Asked by: Jenny Riddell-Carpenter (Labour - Suffolk Coastal)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of trends in the number of building assessment certificate application refusals on the lending, mortgage and insurance markets.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
From 16 January 2024, the Building Safety Act introduced a requirement for Principal Accountable Persons to assess and manage the safety risks relating to the buildings for which they are responsible. Building safety risks are defined in the Act as being spread of fire and structural failure.
A Building Assessment Certificate (BAC) is issued by the Building Safety Regulator when it is assessed that these and other relevant legal duties are being met. A BAC application may be refused for a variety of reasons, for example where the safety case report or the residents’ engagement strategy are insufficient or incomplete. It is important to note therefore that a decision to refuse the application for a BAC does not necessarily mean that the building is unsafe.
Lenders and insurers have their own, well-established, mechanisms for assessing a building’s condition, on which they base their commercial decisions.
We engage regularly with the lending and insurance industries, who have not raised BAC application refusals as a concern, but we encourage industry and individuals to bring any concerns to the attention of the Department.
Asked by: Jenny Riddell-Carpenter (Labour - Suffolk Coastal)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many large panel system buildings have been registered with the building safety regulator.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
As of 30 November 2025, the Building Safety Regulator is aware of 738 registered structures containing large panel systems.
Asked by: Jenny Riddell-Carpenter (Labour - Suffolk Coastal)
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 average cost incurred by accountable persons for time spent by the building safety regulator to determine and issue a decision on a building assessment certificate application.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
As of 1st December 2025, the average cost of a determination for a Building Assessment Certificate was £23,084. There has been a total of 1838 Building Assessment Certificate applications to the Building Safety Regulator since it was established. Of which, (b) 166 have been approved, (c) 448 have been refused, (d) and 1224 applications have yet to be determined.
The Building Safety Regulator is continuing to work to enhance the level of appropriate BAC information and guidance that is available for applicants.
Asked by: Jenny Riddell-Carpenter (Labour - Suffolk Coastal)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many building assessment certificate applications have been (a) made to the building safety regulator, (b) approved, (c) refused, and (d) yet to be determined.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
As of 1st December 2025, the average cost of a determination for a Building Assessment Certificate was £23,084. There has been a total of 1838 Building Assessment Certificate applications to the Building Safety Regulator since it was established. Of which, (b) 166 have been approved, (c) 448 have been refused, (d) and 1224 applications have yet to be determined.
The Building Safety Regulator is continuing to work to enhance the level of appropriate BAC information and guidance that is available for applicants.
Asked by: Jenny Riddell-Carpenter (Labour - Suffolk Coastal)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of regulations relating to private parking enforcement companies.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government is aware of concerns about poor practice from a number of parking operators and is determined to raise standards.
In accordance with the Private Parking (Code of Practice) Act 2019, the government is preparing a code of practice containing guidance about the operation and management of private parking facilities.
The government has recently consulted on its proposals for a new code of practice for private parking operators to follow. The consultation closed on 26 September, and the government will respond in due course.
Asked by: Jenny Riddell-Carpenter (Labour - Suffolk Coastal)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the role of (a) parish and (b) town councils in the context of Local Government reorganisation; what assessment he has made of the potential merits in maintaining their statutory role in representing local communities on planning applications; and what steps he is taking to ensure parish councils remain integral to local democratic accountability.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Town and parish councils are not in scope for local government reorganisation and will continue to operate as they do now. Councils may wish to collaborate with their town and parish councils to determine how they can most effectively contribute to the delivery of services in future arrangements. In doing so, they may wish to consider the support town and parish councils will require to do so effectively.
We recognise the important role that parish and town councils play in the planning process. Planning law allows parish councils and neighbourhood fora to require local planning authorities to consult them on any relevant planning applications in their area, and notify them of the decision. This will not change in the context of LGR.
The government continues to value the role of town and parish councils in driving forward the priorities of their communities and delivering effective local services.
Asked by: Jenny Riddell-Carpenter (Labour - Suffolk Coastal)
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 plans to require local planning authorities to consider the financial viability and track record of developers as part of the planning process.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
On 25 May, the government published a Planning Reform Working Paper: Speeding Up Build Out (which can be found on gov.uk here) which included proposals to implement a new power for authorities to decline to determine planning applications made by developers who fail to build out at a reasonable rate. The consultation closed on 7 July and we are currently considering all feedback received.
It would not be appropriate for local planning authorities to be required to assess the financial viability of a developer when determining a planning application. This is not a planning matter and would place undue burden on both applicant and local planning authority.
Asked by: Jenny Riddell-Carpenter (Labour - Suffolk Coastal)
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 ensure that local authorities are correctly implementing the council tax premium on second homes.
Answered by Jim McMahon
The second homes council tax premiums is not a mandatory requirement, and it is for individual councils to decide whether to make use of a premium. However, where councils apply a premium, they are required to implement this in line with the relevant regulations. Furthermore, the government has published guidance for councils on the implementation of premiums and exceptions. Councils must have due regard for this guidance when considering application of the premium.
Where a household believes their council has incorrectly applied the premium, they may be able to appeal this to the Valuation Tribunal in certain circumstances.
Asked by: Jenny Riddell-Carpenter (Labour - Suffolk Coastal)
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 protect nature in the design of new build housing developments.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The National Planning Policy Framework is clear about the importance of conserving and enhancing the natural environment.
Planning policies and decisions should contribute to and enhance the natural and local environment by minimising impacts on and providing net gains for biodiversity, including by establishing coherent ecological networks that are more resilient to current and future pressures and incorporating features which support priority or threatened species such as swifts, bats, and hedgehogs.
Asked by: Jenny Riddell-Carpenter (Labour - Suffolk Coastal)
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 extend the boundary of Freeport East.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The boundaries of Freeport tax sites are defined in law. They were agreed, after careful deliberation, by the Government and local Freeport partners, including the relevant local authorities. The Government currently has no plans to amend the boundaries of Freeport tax sites.