Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effect on the amount of office floor space in London of the relaxation of permitted development rights.

From April 2016 applications for prior approval are required to note how many homes will be permitted. There is no requirement to note how much office space is to change to residential use. The net additional dwellings data shows that the right has made a valuable contribution to housing supply, delivering over 12,800 homes in the year to March 2016.