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

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what discussions his Department has had with the Homes and Communities Agency on the use of intermediaries such as banks and alternative lenders to increase finance available for small builders.

My Department and the Homes and Communities Agency speak regularly to banks and lenders about increasing development finance to small and medium sized builders. We have contributed £50 million to the Housing Growth Partnership, with Lloyds Banking Group also putting in £50 million to increase overall lending to get homes built. We will continue to explore opportunities to ensure maximum impact of funding is delivered across the sector.