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

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the adequacy of protections in place to protect leaseholders in respect of commercial land leased from local authorities being sold to third parties.

Commercial leaseholders are protected if their landlord sells to a third party, as the new owner buys the land subject to the terms of any existing leases. This remains the case whether the original owner is a local authority or otherwise.

Local authorities may use ownership of commercial premises to generate a funding stream, and will consider whether continued ownership of assets provides value for money. These decisions are a matter for local authorities, provided they consider best value when making decisions on ownership or sale of assets.