Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whether his Department plans to categorise houses which are overcrowded and have fewer than three storeys as houses in multiple occupation; and if he will make a statement.

The Department has recently consulted on options for extending the scope of mandatory licensing to include those Houses in Multiple Occcupation in England with fewer than three storeys. We plan to announce our proposals and next steps in the spring.