Asked by: Damian Hinds (Conservative - East Hampshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the (i) systems and (ii) manpower capacity in local authorities to implement local government reorganisation; and if he will place a copy of those assessments in the Library.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Councils, as independent employers, are responsible for the management of their staff and undertaking workforce planning. As part of the local government reorganisation programme, local authorities were required to set out in their proposals how they would manage implementation, including their approach to systems, staffing and governance. The Government has considered this information as part of its assessment of proposals, including where decisions have already been taken, and continues to do so for proposals under consideration.
After decisions are taken on proposals, councils are required to put in place the necessary plans to implement the agreed proposal, including putting in place governance arrangements to oversee the delivery of implementation work.
We will continue to work actively with councils to support an effective transition, including providing support to ensure a smooth transfer of staff from councils that will be wound up to incoming new councils.
Asked by: Neil Hudson (Conservative - Epping Forest)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment he has made of the level of proposed development on Green Belt land in the Epping Forest District, and what steps his Department is taking to protect the Green Belt.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government is committed to preserving Green Belts, which have served England’s towns and cities well over many decades. We have not changed the five purposes of the Green Belt set out in paragraph 143 of the National Planning Policy Framework. The Framework still contains strong protections for the Green Belt, making it clear that inappropriate development should not be approved unless justified by very special circumstances.
It is for local planning authorities themselves, including Epping Forest District Council, to determine whether exceptional circumstances exist that justify the release of Green Belt, and we expect them to first demonstrate that they have examined fully all other reasonable options for meeting identified need for development – including making as much use as possible of suitable brownfield sites and underutilised land, optimising the density of development, and working with neighbouring authorities to assess whether identified need might be sensibly accommodated.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what support her Department is providing to help first-time buyers access mortgage finance and enter the housing market.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The most sustainable long-term method to improve housing affordability and help people into homeownership is to increase the supply of housing. The government is committed to building 1.5 million homes this parliament.
The Government is bringing forward ambitious reforms to streamline and improve the planning system to deliver on its Plan for Change. We have announced major changes to the National Planning Policy Framework, forecast by the Office for Budget Responsibility to deliver 170,000 additional homes and add £6.8bn to the economy by 2029/30.
The Government recognises the difficulties some prospective first-time buyers face in buying a home and is committed to helping them get on the housing ladder. To address these issues, we introduced a new permanent Mortgage Guarantee Scheme in July 2025. It is designed to support and sustain the availability of low deposit mortgage products for credit-worthy borrowers.
The government will also consult on introducing a new, first-time buyer only ISA product that will provide a government bonus when a person uses it to buy a house, removing the need for a withdrawal charge and giving savers flexibility in case their circumstances change.
It will remain possible to open a Lifetime ISA until the new product becomes available and for account holders to continue to save into their Lifetime ISA in line with the existing rules indefinitely.
This sits alongside our work with the financial regulators to give mortgage lenders more flexibility, including on how they assess affordability, which means borrowers can now borrow 10% more than they could at the start of last year. Thanks to our work with the Bank of England, lenders also have more flexibility to offer larger loans. They estimate this could help as many as 36,000 more customers become first time buyers in the first year. Those looking to buy their first home should speak with a mortgage broker to learn more about what’s available to them.
Asked by: Sean Woodcock (Labour - Banbury)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many members of the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel have been allocated to support the drafting of (a) primary and (b) secondary legislation in pursuit of planning reforms, in (i) total headcount and (ii) full-time equivalent.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Within the Office of Parliamentary Counsel (OPC) and Ministry for Housing Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) legal teams there are lawyers working on MHCLG related business, alongside members in the Government Legal Department. There is no group of Parliamentary Counsel within OPC that is assigned to work exclusively on planning reform for MHCLG.
Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of community-led housing in breaking down discrimination in access to housing.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government recognises that the community-led housing sector delivers a wide range of benefits including strengthening community participation in local decision-making, engendering community cohesion, achieving high quality design and strengthening the co-operative economy.
In March, we announced a £20m 10-year social finance investment to provide capital finance for community-led housing, which is expected to directly support the construction of more than 2,500 new homes over the next decade. These housebuilding projects will be led by communities to specifically address local needs in their area.
