Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment has been made of reduced Highways budgets on gritting services in rural areas over winter 2026/2027 and 2027/2028.

To support local highway authorities with the maintenance of their highway network, the Department for Transport has confirmed a record investment of £7.3 billion for local highways maintenance between 2026-27 to 2029-30.

We are committed to improving services for people living across the country, and as part of the Local Government Finance Settlement, rural authorities in England will see a total increase in their Core Spending Power of £958 million, an increase of 21.1% from 2024/25 to 2028/29.

We are targeting funding where it is needed most, with the most deprived rural areas receiving more on average compared to the least deprived and making sure the difference in cost of delivering services between rural and urban areas is taken into account.