Asked by: Steve Yemm (Labour - Mansfield)
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 the the Chancellor of the Exchequer, on proposed capital funding for the Coalfields Regeneration Trust to support SME industrial development.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the Hon.Member to Question UIN 114606 answered on 9 March.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when his Department will publish updated statutory guidance on social housing allocations.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
As announced in our National Plan to End Homelessness which was published on 11 December last year and can be found on gov.uk here, we will work with stakeholders to review and update statutory guidance on social housing allocations to ensure that allocations reflect local need and effectively support vulnerable households.
We will publish updated statutory guidance in due course.
Asked by: Adam Jogee (Labour - Newcastle-under-Lyme)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of a) local, b) regional and c) general elections being held on a Saturday on voter turnout.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government has not made any recent assessment of the impact of moving polling day to a Saturday on voter turnout.
The Government is committed to increasing democratic participation, as set out in its manifesto. As part of this work, we are preparing to pilot a range of flexible voting options at this May’s local elections, including opportunities for electors to cast their vote over the weekend alongside the traditional polling day. These pilots are designed to build a fuller understanding of how giving people greater choice in when and where they vote can support wider participation and strengthen the overall voting experience.
Asked by: Danny Chambers (Liberal Democrat - Winchester)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the current waiting times for the Housing Ombudsman.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The average waiting time for a case to be determined by the Housing Ombudsman in 2025/26 was 7.2 months.
The Ombudsman is currently consulting on their 2026/27 Business Plan, which proposes a series of measures to reduce waiting times for tenants.
Asked by: Adam Jogee (Labour - Newcastle-under-Lyme)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he plans to remove the right to vote from Commonwealth citizens in elections in the United Kingdom.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government has no plans to change the existing voting rights of Irish citizens or Commonwealth citizens.
Asked by: Rebecca Paul (Conservative - Reigate)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what consideration his Department has given to ensuring that council tax flexibility for fire and rescue services is applied across different governance models, including services delivered through county councils and standalone fire and rescue authorities.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Local authorities are responsible for deciding the level of their council tax. The Secretary of State sets referendum principles for a range of local authorities with different responsibilities, including fire services. The principles are considered on an annual basis, taking into account any changes in those responsibilities, and are consulted on as part of the annual Local Government Finance Settlement.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions his Department has had with the the Chancellor of the Exchequer, on the proposed £50 million capital investment in the Coalfields Regeneration Trust to support SME industrial development.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the Hon.Member to Question UIN 114606 answered on 9 March.
Asked by: Joshua Reynolds (Liberal Democrat - Maidenhead)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to ensure leaseholders have access to the full terms of their lease before completing a property transaction.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
On 6 October, my Department published two consultations outlining reform proposals to transform home buying and selling. They can be found on gov.uk here and here.
The consultations included proposals to require sellers and estate agents to provide upfront property information. This might include information relating to leasehold terms, property condition, and purchasing chains.
In the consultations in question we also made clear our intention to switch on measures in the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 to speed up the provision of information for leaseholders and homeowners on private or mixed tenure estates who wish to sell their property.
We are now reviewing the feedback received and will set out details of next steps later this year.
Asked by: Joshua Reynolds (Liberal Democrat - Maidenhead)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the limits on enquiries for free legal advice provided by the Leasehold Advisory Service.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government-funded Leasehold Advisory Service (LEASE) provides free initial legal advice and information in respect of leasehold, building safety, commonhold and park home issues for consumers.
In 2024, LEASE limited the number of enquiries per user to 10 over a 12-month period. This has enabled LEASE advisers to deal with more complex cases.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what monitoring his Department is carrying out to capture data on local authorities not exempting domestic abuse survivors from local connection tests for social housing.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government has taken action to remove barriers for victims of domestic abuse to access social housing.
Regulations, which came into force on 10 July 2025, mean that victims of domestic abuse moving as a result of that abuse will no longer need to meet a local connection or residency test in order to access social housing.
We will monitor the impact of these regulations at local authority level through the Local Authority Housing Statistics. The next return will capture implementation as of 31 March 2026 and will be published later this year.