Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 15 April 2019 to Question 243314 on Local Housing Allowance: Greater London, if she will place a copy in the Library of any ranking exercise of Broad Rental Market Areas to determine their divergence from actual rent levels in any of the last three years carried out by (a) her Department and (b) the Valuation Agency Office.

The Department has not undertaken a ranking exercise of Broad Rental Market Areas in the last three years. The Local Housing Allowance was raised to the 30th percentile of market rents in April 2020 and that level has been maintained in April 2021 and April 2022

While the Valuation Office Agency is not part of the Department, we are not aware of any ranking exercise that it has carried out.