.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the Ministerial residence in Admiralty House pays council tax as a (a) sole or main residence, (b) single person discount or (c) second home.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The council tax arrangements for Admiralty House are as has been the case for successive governments and Ministers occupying it as an official residence. The Deputy Prime Minister’s council tax responsibility is properly discharged.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department engages with Palestine Action.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

No, my department has not engaged with Palestine Action. The responsibility for decisions around who departments engage with sits with those departments and the appropriate policy areas.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many social sector homes are empty in England.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The number of empty social sector homes in England as at 31 March 2024 can be calculated using published statistics for vacant dwellings owned by local authorities and private registered providers of social housing.

• There were 33,904 vacant dwellings owned by local authorities in England on 31 March 2024 (see MHCLG Live Table 615).

• There were 37,231 vacant low cost rental general needs dwellings and 17,744 vacant low cost rental supported housing dwellings owned by large private registered providers of social housing (those owning at least 1,000 dwellings) in England on 31 March 2024 (see Regulator of Social Housing’s Private Registered Providers Additional Tables 3.8 and 3.10).

• There were 5,078 vacant low cost rental dwellings owned by small private registered providers of social housing (those owning fewer than 1,000 dwellings) in England on 31 March 2024 (see “SDR24_Small_PRP_Rents Vacancies” table of the Regulator of Social Housing’s Private Registered Providers Data Release).

Therefore, there were a total of 93,957 empty social sector homes in England on 31 March 2024, including homes earmarked for sale or demolition, or awaiting or undergoing major repairs.

This may include a small number of units owned by English private registered providers which are situated outside of England. Low-cost home ownership stock owned by English private registered providers are excluded.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment she has made of the potential contribution of the Coalfields Regeneration Trust to Local Growth Plans in former coalfields areas with capital funding from government.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Local leadership is at the heart of our mission to achieve higher growth - harnessing the expertise that exists in devolved institutions and local communities. National government will work in partnership with local stakeholders, such as the Coalfields Regeneration Trust (CRT), to empower places to deliver improved outcomes.

Mayoral Local Growth Plans are the cornerstone of this place-based approach. These will articulate a ten-year vision for growth, setting out their region’s unique strengths, identifying shared priorities of national importance to be taken forwardly jointly with the UK Government, and highlighting the most attractive opportunities for private sector investment. Several plans – including for the North East Combined Authority and the West Midlands Combined Authority – will serve coalfield communities.

The Government will consider the request for funding from the CRT at HM Treasury’s 2025 multi-year spending review. I am pleased to be meeting with Andy Lock to discuss the work of the CRT.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of amending council tax legislation so new owners bringing previously empty properties back into use are not required to pay a council tax premium while renovating the property for a period of time.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government recognises there may be circumstances where it would not be appropriate for a council tax premium to apply. That is why this government introduced a number of exceptions to council tax premiums which came into effect from 1 April 2025. This includes an exception for up to 12-months for empty dwellings undergoing major repairs. The government has published guidance setting out when premiums and exceptions may apply. This is available here - Guidance on the implementation of the council tax premiums on long-term empty homes and second homes - GOV.UK.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she has made an assessment of the merits of introducing a separate needs formula for homelessness.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The previous government committed to improving and updating the way in which local authorities are funded through the “fair funding review” - but this was not delivered. We will make good on this commitment and implement long-awaited reforms through a multi-year settlement in 2026-27.

We invited views from the local government sector through the “local authority funding reform objectives and principles consultation”, which was open from 18 December 2024 to 12 February 2025. It sought views on the approach to local authority funding reform to be implemented via the Local Government Finance Settlement from 2026-27.

We will be consulting on more detailed proposals, including our proposed relative needs formulae, following the Spending Review in June.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department plans to increase the delegation rate for planning applications.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Planning and Infrastructure Bill includes a regulation-making power to issue statutory guidance on a national scheme of delegation.

The government intend to formally consult on proposals relating to the delegation of planning decisions in England alongside the Bill’s passage.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to provide a multi-year funding settlement for early intervention services in local government.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 40059 on 27 March 2025.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many dwellings were built on green belt land in each year since 1997.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Department does not collect or publish the requested dataabsolute numbers of dwellings built on Green Belt land.

The proportions of new residential addresses that were created on Green Belt land in each year from 2013-14 to 2021-22 are published here. Figures for 1989 to 2011 are published here. Figures for 2022-23 and more recent years will be published in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of reliability of the Index of Multiple Deprivation to accurately reflect levels of deprivation and need.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The English Indices for Deprivation are a designated National Statistic. They have demonstrated, through assessment, that they meet the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value, set out in the Code of Practice for Statistics by the Office for Statistics Regulation.

Building on the measures in the 2025-26 Local Government Finance Settlement, the Government is committed to introducing an improved and updated approach to funding local authorities from 2026-27.

We sought views on our principles and objectives for funding reform through a consultation which ran from 18 December 2024 - 12 February 2025. This consultation and engagement will inform the development of our detailed proposals, which will follow the multi-year Spending Review concluding later this year.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to account for housing costs when measuring deprivation as part of local government funding reform.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The English Indices for Deprivation are a designated National Statistic. They have demonstrated, through assessment, that they meet the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value, set out in the Code of Practice for Statistics by the Office for Statistics Regulation.

