Asked by: Sammy Wilson (Democratic Unionist Party - East Antrim)
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) farmers and (b) gamekeepers in fighting wildfires.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government recognises the valuable role that farmers and gamekeepers can play in supporting the response to wildfires. Fire and Rescue Services lead the operational response to wildfires in England and work closely with land managers, including farmers and gamekeepers, to share information and coordinate activity where appropriate.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) is working closely with the National Resilience Wildfire Advisor, the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC), Defra and land management bodies to strengthen local partnerships and collaboration.
Asked by: Sammy Wilson (Democratic Unionist Party - East Antrim)
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 potential impact of biodiversity net gain requirements on the delivery of new towns; and how the outcome of that assessment will inform planning reforms.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
On 28 September 2025, the government published the independent New Towns Taskforce report as well as its initial response to that report. Both can be found on gov.uk here.
As set out in the initial government response, we warmly welcome all 12 of the locations it has recommend. Prima facie, each has the clear potential to deliver on the government’s objectives, with Tempsford, Crews Hill and Leeds South Bank looking particularly promising as sites that might make significant contributions to unlocking economic growth and accelerating housing delivery.
On 28 September 2025, we commenced a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) to understand the environmental implications of new towns development. This will support final decisions on precisely which locations we take forward. No final decisions on locations will be made until that SEA concludes and preferred locations could change as a result of the process.
Ministers and officials will now begin work with local partners to develop detailed proposals and enhance our understanding of how different locations might meet the government’s expectations of what a future New Towns Programme can deliver, with all promising sites and reasonable alternatives assessed and considered through the SEA process. Appropriate assessment under the Habitats Regulations will also be undertaken when required.
Development within new towns would be subject to Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) subject to the normal exemptions in place at the time of development.
On 28 May 2025, the government published the Planning Reform Working Paper: Reforming Site Thresholds which can be found on gov.uk here. We are currently considering the responses received and will set out next steps in due course.
On the same day, the government published a consultation on improving the implementation of biodiversity net gain for minor, medium and brownfield development which can be found on gov.uk here. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is considering the responses received.
Asked by: Sammy Wilson (Democratic Unionist Party - East Antrim)
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 an assessment of the potential merits of exempting new towns from Biodiversity Net Gain requirements.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
On 28 September 2025, the government published the independent New Towns Taskforce report as well as its initial response to that report. Both can be found on gov.uk here.
As set out in the initial government response, we warmly welcome all 12 of the locations it has recommend. Prima facie, each has the clear potential to deliver on the government’s objectives, with Tempsford, Crews Hill and Leeds South Bank looking particularly promising as sites that might make significant contributions to unlocking economic growth and accelerating housing delivery.
On 28 September 2025, we commenced a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) to understand the environmental implications of new towns development. This will support final decisions on precisely which locations we take forward. No final decisions on locations will be made until that SEA concludes and preferred locations could change as a result of the process.
Ministers and officials will now begin work with local partners to develop detailed proposals and enhance our understanding of how different locations might meet the government’s expectations of what a future New Towns Programme can deliver, with all promising sites and reasonable alternatives assessed and considered through the SEA process. Appropriate assessment under the Habitats Regulations will also be undertaken when required.
Development within new towns would be subject to Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) subject to the normal exemptions in place at the time of development.
On 28 May 2025, the government published the Planning Reform Working Paper: Reforming Site Thresholds which can be found on gov.uk here. We are currently considering the responses received and will set out next steps in due course.
On the same day, the government published a consultation on improving the implementation of biodiversity net gain for minor, medium and brownfield development which can be found on gov.uk here. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is considering the responses received.
Asked by: Sammy Wilson (Democratic Unionist Party - East Antrim)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what information her Department holds on the number of local councils that plan to increase the local fire precept to fund fire services in the 2025-26 financial year.
