Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many and what proportion of civil servants in his Department are (a) on temporary contract and (b) consultants.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Department engages temporary workers and consultants where there is a business requirement that means it will be more beneficial to do so in order to provide the necessary expertise or a short-term resourcing solution where permanent capability is not required.
As of 30 November 2025, (a) 143 civil servants in the Department were employed on temporary contracts - approximately 4% of the Department’s full-time equivalent (FTE) workforce.
Information on the number of off-payroll engagements, including (b) consultants engaged by the Department, is published as part of the Department’s Workforce Management Information, which is available here.
Asked by: Neil O'Brien (Conservative - Harborough, Oadby and Wigston)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what the total cost was for (a) settlement agreements and (b) special severance payments made to departing staff from his Department in the last year.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Any payments made in each Financial Year relating to settlement agreements, which includes special severance payments associated with settlement agreements where relevant, will be published in the relevant Annual Report and Accounts.
For the last financial year, these are published at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/mhclg-annual-report-and-accounts-2024-to-2025
A further update will be provided as part of the next set of published accounts for 2025-26.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, for the total spend on (i) LinkedIn membership fees (ii) other subscriptions by his Department in the last financial year.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The department does not hold information on LinkedIn membership fees and other subscriptions in the format requested, and this could only be collated at a disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to establish a cross-departmental office for green spaces.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The government does not plan to establish a new cross-departmental office for green spaces. Cross-government coordination will continue through the Parks Working Group, which brings together sector expertise with departmental representatives to improve parks and green spaces, with a focus on equality of access.
Improving access to green and blue spaces remains a priority. As part of the Environmental Improvement Plan 2025, the government has announced that it will bring forward an Access to Nature Green Paper to consult on proposals to improve and expand public access to the outdoors. Furthermore, the MHCLG-owned Green Flag Award sets the national standard for parks and green spaces aiming to meet the needs of the communities they serve.
Local authorities play an important role in improving local green space. The Spending Review 2025 provides over £5 billion of new grant funding, most of which is unringfenced, over the next three years for local services that communities rely on.
Finally, the Pride in Place strategy will deliver up to £5 billion over ten years to up to 350 deprived neighbourhoods, supporting a wide range of community assets, including community green spaces.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
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 adequacy of warm hubs for local residents in (a) Surrey and (b) Surrey Heath constituency.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 79025 on 29 October 2025.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans does the department have for future equivalent Shared Prosperity Funding for Devon.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
In order to allow greater flexibility for local authorities and to maximise the spend on UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF), the deadline for expenditure for 2025-26 allocations has been extended by six months to September 2026. Looking ahead, the government is introducing a long-term approach to local funding. This will be led by sustained and predictable support for local authorities through the Local Government Finance Settlement and complemented by targeted interventions designed to drive local growth and strengthen communities.
Asked by: Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage on 3 November (HL Deb col 1768), what issues the review of the existing protections of open spaces will examine; and whether there will be a public consultation before changes are proposed to those protections.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Open and green spaces are an essential part of local social infrastructure and must be protected for future generations. The review of existing protections will examine the fragmented and outdated nature of current legislative protections for public recreational green spaces, assess how these protections complement those in the planning system, and consider the lack of central records on protected land.
We intend to analyse the effectiveness and usability of existing protections, to simplify the system, ensure consistency for developers and local authorities and empower communities to protect valued spaces.
We intend to engage widely to ensure stakeholder views are considered before recommending any changes are made to these protections.
Further details about the review will be released in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage on 3 November (HL Deb col 1768), what criteria they plan to use to decide which categories of open space should be included in the review of the existing protections of open spaces, and whether they will include covenanted land or land held in trust.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Open and green spaces are an essential part of local social infrastructure and must be protected for future generations. The review of existing protections will examine the fragmented and outdated nature of current legislative protections for public recreational green spaces, assess how these protections complement those in the planning system, and consider the lack of central records on protected land.
Further details on the review of protections for public recreational green spaces, and on the timetable of the review will be shared in due course.
Asked by: Neil O'Brien (Conservative - Harborough, Oadby and Wigston)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many disciplinary cases were concluded against civil servants in (a) his Department and (b) his Department's agencies broken down by (i) outcome and (ii) whether the primary allegation related to (A) performance and (B) conduct in the last twelve months.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The department is not responsible for collecting or maintaining data on disciplinary action for staff in its executive agencies. We do hold information on concluded disciplinary cases within the core department; however, producing the requested information for both the core department and its executive agencies, and in the format specified, would incur disproportionate time and cost.
Asked by: Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage on 3 November (HL Deb col 1768), what is the timetable for the review of the existing protections of open spaces.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Open and green spaces are an essential part of local social infrastructure and must be protected for future generations. The review of existing protections will examine the fragmented and outdated nature of current legislative protections for public recreational green spaces, assess how these protections complement those in the planning system, and consider the lack of central records on protected land.
Further details on the review of protections for public recreational green spaces, and on the timetable of the review will be shared in due course.