Building on the measures in the 2025-26 Local Government Finance Settlement, the Government is committed to introducing an improved and updated approach to funding local authorities from 2026-27.

We sought views on our principles and objectives for funding reform through a consultation which ran from 18 December 2024 - 12 February 2025. This consultation and engagement will inform the development of our detailed proposals, which will follow the multi-year Spending Review concluding later this year.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the press release entitled £2 billion new investment to support biggest boost in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation, published on 25 March 2025, what estimate she has made of the number of (a) social and (b) affordable homes that will be built in Bedfordshire in the 2026-27 financial year.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 44049 on 22 April 2025.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to encourage developers to use design features that provide nesting facilities for endangered birds.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the hon. Member to the answer to Question UIN 22080 on 15 January 2025.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she plans to take to (a) increase housing affordability and (b) ensure balanced regional development.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Boosting the supply of homes of all tenures must be at the heart of any strategy to improve housing affordability which is why the government’s Plan for Change includes a hugely ambitious milestone of building 1.5 million safe and decent homes in England in this Parliament.

At Spring statement, the government announced an immediate injection of £2 billion to support delivery of the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation. Further detail can be found in the Written Ministerial Statement made on 25 March 2025 (HCWS549).

The investment made at Spring statement follows the £800 million in new in-year funding which has been made available for the 2021-26 Affordable Homes Programme and that will support the delivery of up to 7,800 new homes, with more than half of them being Social Rent homes.

We will set out set details of new investment to succeed the 2021-26 Affordable Homes Programme at the Spending Review. This new investment will deliver a mix of homes for sub-market rent and homeownership, with a particular focus on delivering homes for social rent.

Through the revised National Planning Policy Framework published on 12 December 2024, the government implemented a new standard method for assessing housing needs to increase supply and better direct new homes to the areas where they are currently least affordable and therefore most needed.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of planning control and enforcement in preventing (i) vibration and (ii) damage to neighbouring properties during construction works.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Department has not undertaken such an assessment.

Planning conditions can be used to mitigate the adverse effects of a development, such as vibration, where they meet the tests set out in the National Planning Policy Framework.

It is for local planning authorities to consider whether it is appropriate to attach conditions to the grant of planning permission and to take any subsequent enforcement action where there is a breach of planning control on a case-by-case basis.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what guidance her Department issues on whether community engagement should be carried out through distinct channels from business engagement as part of local development planning.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Planning Practice Guidance on plan-making, which can be found on gov.uk here, highlights the importance of local communities and interested parties being able to track the progress of local development plans through Local Development Schemes. These must be made available publicly by local planning authorities and kept up to date.

Together with Statements of Community Involvement, they outline how the local planning authority will engage and undertake public consultation in the preparation of the emerging local development plan, including with communities and other stakeholders.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how she plans to implement her planning reform policy; and when she expects her reforms to start to impact regional development.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government will continue to implement its ambitious planning reform agenda through a combination of legislation, policy, and guidance. No general statement can be made about when the impact of individual measures will be felt in specific areas.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department plans to regulate short-term lets.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 43634 on 8 April 2025.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many disabled people were on the waiting list for social housing in the last 12 months.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

My Department does not hold data on the number of disabled people on social housing registers (waiting lists).

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of Part 3 of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill on protected habitats (a) on the Humber Estuary and (b) in general.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

When it comes to development and the environment, we know we can do better than the status quo, which too often sees both sustainable housebuilding and nature recovery stall. Instead of environmental protections being seen as barriers to growth, we want to unlock a win-win for the economy and for nature. The Planning and Infrastructure Bill will introduce a new Nature Restoration Fund that will unlock and accelerate development while going beyond neutrality to unlock the positive impact development can have in driving nature recovery.

Environmental Delivery Plans (EDPs), and the conservation measures they propose, must be evidence-based and properly scrutinised before being put in place. An EDP can only be put in place where the Secretary of State is satisfied the delivery of conservation measures will outweigh the negative effects of development.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of requiring home insurers to offer insurance to landlords offering tenancies to tenants on benefits.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Rental discrimination against people who receive benefits has no place in a fair and modern housing market.

As part of the rental discrimination measures in the Renters’ Rights Bill, any clauses within a new or renewed contract of insurance that would prohibit the letting of a property to a tenant in receipt of benefits will be rendered of no effect.

Many insurers already offer services to landlords who rent to tenants receiving benefits and, following engagement with the sector, we are not expecting any destabilising effect on the market as a result of the provisions in the Renters’ Rights Bill.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate her Department has made of the number of open public spaces in new housing developments that are owned by private companies.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government does not hold comprehensive information on the number of open public spaces in new housing developments that are owned by private companies.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate her Department has made of the number of houses that will be built in each year between 2025-26 and 2029-30.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

As the hon. Member is aware, the government has not set interim annual targets in respect of its ambitious Plan for Change milestone of delivering 1.5 million safe and decent homes in this Parliament.

However, due to the reduced levels of housing supply that we inherited, the government has been clear that rates of housebuilding will have to increase significantly in the later years of the Parliament to meet that milestone.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of outlawing ground rents.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government remains firmly committed to its manifesto commitment to tackle unregulated and unaffordable ground rents, and we will deliver this in legislation.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she has made an assessment of the effectiveness of the Housing First Unit established by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government supports Mayor Burnham’s initiative to improve access to quality housing across Greater Manchester.

