Asked by: Ellie Chowns (Green Party - North Herefordshire)
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 Spending Review 2025, published on 11 June 2025, how much and what proportion of the funding for the Affordable Homes Programme will be used for social rent housing in the next 10 years.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The new investment to succeed the 2021-26 Affordable Homes Programme that was announced at the Spending Review will deliver a mix of homes for sub-market rent and homeownership, with a particular focus on delivering homes for social rent. We will confirm further details in due course.
The government has not set an affordable housing target to date, but we continue to keep the matter under review.
Asked by: Ellie Chowns (Green Party - North Herefordshire)
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 Spending Review 2025, published on 11 June 2025, if she will publish a target for social rent housing for (a) each year and (b) the 10 year period of funding for the Affordable Homes Programme.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The new investment to succeed the 2021-26 Affordable Homes Programme that was announced at the Spending Review will deliver a mix of homes for sub-market rent and homeownership, with a particular focus on delivering homes for social rent. We will confirm further details in due course.
The government has not set an affordable housing target to date, but we continue to keep the matter under review.
Asked by: Ellie Chowns (Green Party - North Herefordshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of insurance requirements for companies operating intensive poultry units, in the context of (a) avian influenza and (b) other disease outbreaks.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The UK poultry sector is highly resilient and adaptable and continues to supply healthy and affordable products in spite of the many challenges it has faced in recent years.
Compensation is paid by Defra for animals culled the by HM Government for disease control purposes, as set out in the Animal Health Act 1981. In addition to the financial support offered to producers directly affected by outbreaks through compensation, producers can insure privately for losses not covered by Defra’s compensation scheme, this may include consequential losses including business interruption caused by control measures.
Following difficult avian influenza seasons in 2021/22 and 2022/23, poultry and egg producers made the department aware of the challenges that some faced in both obtaining suitable insurance products and the increased cost of such insurance. However, we understand that renewal rates have remained high for producers with existing policies, including those companies operating intensive poultry units.
Defra continues to monitor the situation and to remind producers that they are responsible for the on-farm management of their flocks. Having strong biosecurity measures in place, and maintaining them year-round, significantly reduces the risk of infection on site.
Asked by: Ellie Chowns (Green Party - North Herefordshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of eligible families were in receipt of Healthy Start in North Herefordshire constituency on 9 June 2025.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) operates the Healthy Start scheme on behalf of the Department. Monthly figures for the number of people on the digital Healthy Start scheme are published on the NHS Healthy Start website, which is available at the following link:
https://www.healthystart.nhs.uk/healthcare-professionals/
The NHSBSA does not hold data on the number of families receiving Healthy Start and does not currently hold data on the number of people eligible for Healthy Start. The NHSBSA does not hold data on local constituencies. The table below shows the number of people on the digital scheme in the relevant local authorities as of 23 May 2025:
Local authority | Number of people on the digital scheme |
Blackpool | 1,434 |
City of Bristol | 2,778 |
County of Herefordshire | 736 |
Southampton | 1,677 |
Worthing | 348 |
Brighton and Hove | 1,041 |
East Suffolk | 1,129 |
Asked by: Ellie Chowns (Green Party - North Herefordshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many applicants who were (a) responsible for funeral costs and (b) in receipt of a qualifying benefit were denied a Social Fund Funeral Expenses Payment because of the family tests in the eligibility criteria in each of the last five years.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Table 1 shows the number of applicants who were refused a Funeral Expenses Payment for the below reasons:
Table 1: Funeral Expense Payments- Refusals linked to the Family Test
| 2020/21 | 2021/22 | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
Number of Refusals | 1,100 | 900 | 1,200 | 1,200 | 1,000 |
Notes:
- These figures have been estimated using unaudited internal DWP Management Information which is not quality assured to the same extent as Official / National statistics.
- These applicants are assumed to have been responsible for funeral costs and to have been in receipt of a qualifying benefit.
- Figures have been rounded to the nearest 100.
Asked by: Ellie Chowns (Green Party - North Herefordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 13 November 2025 to Question 12807 on Public Appointments, what recent progress he has made on publishing an updated list of significant public appointments.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
An update will be provided in due course.
Asked by: Ellie Chowns (Green Party - North Herefordshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a system for regulating the land market along the lines of the French Société d’Aménagement Foncier et d’Etablissement Rural.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra has made no such assessment. The Land Use Consultation explored the functions of land markets in England and the case for new incentives, including regulation to support the Government’s growth, environmental, and food production objectives. The responses to the consultation will inform a Land Use Framework that will be published later this year. The Farming Roadmap will include a vision for our farming sector and set the direction for how we get there, with a focus on delivering our food security and environmental objectives and supporting farms to be resilient and profitable.
Asked by: Ellie Chowns (Green Party - North Herefordshire)
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 her Environmental Statements under section 20(2)(a) and (3) of the Environment Act 2021, what the evidential basis is for the conclusion that the Planning and Infrastructure Bill will not have the effect of reducing the level of environmental protection provided for by any existing environmental law.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Part 3 of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill concerning development and nature recovery will not reduce overall levels of environmental protection.
Environmental Delivery Plans (EDPs) can only be put in place where the Secretary of State is satisfied the delivery of conservation measures are likely to outweigh the negative effects of development.
EDPs and the conservation measures they propose must be evidence-based and properly scrutinised before being put in place.
EDPs may include back-up measures that can be deployed if monitoring shows the environmental outcomes are not being achieved.
Natural England will be empowered and given the tools to deliver the conservation measures needed to secure the aims of the EDP.
The government is confident that this more strategic approach to the assessment of negative effects, and delivery of conservation measures, strikes the right balance and will result in better environmental outcomes that go further than simply offsetting harm as required under current legislation.
Asked by: Ellie Chowns (Green Party - North Herefordshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to implement the judgement in Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs v Pickering Fishery Association [2025] EWCA Civ 378.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
I refer the Member for North Herefordshire to the Minister’s written statement of 6 May 2025.
Asked by: Ellie Chowns (Green Party - North Herefordshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to increase the level of funding for local authorities to ensure the maintenance of public rights of way.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Settlement for 2025-26 makes available over £69 billion for local government, which is a 6.8% cash terms increase in councils’ Core Spending Power on 2024-25. Spending decisions beyond 2025-26 are a matter for the upcoming Spending Review.
Local authorities are best placed to understand local priorities and allocate funding accordingly including for public rights of way matters. My department does not provide any additional funding.