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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what is the (a) total level of debt and (b) per capita debt, for each local authority in England.

Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government collects data returns from local authorities including their borrowing and investment information. These returns are collated and published on the GOV.UK website.

UK local authority borrowing and investment is published on a quarterly basis here.

Further detail on capital expenditure and financing for authorities in England is published on annual basis here.

The Office for National Statistics publishes local authority population estimates can be found here.

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 Rycroft Review response: letter to parliamentary parties, of 7 July 2026, whether the residency requirement for former overseas electors to no longer be subject to the £100,000 cap is a year of continuous UK residence from January to December in the previous calendar year.

Answered by Samantha Dixon

Overseas electors and other individuals who return to the UK from abroad, will need to be continuously resident in the UK for at least a full calendar year before they can donate above the cap.

For example, for an individual who returned in 2026, the individual must be continuously resident for the remainder of 2026, and for the entirety of 2027, before no longer being subject to the cap.

Residency is determined using the existing electoral law concept of residence in section 5 of the Representation of the People Act 1983. Residence is therefore determined by a factual assessment of whether someone is genuinely living at a UK address.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, further to the Rycroft Review response: letter to parliamentary parties, of 7 July 2026, whether the minimum residency requirement applies individuals who have been continually registered as domestic electors but who may have been residing abroad in whole or in part for the year, or only to overseas electors and non-registered electors who were residing abroad.

Answered by Samantha Dixon

The relevant question for the purposes of the minimum residency period is when the individual was last resident outside the United Kingdom.

Residency is determined using the existing electoral law concept of residence in section 5 of the Representation of the People Act 1983. Residence is therefore determined by a factual assessment of whether someone is genuinely living at a UK address. A donor will be required to declare whether they are and have been resident in the UK based on their own circumstances.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment has the Government Property Agency made of the number of government buildings which have gender-neutral toilets that are not fully enclosed self-contained universal toilets, and the number of such toilets in each building with them.

Answered by Anna Turley - Minister of State (Home Office)

The GPA has completed an audit of toilet provision across its managed estate. This assessment confirms that all facilities designated as 'Universal Provision' align with the GPA design guide; these are fully enclosed, self-contained rooms intended for individual use, containing a WC, washbasin, and hand-drying facilities. The audit identified no instances of universal facilities that deviate from these standards—specifically, facilities that are not fully enclosed or not self-contained—within the assessed portfolio.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions and correspondence his Department has had with the Mayor of Greater Manchester on proportional representation.

Answered by Samantha Dixon

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has not held any formal discussions or exchanged official correspondence with the Mayor of Greater Manchester on proportional representation.

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 press release entitled Tough new rules to crackdown on foreign money in UK elections, of 6 July 2026, whether political parties will be retrospectively required to return donations from 25 March 2026 to 5 July 2026 that do not comply with the minimum residency requirement in relation to former overseas electors or former non-registered electors who were residing abroad.

Answered by Samantha Dixon

The minimum residency requirement which was announced by Government on 6 July 2026 will apply to any registered overseas elector who then registered domestically from 25 March 2026 onwards. For registered overseas electors who register domestically this year, the minimum residency period will apply until 1 January 2028.

For non-registered individuals who were residing abroad, the modified minimum residency requirement applies from 6 July.

Donations from before commencement which exceed the cap, either outright or when aggregated with other donations and regulated transactions in the same year, must be returned within 60 days of commencement of the provisions in the Representation of the People Bill.

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 answer of 13 March 2026, to Question 117888, on Candidates, whether his Department is retaining the requirement that the office address must be within the local authority area.

Answered by Samantha Dixon

The government is not changing location requirements for office addresses. Through the Representation of the People Bill, election agents will still need to provide a home address, but they will also be able to provide a correspondence address for publication instead of their home address. That correspondence address may be located anywhere in the United Kingdom.

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 answer of 2 March 2026, to Question 113737, on Council Tax: City of Westminster and Wandsworth, what assessment his Department has made of the financial viability of the six councils if they do not increase council tax by the assumed 5% + £150 on Band D in each of the next two financial years.

Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Government does not intend to set referendum principles for six authorities in 2027-28 and 2028-29 including City of Westminster and Wandsworth. Within our modelling, we made an assumption that these authorities increase their council tax by 5% plus an additional £150 in each of 2027-28 and 2028-29 for the purposes of calculating their funding floor allocations in these years. Decisions on council tax levels in these areas remain a matter for the individual local authorities.

The Local Government Finance Settlement ensured these councils were funded according to their needs, taking into account their ability to raise council tax, assuming 5% plus £150 in each of 2027-28 and 2028-29. We monitor the financial health of councils on a regular basis using a range of data as well as through extensive direct engagement. While councils are responsible for their own financial management, any council that has concerns about its ability to set or maintain a balanced budget should approach the department in the first instance where we will treat all discussions in confidence.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what Homes England or departmental conditions or restrictions are in place in relation to developers receiving loans from the Greater Manchester Housing Investment Loans Fund paying themselves dividends in relation to the developments supported by the loans.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Greater Manchester Housing Investment Loan Fund is operated by Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA).

I otherwise refer the Rt Hon. Member to the answer given to Question 59791 on 24 June 2025.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what (i) audits, (ii) evaluations and (iii) assessments have taken place of use of Greater Manchester Combined Authority's Housing Investment Loans Fund investment provided by MHCLG and Homes England, in relation to the building of new tower blocks in Greater Manchester.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Greater Manchester Housing Investment Loan Fund is operated by Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA).

I otherwise refer the Rt Hon. Member to the answer given to Question 59791 on 24 June 2025.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what (a) information his Department has and (b) what research his Department has commissioned on the amount of retail, hospitality and leisure hereditaments or business space which are empty or vacant.

Answered by Nesil Caliskan

The Department does not collect such data and has not commissioned research to quantify vacancies nationally. It sometimes purchases commercial property market data, including vacancy information, from external providers to support internal policy development. The government continues to engage regularly with local authorities on high street regeneration and related issues.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will make it his policy to commission an independent research report on the effect of the (a) Equality Act 2010 and (b) Human Rights Act 1998 on the ability of local authorities to tackle unauthorised traveller (i) encampments and (ii) development.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government has no plans to commission such an independent research report.

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 answer of 20 April 2026, to Question 124799, on Housing: Construction, what assessment has been made of the potential impact of the ban on new homes connecting to the gas network from March 2028 under the Future Homes Standard on housebuilding rates, including the effects on SME builders.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Future Homes Standard (FHS) is designed to be an ambitious but workable standard that delivers both high-quality, energy-efficient homes and the housing supply needed to meet demand.

Its impacts, both on housing supply and on SME businesses, have been assessed through the published impact assessment which can be found on gov.uk here.

The full FHS specification has been published well in advance of the regulations coming into force in 2027. Alongside transitional arrangements, this approach is intended to give businesses, particularly SMEs, sufficient time and flexibility to prepare and adapt, whilst minimising disruption to housing delivery.

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 publication entitled Environmental Outcomes Reports: Roadmap to reform, published on 13 March 2026, whether (a) Habitats Regulations and (b) Biodiversity Net Gain assessments will be incorporated into Environmental Outcome Reports.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Neither Habitats Regulations Assessments nor Biodiversity Net Gain assessments will be incorporated into Environmental Outcomes Reports.

Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) regulations set out that where both an EIA and an appropriate assessment under the Habitats regime is required, the two assessments should be co-ordinated in order to avoid duplication.

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 transparency data, MHCLG: spending over £25,000, February 2026, published on 17 April 2026, and the transaction, Medway Council, Ref: 230000006, Recovery of Underspend, what was the programme to which the underspend recovery relates, and for what reason it was recovered.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Hook Meadow scheme located in Medway, funded through Brownfield Land Release Fund 2.3, closed in June 2025. All funding awarded was returned.

The scheme closed due to significant delays by the local authority in the review of property assets relating to the library and community hubs. As the Hook Meadow Community Hub/Library is located on the same site as the proposed homes, the development could not move forward until decision making around the community hub was completed.