Nationally, we are increasing funding for homelessness to nearly £1 billion in 2025/26 and working to reduce homelessness by delivering 1.5 million new homes over the next Parliament and abolishing ‘no fault’ evictions through our Renters’ Rights Bill.

The government is committed to taking further action to raise quality standards in both rented sectors. Reforms are underway to drive up social housing standards, with stronger regulations to hold landlords accountable to regulatory standards. We will introduce Awaab’s Law to both rented sectors and bring forward consultation on the Decent Homes Standard that all social housing landlords must meet.

For more information on the steps we are taking to increasing the supply of social and affordable housing, I refer the hon. Member to my answer to Question UIN 41721 on 3 April 2025.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many foreign nationals have been granted social housing in the last year.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

People are generally eligible for social housing if they have leave to remain in the UK and have recourse to public funds. The Home Office decides whether persons from abroad have leave to remain in the UK and whether they have recourse to public funds.

Only individuals that are eligible can join housing registers and be given a social housing tenancy. For those who are eligible, housing needs will be considered on an equal basis in accordance with the relevant local authority’s housing allocation scheme.

There were 33,000 new social lettings in England to households whose lead tenant was a non-UK national in 2023/24. This constitutes 13% of all new social lettings that year (262,000 lettings). The Department does not hold data on the nationality of individual members of households in social housing, but such households can contain UK nationals as well as non-UK national lead tenants.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to support leaseholders with the cost of lease renewal.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 includes provisions that will make it cheaper and easier for existing leaseholders to extend their lease or buy their freehold.

As set out in my Written Ministerial Statement of 21 November 2024 (HCWS244), the government intends to act quickly to provide homeowners with greater rights, powers, and protections over their homes by implementing the Act’s provisions.

These include an amended valuation scheme that leaseholders must follow to calculate how much they should pay to enfranchise. The method set by the Act for the valuation process removes the requirement for marriage value to be paid, caps the treatment of ground rents in the valuation calculation at 0.1% of the freehold value and allows Government to prescribe the rates used to calculate the enfranchisement premium. Rates will be set by the Secretary of State in secondary legislation, and we will consult on valuation rates this summer.

The Act also includes a new statutory right to a 990-year lease extension for leaseholders of both houses and flats and makes extending a lease cheaper for leaseholders by requiring each side to pay their own process costs, such as valuation and solicitor's fees.

The implementation of the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 will require an extensive programme of secondary legislation and we will set out the details in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of allowing Council Housing tenants to sell their property to buyers other than their Local Authority if they are still within the 10 year purchase period.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Former council tenants who have purchased their home under the Right to Buy scheme but wish to resell or dispose of it within a 10 year period, must first offer the property for sale at the full market value to either the former landlord or to another social landlord in the area. This is known as the right of first refusal. The market value must be agreed between the parties or, if they are unable to agree, will be determined by the District Valuer. If an offer has not been accepted within 8 weeks, the tenant is free to sell the property to anyone on the open market. The government has no plans to change existing policy on the right of first refusal.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she plans to take through the Planning and Infrastructure Bill to require (a) developers and (b) housing associations to have robust warranties in place which include cover for (i) incomplete and (ii) inadequate work.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government’s plans to ensure new build homes are of sufficient quality are being taken forward outside of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill. This includes reforms set out in the answer to Question UIN 37745 on 19 March 2025.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 31 March 2025 to Question 36495 on Derelict Land: Regeneration, how this will be funded.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The £51.5 million regeneration package announced on 13 February 2025 will be funded through existing departmental budgets for brownfield remediation and regeneration.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of undertaking a review of the Mobile Homes Act 2013 to help support full time residential park-home owners.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

A review of the effectiveness of the Mobile Homes Act 2013 was undertaken in 2017 and it made a number of recommendations. Most have been implemented, such as the introduction of a fit and proper person test and changes to the pitch fee review inflationary index from the Retail Price Index to the Consumer Price Index.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department has undertaken Environment Act environmental principles assessments when issuing (a) new and (b) revised planning practice guidance since July 2024.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Planning practice guidance published since July 2024 supports the implementation of matters that have been set through legislation or policy. Environmental principles assessments were undertaken for the changes to policy once the requirement for them had been commenced.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to support park home owners.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 39735 on 27 March 2025.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether (a) authorised and (b) unauthorised traveller pitches count towards housing targets.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Planning Policy for Traveller Sites, which can be found on Gov.uk here, sets out that local planning authorities should produce their own assessment of Gypsy and Traveller accommodation need and plan to meet this need through their Local Plan. This includes setting pitch targets for Gypsies and Travellers and plot targets for travelling showpeople, which address the likely permanent and transit site accommodation needs of Travellers in their area.

Gypsy and Traveller pitches are part of the overall calculation and information submitted for the purpose of the Housing Delivery test. Non-permanent dwellings are included only if they are the resident’s main residence and council tax is paid on them.

Local planning authorities have a wide range of enforcement powers, with strong penalties for non-compliance, which they can use to tackle all types of unauthorised development.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of including (a) ground source heat pumps and (b) shared ground loops in the Future Homes Standard.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Building Regulations prescribe performance outcomes, rather than specific technologies, materials or fuels to be used. This allows builders and homeowners the flexibility to innovate and select the most practical and cost-effective solutions appropriate in any development.

