Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to introduce legislation to establish local versions of the Public Accounts Committee.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government remains committed to enhancing accountability and scrutiny of local public spending in Strategic Authorities.

The English Devolution White Paper outlines the government’s ambition to go further in this area, including exploring a Local Public Accounts Committee model. It remains our ambition to do this. We are developing policy options on this, working with Mayoral Combined Authorities to test our thinking. The Government will confirm its policy approach and any supporting legislation that may be required to advance these in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what information her Department holds on the number of planning applications that have been granted by each local authority in each of the last 12 months.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The number of planning applications granted per quarter is published in the Department’s quarterly planning applications statistical release which can be found on gov.uk here.

The number of planning applications granted by each local planning authority in the 12 months to 31 March 2025 for district matters is available in live table P134.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when the consultation on planning guidance including the provision of swift bricks will (a) commence and (b) complete.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

My Department has already published updated Planning Practice Guidance setting out how swift bricks are expected to be used in new development. This outlines that developments should include swift bricks where possible, with the general aim across a development of a minimum of one nest box per unit.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department has had discussions with local authorities on twinning with locations in the Occupied Territories.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Local authority twinning arrangements are matters for those authorities. The department does not routinely discuss such arrangements with local authorities.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to provide support to councils with high levels of financial distress.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 60682 on 24 June 2025 and to the Written Ministerial Statement made on 20 June 2025 entitled Fair Funding Review 2.0 and Modernising and Improving the Administration of Council Tax (HCWS724).

Any council that has concerns about its ability to set or maintain a balanced budget should approach MHCLG in the first instance where we will treat all discussions in confidence, with respect and determination to find a solution together.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what is the role of the (a) planning inspector and (b) local planning authority in determining priority be given to brown field development when a local plan includes (a) brownfield and (b) greenfield sites.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) makes clear that planning policies and decisions should give substantial weight to the value of using suitable brownfield land within settlements for homes and other identified needs.

It is for the decision maker, the local planning authority and/or an Inspector acting on behalf of the Secretary of State, to make planning decisions in accordance with the relevant local development plan unless material considerations indicate otherwise.

The NPPF is a material consideration, and it is for the relevant decision maker to decide the weight to give to relevant policies in light of the specific facts and circumstances of any given case.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of current measures to protect public green spaces from (a) unauthorised encampments and (b) environmental damage.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The designation of land as Local Green Space through local and neighbourhood plans allows communities to identify and protect green areas of particular importance to them.

Local plans are expected to identify, map and safeguard locally designated sites of importance for biodiversity, including Local Wildlife Sites.

Local planning authorities already have a wide range of enforcement powers, with strong penalties for non-compliance, which they can use to tackle all types of unauthorised development. We will keep the use of these powers under review.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what proportion of (a) emergency and (b) long-term accommodation has been allocated to (i) asylum seekers and (ii) foreign nationals in the last 12 months.

Answered by Rushanara Ali

The Home Office publishes data on individuals placed in accommodation in the gov.uk ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on asylum seekers in receipt of support, individuals under the Homes for Ukraine scheme, and those resettled via the Afghan Resettlement Programme, is published in table Reg_02 of the gov.uk ‘Regional and local authority data’, including breakdowns by accommodation type.

The department does not hold data on how many foreign nationals are accommodated in emergency or long-term accommodation.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of neighbourhood planning policies in involving local communities in the planning process.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

As set out in Paragraph 30 of the National Planning Policy Framework, neighbourhood planning gives communities the power to develop a shared vision for their area. Neighbourhood plans can shape, direct, and help to deliver sustainable development, by influencing local planning decisions as part of the statutory development plan.

The government remains of the view that neighbourhood plans can play an important role in the planning system. Communities can continue to prepare neighbourhood plans where they consider that doing so is in their best interests.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department is taking steps to help ensure that developers take account of adopted neighbourhood plans.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government remains of the view that neighbourhood plans can play an important role in the planning system.

Once passed at referendum, neighbourhood plans form part of the statutory development plan for the local area which is the basis for making decisions on planning applications.

The National Planning Policy Framework makes clear that where a planning application conflicts with an up-to-date development plan (including any neighbourhood plans), permission should not usually be granted.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to ensure new developments are safe and accessible for pedestrians.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Housing within Scotland is a matter for the Scottish Government.

In England, the National Planning Policy Framework makes clear that when assessing sites that may be allocated in local development plans, or specific applications for development, it should be ensured that safe and suitable access to the site can be achieved for all users.

The Framework also sets out that applications for development should give priority first to pedestrian and cycle movements, both within the scheme and with neighbouring areas, and should create places that are safe, secure, and attractive and which minimise scope for conflicts between pedestrians, cyclists, and vehicles.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the required infrastructure has to be provided before or in parallel with the development when releasing greenbelt land for development.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The revised National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) published on 12 December 2024 makes clear that ‘Golden Rules’ should apply to major development including the provision of housing on land released from the Green Belt through plan preparation or review, or on sites in the Green Belt subject to a planning application. These ‘Golden Rules’ include necessary improvements to local or national infrastructure.

The point at which infrastructure is delivered is a matter for local planning authorities and will depend on the nature of the site. Requirements can be set out as planning conditions or agreed through section 106 planning obligations.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate her Department has made of the value of financial contributions secured through agreements under section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 in each of the last five years in (a) England, (b) Lancashire and (c) Fylde constituency.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Local Planning Authorities are required to publish an annual Infrastructure Funding Statement detailing developer contributions received through section 106 planning obligations or the Community Infrastructure Levy.

Infrastructure Funding Statements for Fylde can be found here.

There is no statutory requirement for a consolidated Infrastructure Funding Statement for England to be published, and one has not been published to date.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department has made an estimate of the number of empty homes owned by (a) local authorities, (b) the Government Property Agency and (c) other parts of central government.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The number of local authority owned homes that are empty in each local authority in England can be found in Live Table 615 here on vacant dwellings in England at local authority district level. Figures in this table show vacant dwellings owned by local authorities within each local authority area in England.

The latest published statistics refer to vacant dwellings owned by local authorities in England on 31 March 2024, including homes earmarked for sale or demolition, or awaiting or undergoing major repairs.

My Department does not hold figures specifically for homes owned by the Government Property Agency or other parts of central government.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department is taking steps to assess the potential merits of extending UK Shared Prosperity Fund support since the spending review.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government is introducing a new, targeted approach to support regional growth, tackle deprivation, and restore pride to communities. Following March 2026, the UK Shared Prosperity Fund will end and will be replaced by the local growth fund for specific city regions in England, and communities funding, including the Plan for Neighbourhoods.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many (a) wards and (b) super output areas are within the top (i) 1%, (ii) 5% and (iii) 10% for deprivation in Telford constituency.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government uses the English Indices of Deprivation, most recently published in 2019, to assess relative levels of deprivation across small areas in England. These indices are based on Lower-layer Super Output Areas (LSOAs), which are statistical geographies designed to improve the reporting of small area statistics typically containing between 400 and 1,200 households.

According to the latest available data:

In the Telford constituency, there are:

1. 2 LSOA within the top 1% most deprived areas in England
2. 7 LSOAs within the top 5% most deprived,
3. and 6 LSOAs within the top 10% most deprived.

