Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much has been spent on Bootham Park Hospital (a) security and (b) maintenance and upkeep since its closure as an NHS facility.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The former Bootham Park Hospital site was declared surplus to National Health Service requirements in 2016 and has been vacant since 2018. Returning the property to any operational use is considered unviable, with previous estimates indicating that approximately £75 million would be required to bring it back into economic use.
NHS Property Services, who own the site, invited bids from public bodies and other interested parties in October 2023, but none were received. Separately, a potential purchaser withdrew their interest after securing planning permission for redevelopment that included significant public benefits alongside a commitment that 50% of sale proceeds will be reinvested into the local health system. Since its closure, combined holding costs for security, maintenance, and upkeep have totalled approximately £5.5 million, reflecting the management of a Grade I heritage asset in line with Historic England and Cabinet Office guidance.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of Botham Park Hospital being used as an asset for community use.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The former Bootham Park Hospital site was declared surplus to National Health Service requirements in 2016 and has been vacant since 2018. Returning the property to any operational use is considered unviable, with previous estimates indicating that approximately £75 million would be required to bring it back into economic use.
NHS Property Services, who own the site, invited bids from public bodies and other interested parties in October 2023, but none were received. Separately, a potential purchaser withdrew their interest after securing planning permission for redevelopment that included significant public benefits alongside a commitment that 50% of sale proceeds will be reinvested into the local health system. Since its closure, combined holding costs for security, maintenance, and upkeep have totalled approximately £5.5 million, reflecting the management of a Grade I heritage asset in line with Historic England and Cabinet Office guidance.
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, with reference to the Answer of 15 December 2025 to Question HL12628 on Chinese Embassy: Planning Permission, if he will make it his policy not to determine the planning application until the full unredacted internal drawings requested by his Department on 6 August 2025 have been provided by the applicant.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
My Department does not comment on live planning cases. The full reasons for the decision will be set out in the final decision letter.
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, what planning weight can decision-makers give to the emerging policy in the draft National Planning Policy Framework of 16 December 2025 during the consultation period.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The proposed changes to the National Planning Policy Framework published in draft on 16 December are subject to consultation prior to being finalised.
It is at the discretion of individual decision makers as whether any weight should be given to the proposals during this period, taking into account their status as draft policies.
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 17 December 2025, to Question HL12631, on Universal Studios: Bedfordshire, who is the designated Planning Minister for the Chinese Embassy called-in planning application decision.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the Rt Hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 62966 on 7 July 2025.
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 8 December 2025, to Question HL12352, on Chinese Embassy: Planning Permission, for what policy reason a Section 321 direction was not issued in this instance.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
My Department does not comment on live planning cases. The full reasons for the decision will be set out in the final decision letter.
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, what guidance the (a) Government and (b) Planning Inspectorate has given to local planning authorities and inspectors on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the planning policy in relation to (i) retrospective planning applications and (ii) unauthorised development.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Neither the government nor the Planning Inspectorate has issued guidance to local planning authorities on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in relation to retrospective planning applications and unauthorised development.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
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 removing Sport England as a statutory consultee in the planning system on the protection of community playing fields; whether he plans to publish his Department's impact assessment on moving Sport England as a statutory consultee in the planning system; and what mechanisms he intends to put in place to safeguard community sports provision should the current statutory consultation arrangements be changed.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
On 17 November 2025, my Department published a consultation on reforms to the statutory consultee system. That consultation closes on 13 January 2026 and can be found on gov.uk here.
No decision will be made on Sport England’s role until responses to the consultation have been fully analysed and considered.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to Section 51 of the Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025, when he will lay regulations to delegate the power to set fees for planning applications to local planning authorities.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Planning and Infrastructure Act provides the Secretary of State with the power to delegate the setting of planning fees to local planning authorities.
The process for local fee setting will be set out in regulations this year. We will shortly also be consulting on a national default fee, which will be the baseline from which local planning authorities can vary and set their own fees.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
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 merits of natural language processing and AI‑assisted tagging to reduce consultation processing times for local planning authorities.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Through my Department’s PropTech Innovation Fund, the government is funding local planning authorities to use digital citizen engagement tools, including interactive maps and 3D models, alongside leveraging AI to summarise consultation responses. Our case studies on Local Digital (see here) and gov.uk (see here) demonstrate how these can increase the quantity and quality of community engagement in respect of local plans and new developments, including reaching younger residents.
My Department plans to launch a sixth round of the PropTech Innovation Fund in early 2026. The Fund is evaluated as a part of the Digital Planning Programme.
Local planning authorities take a hybrid approach to public consultation, combining digital tools with traditional methods like in-person engagement, to ensure consultations are accessible and inclusively incorporate the views of those unable to participate in digital consultations. We have published guidance on gov.uk (see here) and a Digital Citizen Engagement toolkit (see here) to support authorities to adopt and use digital tools. Our Planning Capacity and Capability programme continues to develop its means of supporting authorities to ensure they have the skills they need both now and in the future.
The new plan-making system that we are shortly commencing is designed not only to ensure that local plans are faster to prepare and simpler for end users to access and understand but to improve community engagement. We will publish further guidance and provide further support to help local planning authorities engage with communities effectively under the new system.