However, the upcoming Future Homes Standard will set our new homes and buildings on a path that moves away from relying on volatile fossil fuels and towards more clean, secure energy. The future is likely to see a mix of low carbon technologies used for heating, including heat pumps and heat networks. Ground source heat pumps and share ground loops are effective technical solutions which are very much aligned with the ambition of the Future Homes Standard.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they recognise the concept of regions only in England; or whether they recognise them also within Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Prime Minister has been clear that rebuilding the country requires UK wide delivery, working effectively with all levels of government, in every nation and indeed in every region.

The UK Government is directly responsible for working with Mayors and regional partners such as local government to drive delivery across England’s regions. We also work closely with regional local partners and in collaboration with the Devolved Governments to deliver the UK Government's responsibilities across Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she has made a recent assessment of the potential merits of Government funding for Local Welfare Assistance.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Local welfare assistance funding is delivered through the Local Government Finance Settlement. The majority of funding in the local government finance settlement is unringfenced recognising that local leaders are best placed to identify local priorities.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what proportion of invoices from UK suppliers were paid by her Department within 10 days of receipt between 1 September 2024 and 28 February 2025.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Data on the percentage of invoices paid within 5 days and 30 days is routinely reported under Regulation 113 of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015. MHCLG publishes this information on Gov.uk and a link to Q3 2024/25 is here MHCLG's prompt payment data 2024 to 2025 - GOV.UK

The data for Q4 2024/25 will be published on Gov.uk by the end of April 2025.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure that landlords cannot lawfully obstruct emergency vehicle access to residential properties.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Emergency Workers (Obstruction) Act 2006 makes clear that it is an offence to obstruct or hinder certain emergency workers from responding to present or imminent emergency circumstances. As a matter of public safety, property owners and managers should keep access routes clear, so that emergency vehicles can gain access if needed.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to give additional powers to local authorities to tackle unauthorised traveller (a) development and (b) encampments.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Planning Policy for Traveller Sites, which can be found on Gov.uk here, sets out that local planning authorities should produce their own assessment of Gypsy and Traveller accommodation need and plan to meet this need through their Local Plan. This includes setting pitch targets for Gypsies and Travellers and plot targets for travelling showpeople, which address the likely permanent and transit site accommodation needs of Travellers in their area.

Gypsy and Traveller pitches are part of the overall calculation and information submitted for the purpose of the Housing Delivery test. Non-permanent dwellings are included only if they are the resident’s main residence and council tax is paid on them.

Local planning authorities have a wide range of enforcement powers, with strong penalties for non-compliance, which they can use to tackle all types of unauthorised development.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will make an assessment of the effectiveness of measures for protecting tenants experiencing anti-social behaviour in local authority housing.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Social landlords, including local authorities, already have a range of powers and enforcement tools to tackle anti-social behaviour including powers to evict perpetrators. We expect landlords to use those powers promptly and proportionately, putting the needs of victims at the heart of their response.

The Regulator of Social Housing has also published a revised Neighbourhood and Community Standard, which came into force on 1 April 2024 as part of the new proactive consumer regulation regime. This Standard will require local authorities to work in partnership the police and other relevant organisations to deter and tackle anti-social behaviour and hate incidents in the neighbourhoods where they provide social housing.

Under the new consumer regulation regime, social landlords, including local authorities, will also be required to collect and publish Tenant Satisfaction Measures. These will include data on tenants’ satisfaction with their landlord’s approach to handling anti-social behaviour, and the number of anti-social behaviour cases relative to size of landlord.

Tackling anti-social behaviour (ASB) is a top priority for this Government, and a key part of our Safer Streets Mission. Through the Crime and Policing Bill, we have introduced tougher powers to tackle repeat offending, including the new Respect Order to tackle the most persistent ASB offenders. Police, local authorities and housing providers will be able to apply to the court for a Respect Order. Breach of a Respect Order will be a criminal offence and courts will have a wide range of sentencing options, including community orders, unlimited fines and, for the most severe cases, up to two years’ imprisonment.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will take steps to maintain environmental standards to chalk streams in the (a) planning and (c) building of new towns.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The National Planning Policy Framework sets out that to protect and enhance biodiversity and geodiversity, local plans should identify, map and safeguard components of local wildlife-rich habitats and wider ecological networks such as chalk streams. It is for local planning authorities to apply this policy when planning for new development.

Chalk streams are specifically referenced in the definitions of ‘natural environment’ and ‘environmental protection’ for the new system of Environmental Outcomes Reports that the government intend to introduce. This will ensure the protection of chalk streams is taken into account as part of this new approach to environmental assessment.

The government will consult on draft regulations in due course following policy development and engagement with key stakeholders. While we want to realise the benefits of reform as quickly as possible, we recognise the need to manage the transition to the new system carefully. Until a new system is implemented, current legislation on environmental assessment and its supporting guidance continues to apply.

