Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what information his Department holds on the number of first-time house buyers in Lincolnshire in each of the last five years.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
My Department does not collect data on the number of first-time buyers.
The Office for National Statistics publishes data on first-time buyer mortgage sales by local authority in the UK. They can be found on its website here. Data covers the period between 2006 and 2024. Data for 2025 has not yet been published.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what proportion of social housing was occupied by people born overseas in each of the last five years.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Housing is a devolved matter, with each of the four nations of the UK developing their own policies and data collections to monitor the impact of them.
The English Housing Survey published by my Department, which can be found on gov.uk here, shows that households living in social housing in England with a non-UK national lead tenant comprised:
It is important to note that such households can contain UK nationals as well as non-UK national lead tenants.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what (a) training and (b) resources her Department has provided to fire and rescue services to respond to fires at large photovoltaic solar developments.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
It is the responsibility of fire and rescue authorities to ensure firefighters receive the training they need to safely respond to incidents, and to do so in light of their individual areas’ risk profiles and Community Risk Management Plans.
We will continue to work closely with stakeholders across the sector to ensure fire and rescue services have the resources they need to protect communities. Standalone fire and rescue authorities will see an increase in core spending power of up to £69.1 million in 2025-26: including the National Insurance Contribution Grant, this is an increase of 3.6% in cash terms compared to 2024-25. Decisions on how their resources are best deployed to meet their core functions and mitigate risks in their local areas are a matter for each fire and rescue authority.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what measures his Department has in place to run critical services in the event of a major internet outage.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Providing critical services in the event of a major internet outage requires that the department has suitable technology solutions in place, that services are well designed and governed, recovery requirements are assessed and they are aligned with business continuity plans.
The department has tested plans in place to keep the department functioning in response to the most serious risks facing the UK, including those that could come about as a result of a significant loss of power, like a major internet outage. As part of wider resilience planning in government, MHCLG works with local partners on resilient communication methods which support contact in the event of a power or internet outage.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of UK Shared Prosperity Fund allocations to Lincolnshire since 2023.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
UKSPF provides a total of £3.5 billion of funding for local investment over four years (2022-26), with all places in the UK receiving an allocation via a funding formula. The funding methodologies for the periods 2022-25 and 2025-26 are published on gov.uk.
Changes were made to the English allocation methodology for 2025-26 to support mayoral combined authorities with capital for early development of local growth plans and local priority investments, as well as targeting places with the highest levels of deprivation.
The county of Lincolnshire received a total of £34.7m (including a £1.97m Multiply allocation) across 2022-25 and a further £14.8m of UKSPF funding for 2025-26 through the newly established Greater Lincolnshire Combined Authority to deliver interventions in line with their local priorities.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of the level of funding for Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue Service.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
On 3 February, the Ministry published the 2025/26 Local Government Finance Settlement which sets out funding allocations for all local authorities including fire and rescue.
As Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue Service is a county service, it is funded by the Central Government and council tax precept via its parent authority, Lincolnshire County Council.
This financial year, Lincolnshire County Council will have a core spending power of £740.3 million, an increase of 5.4 % compared to 2024/25.
The Ministry will continue to work closely with stakeholders across the sector to ensure fire and rescue services have the resources they need to protect communities.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, on how many days the Union Flag was flown on his Department's main buildings in (a) 2024 and (b) 2025 to date.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
MHCLG’s headquarters is 2 Marsham Street, London and the Union Flag has been flown every day throughout 2024 and 2025. In addition, our 2nd headquarters in i9,Wolverhampton also has a flag pole, although we do not maintain records of what flags have been flown when. The Union Flag is flown for the majority of the year and alternative flags are only flown according to official guidance issued by DCMS.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
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 has spent money on promotion through social media influencers since July 2024.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Department has not spent money on social media influencers since July 2024. Influencers can be effective in reaching audiences that the government and traditional marketing channels find hard to reach.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate she has made of the number of additional electors who will be added to the electoral roll following the franchise being extended to 16 and 17 year olds in (a) South Holland and the Deepings constituency and (b) Lincolnshire.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
As outlined in the recently published ‘Restoring trust in our democracy: Our strategy for modern and secure elections’, the Government believes that enabling 16- and 17-year-olds to vote in all UK elections will foster early and sustained participation in civic life and enhance engagement in our democratic processes. By delivering this manifesto commitment, we want young people to find their voice and exercise their right to vote.
In June 2025, the House of Commons Library published constituency-level estimates of the number of 16- and 17-year-olds across the UK, based on Office for National Statistics (ONS) data from 2022 for Great Britain and 2023 for Northern Ireland. These figures provide indicative estimates of the population and should be treated as approximations rather than precise counts.
The Government recognises the importance of understanding the implications of this policy change. Accordingly, an Impact Assessment will be published alongside forthcoming legislation in due course. Legislation will be introduced as soon as parliamentary time allows.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to require local referenda for local government reorganisation proposals in Lincolnshire.
Answered by Jim McMahon
Local government reorganisation will deliver better outcomes for residents and save significant money which can be reinvested in public services. Simpler structures with fewer politicians can improve democratic accountability as residents know who to look to and it is clearer who is responsible for what
We do not have any plans to require local referenda as part of the local government reorganisation process. Under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007, Parliament set out the statutory process for establishing unitary councils in two-tier areas. As set out in the invitation letter, areas must demonstrate how the local community has been engaged in developing proposals.