Asked by: Kevin Hollinrake (Conservative - Thirsk and Malton)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether tenancy deposit scheme data will be made available under the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The use of data collected by Tenancy Deposit Protection (TDP) schemes is governed by the Housing Act 2004 and the individual data sharing agreements with providers.
Details of the purpose of data collection, and where and how TDP data is shared with other bodies is set out in the TDP privacy notice. This can be found on gov.uk here.
The Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 does not grant the power to allow further use of TDP data beyond its current uses as set out in the Housing Act 2004, contractual agreements, and privacy notice.
Asked by: Kevin Hollinrake (Conservative - Thirsk and Malton)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, further to the written statement of 16 December 2025 HCWS1186, on electoral resilience, whether the review will consider the foreign influence on UK politics through US-registered Resolute 1850 Inc.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
It is, and always will be, an absolute priority for this Government to protect our democratic and electoral processes. On 16 December, the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government announced an independent review into countering foreign financial influence and interference in UK politics.
The purpose of the review is to provide an in-depth assessment of the current financial rules and safeguards and make recommendations. The review will be led by the former Permanent Secretary Philip Rycroft, reporting both to the Secretary of State responsible for elections, and to the Minister of State for Security, as the Chair of the Defending Democracy Taskforce.
The terms of reference for the review can be found here.
Given the review’s independence, we cannot pre-empt specifics of the ground it will cover, nor the recommendations it will make. It is right that the review is independent of Government and independent of any political party. However, we will be looking to mitigate the risk of foreign financial interference in UK politics from any actors and individuals who might wish to undermine our democracy.
Asked by: Kevin Hollinrake (Conservative - Thirsk and Malton)
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 draft revised National Planning Policy Framework, published on 16 December 2025, what guidance his Department intends to provide to local planning authorities on how to consider (a) retrospective planning applications and (b) planning enforcement appeals by travellers on (i) Green Belt land and (ii) open countryside.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government will consider whether any new guidance is required following consideration of responses received to the consultation process. The consultation can be found on gov.uk here and will remain open for responses until 10 March 2026.
Asked by: Kevin Hollinrake (Conservative - Thirsk and Malton)
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 10 December 2025, to Question 97532 on Local Government: Elections, what consideration was given by Ministers to consulting the Electoral Commission before the cancelation of the 2026 mayoral elections.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government has announced that it is minded to hold the inaugural mayoral elections for Sussex and Brighton, Hampshire and the Solent, Norfolk and Suffolk, and Greater Essex in May 2028, with areas completing the local government reorganisation process before Mayors take office.
The inaugural elections have been postponed because devolution is strongest when it is built on strong foundations, and Government will keep the Electoral Commission informed as we proceed.
The Government intends to establish Mayoral Strategic Authorities via secondary legislation for all the Devolution Priority Programme areas as soon as possible, subject to the councils’ consent.
Asked by: Kevin Hollinrake (Conservative - Thirsk and Malton)
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 5 December 2025 to Question 94722 on Public Spaces: Political Activities, whether local authorities may charge more than cost recovery when levying such fees for political street stalls in public places.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
When setting fees local authorities are encouraged to be mindful of their legislative requirements and any guidance issued to them.
The Local Government Association has published guidance on locally set licensing fees here which sets out the reasonable costs of administering, processing and enforcing a licensing regime.
Asked by: Kevin Hollinrake (Conservative - Thirsk and Malton)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what guidance the (a) Government and (b) Planning Inspectorate has given to local planning authorities and inspectors on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the planning policy in relation to (i) retrospective planning applications and (ii) unauthorised development.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Neither the government nor the Planning Inspectorate has issued guidance to local planning authorities on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in relation to retrospective planning applications and unauthorised development.
Asked by: Kevin Hollinrake (Conservative - Thirsk and Malton)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what planning weight can decision-makers give to the emerging policy in the draft National Planning Policy Framework of 16 December 2025 during the consultation period.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The proposed changes to the National Planning Policy Framework published in draft on 16 December are subject to consultation prior to being finalised.
It is at the discretion of individual decision makers as whether any weight should be given to the proposals during this period, taking into account their status as draft policies.
Asked by: Kevin Hollinrake (Conservative - Thirsk and Malton)
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 Answer of 15 December 2025 to Question HL12628 on Chinese Embassy: Planning Permission, if he will make it his policy not to determine the planning application until the full unredacted internal drawings requested by his Department on 6 August 2025 have been provided by the applicant.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
My Department does not comment on live planning cases. The full reasons for the decision will be set out in the final decision letter.
Asked by: Kevin Hollinrake (Conservative - Thirsk and Malton)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what guidance he has issued to local planning authorities on enforcing land restoration following the removal of solar developments.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Planning Practice Guidance (PPG) on renewable and low carbon energy sets out that solar farms are normally temporary structures and that planning conditions can be used to ensure that installations are removed when no longer in use and the land restored.
Local planning authorities have powers to take enforcement action against any breach of planning requirements. The PPG on renewable and low carbon energy can be viewed here and guidance on planning enforcement can be found on gov.uk here.
The government is currently consulting on a new National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) that includes clearer, ‘rules based’ policies for decision-making and plan-making. The consultation includes policy on the decommissioning of renewable and low carbon energy development and site restoration.
The consultation can be found on gov.uk here and will remain open for responses until 10 March 2026.
Asked by: Kevin Hollinrake (Conservative - Thirsk and Malton)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether land previously used for solar farms is classified as brownfield following decommissioning.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Brownfield land, also known as previously developed land, is defined in the glossary of the National Planning Policy Framework which can be found on gov.uk here.
It is for those making decisions on specific planning proposals to determine whether a site constitutes brownfield land given the particular circumstances of the case, taking into account any requirements for site restoration.