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

To ask His Majesty's Government, in light of the final Local Government Finance Settlement 2026-2027 to 2028-2029, whether the actual or expected party political control of the local authority was a material consideration in the decision by ministers to disapply the council tax referendum thresholds from the six specified councils.

As we set out in the 2026-27 Local Government Finance Settlement consultation, authorities had to meet all the following criteria for referendum principles to not be applied: a) they are upper tier local authorities; b) 95% of their income is protected through transitional protections; and c) they have council tax levels lower than average. Actual or expected party control was therefore not a criterion in the decision.