The New Towns Programme aims to create environmentally resilient places that support the government’s net-zero agenda through sustainable design, nature enhancement, low-carbon infrastructure, and responsible development, including flood risk mitigation. The building of the next generation of new towns will not involve the lowering of existing environmental protections in the National Planning Policy Framework.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 19 March 2025 to Question 37400, if she will publish the (a) minutes and (b) attendees of meetings with private parking companies before the Westminster Hall debate on 6 May 2025.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Pursuant to my answer to Question UIN 39208 on 25 March 2025, as part of the government’s ongoing work to introduce a Code of Practice for Private Parking Operators, officials speak regularly with the two Private Parking Trade Associations.

I am due to have meetings with the two parking Trade Associations next month.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what is her expected timetable for local authorities being given powers to licence exempt accommodation.

Answered by Rushanara Ali - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 39537, tabled on 19 March 2025.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether local councils and communities will be consulted about New Towns before the final designation by the New Towns Taskforce.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

As set out in its Terms of Reference, which can be found on gov.uk here, the New Towns Taskforce will work in partnership with local leaders and communities, but its selection of sites will be made in the national interest.

The Taskforce also plans to undertake a series of engagement events to understand what the public think the core components of new towns should be and to further test the design and placemaking principles published in the Building new towns for the future policy paper published on 12 February which can be found on gov.uk here.

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Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of freezing levels of Local Housing Allowance on future levels of homelessness, in the context of her membership of the Inter-Ministerial Group on Homelessness and Rough Sleeping.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The causes of homelessness are multi-faceted and often complex; they interact dynamically making it very difficult to isolate the relative importance of individual factors. We work closely with other departments, including MHCLG, to ensure the impacts of Local Housing Allowance (LHA) on homelessness and local government, are considered.

This included consideration in last year’s Autumn Budget not to increase LHA rates for 2025/26. Rental data, the impacts of LHA rates, rate increases in April 2024, and the wider fiscal context were all considered. The April 2024 one-year LHA increase cost an additional £1.2bn in 2024/25 and approximately £7bn over 5 years.

At last year’s Budget, funding for Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs) were maintained. These are available from local authorities and can be paid to those entitled to Housing Benefit or Universal Credit who face a shortfall in meeting their housing costs. The Autumn Budget also announced an increase in 2025/26 by £233 million compared to last year (FY2024-25) to grant funding for homelessness services. This increased spending will help prevent rises in the number of families in temporary accommodation and help prevent rough sleeping. This brings total spend to nearly £1 billion in 2025-26.

The government will also invest £2bn in social and affordable housing in 2026-27, to deliver up to 18,000 new homes. This will immediately allow housing associations and local councils to bring bids forward for new developments in every part of the country.

We continue to work across government, including on the development of MHCLG’s Long Term Housing and Homelessness and Rough-sleeping strategies to ensure that interactions and impacts between departments are considered. The Inter-Ministerial Group on Homelessness and Rough-sleeping, for example, brings together ministers from across Government to drive progress on the strategy development and get back on track to ending homelessness.

Any future decisions on LHA policy will be taken in the context of the Government’s missions, goals on housing, including as part of the strategies mentioned above, and considered for prioritisation within the challenging fiscal context.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of freezing Local Housing Allowance on other areas of public expenditure.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The causes of homelessness are multi-faceted and often complex; they interact dynamically making it very difficult to isolate the relative importance of individual factors. We work closely with other departments, including MHCLG, to ensure the impacts of Local Housing Allowance (LHA) on homelessness and local government, are considered.

This included consideration in last year’s Autumn Budget not to increase LHA rates for 2025/26. Rental data, the impacts of LHA rates, rate increases in April 2024, and the wider fiscal context were all considered. The April 2024 one-year LHA increase cost an additional £1.2bn in 2024/25 and approximately £7bn over 5 years.

At last year’s Budget, funding for Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs) were maintained. These are available from local authorities and can be paid to those entitled to Housing Benefit or Universal Credit who face a shortfall in meeting their housing costs. The Autumn Budget also announced an increase in 2025/26 by £233 million compared to last year (FY2024-25) to grant funding for homelessness services. This increased spending will help prevent rises in the number of families in temporary accommodation and help prevent rough sleeping. This brings total spend to nearly £1 billion in 2025-26.

The government will also invest £2bn in social and affordable housing in 2026-27, to deliver up to 18,000 new homes. This will immediately allow housing associations and local councils to bring bids forward for new developments in every part of the country.

We continue to work across government, including on the development of MHCLG’s Long Term Housing and Homelessness and Rough-sleeping strategies to ensure that interactions and impacts between departments are considered. The Inter-Ministerial Group on Homelessness and Rough-sleeping, for example, brings together ministers from across Government to drive progress on the strategy development and get back on track to ending homelessness.

Any future decisions on LHA policy will be taken in the context of the Government’s missions, goals on housing, including as part of the strategies mentioned above, and considered for prioritisation within the challenging fiscal context.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the press notice entitled Homes fit for heroes: Raft of new measures to improve military family housing, published on 18 April 2025, what steps he is taking to encourage the development of surplus military land.

Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)

Ministry of Defence (MOD) works closely with Local Authorities to secure alternative development for sites post military use, this includes securing allocations in Local Plans, public consultation as part of master planning, and where appropriate working with development partners. the MOD is also working in partnership with Homes England to accelerate the release of public land.

