Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will review the decision to freeze Local Housing Allowance rates until 2026.

Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates are reviewed annually, usually at an Autumn fiscal event.

At last year’s Autumn Budget, the decision to maintain LHA at current levels for 2025/26 was taken after a range of factors were considered, including rental data, the impacts of LHA rates, rate increases in April 2024 and the wider fiscal context. The April 2024 one-year LHA increase cost an additional £1.2bn in 2024/25, and approximately £7bn over 5 years.

Any future decisions on LHA policy will be taken in the context of the Government’s missions, goals on housing and the challenging fiscal context.

Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs) are available from local authorities to those who face a shortfall in meeting their housing costs.