Asked by: Bradley Thomas (Conservative - Bromsgrove)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what progress has been made on introducing legislated protections for freeholders against uncapped service charges.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement made on 4 July 2025 (HCWS780) and the answer given to Question UIN 103549 on 14 January 2026.
Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to help ensure affordable housing for young people.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 113747 on 2 March 2026.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he plans to extend the Brownfield Land Release Fund.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The third round of the Brownfield Land Release Fund will launch this year. Design options are currently being explored by officials.
Asked by: Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour - Poole)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will meet with the Social Housing Action Campaign to discuss their concerns around service charges.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Neither the Secretary of State nor I have any current plans to meet with the Social Housing Action Campaign.
Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent discussions he has had with Homes England about access to grant funding for small housing providers.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Small housing providers can bid for grant funding through the government’s new 10-year £39 billion Social and Affordable Homes Programme.
Guidance to bidders from Homes England can be found on gov.uk here, and to bidders from the Greater London Authority here. The government’s policy statement to accompany this guidance can be found on gov.uk here.
Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he plans to take steps to support local authorities seeking to build social housing to access finance to purchase land being sold by NHS Trusts.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government is not taking any specific action to support local authorities to purchase land being sold by NHS Trusts.
However, in January we announced that we would extend the ‘preferential’ borrowing rate for council housebuilding from the Public Works Loan Board for another year until the end of March 2027. This will provide councils with greater certainty to increase their supply plans, including through land-led development.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what funding is available to faith-based organisations to help them support communities.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government works closely with faith and belief groups and organisations to support communities, and there are a wide range of potential sources of support available to them.
The Common Ground Resilience Fund is providing over £3m funding to local communities in England to insulate them against threats to local social cohesion and resilience. Through the Common Ground Award, which forms part of this Fund, we are supporting the voluntary and community sector organisations - including faith-based organisations, with capital investments into the infrastructure and equipment which enables them to serve communities.
The Government also supports interfaith activities through which faith and belief organisations work with their wider communities. The Government supported Inter Faith Week 2025 by providing £141,720 of funding to ensure the Week remains a key part of the national calendar for dialogue, learning, and connection between people of different faiths and beliefs.
MHCLG has allocated up to £515,000 for the current financial year to fund the Near Neighbours programme in England, which is delivered by the Church Urban Fund. This programme brings together communities from diverse backgrounds and faiths to build relationships of trust and work together on initiatives that improve their communities.
Faith‑based organisations across England are also eligible to apply to the annual Windrush Day Grant Scheme, funded by MHCLG. Since 2019, the scheme has funded 268 projects, awarding a total of £3.75 million. Faith‑linked groups may receive funding where proposals align with the scheme’s aims of raising awareness of the Windrush story and strengthening community cohesion.
Supporting faith and belief communities’ physical buildings may help them in their work with communities. A new £92 million fund called the Places of Worship Renewal Fund will replace the £23 million Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme and bring these important buildings into line with other heritage assets. It will give them access to the same level of financial support from the Government as historic houses, monuments and other heritage sites.
Asked by: Julian Smith (Conservative - Skipton and Ripon)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of legal protections preventing leaseholders from being pursued for (a) service-charge and (b) balancing-charge debts relating to periods before they acquired their property.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government recognises the importance of potential buyers having the information they need to decide whether a home is right for them.
There is already a requirement under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 that any information that would help a prospective homebuyer to make an informed decision must not be hidden or omitted.
We would strongly advise prospective buyers and their legal representative to check that all relevant information has been provided. If this information was not provided at the time of purchase, a legal representative could advise on possible options.
Asked by: Steve Barclay (Conservative - North East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to prevent commercial landlords from leaving premises empty for long periods; and if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of using (a) business rates reform, (b) penalties for vacancy, (c) tenant incentives and (d) other measures to bring unused units back into active use.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
This Government is taking action to tackle long-term commercial vacancy and to support vibrant high streets. To address business rates avoidance and evasion we recognise the importance of a system where everyone pays their fair share and are committed to taking necessary action.
Our forthcoming High Streets Strategy will explore a range of measures to support the high street and reduce the number of vacant premises. We have introduced High Street Rental Auctions which empower councils to require the letting of persistently vacant units where landlords fail to engage.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
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 expanding the eligibility criteria of the Shared Prosperity Fund to include extracurricular and volunteering organisations.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) has a light-touch delegated delivery model, empowering lead local authorities to make decisions on how funding is allocated in their area, including setting their own eligibility criteria.
Volunteering activities and organisations may be supported where this meets local need.