Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what plans his Department has to bring forward legislative proposals to prohibit the squatting of premises in the commercial property sector.

The unauthorised occupation of commercial buildings by squatters can affect the profitability of the businesses concerned and may have particularly damaging consequences for the owners of small businesses and their employees. We have been monitoring the situation closely since we criminalised squatting in residential buildings in the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012. We have no proposals for further legislation at this time.