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: 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, which major Government datasets do not permit the identification of Sikhs as a distinct ethnic group.
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: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham North)
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 redevelopment-related loss of telecommunications sites on the continuity of mobile coverage in urban areas.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 124803 on 20 April 2026.
Asked by: Baroness Smith of Llanfaes (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to evaluate the success of their homelessness strategy.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
We are taking a cross-government approach to delivering the long-term solutions we need to get us back on track to ending all forms of homelessness. This includes a dedicated Inter-Ministerial Group, bringing together ministers from across government to oversee delivery of our strategy. The Inter-Ministerial Group on Homelessness and Rough Sleeping works across government to maintain collaboration and assure delivery of the commitments in this strategy. The Group will receive quarterly data updates, tracking progress against the targets. We will also publish reports at least every two years that monitor progress on the implementation of measures set out in this strategy, including our national cross-government targets. Our headline targets include: eliminating the illegal use of B&Bs, halving long-term rough sleeping, and increasing prevention and relief rates.
More comprehensive information can be found in Chapter 7 of the National Plan to End Homelessness.
Asked by: Lord Mott (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to publish an independent economic impact assessment before bringing forward legislation on an overnight visitor levy.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The precise design and scope of the overnight visitor levy power are still under development, and its impacts will largely be determined by local decisions. The government will respond to the consultation shortly. Evidence from international and domestic schemes suggests that modest rates have minimal impact on visitor numbers.
Mayors and local leaders will decide whether to introduce a levy. As part of that process, they will be required to consult and consider the impacts on businesses and others.
Asked by: Lord Mott (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the economic impact of the proposed overnight visitor levy on the self-catering sector.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The precise design and scope of the overnight visitor levy power are still under development, and its impacts will largely be determined by local decisions. The government will respond to the consultation shortly. Evidence from international and domestic schemes suggests that modest rates have minimal impact on visitor numbers.
Mayors and local leaders will decide whether to introduce a levy. As part of that process, they will be required to consult and consider the impacts on businesses and others.
Asked by: Lord Mott (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the economic impact of the proposed overnight visitor levy on rural and coastal communities.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The precise design and scope of the overnight visitor levy power are still under development, and its impacts will largely be determined by local decisions. The government will respond to the consultation shortly. Evidence from international and domestic schemes suggests that modest rates have minimal impact on visitor numbers.
Mayors and local leaders will decide whether to introduce a levy. As part of that process, they will be required to consult and consider the impacts on businesses and others.
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 recent assessment he has made of the effect of the Renters' Rights Act 2025 on preventing tenancy swaps.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Renters’ Rights Act does not alter how tenancy swaps work for assured periodic tenancies.
If all tenants and the landlord agree, then a tenant can be swapped for a new one. In such circumstances, the tenancy would continue on the same terms and conditions, without the need for the remaining tenants to vacate the property temporarily or undertake referencing checks for the remaining tenants again.
Asked by: Lord Banner (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they will publish up-to-date Housing Delivery Test results for local planning authorities in England; and what are the reasons for the ongoing delay in their publication.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Following delays to the publication of the 2023 Housing Delivery Test (HDT) results under the previous government, this government is committed to re-establishing a regular publication cycle. We therefore combined the data collections for the 2024 and 2025 HDTs and intend to publish both sets of results as soon as possible.
Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham North)
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 is considering requiring developers to assess the impact of redevelopment proposals on telecommunications infrastructure and mobile connectivity as part of the planning process.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 124803 on 20 April 2026.