Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 2 February 2026 to Question 107987 on Planning Permission, whether his Department holds a list of (a) councils with Article 4 directions in force and (b) types of development Article 4 directions apply to.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
While Local Planning Authorities are required to send a copy of all Article 4 directions to the Secretary of State when made, my Department does not hold a record of those currently in force.
A full list of permitted development rights is set out in Schedule 2 to the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015.
Asked by: Kevin Hollinrake (Conservative - Thirsk and Malton)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 5 February 2026, to Question 108681, on Chinese Embassy: Planning Permission, if he will list each developer or applicant that has been given clarification meetings or pre-application engagement since July 2024.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Since July 2024, officials have undertaken pre-application engagement with:
Engagement in these instances related to prospective Crown or Urgent Crown applications, and carried out in accordance with planning propriety guidance.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what the planning use class is of a data centre; and whether change of use planning permission is required for an office to become a data centre.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
What use class any given proposal for a data centre will fall into will depend on the individual circumstances of the case.
An application for planning permission will generally be needed in order to change use of an office to a data centre.
Asked by: Lord Banner (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the reasons for the backlog of cases in the Planning Court concerning challenges to planning permissions granted under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990; and what solutions they are considering to address the backlog.
Answered by Baroness Levitt - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
There is no backlog of cases in the Planning Court concerning challenges to planning permissions granted under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. This position has been confirmed by the Court.
Significant claims in the Planning Court are managed in accordance with the targets set out in the Practice Direction. Other cases in the Planning Court are managed in accordance with the arrangements which apply to claims in the Administrative Court. The Planning Liaison Judge oversees claims in the Planning Court and ensures these are progressed efficiently.
Asked by: Pippa Heylings (Liberal Democrat - South Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask the Solicitor General, whether she has had discussions with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on the evidential requirements applied to planning applicants claiming exemption from the mandatory biodiversity gain condition under Article 7 of the Town and Country Planning (Development Management Procedure) (England) Order 2015.
Answered by Ellie Reeves - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
The Solicitor General has not had any such discussions.
Asked by: Pippa Heylings (Liberal Democrat - South Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask the Solicitor General, whether she has had discussions with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on the potential impact of proposed exemptions to Biodiversity Net Gain requirements on the Government’s statutory environmental targets.
Answered by Ellie Reeves - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
The Solicitor General has had no such discussions.
Asked by: Andrew George (Liberal Democrat - St Ives)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that reforms to planning permission are matched by improvements to the processes for acquiring land and rights over land, so that grid connection projects are not delayed by unresolved land rights issues.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
DESNZ has worked closely with stakeholders to understand the extent to which current land access, rights and consents processes delay and add costs to rollout of electricity network infrastructure required for delivering clean power by 2030 and accelerating the UK’s transition to Net zero.
This has included looking at where there might be opportunities to learn from approaches to other utilities.
Government’s assessment was set out in a consultation in Summer 2025 on proposed reforms to these processes. We expect to publish the response in the coming quarter.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether guidance has been provided to (a) local authorities and (b) councillors on predetermination in planning in relation to (i) Local Plans and (ii) planning applications.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Section 25 of the Localism Act 2011 deals with the matter of predetermination of decisions by councillors.
The Local Government Association has provided guidance for councillors as to how this applies to decisions on planning applications and local plan policy. This guidance can be found on gov.uk here.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 12 February 2026, to Question 111132, on Planning Permission: Disclosure of Information, if he will list the full title, data, local authority and reference number of the two planning applications that were subject to Section 321 directions.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Section 321 Directions were issued in respect of applications at:
The Pavilions, Sandy Lane, Runcorn, WA7 4EX, Halton Borough Council (Reference: 17/00468/FUL) made on 26 February 2017 and withdrawn on 17 January 2022.
Heath Business and Technical Park, Heath Road South, Runcorn, WA7 4QX, Halton Borough Council (Reference: 22/00569/OUT) made on 23 March 2024, called in for Ministerial determination on 19 September 2024, and decision issued on 9 March 2026.
Both Directions were issued at the request of the Health and Safety Executive.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
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 potential impact of removing Sport England as a statutory planning consultee on the future provision of playing fields, pitches and community sports facilities.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Members to the answers given to Questions UIN 103087 on 13 January 2026, and UIN 112696 on 2 March 2026.