The government continues to work with local partners to address deprivation and support communities through targeted investment and regeneration programmes.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to ensure adequate (a) welfare and (b) safeguarding protections for (i) elderly, (ii) vulnerable and (iii) other residents of mobile home sites.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Park homes are predominantly for those who can live independently. They are not specifically designated for particular groups or those with specific needs, though the evidence suggests that most park home residents are older adults. Any welfare or safeguarding concerns should be reported to the local authority’s social services department or, where there is an immediate risk, to the police.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of applying the Decent Homes Standard to affordable housing.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Decent Homes Standard already applies to affordable housing managed by registered providers of social housing.

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 contribution by the hon. Member for St Albans on 9 July 2025, Official Report, column 325WH, whether she plans to make alternative funding available to London Colney Parish Council for the completion of their neighbourhood plan.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Following the Spending Review, my Department announced that it is unable to commission new neighbourhood planning support services for 2025 onwards.

Technical support which has already been awarded will continue to be provided but must be completed before the end of March 2026.

London Colney Parish is not in receipt of such support.

The government remains of the view that neighbourhood plans can play an important role in the planning system. Communities can continue to prepare neighbourhood plans where they consider that doing so is in their best interests.

Parish and Town Councils have access to their own resources which they can choose to use for neighbourhood planning if they wish.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she has made an assessment of the adequacy of Tree Preservation Orders in protecting trees of (a) ecological and (b) historical significance.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Tree Preservation Order framework enables the protection of specific trees or woodlands where their removal would have a significant negative impact on the local environment and its enjoyment by the public.

Local planning authorities can make a Tree Preservation Order if it appears to them to be “expedient in the interests of amenity to make provision for the preservation of trees or woodlands in their area”, and in doing this are advised to consider a range of factors including historic value and importance for nature conservation.

An Order makes it an offence to cut down, prune, uproot, wilfully damage, or wilfully destroy a tree covered by that Order without the local planning authority’s written permission. Anyone who contravenes an Order is guilty of an offence and may be fined.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of levels of immigration on the availability of (a) social housing and (b) private rental housing stock over the next Parliament.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government is determined to address the dire inheritance left by its predecessor and restore order to the asylum and immigration systems, delivering lower net migration.

The factors affecting supply and demand in the private rented sector are complex and difficult to disentangle. As well as demographic change, they include house prices, rent levels, taxation policy, interest rates, and the movement of tenants into homeownership and social rented housing. It is not possible to isolate the specific impact of each of these factors.

Eligibility for social housing is already tightly controlled. If a person’s visa means that they cannot access state benefits or local authority housing assistance, they are not eligible for an allocation of social housing. Migrants arriving in the UK on student or work visas are not eligible and nor are those who arrive in the country illegally with no leave to remain.

The most sustainable long-term method to improve housing availability and affordability is to increase the supply of housing. That is why the government’s Plan for Change includes a hugely ambitious milestone of building 1.5 million safe and decent homes in England in this Parliament.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how her Department monitors whether contributions from agreements under section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 are spent (a) within agreed timeframes and (b) on the purposes specified in those agreements.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Supporting local planning authorities (LPAs) to attract, retain and develop skilled planners is crucial to ensuring they provide a proactive, efficient planning service for local communities and that new developments are well designed and facilitate local growth.

The government appreciates that planning departments across the country are experiencing challenges with recruitment, retention, and skills gaps and that in many cases these issues are having a negative impact on service delivery.

At the Budget last year, the Chanceller announced a £46 million package of investment into the planning system as a one-year settlement for 2025-2026.

Our manifesto committed us to appointing 300 new planning officers into LPAs. We are on track to meet that commitment through two routes, namely graduate recruitment through the Pathways to Planning scheme run by the Local Government Association and mid-career recruitment through Public Practice.

On 27 February 2025, the government announced funding to support salaries and complement graduate bursaries. Further information can be found in the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 27 February 2025 (HCWS480).

On 12 March 2025, the Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications, Deemed Applications, Requests and Site Visits) (England) (Amendment and Transitional Provision) Regulations 2025 were made. These regulations increase planning fees for householder and other applications, with a view to providing much-needed additional resources for hard-pressed LPAs.

More broadly, the Department’s established Planning Capacity and Capability programme is also developing a wider programme of support, working with partners across the planning sector, to ensure that LPAs have the skills and capacity they need, both now and in the future, to modernise local plans and speed up decision making, including through innovative use of digital planning data and software.

Lastly, the Planning and Infrastructure Bill includes provisions that will allow LPAs to set planning fees or charges at a level that reflects the individual costs to the LPA to carry out the function for which it is imposed and to ensure that the income from planning fees or charges is applied towards the delivery of the planning function.

Planning practice guidance on planning obligations makes clear that it may be appropriate in some cases for LPAs to make use of collaborative agreements, skills of officers from other LPAs, or external third-party experts to ensure planning obligations can be agreed quickly and effectively.

The relevant PPG also encourages local planning authorities to use and publish standard forms and templates to assist with the process of agreeing planning obligations.

On 28 May 2025, the government published the Planning Reform Working Paper: Reforming Site Thresholds (which can be found on gov.uk here) which sought views on a number of specific proposals including standardised S106 templates and the rules relating to suitable off-site provision and/or appropriate financial payment.

Local planning authorities are required to keep a copy of any planning obligation – together with details of any modification or discharge of that obligation – and to make these publicly available on their planning register. In addition, any local planning authority that has received a contribution from development through section 106 planning obligations is legally required to publish an Infrastructure Funding Statement at least annually, which sets out how developer contributions are used to fund local priorities. On 26 June, the Chief Planner wrote to all LPAs reminding them of their statutory duty to publish an Infrastructure Funding Statement where applicable.

Authorities can charge a monitoring fee through section 106 planning obligations, to cover the cost of monitoring and reporting on delivery for the lifetime of that obligation. Authorities must report on monitoring fees in their Infrastructure Funding Statements.

The government is committed to strengthening the system of developer contributions to ensure new developments provide necessary affordable homes and infrastructure. Further details will be set out in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will require local planning authorities to publish (a) agreements under section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 and (b) related compliance information in (i) standardised and (ii) accessible formats.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Supporting local planning authorities (LPAs) to attract, retain and develop skilled planners is crucial to ensuring they provide a proactive, efficient planning service for local communities and that new developments are well designed and facilitate local growth.

The government appreciates that planning departments across the country are experiencing challenges with recruitment, retention, and skills gaps and that in many cases these issues are having a negative impact on service delivery.

At the Budget last year, the Chanceller announced a £46 million package of investment into the planning system as a one-year settlement for 2025-2026.

Our manifesto committed us to appointing 300 new planning officers into LPAs. We are on track to meet that commitment through two routes, namely graduate recruitment through the Pathways to Planning scheme run by the Local Government Association and mid-career recruitment through Public Practice.

On 27 February 2025, the government announced funding to support salaries and complement graduate bursaries. Further information can be found in the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 27 February 2025 (HCWS480).

On 12 March 2025, the Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications, Deemed Applications, Requests and Site Visits) (England) (Amendment and Transitional Provision) Regulations 2025 were made. These regulations increase planning fees for householder and other applications, with a view to providing much-needed additional resources for hard-pressed LPAs.

