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, which organisations responded to the Working Group on Anti-Muslim Hatred/ Islamophobia Definition call for evidence.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Working Group launched a Call for Evidence which closed on Sunday 20 July. It was open to the public and any individual or organisation was able to submit evidence. The government does not routinely publish the details of individual respondents to calls for evidence.
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, with reference to his Department's document entitled Political donations overview: existing rules and what is changing, published on 2 March 2026, whether guidance will be produced by (a) his Department and (b) the Electoral Commission on the new section 54A Declaration requirements.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government has committed to commencing section 54A of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000, as inserted by section 9 of the Political Parties and Elections Act 2009, and intends to do so before the end of this Parliament.
The Electoral Commission is responsible for producing guidance to support compliance with political finance rules. The Department does not intend to issue separate guidance.
Matters relating to the practical operation of the declaration requirement, including whether declarations may be made electronically, are for the Electoral Commission to consider as part of its role in supporting compliance.
There is presently no intention to commence sections 10 and 11 of the 2009 Act.
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 the proposed timetable is for the implementation of Section 54A of PPERA 2000 Section 9 of the Political Parties and Elections Act 2009, via secondary legislation; and what his policy is on the un-commenced Sections 10 and 11.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government has committed to commencing section 54A of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000, as inserted by section 9 of the Political Parties and Elections Act 2009, and intends to do so before the end of this Parliament.
The Electoral Commission is responsible for producing guidance to support compliance with political finance rules. The Department does not intend to issue separate guidance.
Matters relating to the practical operation of the declaration requirement, including whether declarations may be made electronically, are for the Electoral Commission to consider as part of its role in supporting compliance.
There is presently no intention to commence sections 10 and 11 of the 2009 Act.
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, with reference to his plans to commence Section 9 of the Political Parties and Elections Act 2009, what consideration has been made of whether the new Section 54A requirements can be fulfilled through electronic submissions and electronic consent.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government has committed to commencing section 54A of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000, as inserted by section 9 of the Political Parties and Elections Act 2009, and intends to do so before the end of this Parliament.
The Electoral Commission is responsible for producing guidance to support compliance with political finance rules. The Department does not intend to issue separate guidance.
Matters relating to the practical operation of the declaration requirement, including whether declarations may be made electronically, are for the Electoral Commission to consider as part of its role in supporting compliance.
There is presently no intention to commence sections 10 and 11 of the 2009 Act.
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, pursuant to the Answer of 18 March 2026, to Question 120064, on Electoral Register, whether the asymmetric introduction of automatic registration include implementation and rollout by type of data-matching data.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
My officials are currently working on the design of the direct registration pilots, which includes consideration of different options for the use of national and local datasets to support direct registration. Further details will be available in due course, and as previously made clear, will also be set out in secondary legislation subject to the affirmative procedure.
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, pursuant to the answer of 2 March 2026, to Question 113641, on Parish and Town Councils: Council tax reduction schemes, what assessment has been made of (a) whether principal local authorities have reduced their financial support for parish councils, in relation to the application of local council tax support on parish precepts, in (a) 2025-26, and (b) 2026-27 budgets and (b) the associated effects on parish council precepts.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Local council tax support schemes are designed by local authorities in consultation with council taxpayers. It is the responsibility of principal authorities to work with parish and town councils on council tax matters, including support schemes and to agree appropriate funding arrangements to avoid large increases in parish precepts.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether the definition of anti-Muslim hatred will be taught as part of the religious education national curriculum.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Religious education is a mandatory subject but not part of the national curriculum.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 11 March 2026, to Question 117731, on Housing: Asylum, what are the pilots for LA-led asylum accommodation referenced in the Home Office guidance, entitled Funding Instruction for Local Authorities: Asylum Grant 2025 - 2026, updated 23 April 2025; and how this relates to the proposed MHCLG fund.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
We have committed to closing every asylum hotel, and work is well underway, with more suitable sites, including military bases, being brought forward to ease pressure on communities. The Home Office are working with MHCLG to explore a model of asylum accommodation that achieves value for money and supports asylum system reform and further detail will be provided in due course.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 9 March 2026, to Question 111142, on Housing: Asylum, whether there has been any HM Government expression of interests requested from local authorities in relation to asylum accommodation, including pilots referenced in the Funding Instruction for Local Authorities: Asylum Grant 2025 - 2026.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
We ran an expression of interest exercise on new accommodation models with local authorities in 2025. However, further information on responses or guidance given to interested local authorities on the new accommodation model is considered commercially sensitive.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 23 March 2026, to Question 121394, on Radicalism, and to the answer of 24 December 2024, to Question 20228, on Civil Society: Islam, what her Department's policy is on confirming or denying whether a specific organisation is subject to a policy of non-engagement.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
The Home Office does not comment on specific groups. As announced in the publication ‘Protecting What Matters’ on 9th March 2026, we are embedding the 2024 definition of extremism and engagement principles across government to ensure a consistent understanding of extremism, which is essential to tackling it effectively. We are reinforcing this through clearer guidance and improved training, helping those on the frontline to recognise extremism and the different extremist ideologies which underpin it. Updating and embedding the 2024 engagement principles will assist public bodies to not confer legitimacy, funding or influence on extremist groups. It is for individual government departments to decide to use these principles, or their own due diligence processes around engagement. If asked, we will advise and share information to help inform evidence-based decisions about engagement which are in line with the updated principles.