theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Blake Stephenson:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of housing asylum seekers in military bases on his Department’s policies to build more houses on disused public land. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: The government is committed to close all asylum hotels, and to achieve this the Home Office is looking at a range of more appropriate sites including disused accommodation, industrial and ex-military sites to reduce the impact on communities. These efforts will not compromise general housing delivery. Decisions on the use of alternative asylum accommodation sites will be made on a site-by site basis, and the Home Office will continue to work closely with local authorities and in compliance with published policy.
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Nick Timothy:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will publish a list of the (a) people and (b) organisations who were invited to contribute towards the final report from the Working Group on Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia Definition. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: The Working Group have now submitted their independent advice to Ministers who will take the time to review and consider the advice carefully before confirming next steps in due course.
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Gregory Stafford:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent steps he has taken to support (a) religious freedom and the (b) protection of minority faith groups. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: Freedom of religion or belief is a fundamental human right. Everyone in Britain has the right to feel safe and at ease where they live. The Government is committed to protecting individuals’ right to practise their religion freely and will not tolerate religious hatred in any form. Those who incite religious hatred will face the full force of the law.

Faith Groups in England and Wales that are particularly vulnerable to religiously or racially motivated hate crime are eligible for funded protective security measures through the Places of Worship Protective Security Scheme. This scheme offers physical security enhancements, such as CCTV, intruder alarms, and secure perimeter fencing.

An Antisemitism Working Group has been established to advise the Government on effective strategies to tackle hate against Jewish communities. Additionally, the government continues to work with the independent advisor Lord Mann in combating antisemitism through meaningful engagement with diverse communities.

The Government has also established an independent working group to advise on a non-statutory definition of Anti-Muslim Hatred. The working group have engaged widely to ensure their proposed definition accounts for the variety of backgrounds and experiences of communities across the United Kingdom.
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Rupert Lowe:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate his Department has made of the annual cost to local authorities of (a) translation and (b) interpretation services. \p Alison McGovern: Local authorities are independent employers responsible for the management of their own workforces and compliance with all relevant employment legislation. They are expected to organise their workforce so that it is best placed to meet the needs of their residents.
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Nick Timothy:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when he plans to respond to the letter of 14 August 2025 from the hon. Member for West Suffolk. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: A response was sent to the hon. Member on 16 October 2025.
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Alex Mayer:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to his Department's Pride in Place Programme phase 2 methodology note, published on 25 September 2025, if he will publish the scores of the ranked list of neighbourhoods in England. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: On 25 September the Government announced its flagship Pride in Place Programme, supporting up to 244 of Great Britain’s most in need neighbourhoods with up to £20 million each over the next decade. This will serve as the cornerstone of this Government’s support for communities, incorporating the existing 25 trailblazer areas announced at Spending Review and the 75 Plan for Neighbourhoods programme areas that were announced in March.

New areas across England were selected using a robust, metrics-based methodology based on deprivation (the Index of Multiple Deprivation) and community need (the Community Needs Index) to identify areas with the poorest social and economic outcomes. We’re working closely with devolved governments to make sure funding supports local priorities everywhere. Further details on our approach in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will follow.

In the place selection methodology note, we list areas by the number of neighbourhoods they have that will receive funding as part of this programme – as per column 2. This gives an indication of the neighbourhoods/areas that have gained the most as part of this programme.

The full list of areas and place selection methodology is in the methodology note: Pride in Place Programme Phase 2: Methodology note.
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Gareth Thomas:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what further steps he plans take to help tackle (a) Islamophobic and (b) antisemitic hate crime in London. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: In response to the concerning rise in both antisemitism and anti-Muslim hatred, the Government is absolutely committed to rooting out these forms of hatred. We continue to work across government on security, education and working alongside local government, including via the following.

An Antisemitism Working Group has been established to advise the Government on effective strategies to tackle hate against Jewish communities and will explore how the Government should engage with Jewish communities in relation to international, national, and local events that impact British Jews. In addition, the Government continues to work with the independent advisor Lord Mann in combating antisemitism through meaningful engagement with diverse communities.

The Government established an independent working group to advise on a non-statutory definition of anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia. The working group have engaged widely to ensure their proposed definition accounts for the variety of backgrounds and experiences of communities across the United Kingdom.

The government also funds the British Muslim Trust to deliver a comprehensive service to monitor anti-Muslim hatred and provide support to victims, and True Vision, an online hate crime reporting portal, designed so that victims of hate crime do not have to visit a police station to report to the police.

