Asked by: Baroness Eaton (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the publication of the English Devolution White Paper on 16 December 2024 (CP 1218), whether Bedford Borough Council, the London Borough of Croydon, Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council, the London Borough of Hackney, Leicester City Council, the London Borough of Lewisham, Mansfield District Council, Middlesbrough Borough Council, the London Borough of Newham, North Tyneside Council, Salford City Council, the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, and Watford Borough Council will be permitted to retain their directly elected mayoral model.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
As set out in the English Devolution White Paper we will consider which governance models available to local authorities across the sector will best support their decision making.
Asked by: Baroness Eaton (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government, with regard to the English Devolution White Paper published on 16 December 2024 (CP 1218), whether the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government has assessed the merits of writing off council debt for those local authorities who decide to pursue a unitary model under the local government re-organisation proposals.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The English Devolution White Paper published on 16 December announced that the Government will facilitate local government reorganisation for two-tier areas and for unitary councils where there is evidence of failure, or where their size or boundaries may be hindering their ability to deliver sustainable and high-quality public services.
Previous Secretaries of State used statutory powers to intervene in a small number of councils failing their Best Value Duty partly associated with high levels of unsustainable debt. We will work closely with local leaders to explore what support they might need to develop robust proposals and implement new structures, including where there has been failure. We will continue to work with Best Value Commissioners in these councils to support the councils’ financial recovery.
Asked by: Baroness Eaton (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what voting system will be used to elect mayors to strategic authorities under their proposals in the English Devolution White Paper published on 16 December 2024 (CP 1218).
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government has no plans at this time to change the voting system for mayoral elections.
Asked by: Baroness Eaton (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government with reference to the provisional local government finance settlement 2025–26 published on 18 December 2024, whether the £515 million allocated to compensate local authorities for the increase in employer National Insurance contributions is to cover the costs for the 2025–26 financial year, and whether this funding will be renewed on an annual basis.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The government has announced an additional £515 million of support for local government, including Mayoral Combined Authorities and Fire and Rescue Authorities, specifically to manage the impact of changes to employer (National Insurance contributions) NICs announced at the Autumn Budget. Allocations to local authorities will be announced at the final Local Government Finance Settlement for 2025-26. Spending decisions beyond 2025-26, including on NICs, are a matter for the upcoming Spending Review.
Asked by: Baroness Eaton (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 impact of the increase in employer national insurance contributions on town and parish councils.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The government has no direct role in funding parish and town councils - and therefore does not intend to provide compensation, consistent with the approach taken by the previous government.
Asked by: Baroness Eaton (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what financial resources they intend to provide to those local authorities who wish to pursue local government re-organisation ahead of the upcoming English Devolution White Paper.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The English Devolution White Paper sets out more detail on the government’s reorganisation plans, including on working with councils to move to simpler structures that make sense for their local areas, with efficiency savings from council reorganisation helping to meet the needs of local people.
Asked by: Baroness Eaton (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 data released by the Office for Local Government in April concerning the performance statistics of councils across England.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Department is committed to resetting the relationship between local and central government. As part of this, in September the Government announced it would review the remit of the Office for Local Government (Oflog), to ensure that it is adding the greatest possible value to the system of transparency, accountability and support of local government. No decisions on the appointment of its Chair will be taken until this process is complete.
The Department is clear that data alone is rarely enough to assess any local authority’s performance and often needs context through further investigation. Oflog’s Data Explorer presents published data from across government and carries a prominent warning that it should be used to generate questions and not reach judgements.
Asked by: Baroness Eaton (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they intend to appoint a Chair for the Office for Local Government.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Department is committed to resetting the relationship between local and central government. As part of this, in September the Government announced it would review the remit of the Office for Local Government (Oflog), to ensure that it is adding the greatest possible value to the system of transparency, accountability and support of local government. No decisions on the appointment of its Chair will be taken until this process is complete.
The Department is clear that data alone is rarely enough to assess any local authority’s performance and often needs context through further investigation. Oflog’s Data Explorer presents published data from across government and carries a prominent warning that it should be used to generate questions and not reach judgements.
Asked by: Baroness Eaton (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will take steps to refund local authorities following the decision to increase national insurance contributions from employers.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Raising the revenue required to fund public services and restore economic stability requires difficult decisions on tax, which is why the government are asking employers to contribute more. The Government has committed to provide support for the public sector employers for additional employer national insurance contributions costs. This applies to those directly employed by the public sector, including local government. We will set out further details at the provisional Settlement in December.
Asked by: Baroness Eaton (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they intend to publish their White Paper on English devolution.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The English Devolution White Paper is due by the end of this year. We will make a statement to the house when it is published.