Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether councillors and mayors will be able to sit on her Department's new social cohesion taskforce.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
As set out in my response to UIN 78208, the Social Cohesion Taskforce is an internal Civil Service team comprised of civil servants. As part of our work, we have been engaging with a wide range of relevant stakeholders, including those with experience of delivering cohesion programmes within local government.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions the Government had with the US Government on the definition of Islamophobia.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government does not have an official definition of anti-Muslim hatred/Islamophobia and so it has not engaged with any foreign government on this. However, we have established a working group to advise government on a definition of anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia, including on how to best understand, quantify and define prejudice, discrimination, and hate crime targeted against Muslims. Alongside drawing on their own expertise, the working group have engaged widely to ensure the definition accounts for the variety of backgrounds and experiences of communities across the United Kingdom.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions she has had with (a) Brighton and Hove council, (b) Tower Hamlets council and (c) Birmingham City Council on the taking down of St George’s flags.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Prime Minister has been clear that he supports the flying of flags across the country. Flags should be an embodiment of bringing our country and our communities together. Decisions about whether flags should be removed are devolved to local authorities and it is for them to assess the impacts of removing or allowing flags to remain.
My Department engages with local authorities on a regular basis across numerous meetings. Where the subject has been raised we have been clear that everyone can make their own decisions, including local councils, on flying flags and that guidance exists to support them, such as ‘Flying flags: a plain English guide” - as set out in the Town and Country Planning (Control of Advertisements) Regulations 2007 (as amended in 2012 and 2021) – which outlines the regulations related to the flying of flags in England.
It is important that the decisions taken by local authorities reflect the character and values of the communities they serve. Where symbols are used in ways that threaten public safety, it is right that action is taken to address this.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to help tackle fraudulent electoral registration.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government is committed to upholding the integrity of electoral registers. A robust system of identity verification forms part of the electoral registration process. This includes the ability to match an applicant’s data with Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) records, or to request documentary evidence to verify their identity.
The Electoral Commission, which is responsible for issuing guidance on electoral registration, has also published guidance for Electoral Registration Officers on identifying suspicious registration applications and working with local police to investigate any potential registration fraud.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what guidance his Department has issued on whether an elector can register to vote in three different localities.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
In the UK, citizens are entitled to be registered at more than one address in certain circumstances. It is the responsibility of the local Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) to consider each application to register to vote on its own merits and to be satisfied that a person meets the residence criteria for each address.
The Electoral Commission as the independent electoral regulator, holds responsibility for issuing guidance on electoral registration.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many dwellings in each local authority in England are classified as Class F under regulation 2 of the Council Tax (Liability for Owners) Regulations 1992.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Department publishes local authority level data on the number of dwellings receiving the Class F exemption as part of the Council Taxbase statistics. The latest data is based on a snapshot taken in October 2024 and can be found at the following link Council Taxbase Local Authority Level Data 2024 in the ‘Supplementary_Data’ tab.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what his policy is on the (a) use of Special Development Orders to obtain planning approval, (b) planning application call-in and (c) planning appeal recovery for asylum seeker accommodation.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Secretary of State’s powers relating to Special Development Orders are set out in section 60 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. Policies on calling in planning applications and recovering appeals are set out in the Written Ministerial Statements of 26 October 2012 and 30 June 2008 respectively.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what the average amount of time is for the Land Registry to update the title deeds on gov.uk following a purchase of a dwelling.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
HM Land Registry’s processing times are publicly available on gov.uk here.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
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 26 March 2025 to Question 40156 on Green Belt, whether allotments are deemed to be Grey Belt land.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
My Department published updated guidance on Green Belt policy on 27 February 2025 to assist local authorities and other decision-makers in determining whether land is grey belt. It can be found on gov.uk here.
It is for decision-makers to consider how to apply this to particular local circumstances and assess whether a site constitutes grey belt, as it will depend upon the circumstances of each case. The government does not maintain a definitive list of land uses or categories which constitute grey belt land.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions her Department has had with (a) district and (b) county councils in Norfolk and Suffolk on cancelling the planned local elections in May 2026.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Department has had no discussions with district or county councils in Norfolk or Suffolk about cancelling the planned local elections in May 2026.