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

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the need for additional council house provision for older people in rural areas.

It is for local authorities in rural areas to determine the need for additional council housing provision for older people. We are giving local authorities the tools they need to build. We have abolished the Housing Revenue Account borrowing cap, so that local authorities have the freedom to borrow to build in line with the Prudential Code. Additionally, local authorities can bid alongside housing associations for the £9 billion Affordable Homes Programme to build affordable homes; and we are providing a longer term rent deal for 5 years from 2020 so that councils have a stable investment environment to deliver new homes.