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

What recent assessment he has made of the potential effect on high street businesses of proposals for a new permitted development right to allow more premises to change to residential use.

Our new permitted development rights will boost our high streets and town centres, put vacant buildings back to use, and help to build the homes this country needs. They will create jobs, deliver more housing, and create an easier and more flexible environment for businesses to set up and flourish. Previous permitted development right changes have already delivered over 72,000 new homes over the last 5 years to March 2020. And a survey last year showed three quarters of small and mid-sized property builders expect to make use of the changes to Permitted Development Rights to deliver more housing units.