The Government has set out its ambitions to unlock thousands of new homes on surplus defence land, including via the creation of a new taskforce between MOD, HM Treasury and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the NHS's 2025/26 priorities and operational planning guidance, published on 30 January 2025, what steps his Department is taking to include health infrastructure planning decisions in the scope of the commitment to streamline planning.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government is committed to delivering a National Health Service that is fit for the future. This means we need to see world class NHS infrastructure across the entire NHS estate. Beyond hospitals, we know we need the right infrastructure in the right place to deliver a true Neighbourhood Health Service and to ensure that patients receive the care they deserve.

The Department of Health and Social Care is working closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government on how to extend our collective interactions in the planning process, from local plan making to negotiating developer contributions, through updates to national guidance. This is alongside our support for the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government’s efforts to streamline the planning process, by extensively feeding into the ways in which health infrastructure plans can facilitate this.

Question to the Wales Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, whether she has had recent discussions with Cabinet colleagues on the potential merits of aligning building regulations in England with those in Wales.

Answered by Jo Stevens - Secretary of State for Wales

I have regular discussions with my Cabinet colleagues on a wide range of matters. I also recently met with the Welsh Government Cabinet Secretary for Housing and Local Government, Jayne Bryant MS, to discuss the Welsh Government’s plans for legislation on building safety in Wales.

Although buildings policy is a devolved matter, officials at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, the Building Safety Regulator and the Welsh Government maintain close working relationships. Representatives from all devolved nations attend the Building Advisory Committee Working Group on Fire Safety, which provides an authoritative view to the Building Safety Regulator how the functional requirements of Part B of the Building Regulations are implemented.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 30 December 2024 to Question 19000 on Social Services, when the report on the adult social care relative needs formula will be made available on the Adult Social Care Policy Research Unit Website.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department of Health and Social Care is still considering this research as part of its ongoing policy work. We are working closely the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, and the role of a specific adult social care funding formula was considered within the consultation Local authority funding reform: objectives and principles, published on 18 December 2024 and closed on 12 February 2025. We will update further in due course.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of EPC rating requirements for industrial buildings; and what steps he is taking to support small manufacturers in meeting future energy efficiency standards.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

Minimum Energy Efficiency Standard (MEES) regulations consider the energy efficiency of buildings to ensure they are futureproofed for any usage, irrespective of the occupant. MHCLG also recently published a consultation on EPC reform to ensure they are a more effective tool for understanding a buildings energy performance in future.

Non-domestic MEES regulations currently only require buildings, including industrial buildings, below EPC E to improve their energy efficiency. We consulted on strengthening this to EPC B by 2030, and plan to publish our government response in the first half of 2025.

In regard to support for small manufacturers, government publishes various schemes on gov.uk, both local and national, that help with the costs of energy efficiency measures. This includes the Industrial Energy Transformation Fund which has offered up to £500 million. Our Business Energy Advice Service Pilot operates in the West Midlands also provides energy demand reduction and decarbonisation recommendations for SMEs with the provision of free match-funded grants available to support implementation. We also encourage SMEs to visit the UK Business Climate Hub, which provides information and advice on how to reduce energy use and carbon emissions.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 24 March 2025 to Question 38671 on Means-tested Benefits: Veterans, whether her Department has considered requiring local authorities to disregard payments from the (a) Armed Forces Compensation Scheme, (b) Service Invalidity Pension, (c) Service Attributable Pension and (d) War Pension when assessing entitlement to (i) Housing Benefit, (ii) Council Tax Support, (iii) Discretionary Housing Payments and (iv) Disabled Facilities Grants.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Housing Benefit regulations permit local authorities to disregard beyond the standard disregard of £10 a week the whole or part of any war disablement pensions, war widow’s pensions, war widower’s pensions and guaranteed income payments under the Armed Forces and Reserve Forces Compensation Scheme.

(a) Armed Forces Compensation Scheme £10 disregard with local discretion

(b) Service Invalidity Pension no disregard is applied and it is treated as income

(c) Service Attributable Pension is treated the same as a War Pension so subject to the £10 disregard and local discretion.

(d) War Pension - £10 disregard with local discretion

There are no plans to make changes to the discretionary scheme.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and the devolved administrations are responsible for Council Tax Support and Disabled Facilities Grants policy.

Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs) can be paid to veterans entitled to Housing Benefit or the housing element of Universal Credit who face a shortfall in meeting their housing costs. Local authorities administer the Discretionary Housing Payments scheme as they are best placed to make informed judgements about relative priorities and needs in their area to ensure that the most vulnerable are supported and the funds are targeted effectively. There are no prescribed resources tests; local authorities simply have to be satisfied that the person concerned needs further financial assistance towards housing costs. The payments are entirely at local authority discretion, including the amount and duration of any award.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether Great British Railways will consider housing growth in capacity planning.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

An integrated, affordable and sustainable transport network plays a vital role in unlocking homes and providing access to jobs and essential services.

Great British Railways (GBR) will work closely with the Department for Transport, MHCLG and other government departments to align housebuilding with future transport infrastructure strategy and investment.  This will include considering housing growth as part of future capacity planning to help us deliver 1.5 million homes over the next 5 years.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the cap on the amount councils can claim to meet temporary accommodation costs on local authority finances.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

We continue to keep the rates used for Housing Benefit subsidy under review and are working closely with MHCLG and the Inter-Ministerial Group on Homelessness and Rough Sleeping to explore the impacts of subsidy rates on local authorities.

