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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of directing local authorities to suspend council tax payments for the duration of the covid-19 outbreak.

Council tax plays a vital role in funding the local services which are at the forefront of the COVID-19 response. To assist financially vulnerable households, the Government has confirmed £500 million of funding to provide more council tax relief. Local authorities also have the flexibility to spread council tax payments over the final ten months of the year to help local people.