Answered by Jim McMahon
This is a devolved policy issue, you will appreciate I am unable to comment on any levels which may be set outside of England. However, in England, decisions on council tax levels are for individual local authorities including fire authorities and councils which are responsible for the fire services in their area. The government will publish data on the council tax levels set by all English authorities for 2025-26 in March.
Asked by: Sammy Wilson (Democratic Unionist Party - East Antrim)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much funding has been allocated to the fire service for each of the last ten years.
Answered by Jim McMahon
Details of funding for fire authorities made available through Local Government Finance Settlements are set out in the Core Spending Power tables. The most recent Core Spending Power allocations table published as part of the final 2025/26 Local Government Finance Settlement can be found at the following link and includes tabs for each year since 2015/16: Core Spending Power table: final local government finance settlement 2025 to 2026 - GOV.UK.
Asked by: Sammy Wilson (Democratic Unionist Party - East Antrim)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when he plans to announce his decision on the Highthorn planning application.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
The Secretary of State will issue his decision on a planning application for an open cast coal mine at Highthorn, Northumberland, in due course.
Asked by: Sammy Wilson (Democratic Unionist Party - East Antrim)
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 list the public inquiry planning decisions he has made during the covid-19 lockdown.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
Since the evening of 23 March 2020, the following decisions have been made. They are all publicly available on the gov.uk website.
Date | Case |
1/4/20 | Station Rd, Long Melford (Babergh DC) |
7/4/20 | Barbrook Lane, Tiptree (Colchester BC) |
9/4/20 | Vauxhall Bus station (LB Lambeth) |
9/4/20 | Land nr Whittlesford, Hinxton (S Cambs DC) |
22/4/20 | 160 Stanley Rd, Cheadle Hulme (Stockport MBC) |
24/4/20 | Oxford Brookes Uni, Wheatley (S Oxon DC) |
29/4/20 | Burgess Business Park, (LB Southwark) |
13/5/20 | Moor Lane, Woodthorpe, (City of York) |
14/5/20 | Hawthorns, Farnham, Surrey (Waverley BC) |
3/6/20 | Love Lane, Woolwich (LB Greenwich) |
3/6/20 | VIP Trading Estate, SE7 (Greater London Authority) |
3/6/20 | Wolborough Barton, Devon (Teignbridge DC) |
15/6/20 | Levitt’s Field, Cambs (Cambs County Council) |
25/6/20 | Newport Rd, Woburn Sands (Milton Keynes Council) |
25/6/20 | Newcombe House, Notting Hill Gate (Greater London Authority) |
Asked by: Sammy Wilson (Democratic Unionist Party - East Antrim)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the time taken to process planning applications for shale gas extraction.
Answered by Dominic Raab
I refer the Rt Hon Member to the Written Ministerial Statement on planning policy made by the Secretary of State on 17 May (HCWS689), which announced a range of planning measures to facilitate timely decisions on shale planning applications.
Asked by: Sammy Wilson (Democratic Unionist Party - East Antrim)
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 time taken to process a shale gas exploration application was in each of the last three years.
Answered by Dominic Raab
Mineral Planning Authority decisions to grant or refuse planning permission for shale gas exploration proposals in England over the last three years have taken between 17 and 83 weeks, from the date of validation of that application to the date the decision was issued.
Asked by: Sammy Wilson (Democratic Unionist Party - East Antrim)
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 reduce business rates for general aviation airfields to reflect their potential contribution to the economy.
Answered by Rishi Sunak
The Government recognises the importance of general aviation. It has appointed Byron Davies as its champion, and at the end of 2018 he will deliver a report on the role that general aviation plays in the economy and address the potential contribution of general aviation aerodromes to the economy.
At the 2016 Budget, the Chancellor announced the biggest ever cut in business rates – worth approximately £9 billion across the next five years to support businesses. In addition at the Autumn 2017 Budget, the Chancellor stated that we will bring forward the switch of the annual indexation of business rates from RPI to CPI by two years to April 2018 a measure worth £2.3 billion over 5 years.