Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether all tenants of houses of multiple occupation count as separate households for the purposes of forming support bubbles during the covid-19 outbreak; and what guidance on managing covid-19 infection risks his Department is providing to people in that situation.

Tenants in Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) cannot act as separate households for the purpose of forming support bubbles. As set out in our guidance for landlords, tenants and local authorities, all occupants of an HMO should act as a single household if one or more occupants have symptoms of coronavirus (COVID-19). Our guidance for landlords and tenants includes guidance on steps to minimise the spread of infection, including within HMOs.

Guidance for households with possible or confirmed coronavirus (COVID-19) infection can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-stay-at-home-guidance.