Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
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 HM Treasury webpage entitled Business case publications: collection, last updated 13 August 2026, whether her Department holds Government Major Projects Portfolio business cases produced since June 2025 which have not been uploaded to the website.
Answered by Jim McMahon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Department currently has three Government Major Projects Portfolio (GMPP) programmes: the Building Safety Remediation Programme, the Social and Affordable Homes Programme (SAHP), and the National Housing Delivery Fund (NHDF). Business cases for these programmes have not yet been finalised or are currently being updated. They will be published once finalised, in line with HM Treasury guidance on the publication of GMPP business cases.
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
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 HM Treasury collection, Business case publications: collection, last updated on 13 August 2026, whether her Department holds Government Major Projects Portfolio business cases produced since June 2025 which have not been uploaded to the HMT website.
Answered by Jim McMahon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Department currently has three Government Major Projects Portfolio (GMPP) programmes: the Building Safety Remediation Programme, the Social and Affordable Homes Programme (SAHP), and the National Housing Delivery Fund (NHDF). Business cases for these programmes have not yet been finalised or are currently being updated. They will be published once finalised, in line with HM Treasury guidance on the publication of GMPP business cases.
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether single adult households will be able to claim the 25% single person discount on the council tax surcharge.
Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General
The Government has set out plans to introduce the High Value Council Tax Surcharge, which will increase fairness within the system.
The Government has consulted on the design of the High Value Council Tax Surcharge, including on a deferral scheme to support those who may struggle to pay, treatment of freehold and leasehold properties (including those with short leases), and a proposed list of discounts and exemptions. This consultation closed on 14 July. The Government is considering responses received and a response to the consultation will be published in due course.
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
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 Impact Assessment for the Representation of the People Bill, published on 14 May 2026, whether the non-monetised costs to local authorities will be compensated under the New Burdens doctrine; and whether her Department will calculate the cost of burdens which are currently non-monetised.
Answered by Florence Eshalomi - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Local authorities will be fully funded in line with the New Burdens doctrine, which compensates local authorities for additional net expenditure resulting from central government policy. We will keep our assessment of local authority impacts under review, and any necessary updates to the Bill's accompanying Impact Assessment will be made in the usual way.
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
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 how many local authorities have byelaws against barbeques in public parks in operation.
Answered by Florence Eshalomi - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
This data is not held centrally. Local authorities are responsible for making and administering byelaws in their areas, and the Department does not maintain a central record of all specific byelaws currently in force.
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the Valuation Office uses Acorn consumer classification (CACI) data.
Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General
The VO does not use ACORN classification data.
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to his Department's guidance entitled Business Rates Multipliers: Qualifying Retail, Hospitality or Leisure, updated on 30 March 2026, for what policy reason (a) banking hubs and (b) cash machines on high streets are excluded from the Retail, Hospitality and Leisure multiplier.
Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General
Banking hubs and cash machines are excluded because their primary function is the provision of financial services rather than retail, hospitality or leisure activity. Their location on a high street does not, in itself, bring them within the scope of the RHL multipliers.
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when Schedule a) 137 and b) 138 of the Crime and Policing Act 2026 will commence.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
Section 137 of the Crime and Policing Act 2026, which creates a new criminal offence that applies in England and Wales, of retaining a child abroad without consent, will be commenced by regulations as soon as reasonably practicable. We must ensure sufficient time to consider and manage impacts on the criminal justice system and for law enforcement to update guidance and provide appropriate training.
Section 138 of the Act, which creates a similar offence in Northern Ireland, will come into force on a day specified by order by the Department of Justice in Northern Ireland.
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what representations have been received to her department from the National Fire Chiefs Council on the nationwide UK Emergency Alert issued on 14 August 2026.
Answered by Florence Eshalomi - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
All Emergency Alerts are sent in conjunction with agencies or public bodies that are responding to emergencies. The decision to issue this alert was not taken lightly. It was made in direct cooperation with the National Fire Chiefs Council.
The alert was issued during a period where there were 43 active fires and 11 major incidents nationwide. It was sent to around 55 million mobile phones across England and Wales, providing advice on steps people could take to help prevent wildfires. It formed part of the Government's work with fire and rescue services and other partners to raise awareness of the heightened risk of wildfires.
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
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 budget for automatic voter registration over the Spending Review period, and what costs have been monetised to date.
Answered by Florence Eshalomi - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Improving Voter Registration policy has been appraised in the Impact Assessment for the Representation of the People Bill, and all monetised costs of the policy are set out in that assessment.