More broadly, the Department’s established Planning Capacity and Capability programme is also developing a wider programme of support, working with partners across the planning sector, to ensure that LPAs have the skills and capacity they need, both now and in the future, to modernise local plans and speed up decision making, including through innovative use of digital planning data and software.

Lastly, the Planning and Infrastructure Bill includes provisions that will allow LPAs to set planning fees or charges at a level that reflects the individual costs to the LPA to carry out the function for which it is imposed and to ensure that the income from planning fees or charges is applied towards the delivery of the planning function.

Planning practice guidance on planning obligations makes clear that it may be appropriate in some cases for LPAs to make use of collaborative agreements, skills of officers from other LPAs, or external third-party experts to ensure planning obligations can be agreed quickly and effectively.

The relevant PPG also encourages local planning authorities to use and publish standard forms and templates to assist with the process of agreeing planning obligations.

On 28 May 2025, the government published the Planning Reform Working Paper: Reforming Site Thresholds (which can be found on gov.uk here) which sought views on a number of specific proposals including standardised S106 templates and the rules relating to suitable off-site provision and/or appropriate financial payment.

Local planning authorities are required to keep a copy of any planning obligation – together with details of any modification or discharge of that obligation – and to make these publicly available on their planning register. In addition, any local planning authority that has received a contribution from development through section 106 planning obligations is legally required to publish an Infrastructure Funding Statement at least annually, which sets out how developer contributions are used to fund local priorities. On 26 June, the Chief Planner wrote to all LPAs reminding them of their statutory duty to publish an Infrastructure Funding Statement where applicable.

Authorities can charge a monitoring fee through section 106 planning obligations, to cover the cost of monitoring and reporting on delivery for the lifetime of that obligation. Authorities must report on monitoring fees in their Infrastructure Funding Statements.

The government is committed to strengthening the system of developer contributions to ensure new developments provide necessary affordable homes and infrastructure. Further details will be set out in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that local planning authorities have adequate resources to (a) negotiate, (b) monitor and (c) enforce agreements under section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Supporting local planning authorities (LPAs) to attract, retain and develop skilled planners is crucial to ensuring they provide a proactive, efficient planning service for local communities and that new developments are well designed and facilitate local growth.

The government appreciates that planning departments across the country are experiencing challenges with recruitment, retention, and skills gaps and that in many cases these issues are having a negative impact on service delivery.

At the Budget last year, the Chanceller announced a £46 million package of investment into the planning system as a one-year settlement for 2025-2026.

Our manifesto committed us to appointing 300 new planning officers into LPAs. We are on track to meet that commitment through two routes, namely graduate recruitment through the Pathways to Planning scheme run by the Local Government Association and mid-career recruitment through Public Practice.

On 27 February 2025, the government announced funding to support salaries and complement graduate bursaries. Further information can be found in the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 27 February 2025 (HCWS480).

On 12 March 2025, the Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications, Deemed Applications, Requests and Site Visits) (England) (Amendment and Transitional Provision) Regulations 2025 were made. These regulations increase planning fees for householder and other applications, with a view to providing much-needed additional resources for hard-pressed LPAs.

More broadly, the Department’s established Planning Capacity and Capability programme is also developing a wider programme of support, working with partners across the planning sector, to ensure that LPAs have the skills and capacity they need, both now and in the future, to modernise local plans and speed up decision making, including through innovative use of digital planning data and software.

Lastly, the Planning and Infrastructure Bill includes provisions that will allow LPAs to set planning fees or charges at a level that reflects the individual costs to the LPA to carry out the function for which it is imposed and to ensure that the income from planning fees or charges is applied towards the delivery of the planning function.

Planning practice guidance on planning obligations makes clear that it may be appropriate in some cases for LPAs to make use of collaborative agreements, skills of officers from other LPAs, or external third-party experts to ensure planning obligations can be agreed quickly and effectively.

The relevant PPG also encourages local planning authorities to use and publish standard forms and templates to assist with the process of agreeing planning obligations.

On 28 May 2025, the government published the Planning Reform Working Paper: Reforming Site Thresholds (which can be found on gov.uk here) which sought views on a number of specific proposals including standardised S106 templates and the rules relating to suitable off-site provision and/or appropriate financial payment.

Local planning authorities are required to keep a copy of any planning obligation – together with details of any modification or discharge of that obligation – and to make these publicly available on their planning register. In addition, any local planning authority that has received a contribution from development through section 106 planning obligations is legally required to publish an Infrastructure Funding Statement at least annually, which sets out how developer contributions are used to fund local priorities. On 26 June, the Chief Planner wrote to all LPAs reminding them of their statutory duty to publish an Infrastructure Funding Statement where applicable.

Authorities can charge a monitoring fee through section 106 planning obligations, to cover the cost of monitoring and reporting on delivery for the lifetime of that obligation. Authorities must report on monitoring fees in their Infrastructure Funding Statements.

The government is committed to strengthening the system of developer contributions to ensure new developments provide necessary affordable homes and infrastructure. Further details will be set out in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of (a) urban design and (b) architecture skills in local planning authorities; and what steps she is taking to improve those skills.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Supporting local planning authorities to attract, retain and develop skilled planners is crucial to ensuring they provide a proactive, efficient planning service for local communities and that new developments are well designed and facilitate local growth.

The government appreciates that planning departments across the country are experiencing challenges with recruitment, retention, and skills gaps and that in many cases these issues are having a negative impact on service delivery.

At the Budget last year, the Chanceller announced a £46 million package of investment into the planning system as a one-year settlement for 2025-2026.

Our manifesto committed us to appointing 300 new planning officers into LPAs. We are on track to meet that commitment through two routes, namely graduate recruitment through the Pathways to Planning scheme run by the Local Government Association and mid-career recruitment through Public Practice.

On 27 February 2025, the government announced funding to support salaries and complement graduate bursaries. Further information can be found in the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 27 February 2025 (HCWS480).

On 25 February 2025, the draft Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications, Deemed Applications, Requests and Site Visits) (England) (Amendment and Transitional Provision) Regulations 2025 were agreed. These regulations increase planning fees for householder and other applications, with a view to providing much-needed additional resources for hard-pressed LPAs.

More broadly, the Department’s established Planning Capacity and Capability programme is also developing a wider programme of support, working with partners across the planning sector, to ensure that LPAs have the skills and capacity they need, both now and in the future, to modernise local plans and speed up decision making, including through innovative use of digital planning data and software.

Lastly, the Planning and Infrastructure Bill includes provisions that will allow LPAs to set planning fees or charges at a level that reflects the individual costs to the LPA to carry out the function for which it is imposed and to ensure that the income from planning fees or charges is applied towards the delivery of the planning function.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what additional funding she plans to provide to planning departments in local authorities in 2025-26.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Supporting local planning authorities to attract, retain and develop skilled planners is crucial to ensuring they provide a proactive, efficient planning service for local communities and that new developments are well designed and facilitate local growth.

The government appreciates that planning departments across the country are experiencing challenges with recruitment, retention, and skills gaps and that in many cases these issues are having a negative impact on service delivery.

At the Budget last year, the Chanceller announced a £46 million package of investment into the planning system as a one-year settlement for 2025-2026.

