Asked by: Max Wilkinson (Liberal Democrat - Cheltenham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his department has made of the reasons for the decline in the number of planning permissions awarded for developments of between 10 and 49 homes.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Planning applications statistics make clear that there has been a small reduction in the percentage of homes in planning permissions that are on sites of between 10-49 homes, from 11% in 2022-23 to 10% in 2024-25.
The reasons for this marginal reduction are multifaceted, but an important factor is the fact that sites of this size are primarily built out by small and medium-sized (SME) housebuilders who face challenges accessing finance and land and are disproportionately impacted by onerous regulatory burdens.
As a government we are clear that ramping up housing delivery requires us to diversify the housebuilding market. Integral to such diversification is not merely arresting but reversing the decline of SME housebuilders that has taken place over recent decades. That is why we have acted to support them by increasing their access to land, providing further financial assistance, and easing the burden of regulation.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
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 he made of the potential impact of local government reorganisation on infrastructure planning in local authority areas where emerging Local Plans have been delayed or withdrawn as a result.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government remains determined to drive local plans to adoption as quickly as possible in order to achieve our ambition of universal plan coverage and to ensure that plans contribute positively to increasing rates of housebuilding and infrastructure delivery. Local government reorganisation should not hinder the adoption of an up-to-date local plan.
National planning policy makes clear that local plans should be positively prepared and, as a minimum, seek to meet identified development needs. Local planning authorities are expected to do all they reasonably can to meet need, including working proactively with infrastructure providers (including water providers) to align growth and infrastructure provision. If needs cannot be met, the authority must clearly and robustly explain the reasons during the plan examination. The approach the authority has taken, including how it engaged with infrastructure providers, will be a key consideration for the independent Inspector in evaluating whether the local plan can be found ‘sound’.
Local planning authorities should consider whether otherwise unacceptable development could be made acceptable through the use of conditions or planning obligations. This could include the provision of infrastructure which is necessary to make a development acceptable in planning terms. Where it is in place, developers may also contribute towards infrastructure through the Community Infrastructure Levy.
Defra has established a Water Delivery Taskforce to ensure that water companies deliver on their planned investments to provide water and wastewater capacity. Water companies are under a statutory duty to provide new water and sewerage connections and must plan for future growth through their water resources and wastewater management plans. The water resources planning guideline published by the Environment Agency and Ofwat. Sets out how those companies should forecast demand for water based on existing customers and planned levels of household and non-household growth.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether local planning authorities will be required to publish data on (a) the number of applications determined by officers, (b) the number determined by planning committees, (c) applications referred to committee but refused permission to do so and (d) the reasons why applications were not considered by elected members.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
My Department has published statutory guidance setting out how the national scheme of delegation will operate, including the arrangements for referral to planning committees and transparency and reporting requirements. This can be found on gov.uk here.
An updated impact assessment was reviewed by the Regulatory Policy Committee and published alongside the final Regulations (The Town and Country Planning (Discharge of Local Planning Authority Functions) (England) Regulations 2026). This can be found on gov.uk here.
My Department already publishes data on applications which are delegated to planning officers. Once the Regulations in question come into force on 31st October 2026, we will collect data on applications referred to planning committees. This information will be published alongside other national planning statistics on gov.uk here.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the number of local planning authorities which will meet the housing requirements generated by the revised standard method; what estimate he has made of the number of authorities which will meet the Housing Delivery Test or five-year housing land supply requirements; and whether he has assessed the impact this would have on the number of speculative planning applications determined under the presumption in favour of sustainable development.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The standard method identifies a minimum annual housing need figure and ensures that plan-making is informed by an unconstrained assessment of the number of homes needed in an area. It does not produce a housing requirement figure. Once local housing need has been assessed, authorities should then make an assessment of the amount of new homes that can be provided in their area. This should be justified by evidence on land availability, constraints on development and any other relevant matters.
Local planning authorities with up-to-date plans are assessed against their adopted plan housing requirement for the purposes of the Housing Delivery Test (HDT) and five-year housing land supply (5YHLS). Where an authority does not have an up-to-date plan, local housing need (calculated using the standard method) is used.