Any future decisions on subsidy rates will be taken in the context of the Government’s missions, goals on housing and the current challenging financial environment at the appropriate fiscal event.

We recognise the financial pressures which local authorities are experiencing. MHCLG is increasing funding for homelessness services this year by an extra £233 million compared to last year (2024/25).

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of freezing Local Housing Allowance rates on levels of homelessness.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The causes of homelessness are multi-faceted and often complex, they interact dynamically making it very difficult to isolate the relative importance of individual factors. We do however work closely with other departments, including MHCLG, to ensure the impacts of Local Housing Allowance (LHA) on homelessness are considered.

This included consideration in last year’s Autumn Budget not to increase LHA rates for 2025/26. Rental data, the impacts of LHA rates, the fact that rates were increased in April 2024, and the wider fiscal context were all considered. The April 2024 one-year LHA increase cost an additional £1.2bn in 2024/25 and approximately £7bn over 5 years.

We continue to work across Government on the development of the Homelessness and Rough-sleeping strategy. Any future decisions on LHA policy will be taken in the context of the Government’s missions, goals on housing and the fiscal context.

For those who need further support, Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs) are available from local authorities. DHPs can be paid to those entitled to Housing Benefit or Universal Credit who face a shortfall in meeting their housing costs.

On other areas of public expenditure, we have announced the government will invest £2bn in social and affordable housing in 2026-27, to deliver up to 18,000 new homes. This will immediately allow housing associations and local councils to bring bids forward for new affordable housing developments in every part of the country.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the decision to freeze Local Housing Allowance on other areas of public expenditure.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The causes of homelessness are multi-faceted and often complex, they interact dynamically making it very difficult to isolate the relative importance of individual factors. We do however work closely with other departments, including MHCLG, to ensure the impacts of Local Housing Allowance (LHA) on homelessness are considered.

This included consideration in last year’s Autumn Budget not to increase LHA rates for 2025/26. Rental data, the impacts of LHA rates, the fact that rates were increased in April 2024, and the wider fiscal context were all considered. The April 2024 one-year LHA increase cost an additional £1.2bn in 2024/25 and approximately £7bn over 5 years.

We continue to work across Government on the development of the Homelessness and Rough-sleeping strategy. Any future decisions on LHA policy will be taken in the context of the Government’s missions, goals on housing and the fiscal context.

For those who need further support, Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs) are available from local authorities. DHPs can be paid to those entitled to Housing Benefit or Universal Credit who face a shortfall in meeting their housing costs.

On other areas of public expenditure, we have announced the government will invest £2bn in social and affordable housing in 2026-27, to deliver up to 18,000 new homes. This will immediately allow housing associations and local councils to bring bids forward for new affordable housing developments in every part of the country.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of freezing the Local Housing Allowance on other areas of public expenditure.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The causes of homelessness are multi-faceted and often complex, they interact dynamically making it very difficult to isolate the relative importance of individual factors. We do however work closely with other departments, including MHCLG, to ensure the impacts of Local Housing Allowance (LHA) on homelessness are considered.

This included consideration in last year’s Autumn Budget not to increase LHA rates for 2025/26. Rental data, the impacts of LHA rates, the fact that rates were increased in April 2024, and the wider fiscal context were all considered. The April 2024 one-year LHA increase cost an additional £1.2bn in 2024/25 and approximately £7bn over 5 years.

We continue to work across Government on the development of the Homelessness and Rough-sleeping strategy. Any future decisions on LHA policy will be taken in the context of the Government’s missions, goals on housing and the fiscal context.

For those who need further support, Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs) are available from local authorities. DHPs can be paid to those entitled to Housing Benefit or Universal Credit who face a shortfall in meeting their housing costs.

On other areas of public expenditure, we have announced the government will invest £2bn in social and affordable housing in 2026-27, to deliver up to 18,000 new homes. This will immediately allow housing associations and local councils to bring bids forward for new affordable housing developments in every part of the country.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Written Ministerial Statement of 5 February 2025, HCWS417 on the Flood Investment Announcement, whether he plans to provide additional support to local authorities impacted by increases to Internal Drainage Board special levies.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The government supports the important work internal drainage boards (IDBs) do in managing water and flood risk, benefiting communities, businesses and the environment.

The government announced as part of the 2025-26 Local Government Finance Settlement, that it will provide £5 million in funding for the local authorities most impacted by IDB levies.

On 31st March 2025 the government also announced an additional £16 million boost to the IDB Fund to support greater flood resilience for farmers and rural communities. The Fund has increased from £75 million to £91 million to provide opportunities to modernise and upgrade assets and this will help reduce future cost increases. Defra has also committed to work with the IDB sector and MHCLG to review IDBs’ current funding and costs.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of used nappies discarded in public places on Public Health.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has not made a specific assessment of the potential impact of discarded used nappies on public health. The UKHSA and other agencies provide support to local authorities and their directors of public health for localised incidents, such as risks associated with household waste.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Environment Agency have produced the statutory guidance Waste duty of care: code of practice, which is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/waste-duty-of-care-code-of-practice/waste-duty-of-care-code-of-practice

Guidance for waste planning policy is published by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, and is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/waste

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of changes to (a) Personal Independence Payment, (b) Universal Credit and (c) Carers’ Allowance on (i) adult social service capacity and (ii) housing demand.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

DWP is working across Government, including with DHSC and MHCLG, to consider the impact of the reforms to the welfare system.

