Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
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 he has made of the potential impact of Grey Belt policy on speculative development proposals on village edges in Harpenden and Berkhamsted constituency.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to Questions UIN 98288 on 5 January 2026, UIN 105177 on 20 January 2026, and UIN 106373 on 26 January 2026.
Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
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 monitor the implementation of (a) the national standards for sustainable drainage systems and (b) updated planning policy, including what data it will collect on (i) compliance and (ii) adoption and maintenance arrangements.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government is committed to securing the delivery of high-quality sustainable drainage systems to help manage flood risk and adapt to the effects of climate change.
The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) makes clear that developments of all sizes are expected to make use of sustainable drainage techniques where the development could have drainage impacts. National Planning Guidance indicates that local planning authorities should be satisfied that all Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS) have clear maintenance and adoption arrangements in place for the lifetime of a development.
We are currently consulting on a new NPPF that includes clearer, more ‘rules-based’ policies for decision-making. The consultation includes a proposed new requirement for SuDS to be designed in accordance with the National Standards for SuDS published last year. It will remain open for responses until 10 March 2026 and can be found on gov.uk here.
Responsibility for the implementation of national planning policy lies with local planning authorities, as does the monitoring of compliance with planning permissions.
We are also exploring how to improve the adoption of public amenities, including SuDS, on freehold estates. For further details, I refer the hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement made on 18 December 2025 (HCWS1210).
Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
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 the National Planning Policy Framework's Grey Belt Policy on the development of village infrastructure including (a) schools, (b) GP services, (c) transport and (d) wastewater; and what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of securing infrastructure before developments in village areas begin.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to Question UIN 90834 on the 21 November 2025, Question UIN 67812 on the 21 July 2025, and Question UIN 26106 on the 5 February 2025.
The government is currently consulting on a new National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) that includes clearer, ‘rules based’ policies for decision-making and plan-making.
The proposed Green Belt policy is set out in Chapter 13 of the consultation which can be found on gov.uk here. The consultation will remain open for responses until 10 March 2026.
Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
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 merits of requiring water and sewerage companies to provide capacity assessments for water supply and wastewater infrastructure before large developments are approved in areas where existing networks and receiving water bodies are under pressure.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government is currently consulting on a new National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) that includes clearer, ‘rules based’ policies for decision-making and plan-making.
The consultation includes policies that will support the development and operation of energy and water infrastructure that meets the needs of existing and future development.
The policies in question emphasise the need for early engagement between relevant plan-making authorities, utility providers, regulators, and network operators. This will ensure that development plans align with the capacity and future requirements of water infrastructure, and support the delivery of water supply, drainage, and wastewater infrastructure.
The consultation will remain open for responses until 10 March 2026 and can be found on gov.uk here.
In addition, the Department for Environment, Food and Agriculture has established a Water Delivery Taskforce to hold water companies to account on the deliveryof their Price Review (PR24) plans, including in relation to their planned investments to provide water and wastewater capacity.
Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
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 has recently assessed the impact of Grey Belt policy criteria that focus on towns and large built-up areas on village-edge Green Belt land, and his Department's assessment of the potential impact of this policy on rural settlements in Harpenden and Berkhamsted, such as Redbourn.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
In assessing whether Green Belt land is grey belt, local planning authorities should consider the contribution the land in question makes to the Green Belt purposes of restricting the sprawl of large built up areas, preventing the merging of neighbouring towns, and safeguarding the setting and special character of historic towns.
Relevant Green Belt guidance makes clear that when assessing contribution to these purposes, “large built-up areas” and “towns” do not include villages.
Considering whether any particular settlement constitutes a village is a matter for the given local planning authority to judge, which may be informed by the adopted local settlement hierarchy.
Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he plans to introduce national response standards for (a) service levels and (b) response times for all fire and rescue services.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government has accepted, in principle, the Grenfell Tower Inquiry’s recommendation to establish a national college of fire and rescue. The Inquiry report suggested a range of potential functions for a college to fulfil, including the development and assurance of national standards relating to various aspects of the work of fire and rescue services.
Any future college function relating to national standards would build on the work already undertaken by the Fire Standards Board (FSB), which currently develops and maintains a suite of professional standards for fire and rescue services in England. The 19 standards currently published by the FSB cover a range of topics relating to operational management, leadership and ethics.
Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
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 improve coordination between Local Planning Authorities and Lead Local Flood Authorities on ensuring (a) adequate resources and (b) clear mechanisms for reviewing planning applications in flood-prone areas.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Planning practice guidance sets out that when considering proposals for major development the local planning authority will need to consult the lead local flood authority on surface water drainage.
The guidance is clear that local planning authorities may find it helpful to agree with lead local flood authorities the circumstances and locations where site specific flood risk assessments will be required due to surface water or other local flood risks and lead local flood authority advice can be sought on other planning applications which raise surface water or other local flood risk issues. This can be achieved by having regard to the available information on local flood risks, including the Strategic Flood Risk Assessment and the updated map of flood risk from surface water which can be found on gov.uk here.
In addition, the National Planning Policy Framework is clear that sustainable drainage systems provided as part of proposals for major development should take account of advice from the Lead Local Flood Authority.
As independent bodies, local planning authorities have to make decisions about where to prioritise their resources when carrying out their planning functions. We recognise that planning departments across the country are experiencing challenges with recruitment, retention, and skills gaps. For an overview of the steps the government is taking to increase local planning authority capacity and capability, I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 67508 on 21 July 2025.
Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
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 (a) amend planning policy and (b) issue guidance on (i) the sequential test and (ii) flood-risk management in the context of recent (A) appeal and (B) other judicial decisions.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The National Planning Policy Framework makes clear that inappropriate development in areas at risk of flooding should be avoided by directing development away from areas at highest risk (whether existing or future). Where development is necessary in such areas, the development should be made safe for its lifetime without increasing flood risk elsewhere.
To ensure a proportionate, pragmatic and constituents approach to surface flood risk, we published updated planning practice guidance to clarify how the sequential test should be applied in September 2025.
We will consider whether any further changes are required to national planning policy for flooding as part of the new suite of national policies for decision making that we intend to consult on later this year.
Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
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 (a) amend planning policy and (b) issue guidance on how local planning authorities should frame enforceable planning conditions where delivery of critical drainage works depends on access to third-party land.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
My Department’s Planning Practice Guidance already provides guidance on the use of negatively-worded planning conditions (often termed Grampian conditions) to deal with the delivery of infrastructure required for a development (such as drainage) which is on third party land.
Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when his Department plans to publish the Community Cohesion Strategy; and what recent progress he has made in developing the Strategy.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Ministry for Communities, Housing and Local Government is leading cross-Government efforts to develop a longer-term, more strategic approach to social cohesion - working in partnership with communities and local stakeholders to rebuild, renew and address the deep-seated issues.
On 25 September, MHCLG published the Pride in Place Strategy, which sets out how we will deliver £5 billion funding and support over ten years to 339 neighbourhoods experiencing the highest levels of deprivation. This funding can be used to support community cohesion interventions.
Our strategy is a significant step change in how we support communities. It focuses on three overarching objectives: building stronger communities; creating thriving places; and helping communities to take back control of their own lives and areas.