Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 25 July 2025 to Question 68504 on Visas: Families, what her Department's timetable is for responding to the report by the Migration Advisory Committee entitled Family Route: Financial Requirements Review, published June 2025.

Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

On 10 June the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) published their independent review of the financial requirements across the family routes. The report is now under review and we will respond 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 recent assessment her Department has made of (a) trends in the level of houses in multiple occupation and (b) the potential impact of those trends on local communities.

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

Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) can play an important part in the housing market, providing relatively low-cost accommodation for rent.

Local planning authorities already have powers to limit the proliferation of Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) through ‘Article 4’ directions.

In addition to the mandatory licensing of large HMOs, local areas can also choose to require smaller HMOs to be licenced to ensure such properties are safe and well managed, and that the character of local communities are protected.

Local authorities have robust powers to ensure landlords of HMOs comply with all relevant regulations. This includes powers to issue civil penalties, prosecute landlords and obtain banning orders.

No recent assessments of the trends in the level of HMOs, or of the potential impacts of these trends on local communities, have been made.

The Renters’ Rights Bill introduces reforms to improve the regulation of private rented sector properties, including HMOs, and drive-up standards within the sector. This includes a Decent Homes Standard and new enforcement powers for local authorities.

My Department will continue to engage with local authorities on a range of local issues, including matters relating to HMOs and we will keep the regulation of HMOs under review.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether her Department has conducted a comparative assessment of how much physical retailers will pay as a result of business rates changes with online-only retailers in 2026.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

We are creating a fairer business rates system that protects the high street, supports investment, and is fit for the 21st century.

As set out at Autumn Budget 2024, the Government intends to introduce permanently lower tax rates for retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) properties with ratable values (RVs) below £500,000, including those on the high street, from 2026-27. This permanent tax cut will ensure that these properties benefit from much-needed certainty and support.

This tax cut must be sustainably funded, and so we intend to introduce a higher rate on the most valuable properties in 2026-27 - those with RVs of £500,000 and above. These represent less than one per cent of all properties, but cover the majority of large distribution warehouses, including those used by online giants.

Ahead of these changes being made, the Government recognises that businesses will need support in 2025-26. As such, we prevented RHL relief from ending in April 2025, extending it for one year at 40 per cent up to a cash cap of £110,000 per business. We have also frozen the small business multiplier, taken together with small business rates relief, this will protect over a million properties from inflationary bill increases.

The Government will confirm the rates for any new multipliers at Budget 2025, taking account of the outcomes of the 2026 revaluation as well as the broader economic and fiscal context.

When the new multipliers are set at Budget 2025, HM Treasury intends to publish analysis of the effects of the new multiplier arrangements.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether her Department has conducted an impact assessment of charging business rates for physical retail premises in (a) Liverpool Walton constituency, (b) constituencies which have an anchor store providing footfall to other stores and (c) deprived areas with a high proportion of employment in retail.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

We are creating a fairer business rates system that protects the high street, supports investment, and is fit for the 21st century.

As set out at Autumn Budget 2024, the Government intends to introduce permanently lower tax rates for retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) properties with ratable values (RVs) below £500,000, including those on the high street, from 2026-27. This permanent tax cut will ensure that these properties benefit from much-needed certainty and support.

This tax cut must be sustainably funded, and so we intend to introduce a higher rate on the most valuable properties in 2026-27 - those with RVs of £500,000 and above. These represent less than one per cent of all properties, but cover the majority of large distribution warehouses, including those used by online giants.

Ahead of these changes being made, the Government recognises that businesses will need support in 2025-26. As such, we prevented RHL relief from ending in April 2025, extending it for one year at 40 per cent up to a cash cap of £110,000 per business. We have also frozen the small business multiplier, taken together with small business rates relief, this will protect over a million properties from inflationary bill increases.

The Government will confirm the rates for any new multipliers at Budget 2025, taking account of the outcomes of the 2026 revaluation as well as the broader economic and fiscal context.

When the new multipliers are set at Budget 2025, HM Treasury intends to publish analysis of the effects of the new multiplier arrangements.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if her Department will conduct an impact assessment on increasing financial pressures in the retail sector in (a) the UK and (b) Liverpool Walton constituency.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Government is committed to supporting the retail sector across the UK and we are acutely aware of the challenges faced by businesses. We frequently engage with the retail sector to understand their concerns.

We are determined to support retail businesses to succeed against a difficult economic backdrop. We will introduce a permanently lower business rates multipliers for retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) properties with rateable values below £500,000 from 2026-27. Ahead of the new multipliers being introduced, we extended the RHL relief for 2025-26 at 40 per cent up to a cash cap of £110,000 per business and froze the small business multiplier.

In addition, we have:

• Increased the Employment Allowance to £10,500, shielding the smallest retail businesses the from the impact of the increase to employer National Insurance;
• Committed to cut regulatory admin burdens for businesses by 25% through simplification and reduced uncertainty, with further details on targets to follow later this year; and
• Introduced tougher measures on retail crime, including a new offence for assaulting retail workers, ending immunity for shop theft under £200, and investing over £9 million in police support and the National Business Crime Centre over three years.

We will continue to work with the retail sector to help drive economic growth, regenerate our high streets, and support vibrant and healthy communities.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent assessment his Department has made of trends in the number of Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman complaints which are upheld.

Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)

The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) is independent of Government, and the Cabinet Office does not centrally keep records of, or track all, the recommendations made by the PHSO (including those upheld).

The PHSO’s investigation reports and recommendations are directed to relevant departments and Arms Length Bodies. The PHSO however does publish complaints data annually, for 2024-25, please find this here: https://www.ombudsman.org.uk/organisations-we-investigate/annual-data-complaints

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what plans his Department has to review the framework for complaints handling by departments.

Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)

The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) - which is independent of Government - launched a new set of cross-Government complaint standards in October 2022, with the aim of making complaint processes quicker, easier and to help organisations learn from complaints.

The Cabinet Office supports the PHSO in disseminating its standards across Government.

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 16 September to Question 75141 on Multiple Occupation, if his Department will undertake such an assessment.

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

My Department has no current plans to undertake such an assessment. We will keep the regulation of HMOs under review, including whether an assessment of trends in the level of HMOs and the potential impacts of these on local authorities is needed.

Found: 37 of 45 (82.2%) Phil Brickell (Labour, Bolton West) (added 16 Dec 2024) 28 of 36 (77.8%) Dan Carden

Found: Aphra Brandreth (Conservative; Chester South and Eddisbury) Phil Brickell (Labour; Bolton West) Dan Carden

Found: Dan Carden MP (Lab) mentioned that the government said that the bill implementing the treaty would be

Found: Dan Carden MP (Lab) mentioned that the government said that the bill implementing the treaty would be