Our manifesto committed us to appointing 300 new planning officers into LPAs. We are on track to meet that commitment through two routes, namely graduate recruitment through the Pathways to Planning scheme run by the Local Government Association and mid-career recruitment through Public Practice.

On 27 February 2025, the government announced funding to support salaries and complement graduate bursaries. Further information can be found in the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 27 February 2025 (HCWS480).

On 25 February 2025, the draft Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications, Deemed Applications, Requests and Site Visits) (England) (Amendment and Transitional Provision) Regulations 2025 were agreed. These regulations increase planning fees for householder and other applications, with a view to providing much-needed additional resources for hard-pressed LPAs.

More broadly, the Department’s established Planning Capacity and Capability programme is also developing a wider programme of support, working with partners across the planning sector, to ensure that LPAs have the skills and capacity they need, both now and in the future, to modernise local plans and speed up decision making, including through innovative use of digital planning data and software.

Lastly, the Planning and Infrastructure Bill includes provisions that will allow LPAs to set planning fees or charges at a level that reflects the individual costs to the LPA to carry out the function for which it is imposed and to ensure that the income from planning fees or charges is applied towards the delivery of the planning function.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to help ensure that local government bodies adopt (a) common data standards and (b) open Application Programming Interfaces.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

MHCLG are supporting data standards initiatives to ensure that local government bodies can effectively adopt common data standards and open APIs, to enhance service delivery and interoperability. This includes the Open Referral UK and SAVVI data standards for community services and vulnerable people.

MHCLG’s Digital Planning Programme is working with local planning authorities to adopt common data standards; to provide better access to planning data, improve data quality and to make more data open, to achieve our digital ambitions and make the planning system more efficient. The Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 includes planning data powers, and MHCLG will be introducing data standards for planning data via secondary legislation.

MHCLG are supported by the Government Digital Service on the API programme, which publishes API technical and data standards for all public sector organisations to follow, including local authorities.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much HM Land Registry has spent on equipment to enable staff to work from home in each of the last three years.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Following the coronavirus pandemic, HM Land Registry (HMLR) has enabled all staff to work both from home and from the office in line with the government’s 60% office attendance requirements.

Heads of departments have agreed that 60% minimum office attendance for most staff continues to be the best balance of working for the Civil Service.

As part of this change, HMLR has, through its standard IT and equipment refresh programme, provided all staff with laptops and the necessary equipment to enable them to work in a hybrid fashion. This is now the standard departmental provision of equipment and as such the majority of the associated costs are not specific to home working.

As part of this approach, HMLR offers new staff appropriate furniture and peripheral IT equipment to enable them to work at home as part of this hybrid arrangement. It is estimated that this can cost up to £500 per person and is based upon need.

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 20 June 2025 to Question 59354 on Planning Permissions: Carbon Emissions, how she plans to update the climate change guidance to provide additional advice on taking carbon emissions into account.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The updated guidance will be published in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the new affordable housing programme will include (a) bringing empty homes back into use, (b) the acquisition of existing built properties and (c) traveller pitches.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement made on 2 July (HCWS771).

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what information her Department holds on the (a) number and (b) proportion of people granted asylum status who are living in the private rented sector.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

My Department does not hold data on the number, or the proportion, of people granted asylum who are living in the private rented sector.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she has taken to increase local planning capacity.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Supporting local planning authorities to attract, retain and develop skilled planners is crucial to ensuring they provide a proactive, efficient planning service for local communities and that new developments are well designed and facilitate local growth.

The government appreciates that planning departments across the country are experiencing challenges with recruitment, retention, and skills gaps and that in many cases these issues are having a negative impact on service delivery.

At the Budget last year, the Chanceller announced a £46 million package of investment into the planning system as a one-year settlement for 2025-2026.

Our manifesto committed us to appointing 300 new planning officers into LPAs. We are on track to meet that commitment through two routes, namely graduate recruitment through the Pathways to Planning scheme run by the Local Government Association and mid-career recruitment through Public Practice.

On 27 February 2025, the government announced funding to support salaries and complement graduate bursaries. Further information can be found in the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 27 February 2025 (HCWS480).

On 25 February 2025, the draft Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications, Deemed Applications, Requests and Site Visits) (England) (Amendment and Transitional Provision) Regulations 2025 were agreed. These regulations increase planning fees for householder and other applications, with a view to providing much-needed additional resources for hard-pressed LPAs.

More broadly, the Department’s established Planning Capacity and Capability programme is also developing a wider programme of support, working with partners across the planning sector, to ensure that LPAs have the skills and capacity they need, both now and in the future, to modernise local plans and speed up decision making, including through innovative use of digital planning data and software.

Lastly, the Planning and Infrastructure Bill includes provisions that will allow LPAs to set planning fees or charges at a level that reflects the individual costs to the LPA to carry out the function for which it is imposed and to ensure that the income from planning fees or charges is applied towards the delivery of the planning function.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of introducing license-based occupancy contracts for specialist housing for older people.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government is committed to enhancing provision and choice for older people in the housing market and we will continue to consider this issue as we develop our long-term housing strategy, which will be published later this year.

As set out in the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 26 November 2024 (HCWS249), the government is giving careful consideration to the recommendations from the Older People’s Housing Taskforce report including in relation to specialist accommodation for older people.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much funding her Department plans to provide for brownfield remediation in the (a) 2025-26 and (b) 2026-27 financial year.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government is making available over £1.8bn of grant funding for land and infrastructure in 2025/26.

We will launch the National Housing Delivery Fund in 2026/27. Its c.£5bn of capital grant funding will be available across the four financial years from 2026/27 to 2029/30.

As per the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 18 June 2025 (HCWS712), we are also intend to establish a new, permanent National Housing Bank to act as the government’s investment arm.

We also intend to establish a new, permanent National Housing Bank to act as the government’s investment arm. The Bank will have an initial allocation of £16 billion of new financial capacity.

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 19 May 2025 to Question 51399 on Embassies: China, whether (a) MI5, (b) GCHQ or (c) MI6 have made any direct representations to (i) the planning inspector and (ii) her Department on the proposed Chinese Embassy.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Representations on planning applications are dealt with in accordance with paragraphs 18, 19 and 20 of the published propriety guidance on planning casework decisions which can be found on gov.uk here

All Inquiry documents including representations to the Inquiry are publicly available on Tower Hamlets website here.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what her planned timetable is for the (a) completion of the remaining stages and (b) implementation of the provisions of the Renters Rights Bill.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Renters’ Rights Bill is currently progressing through the House of Lords. Report stage concluded on 15 July. Third Reading is scheduled for 21 July and the dates for the remaining stages of the Bill will be announced in due course.

Upon the commencement date, the new tenancy system provided for by the Bill will apply to all private tenancies - existing tenancies will become periodic, and any new tenancies will be governed by the new rules.

We will provide sufficient notice and will work closely with tenants groups and the landlord and lettings sector ahead of implementation.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of existing flood-related resources for fire and rescue services; and whether she plans to increase guaranteed resources.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Protecting communities from flooding is a key priority for this government. Fire and Rescue Authorities already have duties under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 to prepare for emergencies, including major flooding. However, we recognise the interest in creating a statutory duty for flood rescue and officials are working with DEFRA, as lead government department for flooding, to consider the wider implications of this.