In response to the Manchester terror attack, Home Office, DfE and DHSC have increased funding to support policing, security and education to tackle antisemitism. Jewish communities will receive up to £10 million in an emergency cash injection to scale up security at synagogues and schools, taking funding to protect faith communities to record levels. As part of the DfE’s committed £7 million to tackling antisemitism in schools, universities and colleges, a £4 million innovation fund will be launched in late November to provide an opportunity for organisations to come up with innovative means to tackle antisemitism in education. NHS England will also roll out updated mandatory antisemitism and anti-racism training for all 1.5 million NHS staff.
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Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 28 July 2025 to Question 65978 on Islamophobia, whether there was a tender process for the True Vision portal. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: True Vision is an online service for reporting hate crimes in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. It sends reports to local police forces and provides information about hate crimes and support. It will record any crime as a hate crime where the victim or any other person perceives it was motivated by hostility or prejudice towards their identity. We provide a non-competitive, direct grant funding of £80,000 to the project.
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Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department is taking steps to encourage national pride among (a) individual people and (b) public sector organisations in (i) the United Kingdom and (ii) England. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: On 25 September, this Government published its Pride in Place Strategy, setting out a vision to restore national pride by empowering communities and revitalising local areas. It recognises that pride stems from what people see from their doorstep - safe streets, thriving high streets, and trusted public services.

The strategy is a significant step change in how we support communities, a new way for government to work in partnership with people and neighbourhoods, empowering them with the tools and levers to drive meaningful change that reflects their priorities. Our flagship Pride in Place Programme will provide up to £20 million of flexible funding and support over 10-years to 244 neighbourhoods to unlock the potential of the place they call home.
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Mr Lee Dillon:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of requiring councils to adopt a cabinet model of governance under proposed legislation. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: Requiring all councils in England to operate an executive model of governance will simplify local authority governance arrangements and provide clearer, more easily understood decision-making structures. The vast majority of councils already operate a cabinet model of governance and will not be affected by the requirement.
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Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to (a) monitor and (b) improve levels of community cohesion in areas experiencing demographic change. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government is leading cross-Government efforts to develop a longer-term, more strategic approach to social cohesion - working in partnership with communities and local stakeholders to rebuild, renew and address the deep-seated issues.

Our recently launched Pride in Place Strategy also announced the expansion of the Pride in Place Programme – this will provide up to £20 million of funding and support over the next decade to 244 places across the UK. It focuses on three overarching objectives: building stronger communities; creating thriving places; and helping communities to take back control of their own lives and areas.

This Government also wants to ensure that all places are further supported to build cohesion and resilience, and that support is in place rapidly, as and when tensions occur. The Common Ground Resilience Fund will provide funding to local communities to insulate them against threats to social cohesion.
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Callum Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what his planned timeline is for implementing the proposed reforms to restore access for councillors and extend access to mayors under the Local Government Pension Scheme. \p Alison McGovern: Subject to consultation responses, the government intends to implement the proposals from the start of the 2026-27 financial year.
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Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of recent trends in the level of homelessness in (a) Lancashire and (b) Fylde constituency. \p Alison McGovern: Homelessness levels are far too high. This can have a devastating impact on those affected and we must address this and deliver long term solutions.

The Government is looking at these issues carefully and is developing a new cross government strategy, working with mayors and councils across the country to get us back on track to ending homelessness.

The Government publishes homelessness statistics by local authority in England on gov.uk here.
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Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the level of English language proficiency by women from an ethnic minority background; and whether he has had discussions with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on the potential impact of the level of English language proficiency by women from an ethnic minority background on barriers to their employment. \p Alison McGovern: Data on English language proficiency falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.

The Census 2021 provides datasets detailing population and proficiency in English. These datasets can be downloaded from nomis. Nomis is a service run on behalf of the Office for National Statistics (ONS) by the University of Durham publishing statistics related to population, society and the labour market at national, regional and local levels, including data from current and previous censuses. Data is freely available. Alternatively, you can obtain census data from the ONS.

The department is supporting cross-government work to invest in ongoing integration support, including English language training, employment programmes, and social integration initiatives, to ensure that people can fully participate in society well beyond their initial arrival. For example, the department provided £11.5 million of funding for English language courses and employment support for up to 12,500 Ukrainians across the UK through the ‘STEP Ukraine’ programme. We have now launched a follow-up ‘STEP’ programme of £4.2m (excl. VAT) for English language courses and employment support for Ukrainians and Hong Kong British Nationals. The aim is for the programme to reach 4,000 participants.
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Cameron Thomas:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking with the Minister for Defence to ensure that veterans in receipt of means-tested support who are living in areas with district councils are not disadvantaged by the move to unitary authorities. \p Alison McGovern: There will be no changes to how we expect councils to continue to support the armed forces community throughout the local government reorganisation process.

