Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate she has made of the cost of temporary accommodation for London councils in each of the last four years.
Answered by Rushanara Ali - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Local authorities in England report revenue and expenditure on an annual basis. Data on council spending on temporary accommodation is contained in the Revenue outturn housing services (RO4) tables, accessible here. The drop down can be used to access data for each local authority, as well as for groups of local authorities including London Boroughs. The net current expenditure column contains data on the net cost of temporary accommodation to local authorities, after they have accounted for income such as from housing benefit.
The Government recognises that homelessness levels are far too high and that this can have a devastating impact on those involved, as well as placing financial strain on councils. We must address this and deliver long term solutions. The Government is looking at these issues carefully and will develop a new cross government strategy, working with mayors and councils across the country to get us back on track to ending homelessness once and for all.
We are already taking the first steps to get back on track to ending homelessness. As announced at the Budget, funding for homelessness services is increasing by £233 million compared to last year (2024/25). This increased spending will help to prevent rises in the number of families in temporary accommodation and help to prevent rough sleeping. This brings the total spend on homelessness and rough sleeping to nearly £1 billion in 2025/26, a record level of funding.
In December, MHCLG also announced the Emergency Accommodation Reduction Pilots, backed by £5 million in overall funding to work with 20 local authorities with the highest use of bed & breakfast (B&B) accommodation for homeless families, to test innovative approaches and kickstart new initiatives to reduce the use of B&Bs.
More widely, we are taking action to tackle the root causes of homelessness, including:
Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to help councils reduce the (a) need for and (b) costs of temporary accommodation.
Answered by Rushanara Ali - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Local authorities in England report revenue and expenditure on an annual basis. Data on council spending on temporary accommodation is contained in the Revenue outturn housing services (RO4) tables, accessible here. The drop down can be used to access data for each local authority, as well as for groups of local authorities including London Boroughs. The net current expenditure column contains data on the net cost of temporary accommodation to local authorities, after they have accounted for income such as from housing benefit.
The Government recognises that homelessness levels are far too high and that this can have a devastating impact on those involved, as well as placing financial strain on councils. We must address this and deliver long term solutions. The Government is looking at these issues carefully and will develop a new cross government strategy, working with mayors and councils across the country to get us back on track to ending homelessness once and for all.
We are already taking the first steps to get back on track to ending homelessness. As announced at the Budget, funding for homelessness services is increasing by £233 million compared to last year (2024/25). This increased spending will help to prevent rises in the number of families in temporary accommodation and help to prevent rough sleeping. This brings the total spend on homelessness and rough sleeping to nearly £1 billion in 2025/26, a record level of funding.
In December, MHCLG also announced the Emergency Accommodation Reduction Pilots, backed by £5 million in overall funding to work with 20 local authorities with the highest use of bed & breakfast (B&B) accommodation for homeless families, to test innovative approaches and kickstart new initiatives to reduce the use of B&Bs.
More widely, we are taking action to tackle the root causes of homelessness, including:
Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will take steps to ensure that the funding model for inner London boroughs meets local demand.
Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The provisional Settlement for 2025-26 makes available £69 billion for local government, which is a 3.5% real terms increase in councils’ Core Spending Power on 2024-25. The final Settlement will increase further, to incorporate the £515 million of funding announced for National Insurance Contributions.
The Department works closely with local government and other government departments to understand specific demand and cost pressures facing local government on an ongoing basis. This involves looking at a range of cost and demand data, as well as regular engagement with local authorities.
The government is making good on the promise to reform the local government funding system. We are committed to pursuing a comprehensive set of reforms for public services to fix the foundations of local government, in partnership with the sector and on the principle of giving councils early certainty. From 2026-27, we want to fundamentally improve the way we fund councils and direct funding to where it is most needed through the first multi-year settlement in 10 years. We are inviting views on our principles and objectives for funding reform through a consultation (18 December – 12 February).
Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate she has made of the funding gap for London councils in the next four years.
Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The provisional Settlement for 2025-26 makes available £69 billion for local government, which is a 3.5% real terms increase in councils’ Core Spending Power on 2024-25. The final Settlement will increase further, to incorporate the £515 million of funding announced for National Insurance Contributions.
The Department works closely with local government and other government departments to understand specific demand and cost pressures facing local government on an ongoing basis. This involves looking at a range of cost and demand data, as well as regular engagement with local authorities.