MHCLG supports Fire and Rescue Authorities in responding to flood incidents by providing national resilience High Volume Pump (HVP) capabilities. These are available to be used by Fire & Rescue Services across the country during major flood incidents. Additionally, DEFRA hold the Flood Rescue National Asset Register, a list of teams or assets that voluntarily join the register and maintain availability for national deployment in England.

The 2025/26 Local Government Finance Settlement set out funding allocations for all local authorities, including Fire and Rescue Authorities (FRAs). Standalone FRAs will see an increase in core spending power of up to £69.1m in 2025/26.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the provision of (a) affordable and (b) social housing for key workers in North Cornwall constituency.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government recognises the need for social and affordable housing for key workers in North Cornwall and other areas.

The revised National Planning Policy Framework published on 12 December 2024 makes clear that local planning authorities should assess the size, type, and tenure of homes needed, including for those who require affordable housing, and to reflect this in their planning policies. When identifying affordable housing need in their areas, the Framework makes clear that local planning authorities should incorporate the minimum proportion of Social Rent homes required.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department plans to take to improve the quality of private rented accommodation.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Renters’ Rights Bill enables the Decent Homes Standard to be applied to the private rented sector for the first time and provides local authorities with effective and proportionate powers to enforce it.

The Bill will allow ‘Awaab’s Law’ to be applied to the private rented sector. It will enable timeframes to be set out in regulations within which private rented sector landlords and licensors must make homes safe where they contain serious hazards.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what the estimated cash increase in business rate revenue in England is in 2025-26 as a consequence of the reduction in retail, hospitality and leisure rate relief.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Local authority forecasts of the cost of Retail, Hospitality and Leisure relief are published on gov.uk here.

The change in the value of relief is an indicator of the increased revenue from the reduction of the relief rate.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what mechanisms exist for residents to report breaches of the fit and proper person requirements (a) anonymously and (b) safely; and what steps her Department is taking to ensure that those mechanisms are effective.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The fit and proper person test, which applies to a site owner or the person appointed to manage a park homes site, is aimed at ensuring that those managing park home sites are competent to do so. Local authorities are responsible for assessing this test and enforcing against breaches of the legislation.

Anyone who has concerns about a site owner’s conduct or capability should contact the local authority. Concerns can be shared anonymously in writing or by phone, however it is for each authority to decide how they treat anonymous reports.

If, after a person has been included in the register, new evidence relevant to the person's inclusion in the register becomes available, the local authority may decide to remove them from the register or impose additional conditions that must be met to retain their entry on the register.

Where properly applied by local authorities, the fit and proper person legislation has been shown to be effective. We will continue to monitor its operation and consider whether any changes are required.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many affordable homes have been built since July 2024.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Statistics on gross additional affordable housing supply in England between April 2024 and March 2025, including the number of affordable homes built, will be published by December 2025.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many brownfield housing starts have been recorded in the last 12 months.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Figures on the number of housing starts specifically on brownfield sites are not centrally collected.

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 April 2025 to Question 41589 Rented Housing: Housing Improvement, whether the First-tier Tribunal takes account of a landlord’s declaration when determining a market rent assessment.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

It is important that means-tested energy efficiency grants schemes are used to benefit tenants. That is why, for example, we have set a clear expectation that landlords should declare that they do not intend to raise rents as a direct result of the upgrades funded by the Warm Homes: Local Grant that was launched in April.

When determining market rent, the First Tier-Tribunal disregards improvements made and funded by the tenant.

However, the Tribunal does not disregard measures funded by landlords, including instances where they may have been partially supported by specific government grants.

We strongly encourage landlords and tenants to communicate early about what adjustments to rent are sustainable for both parties.

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 25 June 2025 to Question 60597 on Neighbourhood Plans, for what reason her Department is unable to commission new neighbourhood planning support services for 2025 onwards.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Following the Spending Review, my Department announced that it is unable to commission new neighbourhood planning support services for 2025 onwards.

After more than a decade of taxpayer support, we believe that support for neighbourhood planning groups should be possible without further government funding.

Parish and Town Councils have access to their own resources which they can choose to use for neighbourhood planning if they wish.

With the end to the national structure for support, planning consultants should be able to innovate and offer groups lower cost support more targeted at their particular ambitions and needs.

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 24 June 2025 to Question 60044 on Cities and Local Growth Unit; why the unit was closed; and whether for what policy reason the joint unit has its functions have been reassigned.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The decision to close the Cities and Local Growth Unit was taken jointly by the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government and Department for Business and Trade to focus resources on the ambitious agendas of both Departments. The Departments continue to work closely on all matters of shared interest.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will publish her Department's response to the Environmental Information Regulations request reference IR2025/10529, of 2 April 2025.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Department's response has already been provided to the applicant who requested the information in question. The government does not routinely publish responses to information requests.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department plans to make flood rescue a statutory duty of the fire and rescue service.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Protecting communities from flooding is a key priority for this government. Fire and Rescue Authorities already have duties under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 to prepare for emergencies, including major flooding. However, we recognise the interest in creating a statutory duty for flood rescue and officials are working with DEFRA, as lead government department for flooding, to consider the wider implications of this.

MHCLG supports Fire and Rescue Authorities in responding to flood incidents by providing national resilience High Volume Pump (HVP) capabilities. These are available to be used by Fire & Rescue Services across the country during major flood incidents. Additionally, DEFRA hold the Flood Rescue National Asset Register, a list of teams or assets that voluntarily join the register and maintain availability for national deployment in England.

The 2025/26 Local Government Finance Settlement set out funding allocations for all local authorities, including Fire and Rescue Authorities (FRAs). Standalone FRAs will see an increase in core spending power of up to £69.1m in 2025/26.

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 26 June 2025 to Question 60843 on Civil Service: Equality, if she will place in the Library a copy of the (a) training and (b) support materials provided to civil servants for the training events held by (i) Inclusive Employers and (ii) Diversify World.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Materials associated with the Inclusive Employers training are the intellectual property of the provider and cannot be published by the Department for contractual reasons.

The Diversify World Black History Month event was a presentation without support materials.

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 publication MHCLG: spending over £25,000, May 2025, published on 30 June 2025, what the purpose was of the ZenCity Polling; and which policy areas it related to.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

MHCLG is utilising ZenCity’s tools to conduct pulse surveys across the 75 communities that are part of the Plan for Neighbourhoods programme.

Polling data will be used to help Plan for Neighbourhood Boards understand local priorities.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the (a) Local Government Association and (b) Parking and Traffic Regulations Outside London statutory joint committee is subject to the (a) Freedom of Information Act 2000 and (b) Environmental Information Regulations.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

My understanding is that both the Local Government Association (LGA) and the Parking and Traffic Regulations Outside London statutory joint committee (PATROL) are subject to the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) and the Environmental Information Regulations 2004.

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 4 July 2025 to Question 62958 on Affordable Housing: West Midlands, when he will publish a figure for the funding that has been allocated to the West Midlands as part of the 10‑year Affordable Homes Programme.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the Rt Hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement made on 2 July (HCWS771).

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many affordable homes she plans to deliver in this Parliament.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the Rt Hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement made on 2 July (HCWS771).

