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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what support is available to local authorities to improve community (a) libraries, (b) banking hubs and (c) other digital access points for residents lacking reliable home internet access.

The final Local Government Finance Settlement for 2025-26 makes available over £69 billion for local government, which is a 6.8% cash terms increase on 2024-25. The majority of funding in the Local Government Finance Settlement is unringfenced recognising that local leaders are best placed to identify local priorities.

This government is also taking direct steps to support libraries, banks and digital inclusion.

The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport announced in February 2025 a further £5.5 million of the Libraries Improvement Fund for 2025-26

The Government is also working closely with industry to roll out 350 banking hubs across the UK. Over 230 hubs have been announced so far, and over 170 are already open.

Finally, the Government published the Digital Inclusion Action Plan: First Steps in February 2025, which outlines the first five actions we are taking over the next year on digital inclusion.