By abolishing two-tier local government across England, we will set up strong unitary councils that will improve public services, bringing them under one roof, improving join up with local partners, and making life easier for local residents.

We are committed to working with the Minister for Defence and across government to make sure unitarisation improves public services for all residents, including the armed forces community.
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Andrew Rosindell:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many Building Safety Regulator staff work on building control applications. \p Samantha Dixon: As of 16th October 2025, a total of 69 members of staff were working on building control within the Building Safety Regulator (BSR), including heads of unit. Excluding heads of unit, the total number of staff is 64 (principal regulatory leads, regulatory leads, case officer managers and case officers) who all work directly on applications.

The BSR has seven teams currently working on new builds, external remediation, internal remediation and refurbishment. These teams are made up of approximately ten full-time equivalent members of staff per team, including principal regulatory leads, regulatory leads, case officer managers and case officers.

Building control approval application data is published monthly, with the most recent publication on 16th October 2025. Building Safety Regulator building control approval application data October 2025 - GOV.UK.
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Darren Paffey:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what information her Department holds on when the remediation enforcement unit within the Building Safety Regulator will be set up. \p Samantha Dixon: The remediation enforcement unit is currently recruiting and intends to begin operations in December 2025. The purpose of this unit is to enforce compliance by holding building owners to account, accelerate remediation works and support local enforcement.
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Andrew Rosindell:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many reviews of regulators' decisions have been requested under Regulation 48 of The Building (Higher-Risk Buildings Procedures) (England) Regulations 2023; and how many of these reviews have resulted in the decision being (a) upheld and (b) varied. \p Samantha Dixon: As of 17 October 2025, the Building Safety Regulator has reviewed ten decisions. Out of these, four decisions have been overturned and six have been upheld. 20 reviews are currently in progress, and two further reviews have been requested.
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Darren Paffey:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when the new Fast Track Process for Building Safety Regulator applications will be live; and what the criteria for it will be. \p Samantha Dixon: The Innovation Unit (previously referred to as the Fast Track process) was launched on the 4th August with the majority of cases on track to meet the 13-week target. The Innovation Unit has initially been used only for new-build applications. As its capacity grows, this will be extended to other categories of application.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many homes would have been delivered in buildings waiting for Gateway 2 approval from the Building Safety Regulator for (a) over 12 weeks, (b) over 26 weeks, (c) over 52 weeks and (d) in total in each of the last six months. \p Samantha Dixon: We recognise that delays to the assessment of applications have been unacceptable, which is why we announced reforms to the Building Safety Regulator (BSR) on 30 June, including plans to establish the BSR as a separate body.

The BSR is already making operational and policy changes to speed up decision making, particularly on building control approval, including through the introduction of an Innovation Unit. Early signs are positive with all applications in the Innovation Unit so far on track to exceed or meet the 12-week SLA as they progress through the application process.

To support transparency and accountability, the BSR published performance data on 16 October and will continue to do so monthly to track progress against this commitment.

Gateway 2 decisions in July-September 2025 doubled to over 500 compared to around 250 in January-March 2025. In addition, the backlog of new-build applications has reduced from 134 on 30th June 2025 to 102 on 15th October 2025.

The BSR has provided the sum of residential units that were without a decision covering these timeframes as of the 1st of each month spanning over 6 months:

May -25

Jun- 25

Jul-25

Aug-25

Sep-25

Oct-25

12-25 weeks

3,417

2,231

2,412

2,011

1,221

0

26-51 weeks

4,603

3,909

3,693

2,923

2,915

2,010

52+ weeks

308

648

483

606

606

0
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what guidance his Department provides to developers on the level of information required to satisfy Gateway 2 approval for an application to the Building Safety Regulator. \p Samantha Dixon: The Building Safety Regulator’s (BSR) handling time for each application is dependent on a range of factors, primarily the quality of the application and the additional information submitted by the applicant. As can be seen in the table below, the average handling time by hour varies.

Average Assessment Hours

Category A

Category B

Conversion from Non-HRB to HRB

New Build

Un-Categorised

01/10/2024 to 01/09/2025

37

19

118

176

17

BSR officials have provided the table below which demonstrates the average number of days taken to approve a Gateway 2 (GW2) application.