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 24 June 2025 to Question 60132 on Affordable Housing: Finance, and with reference to her Department's publication Delivering a decade of renewal for social affordable housing published on 2 July 2025, what her policy is on the 2026-2036 Social and Affordable Homes Programme being used to help purchase Section 106 affordable units from housing developers; and what the policy was in the 2021-26 Affordable Homes Programme.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government’s new Social and Affordable Homes Programme for 2026/27 to 2035/36, like the 2021-26 Affordable Homes Programme, will support the delivery of social and affordable homes additional to those that developers have committed to delivering through Section 106 agreement. We have no plans to change these arrangements.

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 her publication, Delivering a decade of renewal for social affordable housing, published on 2 July 2025, what estimate she has made of the number of additional affordable homes to be provided in each year under the 2026-2036 Affordable Housing Programme.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 60128.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking through the planning system to support the (a) provision, (b) conversion and (c) construction of family annexes to dwellings.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The planning system already supports the creation of family annexes which are incidental to a dwelling, including their conversion and construction, through permitted development rights.

Where the proposed development is outside the scope of the PDR, a planning application would be required.

The government continues to keep permitted development rights under review.

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 publication MHCLG: spending over £25,000, March 2025, published on 28 April 2025, if she will publish the full specification of the research commissioned from TPXimpact Limited on Research Services.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The spend relates to the build of new technical capability (MS Azure cloud platform) for data science, engineering & analytics work.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department is taking steps to increase the role of neighbourhood plans in the planning process.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government remains of the view that neighbourhood plans can play an important role in the planning system. Communities can continue to prepare neighbourhood plans where they consider that doing so is in their best interests.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on the potential impact of the Future Homes Standard on air pollution emissions from domestic wood burning.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Future Homes Standard (FHS) will require new-build homes to use heat pumps or other low-carbon technologies as their primary heating source, ensuring that almost all the home’s heating needs will be met with low-emission systems. This shift away from fossil fuels will significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions and support improved air quality. The consultation on the FHS did not focus on secondary heating systems or support solid fuel systems, such as wood-burning stoves, as primary heating.

The FHS will update Part L of the Building Regulations. While air quality falls outside the scope of Part L and the FHS, my officials and I work closely with our colleagues at DEFRA to align with broader efforts to tackle air pollution.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the merits of including low cost effective property flood resilience measures in (a) the Future Homes Standard and (b) building regulations.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Government is committed to building the homes the country needs while ensuring they are safe from flooding. The Building Regulations set minimum standards for all new dwellings. The Future Homes Standard will focus on the energy efficiency and carbon emission standards within the Building Regulations and will not encompass flood resilience measures. Statutory guidance to the Building Regulations in Approved Document C promotes the use of flood resilient and resistant construction in flood prone areas, without placing undue costs onto any properties that do not require further flood resilience measures.

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 her Department's consultation document Fair Funding Review 2.0 updated on 23 June 2025, what the funding formula used for the review is.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the hon. Member to chapter 4 of the Fair Funding Review 2.0 consultation which sets out the approach to assessing local authority demand through seven formulae. Government have also published detailed technical annexes for each formula.

We will publish our response to the consultation in the autumn, which will be followed by the publication of the provisional multi-year Settlement.

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 30 June 2025 to Question 62866 on Neighbourhood Plans: Finance, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of this policy on levels of council tax.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Precept levels are decided by parish councils, considering the needs of their community. The government expects parish councils to consider carefully the burden they are placing on local taxpayers.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to support local authorities in delivering UK Shared Prosperity Fund programmes effectively in rural constituencies.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

UKSPF provides a total of £3.5 billion of funding for local investment over four years (2022-26), with all places in the UK receiving an allocation via a funding formula. The Fund has a light-touch delegated delivery model that empowers local authorities to deliver interventions in line with their local priorities, including rural area priorities.

We also administer the Rural England Prosperity Fund via UKSPF (2023-26). It supports activities that specifically address the particular challenges rural areas face. It is complementary to funding used to support rural areas under the UKSPF.

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 her Department's transparency data, MHCLG: spending over £25,000, March 2025 published on 28 April 2025, what was the full specification of the research undertaken by the Faith & Belief Forum on on inter faith.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Department provided funding to the Faith & Belief Forum to lead a national consultation and analysis exercise on Inter Faith Week 2024 and the wider inter faith landscape, to inform the development of future policy and delivery.

I will arrange for the full research specification to be deposited in the House of Commons Library.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of UK Shared Prosperity Fund allocations to Dorset.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

UKSPF provides a total of £3.5 billion of funding for local investment over four years (2022-26), with all places in the UK receiving an allocation via a funding formula.

Dorset Council received £6.01 million (including a £1.58 million Multiply allocation) across 2022-25 and a further £1.45 million of UKSPF funding for 2025-26 to deliver interventions in line with their local priorities.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what information her Department holds on the number of dwellings with planning permission granted where construction has not begun in each London borough.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

My Department does not collect data on the number of dwellings with planning consent that have not yet started construction.

On 25 May, the government published a Planning Reform Working Paper: Speeding Up Build Out (which can be found on gov.uk here) inviting views on further action the government should take to speed up homes being built.

On the same day, we launched a technical consultation on implementing measures to improve the transparency of build rates from new residential development, which includes proposals to implement provisions in Section 113 of the LURA on the power to decline to determine applications. The consultation can be found on gov.uk here. Subject to the outcome of the consultation, the government intends bring forward the regulations to implement these measures at the earliest practical opportunity with the new build out reporting framework coming into force from 2026.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Transport on the powers of councils to improve transport accessibility for people with disabilities.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Secretary of State regularly engages with cabinet colleagues on a range of matters. In line with the practice of successive administrations, details of internal discussions are not normally disclosed.

The National Planning Policy Framework makes clear that when assessing sites that may be allocated in local development plans, or determining specific applications for development, decision makers should ensure that safe and suitable access to the site can be achieved for all users.

The Framework also outlines that applications for development should address the needs of people with disabilities and reduced mobility in relation to all modes of transport.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether local council elections postponed in 2025 will take place in 2026.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 65017 on 14 July 2025.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions she has had with the devolved Administrations on measures to help support leaseholders who experience increases in ground rents.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The legislation governing leasehold ownership currently applies only in England and Wales. The policy area is devolved in Scotland and Northern Ireland, and it would be for the Scottish Government and the Northern Ireland Assembly to determine whether, and how, they might wish to legislate on such matters.

In respect of England and Wales, the government remains firmly committed to its manifesto commitment to tackle unregulated and unaffordable ground rents, and we will deliver this in legislation. We are continuing to work closely with the Welsh government to drive forward our ambitious leasehold and commonhold reform programme.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of suicide prevention training provided to fire and rescue staff.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The health and wellbeing of firefighters is of the utmost importance. The government recognises the risks that firefighters face and is grateful to them for their bravery. Fire and Rescue Authorities (FRAs) are ultimately responsible for the health and wellbeing of firefighters and the government-issued National Framework directs that all Fire and Rescue Authorities should have a people strategy which sets out the mental and physical health and wellbeing support available to firefighters.

National organisations such as The Fire Fighters Charity and Mind also offer valuable support to individuals and services. Their resources can assist Fire and Rescue Authorities in developing local approaches to managing mental health risks and promoting the wellbeing of their workforce.