The current HDT results are the 2023 measurement, published on 12 December 2024. These results continue to apply until a subsequent Housing Delivery Test measurement is published. We remain committed to publishing the 2024 and 2025 HDT results as soon as possible. The Department does not formally collect 5YHLS data. The 5YHLS position of any given authority is often in flux and typically determined through planning appeals. As such, there are challenges in capturing comprehensive and robust data at any given time.
My Department has made no specific assessment of the impact of the revised standard method published on 12 December 2024 on the number of speculative planning applications determined under the presumption in favour of sustainable development. While failing against either HDT or 5YHLS is a strong indicator of housing need in an area not being sufficiently met, it does not mean that planning permission for housing will be automatically granted, and local planning authorities must consider a range of factors when determining planning applications.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
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 the draft National Planning Policy Framework on the amount of development expected to take place on (a) greenfield land and (b) land outside defined settlement boundaries; whether his Department has modelled the effect of Policy S5 on the volume of speculative planning applications for unallocated sites; and if he will publish that assessment.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
By law, planning applications must be determined in accordance with the development plan for the area, unless material considerations indicate otherwise.
The National Planning Policy Framework must be taken into account in preparing the development plan, and is a material consideration in planning decisions.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
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 the draft National Planning Policy Framework on the capacity of local planning authorities to refuse planning applications that conflict with locally adopted planning policies; whether he expects National Decision-Making Policies to take precedence over locally adopted development management policies in practice; and if he will publish that assessment.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
By law, planning applications must be determined in accordance with the development plan for the area, unless material considerations indicate otherwise.
The National Planning Policy Framework must be taken into account in preparing the development plan, and is a material consideration in planning decisions.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
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 whether the revised National Planning Policy Framework will increase the number of planning permissions granted before supporting infrastructure is delivered; what assessment he has made of the likely impact on (a) GP surgeries, (b) school places, (c) highways capacity and (d) water infrastructure; and whether he intends to require infrastructure to be delivered before the occupation of new housing developments.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) published in December 2024 makes clear that local planning authorities should plan positively for the provision and use of shared spaces, community facilities, transport and other infrastructure to enhance the sustainability of communities and residential environments, taking into account local strategies to improve health, social and cultural wellbeing for all sections of the community.
Between 16 December 2025 and 10 March 2026, we consulted on a new NPPF. That consultation, which can be found on gov.uk here, included proposals relating to community facilities and public service infrastructure.
We are currently analysing the feedback received and will publish our response in due course.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
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 (a) the National Scheme of Delegation on progress towards the Government’s target of delivering 1.5 million homes and (b) a reduction in the number of planning applications determined by elected planning committees on local democratic input into housing development.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
My Department has published statutory guidance setting out how the national scheme of delegation will operate, including the arrangements for referral to planning committees and transparency and reporting requirements. This can be found on gov.uk here.
An updated impact assessment was reviewed by the Regulatory Policy Committee and published alongside the final Regulations (The Town and Country Planning (Discharge of Local Planning Authority Functions) (England) Regulations 2026). This can be found on gov.uk here.
My Department already publishes data on applications which are delegated to planning officers. Once the Regulations in question come into force on 31st October 2026, we will collect data on applications referred to planning committees. This information will be published alongside other national planning statistics on gov.uk here.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what circumstances will permit an application that would otherwise be delegated to a planning officer to be referred to a planning committee; what role ward councillors will have in requesting such referrals; and what assessment he has made of the consistency of those arrangements across local planning authorities.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
My Department has published statutory guidance setting out how the national scheme of delegation will operate, including the arrangements for referral to planning committees and transparency and reporting requirements. This can be found on gov.uk here.
An updated impact assessment was reviewed by the Regulatory Policy Committee and published alongside the final Regulations (The Town and Country Planning (Discharge of Local Planning Authority Functions) (England) Regulations 2026). This can be found on gov.uk here.
My Department already publishes data on applications which are delegated to planning officers. Once the Regulations in question come into force on 31st October 2026, we will collect data on applications referred to planning committees. This information will be published alongside other national planning statistics on gov.uk here.
Asked by: Charlie Dewhirst (Conservative - Bridlington and The Wolds)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether the National Gallery has planning permission to fly the Progress flag.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
Government guidance published by MHCLG sets out that the provision of planning permission related to flag-flying is a matter for the relevant local authority.
As such, the Member should direct this question to Westminster City Council and the National Gallery.