Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether it is their policy to build on the Green Belt.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government is committed to a brownfield first approach, in which local authorities are expected to make as much use as possible of suitable brownfield land in sustainable locations. However, we know that in some places brownfield alone will not always be enough to meet development needs. This is why we are asking local authorities who cannot meet their needs to review their Green Belt to identify opportunities to create affordable, well-designed development in sustainable locations. In doing so, we expect local authorities to prioritise the development of brownfield and other low-quality grey belt land.

Where Green Belt land has to be released for major housing development, we have put in place new golden rules to ensure that development delivers higher levels of affordable housing; the provision of new – or improvements to – existing green spaces that are accessible to the public; and the making of necessary improvements to local or national infrastructure.

Between 16 December 2025 and 10 March 2026, we consulted on a new National Planning Policy Framework. That consultation, which can be found on gov.uk here, included proposals relating to controlling development in the Green Belt. We are currently analysing the feedback received and will publish our response in due course.

Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of recent initiatives launched by the US Food and Drug Administration to accelerate the replacement of animal testing with human-relevant methods; and whether they intend to adopt similar measures.

Answered by Lord Leong - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade)

The Government has reviewed recent US Food and Drug Administration initiatives to reduce animal testing in preclinical safety studies and is engaging with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency on accelerating the science-led adoption of alternative methods for drug development and testing. Through the Replacing Animals in Science strategy, the Government is investing in development, validation and regulatory uptake, including UK validation infrastructure and measures to build regulatory confidence. We will continue to monitor international developments, including in the US, and adopt approaches where supported by evidence and compatible with maintaining human, animal and environmental safety.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the level of rough sleeping in Greater Manchester between 2017 and 2025.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) publishes local authority level statistics on rough sleeping in England, including for local authorities in Greater Manchester. These statistics are available through both the annual rough sleeping snapshot and the quarterly rough sleeping data framework management information releases.

The latest Rough Sleeping Snapshot publication can be found here: Rough sleeping snapshot in England: autumn 2025 - GOV.UK.

The latest quarterly management information release can be found here: Rough sleeping data framework, January to March 2026 - GOV.UK.

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 introducing rent controls on (1) the functioning of the private rented sector, (2) the quality of rental accommodation, (3) rental housing supply, and (4) the delivery of new housing.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

My Department regularly reviews research and evidence related to various aspects of the private rented sector.

The government has no plans to introduce rent controls in the private rented sector.

Rent inflation in England has been easing since the end of 2024. Average rents in England increased by 3.4% in the 12 months to June, down from a peak of 9.2% in November 2024. In England, annual rent inflation was lowest in London, at 2.2%.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they expect to meet their target of building 1.5 million homes by the end of this Parliament; and, if so, what proportion of these homes will be delivered through the New Towns Programme.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The consultation into the draft New Towns Programme closed earlier this year. The government continues to make progress with the programme and plans to publish our consultation response, and confirm the New Town locations, later this year.

The government remains committed to delivering 1.5 million homes over this Parliament. Each new town will deliver at least 10,000 homes, with many expected to exceed that figure. The Taskforce recommended that new towns should aim for at least 40% affordable housing, with half for social rent.

The government is considering the Taskforce's recommendations and will respond in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the merits of greenfield new towns compared to urban extensions when implementing the New Towns Programme.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The consultation into the draft New Towns Programme closed earlier this year. The government continues to make progress with the programme and plans to publish our consultation response, and confirm the New Town locations, later this year.

The government remains committed to delivering 1.5 million homes over this Parliament. Each new town will deliver at least 10,000 homes, with many expected to exceed that figure. The Taskforce recommended that new towns should aim for at least 40% affordable housing, with half for social rent.

The government is considering the Taskforce's recommendations and will respond in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government what percentage of houses in new towns delivered through the New Towns Programme will be council-owned social houses.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The consultation into the draft New Towns Programme closed earlier this year. The government continues to make progress with the programme and plans to publish our consultation response, and confirm the New Town locations, later this year.

The government remains committed to delivering 1.5 million homes over this Parliament. Each new town will deliver at least 10,000 homes, with many expected to exceed that figure. The Taskforce recommended that new towns should aim for at least 40% affordable housing, with half for social rent.

The government is considering the Taskforce's recommendations and will respond in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to implement the recommendations of the New Towns Taskforce; and by when they expect to do so.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The consultation into the draft New Towns Programme closed earlier this year. The government continues to make progress with the programme and plans to publish our consultation response, and confirm the New Town locations, later this year.

The government remains committed to delivering 1.5 million homes over this Parliament. Each new town will deliver at least 10,000 homes, with many expected to exceed that figure. The Taskforce recommended that new towns should aim for at least 40% affordable housing, with half for social rent.

The government is considering the Taskforce's recommendations and will respond in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government when they will publish their response to the consultation on the New Towns Draft Programme.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The consultation into the draft New Towns Programme closed earlier this year. The government continues to make progress with the programme and plans to publish our consultation response, and confirm the New Town locations, later this year.

The government remains committed to delivering 1.5 million homes over this Parliament. Each new town will deliver at least 10,000 homes, with many expected to exceed that figure. The Taskforce recommended that new towns should aim for at least 40% affordable housing, with half for social rent.

The government is considering the Taskforce's recommendations and will respond in due course.

Found: As Lord Gascoigne noted when launching this call for evidence, this is “a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity

Found: Lord Gascoigne (Chair) No relevant interests declared Baroness Griffin of Princethorpe No relevant

Found: Lord Bailey of Paddington Baroness Barran Lord Bassam of Brighton Lord Cameron of Dillington Lord Gascoigne

Found: Letter from Stephanie Peacock MP, Minister for Sport, Tourism, Civil Society and Youth, to Lord Gascoigne

Found: COMMITTEE Minutes of the 7th Meeting, held at 10:30am on Tuesday, 7 July 2026 Present: Lord Gascoigne

Found: New towns: bricks and mortar Tuesday 14 July 2026 10.45 am Watch the meeting Members present: Lord Gascoigne

Found: COMMITTEE Minutes of the 6th Meeting, held at 10:30am on Tuesday, 30 June 2026 Present: Lord Gascoigne

Found: Andrews (in The Chair); Baroness Barran; Lord Bassam of Brighton; Lord Cameron of Dillington; Lord Gascoigne

Found: 16,406 Lord Evans of Rainow, Lord in Waiting (from 01/01/2023 to 05/07/2024) – – 16,406 16,406 Lord Gascoigne

Found: 16,406 Lord Evans of Rainow, Lord in Waiting (from 01/01/2023 to 05/07/2024) – – 16,406 16,406 Lord Gascoigne