The health and wellbeing support provided by Fire and Rescue services is considered by the fire inspectorate (His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services) in the course of their work.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she has made an assessment of trends in the level of inappropriate use of parent and child parking bays; and whether she plans to legislate in this area.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government is aware of concerns regarding the abuse of valuable parking resources and is determined to raise standards.

For private land, the Parking (Code of Practice) Act 2019 places a duty on the government to prepare a Code of Practice containing guidance about the operation and management of private parking facilities. On 11 July, the government published a consultation document setting out its proposals for raising standards across the private parking industry.

On public land, Local Authorities are empowered to determine their parking arrangements through the Traffic Management Act 2004, which requires them to ensure that parking policies meet the requirements of their local area.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will consult with the (a) British Federation of Property and (b) Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors on her proposals to ban upward-only rent reviews in commercial leases in England.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government conducted extensive research and engagement before deciding to ban upwards only rent reviews. We will continue to engage with stakeholders including with the British Property Federation and the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans she has to support the development of local industrial strategies for financial and related professional services in Essex.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Greater Essex is part of the Devolution Priority Programme, which aims to see a new Mayoral Strategic Authority established by spring 2026. If a Mayoral Strategic Authority is established, it will need to develop a Local Growth Plan to provide a long-term strategic framework for growth in the region. Foundation Strategic Authorities and Local Authorities in non-devolution are also encouraged to set out a vision for growth in their area that builds on existing local economic strategies where possible. The Industrial Strategy Sector Plans for Financial Services and Professional and Business Services include measures to grow these sectors across the UK.

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 her Department's publication entitled MHCLG: workforce management information, May 2025, published on 27 June 2025, what the total cost of employer National Insurance contributions was in (a) 2023-24 and (b) 2024-25; and what the budgeted figure is for 2025-26.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

With reference to the published workforce management information, Employers’ National Insurance costs for the Department are published monthly and reports covering 2023/24 and 2024/25 can be found here: MHCLG: workforce management information - GOV.UK

With regards to 2025/26, employer National Insurance costs are not separately budgeted for per financial year, as these form part of wider staffing budget assumptions. However, we estimate that the Department’s liability for employer National Insurance contributions will be approximately £26 million. Estimates for this period can vary, as pay awards for MHCLG staff for 2025/26 have not yet been confirmed. The final cost will be influenced by the outcome of these pay awards, as well as any in-year workforce changes.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether there is (a) lesbian, (b) gay and (c) bisexual muslim representation on the Working Group to define Islamophobia.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The independent working group includes members from a cross-section of society and have been selected for their technical expertise and experience and ability to work to deliver the objectives set out in the Terms of Reference. Alongside drawing on their own expertise, the working group are engaging widely to ensure their proposed definition accounts for the variety of backgrounds and experiences of Muslim communities across the United Kingdom.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions her Department has had with (a) local authorities and (b) housing associations on the adequacy of levels of playground provision to meet children’s needs.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Playgrounds are an essential part of social infrastructure and government is committed to improving access to safe play spaces. The provision of playgrounds in parks and public spaces is primarily a matter for local authorities. We support local government and recognise the challenges that local authorities are facing as demand increases for critical services.

The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) is clear that planning policies and decisions should aim to achieve healthy, inclusive and safe places. In addition, the National Design Guide demonstrates how new development can promote inclusive design by creating buildings and spaces that are safe, social and inclusive, with an integrated mix of uses that are accessible for all.

We will use our bold £1.5 billion Plan for Neighbourhoods to bolster a wide range of community assets, including play areas. Over the next decade, the plan will deliver up to £20 million of funding and support to each of 75 eligible communities across the UK, bringing together “neighbourhood boards” to develop local regeneration plans in partnership with local authorities: Plan for Neighbourhoods: prospectus - GOV.UK.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing specific (a) Sikh and (b) Jewish options for a person’s ethnic group in data collection conducted by her Department.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

MHCLG do collect data on religion and/or belief. This includes Jewish and Sikh options. This data is collected separate to ethnic group data

We collect ethnicity data in line with the ethnicity harmonised standard, which is developed by the independent Office for National Statistics.

The current harmonised standard is based on the 2011 Census questions used across the UK; those questions were updated for the 2021 and 2022 Censuses. The current standard does not include specific “Sikh” and “Jewish” categories for a person’s ethnic group.

The ONS is reviewing the harmonised standard to ensure this remains appropriate and meets the needs of both data users and respondents. This will include a public consultation later this year.

We await the outcome of this review.

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 publication MHCLG: spending over £25,000, March 2025, published on 28 April 2025, if she will publish the full specification of the research commissioned from the Young Foundation on Research Services.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The requirement for the research commissioned from the Young Foundation will be published alongside the final research report in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many staff in her Department have permission to work remotely outside the UK; and in which countries those staff are based.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

In line with wider Government policy, the Department policy allows spouses of Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office officials to work abroad when their spouses have been posted overseas. The Department allows working abroad when officials are overseas on official business, typically to support Ministers.

If there is a clear business need, the Department allows officials to take equipment abroad to keep in touch whilst on leave. The Department also allows working overseas for up to two weeks for exceptional welfare reasons

The numbers of staff with equipment oversees varies during the year. On 9 July, seven officials were working overseas on official business in Italy. 10 officials had equipment overseas allowing them to work if there was a need to keep in touch in, variously, Belgium, Bulgaria, France (three), Sweden, Switzerland, and the United States of America (three).

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Found: Treasury, the Attorney-General, Department for Culture Media and Sport and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

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Found: With all due respect, if you do not, it is very easy to— Rachel Reeves: This is an MHCLG policy, but

Found: CSDG members would like to see the DfE work in conjunction with the MHCLG to speed up the planning and

Found: could be alleviated by prioritising the following actions:  The DfE, working in partnership with MHCLG

Found: November 2024 2 AEA 2024 Post polls ministerial letter, 18 July 2024; Q135 3 Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government

Found: Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Found: The level of co-operation there has been with MHCLG, MOD, the Treasury, DBT and other Government Departments

Found: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Found: Q41 Mike Reader: We talked before about how the seventh carbon budget covers DFT and MHCLG.

Found: I am also involved now in the Building Industry Oversight Panel, chaired by the MHCLG.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy 2025, published on 23 June 2025, if he will provide a breakdown of where he plans for the 41,000 new homes in the West Midlands to be built; and what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government on this matter.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

In setting out how the Government will strengthen connections between and within city regions and clusters, the Industrial Strategy confirmed our commitment to delivering and maximising the growth benefits of HS2. The Industrial Strategy referenced independent research by Arcadis, conducted on behalf of HS2 Ltd, that suggests HS2 could lead to 41,000 new homes in the West Midlands. The source can be found at https://www.arcadis.com/en-gb/projects/europe/united-kingdom/hs2-impact-study.

The department has worked closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government during the development of the Industrial Strategy and will continue to do so.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to use the NHS 10 Year Health Plan to adapt housing policy to better support the needs of (a) disabled and (b) older people.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

We recognise how important the right housing arrangements are in supporting people to live independently, and the need to support disabled and older people to live behind their own front door wherever possible.

We are working across Government to tackle the wider determinants of health, including poor housing and fuel poverty, providing advice on the health impacts for the new Fuel Poverty Strategy, and supporting the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government with the implementation of Awaab’s Law and the Decent Homes Standard in the social housing sector.