We will also consider the impacts on benefits for unpaid carers as part of our wider consideration of responses to the consultation as we develop our detailed proposals for change.

Through the Green Paper we are consulting on the support needed for those who may lose any entitlements as a result of receiving PIP daily living and what this support could look like.

We will also work closely with the DHSC and others on how the health and eligible care needs of those who would lose entitlement to PIP could be met outside the benefits system.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 26 February 2025 to Question 32060 on Electric Vehicles: Charging Points, if she will take steps with Cabinet colleagues to publish a cross-departmental consultation on measures to help tackle delays facing (a) transport and (b) other infrastructure organisations in securing permission to install a distribution network operator connection from highways authorities.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

We continue to work with other government departments, such as MHCLG and DESNZ, to understand what changes are required to remove barriers to installing chargepoints and obtaining grid connections.

In December 2024, we announced further changes to planning permission for off-street locations and published a grid connections review specifically focused on electric vehicle charging. We continue to work with industry stakeholders to streamline relevant processes.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has had discussions with the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government on the amount of money used for primary care expansion from Section 106 agreements.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department for Health and Social Care is working closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government to extend our collective interactions in the planning process, from local plan making to negotiating developer contributions through updates to national guidance. This is alongside determining how developer contributions from new housing developments can be better used towards local health services and infrastructure.

Integrated care boards have been building their capacity and capability, and in some areas working with expertise in NHS Property Services (NHSPS) to support health systems to navigate the planning system, to secure and use monies and other mitigations from developers as part of Section 106 (S106) agreements. The health ask will be considered alongside other priorities that local authorities are responsible for delivering in their area.

National data on the collection and spending of S106 data is limited, with no comprehensive findings published by the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government since 2020, which makes assessing the trends difficult. The Department for Health and Social Care, NHS England, and NHSPS continue to work together to look at how we negotiate for S106 contributions and ensure that any secured contributions are spent in a timely manner.

Integrated care systems’ estates infrastructure strategies have also been developed to create a long-term plan for future estate requirements and investment for each local area and its needs. These strategies take the existing and future general practice and primary care estate needs into account when considering how best to deliver local services when interacting with local planning authorities on all aspects of the planning process.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of integrated care boards in securing money for primary care expansion from Section 106 agreements.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department for Health and Social Care is working closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government to extend our collective interactions in the planning process, from local plan making to negotiating developer contributions through updates to national guidance. This is alongside determining how developer contributions from new housing developments can be better used towards local health services and infrastructure.

Integrated care boards have been building their capacity and capability, and in some areas working with expertise in NHS Property Services (NHSPS) to support health systems to navigate the planning system, to secure and use monies and other mitigations from developers as part of Section 106 (S106) agreements. The health ask will be considered alongside other priorities that local authorities are responsible for delivering in their area.

National data on the collection and spending of S106 data is limited, with no comprehensive findings published by the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government since 2020, which makes assessing the trends difficult. The Department for Health and Social Care, NHS England, and NHSPS continue to work together to look at how we negotiate for S106 contributions and ensure that any secured contributions are spent in a timely manner.

Integrated care systems’ estates infrastructure strategies have also been developed to create a long-term plan for future estate requirements and investment for each local area and its needs. These strategies take the existing and future general practice and primary care estate needs into account when considering how best to deliver local services when interacting with local planning authorities on all aspects of the planning process.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of trends in the amount of money used for primary care expansion from Section 106 agreements.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department for Health and Social Care is working closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government to extend our collective interactions in the planning process, from local plan making to negotiating developer contributions through updates to national guidance. This is alongside determining how developer contributions from new housing developments can be better used towards local health services and infrastructure.

Integrated care boards have been building their capacity and capability, and in some areas working with expertise in NHS Property Services (NHSPS) to support health systems to navigate the planning system, to secure and use monies and other mitigations from developers as part of Section 106 (S106) agreements. The health ask will be considered alongside other priorities that local authorities are responsible for delivering in their area.

National data on the collection and spending of S106 data is limited, with no comprehensive findings published by the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government since 2020, which makes assessing the trends difficult. The Department for Health and Social Care, NHS England, and NHSPS continue to work together to look at how we negotiate for S106 contributions and ensure that any secured contributions are spent in a timely manner.

Integrated care systems’ estates infrastructure strategies have also been developed to create a long-term plan for future estate requirements and investment for each local area and its needs. These strategies take the existing and future general practice and primary care estate needs into account when considering how best to deliver local services when interacting with local planning authorities on all aspects of the planning process.

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Found: In the event of an emergency, MHCLG will immediately take steps to support the local level emergency

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Found: Ministers' Hospitality - March 2025 CSV, 579 Bytes View online Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

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Found: is leading the development of the ETDP with input from a working group comprising of DESNZ, PINS, MHCLG

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Found: From: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and Department for Levelling Up, Housing

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Found: The Planning Inspectorate is an executive agency, sponsored by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

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Found: From: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local

Found: Also thanks to Stephen Aldridge and colleagues at MHCLG for further review and commenting which improved