The revised National Planning Policy Framework published on 12 December strengthened support for community-led housing, including through changes to the size limit on community-led exception sites and a broadening of the definition of organisations able to deliver community-led housing.
The new Social and Affordable Homes Programme seeks to support an increase in the delivery of community-led and rural housing. The flexibility in grant rates provided for under the new programme will help community-led schemes achieve viability and help the sector grow towards its full potential.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of proposed changes to the National Planning Policy Framework on the number of intensive livestock farms.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government has not made a specific assessment of the potential impact of proposed changes to the National Planning Policy Framework on the number of intensive livestock farms.
Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the impact of the administration of National Car Parks Limited on city centre parking capacity in (a) Leicester and (b) England; and whether he is taking steps to mitigate reduced parking provision.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
As administrator for National Car Parks Limited, PricewaterhouseCoopers is seeking to make the business viable and to avoid closures or job losses wherever possible. However, some sites that the administrator considered were not commercially viable have closed as part of the administration process. More information on the administrator’s plans for the relevant companies can be found on its website.
The government recognises that a number of these closures are in Leicester. Under the Traffic Management Act 2004, local authorities are responsible for ensuring that there is sufficient parking provision to support local communities and the prosperity of their town centres. Through the Local Government Finance Settlement, the government has made available up to £555.2 million in core spending power for Leicester City Council by 2028‑29, the majority of which is unringfenced and may be used at the authority’s discretion to meet local priorities.
The government is not responsible for local parking provision and has no current plans to provide additional financial or planning support to reopen closed private car parks, but will continue to monitor developments.
Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of recent closures of National Car Parks Limited sites in Leicester on (a) local businesses and (b) footfall in Leicester city centre.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
As administrator for National Car Parks Limited, PricewaterhouseCoopers is seeking to make the business viable and to avoid closures or job losses wherever possible. However, some sites that the administrator considered were not commercially viable have closed as part of the administration process. More information on the administrator’s plans for the relevant companies can be found on its website.
The government recognises that a number of these closures are in Leicester. Under the Traffic Management Act 2004, local authorities are responsible for ensuring that there is sufficient parking provision to support local communities and the prosperity of their town centres. Through the Local Government Finance Settlement, the government has made available up to £555.2 million in core spending power for Leicester City Council by 2028‑29, the majority of which is unringfenced and may be used at the authority’s discretion to meet local priorities.
The government is not responsible for local parking provision and has no current plans to provide additional financial or planning support to reopen closed private car parks, but will continue to monitor developments.
Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he plans to provide (a) financial or (b) planning support to help local authorities bring closed private car parks back into operation.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
As administrator for National Car Parks Limited, PricewaterhouseCoopers is seeking to make the business viable and to avoid closures or job losses wherever possible. However, some sites that the administrator considered were not commercially viable have closed as part of the administration process. More information on the administrator’s plans for the relevant companies can be found on its website.
The government recognises that a number of these closures are in Leicester. Under the Traffic Management Act 2004, local authorities are responsible for ensuring that there is sufficient parking provision to support local communities and the prosperity of their town centres. Through the Local Government Finance Settlement, the government has made available up to £555.2 million in core spending power for Leicester City Council by 2028‑29, the majority of which is unringfenced and may be used at the authority’s discretion to meet local priorities.
The government is not responsible for local parking provision and has no current plans to provide additional financial or planning support to reopen closed private car parks, but will continue to monitor developments.
Asked by: Calum Miller (Liberal Democrat - Bicester and Woodstock)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the planning system provides adequate protection for sites of ecological value prior to designation as Sites of Special Scientific Interest.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) and associated Planning Practice Guidance are material considerations in the planning process.
The NPPF makes clear that planning policies and decisions should contribute to and enhance the natural and local environment by protecting and enhancing sites of geological value and soils. It also stipulates that development proposals should ensure that a site is suitable for its proposed use, taking account of ground conditions and any risks arising from land instability and contamination.
Between 16 December 2025 and 10 March 2026, the government consulted on a new NPPF. The consultation on the revised Framework, which can be found on gov.uk here, included proposals in respect of sites of biodiversity value.
We are currently analysing the feedback received and will publish our response in due course.