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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the additional staff required by his Department in the event that the UK leaves the EU (a) with and (b) without a deal.

The Department is continuing to prepare for a smooth exit from the EU, whatever the circumstances of that exit, ensuring that we effectively manage the policies, activities and priorities for which we are responsible. Forty staff are currently working on the central management and co-ordination of the Department's EU Exit activity and we anticipate that additional people will join these central teams in the near term. Additionally, individual teams across the Department are focused on those issues that will require action or support in relation to our exit from the EU.