Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 14 April 2025 to Question 44226 on Pest Control: Birmingham, whether he has made a recent assessment of the risks to (a) public health from the continued bin strike and (b) to agency workers.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Director of Public Health for Birmingham maintains an overview of the potential public health impacts associated with uncollected waste as a result of any disruption to waste services and would lead on initiating and conducting a public health risk assessment. If requested, the UK Health Security Agency can provide health protection advice to any risk assessment, along with other key agencies.
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 9 December 2025 to Question 95894 on Housing: council tax, whether the Valuation Office Agency holds council tax dwelling data by band based on those geographies.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) publishes Council Tax statistics on GOV.UK. The Council Tax stock of properties publication provides the number of properties by Council Tax band, administrative area and Westminster Parliamentary Constituency in England and Wales.
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the answer of 9 December 2025, to Question 95885, on Council tax, what estimate she has made of the potential impact of the council tax surcharge on other tax receipts.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
As set out in response to Question 95885 on 9th December 2025, the forecast impact on other tax receipts is set out in the published costings document here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/692872fd2a37784b16ecf676/Budget_2025-Policy_Costings.pdf
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much funding her Department provided to strategic migration partnership in (a) 2024-25 and (b) 2025-26.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Home Office does not currently publish funding levels to Strategic Migration Partnerships, previous years funding can be found here Government Grants Data and Statistics
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department is issued guidance on the political uniform ban in the Public Order Act 1936 and the definition of a uniform.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Public Order Act 1936 aimed to control and regulate the wearing of uniform in a public place or at a public meeting if that uniform signifies association with a political organisation or promotes a political object.
The Home Office has not considered issuing guidance specifically on the political uniform ban under the Public Order Act 1936. Enforcement of this provision remains an operational matter for the police.
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what information the Valuation Office Agency. holds on the number of (a) religious retreats, (b) caravan parks for recreational use and (c) recreational campsites there are in each local authority.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Valuation Office Agency publishes an annual stock of properties in the Rating List on GOV.UK. The most recent release details the stock and value of properties on the 2023 rating lists as at 31 March 2025. Information relating to your request can be found here.
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, Pursuant to the answer of 2 December 2025, to Question 94192, on Holiday Accommodation: Taxation, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of applying the levy to asylum seekers in hotels on costs to the public purse.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office has a statutory obligation to provide support to destitute asylum seekers and as such these are not discretionary overnight stays.
The Government’s position remains that the use of hotels to accommodate asylum seekers is undesirable and unsustainable. Work is underway to expand the dispersal estate and develop alternative accommodation models to better deliver value for money and reduce impact on communities.
To support local authorities, the Home Office provides significant grant funding to manage the pressures associated with asylum accommodation. This includes the Asylum Grant 395 which is designed to offset costs for councils and support local services impacted by the use of hotels and other accommodation. Under this grant local authorities received an initial payment of £1,200 per bedspace occupied on 30 March 2025; with £100 per month for each additional occupied bedspace between 1 April 2025 and 31 March 2026.
Additional grant funding is available for the support of unaccompanied asylum-seeking children and care leavers. These grants form part of a wider package of measures to ensure that local authorities are not disproportionately burdened by the statutory asylum support system.
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 9 December 2025, to Question 96551, on Police: accountability, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of adding district-level licensing authorities in two-tier areas to the new Policing and Crime Boards.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government intends to legislate as soon as Parliamentary time allows to create Policing and Crime Boards to replace Police and Crime Commissioners where it is not possible for policing functions to be held by a Strategic Authority Mayor. These changes will take effect in May 2028.
Councils in two-tier areas are currently undergoing local government reorganisation, and the Government is on track to deliver unitary local government in all areas by 2028. Therefore, no district-level authorities will exist from that point.
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate she has made of the potential impact of the higher Rateable Values in the 2026 business rate revaluation on revenue from the Crossrail Business Rate Supplement; and whether the multiplier or threshold for the supplement will be amended.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
This is a matter for the Mayor of London.
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of trends in the size of the Valuation Office Agency’s backlog in relation to (a) business rates and (b) council tax appeals.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The VOA works closely with government partners to ensure it is adequately resourced and to develop delivery plans which align with planned consultation and legislative timelines.