Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
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 February 2026, to Question 108220, on Affordable Housing: Greater London, whether any other assessment has been made of affordable housing starts in London which have then not been built, despite being registered as started.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Affordable Housing Supply statistical release that my Department publishes is produced using a number of different sources. These include data from local authorities, Homes England and the Greater London Authority (GLA).
The GLA and Homes England provide information in respect of individual developments, but this is only at the point they start or complete. As such, the data my Department publishes does not distinguish between developments where construction has started and is ongoing and developments where construction has started but has stalled or been abandoned.
The GLA expect all schemes will continue to proceed. In instances where that does not prove possible, they will ensure that all grant is recouped and reinvested in social and affordable housing.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
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 February 2026, to Question 108220, on Affordable Housing: Greater London, whether affordable housing starts in London are tracked from start on site to competition, to ascertain that they are (a) actually delivered and (b) not stalled.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Affordable Housing Supply statistical release that my Department publishes is produced using a number of different sources. These include data from local authorities, Homes England and the Greater London Authority (GLA).
The GLA and Homes England provide information in respect of individual developments, but this is only at the point they start or complete. As such, the data my Department publishes does not distinguish between developments where construction has started and is ongoing and developments where construction has started but has stalled or been abandoned.
The GLA expect all schemes will continue to proceed. In instances where that does not prove possible, they will ensure that all grant is recouped and reinvested in social and affordable housing.
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the time taken to finalise infrastructure agreements for residential planning permissions.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Developers may be asked to provide contributions for infrastructure in several ways. Planning obligations, in the form of S106 agreements, should only be used where it is not possible to address unacceptable impacts through a planning condition.
The government is aware that the negotiation of S106 agreements can create delays in the planning process and increase costs for developers and local planning authorities. As per the Written Ministerial Statement made on 28 January 2026 (HCWS1286), the government intend to work closely with local planning authorities, registered providers and developers to deliver a series of measures that will provide for a simpler, more transparent and more resilient S106 system. These include a standardised template S106 agreement to speed up the process of drafting and concluding new S106 agreements.
Section 278 agreements may also be required where developers need to carry out essential highways improvements to facilitate their projects. It is important that both developers and highways authorities engage early on the works needed to support development proposals to ensure timely decisions
The Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) is a charge which can be levied by local authorities on new development in their area. The levy only applies in areas where a local authority has consulted on, and approved, a charging schedule which sets out its levy rates and has published the schedule on its website. Where CIL is in place for an area, charging authorities should work proactively with developers to ensure they are clear about the authorities’ infrastructure needs. My Department’s published guidance on CIL can be found on gov.uk here.
Any local planning authority that receives a developer contribution through CIL or S106 planning obligations is required to publish an Infrastructure Funding Statement at least annually, ensuring a transparent and accountable system.
To support local planning authorities in negotiating and concluding agreements in a timely manner, the government is investing in their capacity and capability. At the Autumn Budget 2024, the Chanceller announced a £46 million package of investment into the planning system as a one-year settlement for 2025-2026. At the Budget on 26 November 2025, the Chancellor announced a further £48 million of investment over three years to support local planning authorities to attract, retain and develop skilled planners over a sustained period.
Of this, £28.8 million has been allocated to MHCLG’s Planning Capacity and Capability Programme, equating to £9.6 million additional per year for the next three years. This allocation will supplement existing budgets. This funding supports the recruitment of new planners and targeted skills development through the Planning Advisory Service, helping local authorities manage S106 and CIL processes effectively and accelerate infrastructure delivery.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether an Environmental Principles Assessment was produced for the Revised Planning Practice Guidance published in December 2024.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the Rt Hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 44485 on 22 April 2025.
Asked by: Lord Babudu (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government, given that statistics published in February 2026 by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government show that 175,990 children were living in temporary accommodation in England in September 2025, what assessment they have made of the impact of temporary accommodation conditions on children's health outcomes and healthy life expectancy, and what steps they are taking to reduce the length of time children spend in temporary accommodation.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Homelessness levels are far too high, and this can have a devastating impact on those affected, especially children.
