Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discretion is available to (a) local housing authorities and (b) registered providers of social housing to waive rent charges accrued between the death of a sole tenant and the formal ending of the tenancy; and what assessment he has made of the consistency with which that discretion is exercised.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government does not collect data on rent debt accrued against the estate of a deceased sole tenant.
When a sole tenant dies, where a tenancy is not legally ended immediately, rent continues to accrue until the tenancy is legally brought to an end. Any arrears or debt built up on a property are a liability of the deceased’s estate or guarantor, where one is in place and the agreement provides for this.
Once the Renters’ Rights Act is implemented for social housing assured tenants of private registered providers from October 2027, guarantors of these tenancies will only be responsible for any arrears accrued up to the date of the tenant’s death. We would expect landlords to act sensitively when seeking recovery of any charges accrued.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
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 to (a) local housing authorities and registered providers of social housing on the handling of tenancies following the death of a sole tenant, including the period during which rent continues to be chargeable to the deceased's estate.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government does not collect data on rent debt accrued against the estate of a deceased sole tenant.
When a sole tenant dies, where a tenancy is not legally ended immediately, rent continues to accrue until the tenancy is legally brought to an end. Any arrears or debt built up on a property are a liability of the deceased’s estate or guarantor, where one is in place and the agreement provides for this.
Once the Renters’ Rights Act is implemented for social housing assured tenants of private registered providers from October 2027, guarantors of these tenancies will only be responsible for any arrears accrued up to the date of the tenant’s death. We would expect landlords to act sensitively when seeking recovery of any charges accrued.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate his Department has made of the average rent debt accrued against the estate of a deceased sole social housing tenant between the date of death and the formal ending of the tenancy.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government does not collect data on rent debt accrued against the estate of a deceased sole tenant.
When a sole tenant dies, where a tenancy is not legally ended immediately, rent continues to accrue until the tenancy is legally brought to an end. Any arrears or debt built up on a property are a liability of the deceased’s estate or guarantor, where one is in place and the agreement provides for this.
Once the Renters’ Rights Act is implemented for social housing assured tenants of private registered providers from October 2027, guarantors of these tenancies will only be responsible for any arrears accrued up to the date of the tenant’s death. We would expect landlords to act sensitively when seeking recovery of any charges accrued.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
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 merits of the use of zip cards as a form of voter ID for people aged 16 and 17.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government has considered a range of documents for use at the polling station, including Oyster ZIP cards. We recognise that the current Voter ID rules are overly restrictive – however we must take into account that expanding the list of documents accepted at the polling station could make the policy more challenging to administer for polling station staff and could lead to confusion among electors as to what is and is not accepted.
We believe that our proposed change to allow the use of bank cards will significantly expand the proportion of legitimate electors easily able to meet the VID requirements and have no plans to make any further additions to the list of accepted documents.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
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 consult on changes to marriage value under the Leasehold Reform Act 2024; and when he expects to implement any changes.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 89939 on 20 November 2025.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when the consultation on planning guidance including the provision of swift bricks will (a) commence and (b) complete.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
My Department has already published updated Planning Practice Guidance setting out how swift bricks are expected to be used in new development. This outlines that developments should include swift bricks where possible, with the general aim across a development of a minimum of one nest box per unit.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
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 publish guidance on the responsibilities of freeholders for the external areas of an estate on which leaseholder have secured the right to manage.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Guidance on the responsibilities of freeholders under the right to manage is provided by the Leasehold Advisory Service (LEASE) and is available on their website: https://www.lease-advice.org/advice-guide/right-manage.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the Community Ownership Fund Round 4 Window 2 will be reopened and restored for applications.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
This government is committed to the communities sector and community ownership through empowering communities to own and run those local assets which mean the most to them. The English Devolution Bill will empower communities with a strong new ‘right to buy’ beloved community assets, such as empty shops, pubs and community spaces.
We will make further announcements in due course.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, when his Department expects remediation work to have begun on buildings over 11m with ACM cladding where the developer or builder has accepted liability and accordingly no application was made to the BSF; and if he will take steps to enforce this deadline.
Answered by Lee Rowley
We expect developers that signed the developer remediation contract with Government to meet their obligation to remediate the buildings for which they are responsible as quickly as reasonably practicable.
The length of time it may reasonably take to remediate a building will vary depending on factors such as the scale of works required, cooperation of third parties in finalising a works contract, and risk-based prioritisation by the developer of the buildings which the developer is responsible for remediating.
Developers are obliged to send regular progress reports to the department. The latest progress report is available on gov.uk and the next report will be published this month. The department monitors progress closely. Any developer that fails to comply with its obligations will face consequence.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he is taking steps to enable leaseholders in properties where there are substantive non-cladding fire safety risks and no recourse to the Building Safety Fund to challenge freeholders who fail to provide evidence of costs.
Answered by Lee Rowley
Guidance relating to leaseholder protections, including further information on landlord certificates and leaseholder deed of certificates, can be found here
Where leaseholders consider the landlord is breaching the terms of the lease or is in breach of the Building Safety Act 2022, they can take legal action against them. Legal action may include an application to the First-tier Tribunal. They can also apply to the Tribunal for an order requiring the landlord to remediate the building. Advice on such steps is available free of charge from bodies such as the Leasehold Advisory Service or Citizens Advice.