The government is making good on the promise to reform the local government funding system. We are committed to pursuing a comprehensive set of reforms for public services to fix the foundations of local government, in partnership with the sector and on the principle of giving councils early certainty. From 2026-27, we want to fundamentally improve the way we fund councils and direct funding to where it is most needed through the first multi-year settlement in 10 years. We are inviting views on our principles and objectives for funding reform through a consultation (18 December – 12 February).
Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate she has made of the total cost to the public purse of out of court settlements for employment tribunal cases across local government in each of the last five years.
Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The information requested is not held centrally.
Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
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 September 2024 to Question 2960 on Insulation: Housing, what steps she is taking to ensure homeowners who retrofit their homes with recommended measures are not penalised by mortgage lenders.
Answered by Rushanara Ali - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
We are aware of the issues some homeowners are facing in obtaining finance where spray foam insulation has been installed. Officials in the department have previously consulted UK Finance and the Building Societies Association, the trade bodies for lenders about this matter, who advise that their members rely on the views of valuers and surveyors on this issue.
Whilst the department cannot comment on the decisions made by individual lenders, the presence of spray foam should not automatically prevent lending, and decisions should be made on a case-by-case basis following a survey.
That is why it is important that surveyors continue to follow published protocols published in March 2023 to support these assessments, which can be found here: https://www.property-care.org/resources/spray-foam-insulation-inspections(opens in a new tab)(opens in a new tab) and Guides & Documents - IMA (insulationmanufacturers.org.uk)(opens in a new tab).
The Government do not specify or recommend which types of insulation are appropriate for a particular property, and all measures installed under government schemes must be installed by TrustMark registered installers.
Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
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 September 2024 to Question 2960 on Insulation: Housing, what discussions her Department has had with mortgage lenders on (a) the installation of spray foam insulation and (b) its impact on lending.
Answered by Rushanara Ali - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
We are aware of the issues some homeowners are facing in obtaining finance where spray foam insulation has been installed. Officials in the department have previously consulted UK Finance and the Building Societies Association, the trade bodies for lenders about this matter, who advise that their members rely on the views of valuers and surveyors on this issue.
Whilst the department cannot comment on the decisions made by individual lenders, the presence of spray foam should not automatically prevent lending, and decisions should be made on a case-by-case basis following a survey.
That is why it is important that surveyors continue to follow published protocols published in March 2023 to support these assessments, which can be found here: https://www.property-care.org/resources/spray-foam-insulation-inspections(opens in a new tab)(opens in a new tab) and Guides & Documents - IMA (insulationmanufacturers.org.uk)(opens in a new tab).
The Government do not specify or recommend which types of insulation are appropriate for a particular property, and all measures installed under government schemes must be installed by TrustMark registered installers.
Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she plans to take to prevent bidding wars in the private rented sector; and when she plans to bring forward the Renters’ Rights Bill.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government is committed to bring forward a Renters’ Rights Bill as a priority. The Bill will decisively level the playing field between landlord and tenant by providing renters with greater security, rights and protections and we will crack down on the minority of unscrupulous landlords who exploit, mistreat or discriminate against tenants.
The Bill will introduce new laws that will prohibit the practice of rental bidding, which unfairly pit tenants against one another.
Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to prevent private rented landlords from seeking rents above the advertised price.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government is committed to bring forward a Renters’ Rights Bill as a priority. The Bill will decisively level the playing field between landlord and tenant by providing renters with greater security, rights and protections and we will crack down on the minority of unscrupulous landlords who exploit, mistreat or discriminate against tenants.
The Bill will introduce new laws that will prohibit the practice of rental bidding, which unfairly pit tenants against one another.
Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to (a) ensure that the installation of spray foam insulation is regulated and (b) support homeowners unable to sell their homes due to the installation of that insulation.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
We are aware of the issues some homeowners are facing in obtaining finance where spray foam insulation has been installed. In response, the insulation, lending, and surveying communities published protocols in March 2023 to support surveyors to assess spray foam and provide reassurance to lenders. This can be found here: https://www.property-care.org/resources/spray-foam-insulation-inspections(opens in a new tab) and Guides & Documents - IMA (insulationmanufacturers.org.uk).
Whilst the department cannot comment on the decisions made by individual lenders, the presence of spray foam should not automatically prevent lending, and decisions should be made on a case-by-case basis following a survey.