The Child Poverty Strategy and our National Plan to End Homelessness set out our commitments to eradicate unsuitable or poor-quality accommodation and ensure children in temporary accommodation do not experience gaps in health care provision.
These include our commitment to eliminating the unlawful use of Bed & Breakfast accommodation for families by the end of this Parliament, introducing a clinical code to improve data and prevent incidents in temporary accommodation, ending the practice of discharging newborns into B&B or other unsuitable shared accommodation, and providing proactive outreach to families in temporary accommodation.
We are tackling the root causes of homelessness building 1.5 million homes, including a generational increase in new social and affordable homes. We have set out a new 10-year Social and Affordable Homes Programme backed by a £39 billion investment.
We are providing over £3.6 billion in funding for homelessness and rough sleeping services from 2026/27 to 2028/29, which will help local areas deliver tailored solutions to tackle all forms of homelessness.
Asked by: Lord Jamieson (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage on 9 April (HL15984), how they plan to evaluate the effectiveness of new approaches being tested by local authorities to tackle long-term rough sleeping.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Further to the Written Answer given on 9 April (HL15984), the £15 million for local authorities to test new approaches to reducing long-term rough sleeping has been allocated to areas facing the greatest long-term rough sleeping pressures.
Local authorities were selected based on both high absolute numbers and a high proportion of people experiencing long-term rough sleeping over the month. Further information on the local authorities provided with this funding is available here.
Local authorities and their partners are best placed to assess local needs and determine how funding can be used most effectively to reduce long-term rough sleeping in their areas. Areas receiving funding will be required to achieve a reduction in long-term rough sleeping, measured through the Local Outcomes Framework, and to improve the maturity of local systems for managing long-term rough sleeping. Each area receiving this funding will be required to produce a Long-Term Rough Sleeping Partnership Plan, which sets out how, with partner agencies, they will deliver system changes to address long-term rough sleeping.
Asked by: Lord Jamieson (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage on 9 April (HL15984), how they plan to mitigate the risk of funding from the Ending Homelessness in Communities Fund being concentrated among larger organisations with greater bidding capacity.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The risk of funding being concentrated among larger organisations is mitigated through the design of the Ending Homelessness in Communities Fund, as set out in the prospectus. Eligibility for the Fund is restricted to voluntary, community and faith sector organisations with a maximum annual income of £5 million. This limits access to small and medium sized organisations and excludes larger organisations.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether their Department has used artificial intelligence to assist with drafting (a) legislation and (b) policy in the past 12 months.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government have rolled out Microsoft Copilot across the Department to enhance efficiency and support the work of all staff, including policy professionals. The rollout was accompanied by training and guidance which states that all work produced by AI must be checked with an appropriate level of rigour to ensure trustworthiness, reliability, and to avoid bias.
Copilot is used by staff across the department including legislation and policy teams. The department is clear that document authors are fully accountable for policy judgement and conclusions and compliance with departmental, legal, and information governance, irrespective of whether or not AI has been used to assist with drafting.
Asked by: Baroness Scott of Bybrook (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage on 16 March (HL Deb col 728), which stakeholders they consulted.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
As is standard practice in government policy making, officials undertook limited and focused informal engagement with selected stakeholders as the government considered the advice submitted by the Working Group.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
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 4 March 2026 to Question 115420 on Affordable Housing: Housing Starts, what assessment his Department has made of the number of (a) affordable and (b) non-affordable homes starts that have been de-applied as starts in revisions since July 2024.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
In June 2025, Homes England revised their figures for starts and completions from 2022-23 and 2023-24. Minor corrections have also been made to starts data published in November 2024 due to processing errors affecting First Homes units for 2023-24 provided via LAHS.
Details of the revisions made each year to the publication are available in the technical note corresponding to that year’s publication. Revisions made in 2024/25 are available on gov.uk here and revisions made in 2023/24 are available on gov.uk here.
Housing Supply: Indicators of new supply statistical releases always reflect the latest available data provided to my Department. All revisions are made in accordance with the policy for scheduled revisions as set out in Section 5 of its technical notes, which are available on gov.uk here.