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, pursuant to the answers of 16 October 2026 to Questions 29562 and 30079 on Political Parties: Finance, and with reference to the UK minimum residency period that will apply from 6 July 2026 but before the announcement of the enhanced residency test, whether it is her policy intent that a domestically registered elector, who had a permanent residency in both a UK dwelling and in an overseas dwelling, (a) would or (b) would not be classed an overseas contributor for the purposes of the UK residency test in relation to donations from July 2026.
Answered by Florence Eshalomi - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
An elector who has been resident in the UK from 25 March 2026 would not be classed as an overseas contributor and would not be subject to the minimum residency period. If an individual ceases to be resident in the UK after this date, they will be subject to the minimum residency period for at least a full calendar year on their return.
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, pursuant to the answer of 16 October 2026 to Question 29561 on Political Parties: Finance, whether the commencement date referred to in the answer is donations made after (a) the retrospective commencement date of 25 March 2026, (b) the retrospective commencement date of 6 July 2026 or (c) the legislative commencement date of the provision after Royal Assent.
Answered by Florence Eshalomi - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Donations made on or after 25 March 2026 and 6 July 2026 are subject to the Government’s respective policy announcements on overseas contributors. Donations made before this date, regardless of an individual’s overseas status, are not covered by the £100,000 cap.
Further details on how the cap applies, including details on retrospectivity, can be found in the Government’s letter to representatives of political parties dated 6 July 2026, published on gov.uk, as well as the letter published on 25 March 2026, also on gov.uk.
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, whether her Department defines Supplementary Vote as a proportional voting system.
Answered by Florence Eshalomi - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The supplementary vote system requires the winning candidate to receive the majority of votes counted, rather than the First Past the Post system used for Westminster elections.
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 press release entitled Boarded-up high streets brought back to life with £210m boost, of 25 September 2026, what the profile is of the £210 million across (a) RDEL and (b) CDEL in each year; and what the budget is for high street support and regeneration.
Answered by Jim McMahon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The £210 million Community Assets Programme includes the Derelict Buildings Fund, grants for High Street Rental Auctions, the Regional Co-operative Development Programme and new community ownership funding.
The £125 million Derelict Buildings Fund will support 60 local authorities across England, chosen using a consistent national methodology. Allocations range from £1 million to £3 million and comprise capital and revenue funding. A full list of eligible local authorities and total funding per place is set out on gov.uk here. Funding profiles will be set out in due course.
High Street Rental Auctions funding is open to all local authorities with planning powers in England. Applications will be assessed on a rolling basis against the eligibility criteria set out in the prospectus.
The programme also includes £65 million in community ownership funding to support communities to take over valued local assets, with further details on how to access the funding to be published in early 2027.
Further details on the wider Community Assets Programme are set out online here.
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 press release entitled Boarded-up high streets brought back to life with £210m boost, of 25 September 2026, whether the schemes will operate on a competitive bidding basis.
Answered by Jim McMahon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The £210 million Community Assets Programme includes the Derelict Buildings Fund, grants for High Street Rental Auctions, the Regional Co-operative Development Programme and new community ownership funding.
The £125 million Derelict Buildings Fund will support 60 local authorities across England, chosen using a consistent national methodology. Allocations range from £1 million to £3 million and comprise capital and revenue funding. A full list of eligible local authorities and total funding per place is set out on gov.uk here. Funding profiles will be set out in due course.
High Street Rental Auctions funding is open to all local authorities with planning powers in England. Applications will be assessed on a rolling basis against the eligibility criteria set out in the prospectus.
The programme also includes £65 million in community ownership funding to support communities to take over valued local assets, with further details on how to access the funding to be published in early 2027.
Further details on the wider Community Assets Programme are set out online here.
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 the applicability and eligibility of short-term holiday lets and self-contained holiday accommodation will be for council tax and business rates.
Answered by Jim McMahon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Properties available for commercial short-term letting may be eligible for business rates where they have been available to let for at least 140 days in the past year, are available to let for at least 140 days in the next year and can demonstrate at least 70 days of actual letting activity in the last year. Where property does not meet these criteria, it will generally be assessed for council tax in the same way as any other domestic property. This is set out in Section 3 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992.
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, for what reason the 2023-24 uprating of election spending limits by inflation is being reviewed by the Electoral Commission.
Answered by Florence Eshalomi - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government is of the opinion that an independent assessment is needed regarding the adequacy of current spending limits across electoral law. That is why we have asked the Electoral Commission to undertake a review of spending limits for political parties, third-party campaigners, and candidates by July 2027.
The Government believes an impartial review of the evidence is needed to identify whether there is a case for reform in this area, with proper consultation among political parties and other interested stakeholders. As the independent regulator, the Electoral Commission is best placed to carry out this review. This will ensure the entire spending limit framework is scrutinised and fit for purpose.
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, pursuant to the answer of 16 October 2026 to Question 30933 on Elections: Northern Ireland, whether the uprated election spending limits in Northern Ireland will be subject to the Electoral Commission’s review of election spending limits.
Answered by Florence Eshalomi - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Secretary of State has written to the independent Electoral Commission asking it to review registered political party, third-party campaigner and candidate spending limits in electoral law, with recommendations requested by July 2027. This will include consideration of local government elections in Northern Ireland.
As the independent regulator, the Electoral Commission is best placed to propose new limits where they are appropriate. This will ensure the entire spending limit framework is scrutinised and fit for purpose.
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, pursuant to the answer of 16 October 2026 to Questions 30079 on Political Parties: Finance, whether the enhanced residency test provisions will supersede and disapply the provisions for the Bill announced on 6 July 2026.
Answered by Florence Eshalomi - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government will be introducing an enhanced residency test for political donors, ensuring that individuals who have been overseas for a set amount of time in the recent past cannot donate significant sums to political parties without demonstrating a genuine long-term connection to the United Kingdom.
Further details on the enhanced residency test, including interactions with the present minimum residency period, will be set out in due course.
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will publish a copy of the agreement between the Government and JP Morgan Chase on business rate relief for its new Canary Wharf development.
Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General
In line with the confidentiality provisions of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between HM Government, local authorities and JP Morgan, a copy of the MoU will not be published at this stage.