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 written statement of 16 April 2026, HCWS1520, on 80A Duty to report on air quality in England, whether (a) his department or (b) DEFRA intend to consult on the issuing of embedding PM2.5 targets into planning decisions through guidance; and whether the guidance will be separate to or embedded in the national planning guidance set.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Between 16 December 2025 and 10 March 2026, we consulted on a new National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF). That consultation, which can be found on gov.uk here, included proposals relating to air quality and to fine particulate matter (PM2.5) which reflects new legal targets set under the Environment Act 2021.

Defra has published interim guidance on how planning authorities and developers should consider the PM2.5 Environment Act targets in individual planning decisions, which can be found on gov.uk here.

We are currently analysing the feedback received and will publish our response in the summer. We will consider and take forward any updates to planning practice guidance which are needed in the light of the final NPPF and views received through the consultation.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions he has had with (a) the Metropolitan Police, (b) London boroughs and (c) the Mayor of London on the video booths being placed in Parliament Square and on Westminster Bridge; and whether local authorities have sufficient powers to remove them.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Secretary of State has had no discussions with the Metropolitan Police, London boroughs or the Mayor of London about the video booths in question.

Where such booths require planning permission and this has not been sought, local planning authorities already have a wide range of enforcement powers, with strong penalties for non-compliance.

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 Annex 14: Strategic planning, of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill: Impact assessment, May 2025, page 11, through what mechanism he will ensure that the new strategic authority planning documents will be kept high level.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Between 16 December 2025 and 10 March 2026, we consulted on a new National Planning Policy Framework. The proposed Framework, which can be found on gov.uk here, sets out that the content of spatial development strategies (SDSs) should be genuinely strategic in nature and allow for more detailed issues to be addressed through other parts of the development plan.

The government will provide guidance to support strategic planning authorities in meeting this expectation. SDSs will also be subject to independent examination when they will be tested against expectations in national policy.

We are currently analysing the feedback received to the consultation referenced above and will publish our response in due course.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, further to the Planning Inspectorate decision, reference: APP/A5840/W/25/3366760, whether he considered recovering the Peckham’s Aylesham Centre planning appeal; and what assessment has he made of the implications of the Planning Inspectorate decision for brownfield regeneration in (a) London and (b) outside London.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Decisions on the recovery of appeals are made in accordance with the policy as set out in a 2008 Written Ministerial Statement, which can be found on gov.uk here.

As the Planning Inspectorate decision in question is now subject to a legal challenge, it would not be appropriate for me to comment on the implications of it or the original proposal.

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 Environmental Outcomes Reports: Roadmap to reform publication of 13 March 2026, what the estimated timetable is for the implementation and commencement of Environmental Outcomes Reporting and the abolition of the EIA/SEA regime.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the Rt Hon. Member to the Environmental Outcomes Reports: Roadmap to reform which can be found on gov.uk here.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, further to the press release, Seven new towns proposed to kickstart housebuilding push, of 22 March 2026, how much central government funding will be provided to (a) Adlington, (b) Heyford Park, (c) Marlcombe, (d) Plymouth, (e) South Barking and (f) Wychavon Town to support their housing and regeneration schemes; and what proportion of the Plymouth scheme will be funded via the Defence budget.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the Rt Hon. Member to the answer given to Question 6376 on 12 June 2026.

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 10 June 2026, to Question 5955, on Council Tax, and with reference to the Fair funding share calculator: final, published 9 February 2026, in how many local authorities is the national notional council tax level higher than their Band D equivalent level of council tax in 2026-27, based on the methodology used in the Technical annex on the Resources Adjustment (measure of tax base) of February 2026.

Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

As set out in the final Local Government Finance Settlement, the notional council tax level for 2026-27 was £2063. The notional level used in the Fair Funding Allocation is a modelling assumption and not intended to be compared to the authorities published Band D. Information on local authorities' Band D council tax levels is published in the annual Council Tax statistics release which can be found here: Council Tax statistics - GOV.UK.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether any special advisers have left his Department since July 2024 for (a) misconduct and (b) breaches of the Code of Conduct for Special Advisers.

Answered by Samantha Dixon

They have not.

