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, what steps he is taking to help support the level of footfall on high streets in South Holland and the Deepings constituency.
Answered by Nesil Caliskan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
This Government is fully committed to rejuvenating our high streets. Later this year, we will bring forward a High Streets Strategy, backed by £301 million of support, to help turn the tide on the high streets most in need. The funding will support the creation of new High Streets Innovation Partnerships to reimagine and revive the country’s most struggling high streets and includes a further £10 million to support councils to deliver High Street Rental Auctions to reduce high street vacancy.
This comes alongside the £5.8bn Pride in Place Programme, with Boston, Spalding, and Skegness receiving £20m each over 10 years to be used by local people to shape their neighbourhood.
Asked by: Clive Jones (Liberal Democrat - Wokingham)
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 impact of the Renters’ Rights Act 2026 on existing tenants whose fixed-term agreements were close to expiry when the Act came into force and of the potential merits of transitional protections for such tenants; and whether he plans to undertake a review of the financial impact of the Renters’ Rights Act 2026.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Impact Assessment for the Renters’ Rights Act can be found here.
My Department continues to monitor trends across the private rented sector and is conducting a robust evaluation of the impact of the Renters' Rights Act. Evaluation reports will be published two and five years after implementation.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
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 comparative effectiveness of insured and custodial tenancy deposit schemes in ensuring that tenants' deposits are fully protected and landlords remain compliant with statutory requirements.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
My Department engages regularly with stakeholders to discuss the operation and efficacy of the Tenancy Deposit Protection (TDP) system.
This engagement includes gathering information about the difference in service quality between the two types of TDP schemes, and issues that service users may have with these schemes and how they can be addressed.
My Department also receives Key Performance Indicator data from all TDP providers across both types of schemes. Where reporting shows that there are performance issues, we actively escalate matters with the relevant scheme and require them to take corrective action if necessary.
Tenant representative groups consistently report low awareness of the difference between custodial and insured schemes. Under the insured model, tenants who dispute a landlord’s deduction can feel pressured to accept a deduction, rather than pursue Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR). Where ADR is used, feedback from tenant representative groups report that it operates effectively and the impartial service provided by TDP providers is valued.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department has undertaken analysis of user experience differences between insured and custodial tenancy deposit schemes, including on (a) awareness of dispute rights and (b) ease of navigating end-of-tenancy processes.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
My Department engages regularly with stakeholders to discuss the operation and efficacy of the Tenancy Deposit Protection (TDP) system.
This engagement includes gathering information about the difference in service quality between the two types of TDP schemes, and issues that service users may have with these schemes and how they can be addressed.
My Department also receives Key Performance Indicator data from all TDP providers across both types of schemes. Where reporting shows that there are performance issues, we actively escalate matters with the relevant scheme and require them to take corrective action if necessary.
Tenant representative groups consistently report low awareness of the difference between custodial and insured schemes. Under the insured model, tenants who dispute a landlord’s deduction can feel pressured to accept a deduction, rather than pursue Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR). Where ADR is used, feedback from tenant representative groups report that it operates effectively and the impartial service provided by TDP providers is valued.
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, with reference to the Letter dated 19/12/2025 from Steve Reed MP to Council Leaders in England regarding the four day week in local government, DEP2026-0220, whether he plans to take best value action against (a) Cambridge City Council and (b) South Cambridgeshire District Council.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Ministers take a range of factors into account when considering whether to exercise statutory powers in relation to a local authority and will only act where necessary to secure compliance with the Best Value duty, underpinned by robust evidence of widespread, systemic, corporate, or service failure. The Secretary of State's letter of 19 December 2025 makes clear that statutory guidance in relation to the 4 day week remains in force.
Asked by: Jas Athwal (Labour - Ilford South)
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 her Department made of the implications for her policies of Sikhs not being recognised as a distinct ethnic group within official ethnicity classifications.
Answered by Nesil Caliskan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The GSS ethnicity harmonised standard helps to make statistics and data more comparable, consistent and coherent. MHCLG collects data in line with the ethnicity harmonised standard, which is developed by the independent Office for National Statistics.
I recognise that, for some Sikhs, ethnicity recognition is an important issue. Whilst the current harmonised standard for ethnicity does not include “Sikh” as a specific ethnic group response option, datasets collected using this standard may still capture Sikh ethnicity through write-in responses within the ethnic group question.
A review of the harmonised standard for ethnicity data collection is underway by the Government Statistical Service Harmonisation team.
A public consultation between October 2025 and February 2026 sought views from a wide range of users, including Government Departments and public bodies, to understand user needs for ethnic group data. MHCLG officials have engaged with the GSS harmonisation team over the course of the review to understand the impact of ethnicity data collection on government policy.
ONS will be providing a full report on the consultation in late summer 2026.
Asked by: Pippa Heylings (Liberal Democrat - South Cambridgeshire)
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 that environmental assessments are undertaken at an early stage in the planning process.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Environmental assessments are an iterative process undertaken throughout the planning process.
The initial screening process determines whether an Environmental Impact Assessment is required to ensure that decision-makers can take account of any likely significant effects on the environment.
This process runs alongside assessment under the Habitats Regulations which ensures potential impacts on protected sites are considered at an early stage, with competent authorities required to ascertain that plans or projects will not adversely affect the integrity of those sites before permission can be granted.
As the government progresses with developing Environmental Outcomes Reports, we will ensure the value and rigour of environmental assessment is retained, while securing better environmental outcomes.
Asked by: Olly Glover (Liberal Democrat - Didcot and Wantage)
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 high service charges and low resale prices of inherited retirement flats on people living in those flats.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 4726 on 8 June 2026.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether organisations affiliated with political parties, elected representatives or political campaigns will be eligible to receive grants from the Democratic Engagement Fund; and what due diligence procedures will be undertaken before grants are awarded.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Democratic Engagement Fund is open to applications from civil society organisations delivering community-based, politically neutral projects in England. As set out in the Fund’s eligibility criteria, organisations must operate independently of political parties and avoid any activity that promotes or endorses a political agenda. Organisations during their applications are required to demonstrate that their activities are impartial and not used for party-political campaigning or lobbying. Organisations must not use grant funding for lobbying, campaigning for elected office, or influencing legislation.
Applications that do not meet the eligibility criteria, including requirements on independence and impartiality, will not progress. This ensures that public funding is used appropriately and supports politically neutral activity that strengthens democratic participation.
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, what the estimated profile of central government spending is for each year of the Social and Affordable Housing Programme 2026-2036.
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 60128 on 4 July 2025.