In the 10-Year Health Plan, we have committed to moving towards a Neighbourhood Health Service, with more care delivered locally to create healthier communities, spot problems earlier, and support people to stay healthier and maintain their independence for longer. Over the next three years, we will roll out the neighbourhood health approach to the groups most failed by the current system, improving people’s quality of life and easing pressures on both hospitals and the adult social care system.

We have provided an additional £172 million across this and the last financial year to uplift the Disabled Facilities Grant, which could provide approximately 15,600 home adaptations to give older and disabled people more independence in their homes.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support (a) Danes Dyke surgery in Scarborough and (b) other GP practices with (a) population growth and (b) capacity constraints.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The National Health Service has a statutory duty to ensure there is sufficient general practice (GP) provision in each local area, taking into account of population growth and demographic changes.

At a national level, the Department of Health and Social Care continues to work closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to ensure that all new and existing developments have an adequate level of healthcare infrastructure for the community.

The Humber and North Yorkshire Integrated Care Board (ICB) advise that in North Scarborough, a total of £339,766 of Section 106 funding has been secured from housing developments to support Scarborough Medical Group and Hackness Road Surgery. Of this funding, £138,298 is currently available, and formal plans for its use are still in development. The remaining funding will become available within the next two to four years.

A Project Initiation Document, to better understand a new build proposal and the associated financial implications, has been shared by the proposed landlord with Danes Dyke Surgery. The ICB expects to receive a copy in due course. In the meantime, the GP partners, as the legal owners of Dane’s Dyke Surgery’s current premises, have undertaken some remedial works to help extend the building’s usability in the short term. Responsibility for the ongoing maintenance of the existing premises lies with the GP partners, in accordance with their legal obligations.

Danes Dyke Surgery is responsible for maintaining an up-to-date business continuity plan and for minimising any disruption to patient care. The ICB will support the practice with their communication of this plan. The Humber and North Yorkshire ICB is continuing to work closely with all stakeholders and is doing everything within its remit to support progress and explore viable options for the future.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will publish a list of (1) departments, (2) agencies, (3) non-departmental public bodies, and (4) devolved administrations, they consulted prior to the decision to close the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy scheme.

Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

The Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) scheme is administered by the Ministry of Defence, and the decision to close ARAP to new applications was taken following consultation with the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Home Office, His Majesty’s Treasury and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. Other agencies were first informed of the intent to bring Afghan schemes to a close in the Defence Secretary’s Written Ministerial Statement in the House of Commons in December 2024.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to encourage the integration of rainwater harvesting systems in new housing developments.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

In June this year, the Government introduced new national standards, making clear that sustainable drainage systems (SuDS) should be designed to cope with changing climatic conditions as well as delivering wider water infrastructure benefits in the form of flood prevention and storm overflow reduction, offering reuse opportunities, reducing run off, and helping to improve water quality, amenity, and biodiversity. The standards should be used by local authorities when assessing applications for development which could affect drainage on or around the site, see paragraphs 181 and 182 of the National Planning Policy Framework.

This Government is committed to enabling homes to be water efficient as part of the statutory Water Demand Target. The target is underpinned by a commitment to lower water usage in homes, to achieve a usage of at least 122 litres per person per day by 2038, on a trajectory to 110 litres per person per day by 2050.

Defra is working with MHCLG (Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government) to explore whether Building Regulations could be further amended to tighten water efficiency standards and enable consumers to use less water and save on their water and energy bills.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he has taken to ensure adequate funding for Natural England to protect biodiversity on new housing developments.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

For the 2025-2026 financial year, Natural England received a total of £248 million funding from Defra to deliver their strategic aim of recovering nature for growth, health and security. In addition to this the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government is due to provide up to £325,000 new funding through the New Homes Accelerator scheme, to help Natural England accelerate the processing of planning applications and secure environmental improvements.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the reason that over 4,100 women from the poorest backgrounds in the UK have donated their eggs since 2011.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department has not undertaken an assessment, however, academic research in the United Kingdom has consistently found that donating eggs and sperm is driven by altruism.

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) published data shows that egg and sperm donors in England from 2011 to 2020 lived in similar or more affluent socio-economic areas than the general population.

The following table shows the number of egg donors living in each of the multiple deprivation deciles in England at time of registration, between 2011 and 2020:

Source: the HFEA report, Trends in egg, sperm and embryo donation 2020.

Notes:

1. this data includes donors with a postcode in England only;
2. multiple deprivation deciles were calculated using 2015 data from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, and post code information from the HFEA register; and
3. data provided is from a live register and may not match data published elsewhere.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of changes in the age at which adults are able (1) to buy a house, (2) to have children and (3) to get married, due to the financial strain of these milestones.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.

Please see the letter attached from the National Statistician and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority.

Emma Rourke | Acting National Statistician

The Lord Taylor of Warwick

House of Lords

London

SW1A 0PW

14 July 2025

Dear Lord Taylor of Warwick,

As Acting National Statistician, I am responding to your Parliamentary Question asking what assessment has been made of changes in the age at which adults are able (1) to buy a house, (2) to have children and (3) to get married, due to the financial strain of these milestones (HL9248).

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) does not make any direct assessment of the extent to which financial strain impacts the age that people buy a house, have children or get married.

The ONS does publish the average age for different types of house buyers, including first time buyers, for years from 1990 to 2023, available in our House Price Data: annual tables - Table 37[1], and based on a sample of the Regulated Mortgage Survey.

In addition, the ONS has published Milestones: journeying through modern life[2] which includes information on age at which people buy a home, first marriage and age of first time mothers.

To assess the changing age of purchasers buying homes, people most commonly use the English Housing Survey, conducted by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG). This includes analysis of change over time[3].

Yours sincerely,

Emma Rourke

[1]https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/inflationandpriceindices/datasets/housepriceindexannualtables2039

[2]https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationestimates/articles/milestonesjourneyingthroughmodernlife/2024-04-08

[3]https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/chapters-for-english-housing-survey-2023-to-2024-headline-findings-on-demographics-and-household-resilience/chapter-3-housing-history-and-future-housing

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has met with (a) Dominic Grieve and (b) the members of the Working Group on Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia to discuss the working group and the definition of Islamophobia.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)

The work he refers to is being overseen by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of Sport England’s Planning Statutory Consultee status on the provision of sporting facilities in new housing developments.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

The Government is reviewing the statutory consultee system, including Sport England, to promote growth and unblock building.

The statutory consultee system must work in support of development and economic growth—reflecting the central place of these objectives in the Government’s plan for change. A process is in place to consult on the impacts of removing a limited number of statutory consultees, including Sport England.

Access to open green spaces and playing fields is important, and we will work closely with MHCLG as part of their proposed reforms, and we remain committed to ensuring our playing field capacity is protected.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government on the protection of sporting facilities in the planning process.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

The Government is reviewing the statutory consultee system, including Sport England, to promote growth and unblock building.

The statutory consultee system must work in support of development and economic growth—reflecting the central place of these objectives in the Government’s plan for change. A process is in place to consult on the impacts of removing a limited number of statutory consultees, including Sport England.

Access to open green spaces and playing fields is important, and we will work closely with MHCLG as part of their proposed reforms, and we remain committed to ensuring our playing field capacity is protected.

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