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 17 June 2026 to Question 8092 on Bakerloo line: Housing, whether his Department has had discussions with the Mayor of London on the proposed Bakerloo line extension.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government continues to engage with the Greater London Authority on a range of transport and infrastructure matters.

The Bakerloo Line Extension has featured in wider discussions between the government and the Greater London Authority on the Mayor’s infrastructure priorities.

The government remains committed to working collaboratively with the Mayor and other partners to support sustainable growth and infrastructure delivery across the capital.

As transport in London is devolved to the Mayor and Transport for London, it is for them to make decisions on the merits of investment including any upgrade to the Bakerloo Line.

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 19 June 2026, to Question 9006, on MHCLG: Labour Housing Group, whether the Minister of State for Housing and Planning has discussed official departmental business with the Labour Housing Group at those events.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

At the events in question, I gave a general overview of the government’s approach to housing and planning. No other departmental business was discussed.

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 holds information on which local housing authorities have introduced housing allocations policies on requiring (a) a local connection and (b) British citizenship.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Local housing authorities cannot discriminate on the basis of nationality so none will have allocations policies that include a requirement for British citizenship.

People whose immigration status means they have no recourse to public funds are not eligible for an allocation of social housing. Local housing authority allocations policies will reflect this.

Information on which local housing authorities have introduced local connection requirements (and if they exempt members of the UK armed forces community, victims of domestic abuse and care leavers) can be found at section C of the Local Authority Housing Statistics dataset, published on gov.uk here.

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 his Department's consultation outcome, Home buying and selling reform roadmap, updated 19 June 2026, whether HMRC Valuation Office will have access to the digitised property data and sales packs.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The roadmap in question commits the government to supporting the secure sharing of trusted property data and the wider use of digital logbooks and sales packs.

Detailed implementation arrangements, including how organisations may access digitised property data and sales packs, will be confirmed as the measures are developed.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what comparative assessment his Department has made of shared ownership residents’ liability for building safety and cladding costs with the liability of the underlying owner of the shared equity lending for such costs.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

My Department has made no such specific comparative assessment.

No costs for cladding remediation are payable by shared owners of leases which qualify for the leaseholder protections in the Building Safety Act 2022.

Any contributions towards non-cladding remediation costs are capped according to the size of the share of the property owned on 14 February 2022, irrespective of whether that share is later increased through staircasing, including up to 100%.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what planning policy and guidance he has issued in relation to planning applications to convert a single dwelling into a House of Multiple Occupation.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Town and Country Planning (Use Classes) (Amendment) (England) Order 2010 introduced a new Use Class, Class C4 (houses in multiple occupation). This covers use of a dwellinghouse by not more than six residents as a house in multiple occupation within the meaning of section 254 of the Housing Act 2004, excluding converted blocks of flats to which section 257 of that Act applies.

Houses in multiple occupation are not explicitly referenced in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) published in December 2024.

Between 16 December 2025 and 10 March 2026, we consulted on a new NPPF. The consultation on the revised framework, which can be found on gov.uk here, included proposals for a more flexible Article 4 policy so local planning authorities can remove permitted development rights where it is necessary to protect the amenity or wellbeing of an area, for instance where there is an overconcentration of small Houses in Multiple Occupation. We are currently analysing the feedback received and will publish our response in due course.

The government has published no specific guidance in respect of planning applications to convert single dwellings into houses in multiple occupation.

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 answer of 24 April 2026 to Question 124786 on Affordable Housing: Greater London, whether there have been cases where (a) Homes England and (b) GLA schemes have not proceeded and the grant has been recouped.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

My Department is aware of occasions where affordable housing schemes have been unable to proceed and where, as a result, Homes England has made use of clauses set out in the relevant grant agreement to reclaim grant that has already been paid and reinvest it back into affordable housing.

The Greater London Authority (GLA) also operates grant recovery arrangements for schemes funded through its Affordable Homes Programme. Where a funded scheme does not proceed, or where other circumstances arise that trigger recovery under the terms of the funding agreement, the GLA may recover grant and reinvest those funds in the delivery of affordable housing. The GLA's Affordable Housing Capital Funding Guide, which can be found here, contains specific rules set out regarding grant recovery where schemes cannot proceed.