Average of Decision (Days)

Month Beginning

Category A

Category B

Conversion from Non-HRB to HRB

New Build

Un-Categorised

Grand Total

01/10/2024

132

132

152

134

01/11/2024

153

159

155

01/12/2024

157

123

76

127

150

01/01/2025

179

171

178

01/02/2025

165

147

204

358

181

01/03/2025

225

179

158

217

01/04/2025

229

239

211

114

223

01/05/2025

193

194

367

262

215

01/06/2025

213

236

353

258

236

01/07/2025

212

270

325

400

228

01/08/2025

195

122

273

348

209

01/09/2025

200

178

184

338

420

223

Grand Total

193

174

173

284

272

202

Information on the length of documents submitted as part of applications is not something the BSR actively collects data for. The length and number of documents required to support a GW2 application varies, and there is no correlation between page length and achievement of a GW2 determination as the size and complexity of projects varies considerably.

The BSR is actively supporting the Construction Leadership Council to develop and publish a further suite of industry guidance on the statutory documents accompanying building control approval applications, staged approvals for single tower HRBs and construction phase and gateway three (completion certificate stage). This is expected in November.

The BSR has also published four new pieces of guidance, including:
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Sir John Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of the level of funding for Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue Service. \p Samantha Dixon: On 3 February, the Ministry published the 2025/26 Local Government Finance Settlement which sets out funding allocations for all local authorities including fire and rescue.

As Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue Service is a county service, it is funded by the Central Government and council tax precept via its parent authority, Lincolnshire County Council.

This financial year, Lincolnshire County Council will have a core spending power of £740.3 million, an increase of 5.4 % compared to 2024/25.

The Ministry will continue to work closely with stakeholders across the sector to ensure fire and rescue services have the resources they need to protect communities.
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James Naish:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to improve sanction processes for private parking companies that repeatedly (a) generate upheld complaints and (b) lose appeals. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: The Government is determined to drive up standards in the private parking sector.

The Parking (Code of Practice) Act 2019 places a duty on the Government to prepare a code of practice containing guidance on the operation and management of private parking facilities.

My department recently consulted on the new Code and an accompanying compliance framework for private parking companies. As part of this framework, we are developing an independent Certification Scheme to audit the parking industry’s compliance with the new Code. The scheme will operate as a third-party certification process, whereby only organisations accredited by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service as Conformity Assessment Bodies will be able to certify private parking companies.

Parking operators who fail to comply with the Code risk losing access to Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) data. This data includes information on vehicle keepers, so any company blocked from accessing it would be unable to pursue parking charges.
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Ruth Jones:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he she made of the potential impact of (a) the Coalfield Regeneration Trust and (b) other charities on community wealth building in Welsh coalfield communities. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: I recognise the excellent work being carried out by a range of charities, including the Coalfields Regeneration Trust, in support of coalfield communities across Wales.

This Government is committed to ensuring that communities across Britain, including coalfield communities, can build stronger, brighter futures.

Through our Pride in Place Programme, 244 neighbourhoods will receive up to £20 million in funding and support over 10 years. Nine Local Authorities in Wales will benefit from Phase 2 of the programme, such as Carmarthenshire and Caerphilly, which have proud coalmining histories. These areas will join five Phase 1 communities where work is already underway, taking the total to fourteen local authorities across Wales sharing £280 million. Pride in Place boards are provided with a list of pre-approved interventions and will be given the autonomy to pursue the changes that their community want to see.
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Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether guidance will be issued to Pride in Place boards on ensuring community engagement in funding decisions. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: The Pride in Place Programme will give 244 of the most in-need places across Great Britain up to £20m funding and support over the next decade. Communities will decide how to invest this funding, with residents, community leaders and local businesses coming together to make decisions about how this funding is spent on newly established Neighbourhood Boards. We will publish further guidance shortly which will set clear expectations for Neighbourhood Boards to involve their surrounding community in decision-making to ensure the funding delivers the change local people want to see.
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Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department plans to (a) update ate the integrated communities strategy and (b) publish a revised action plan. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: This Government has recently launched its Pride in Place strategy, which represents a significant step change in how we support communities, focusing on three overarching objectives: building stronger communities; creating thriving places; and helping communities to take back control of their own lives and areas. It represents a break from the past, a new way for government to work in partnership with communities and neighbourhoods, empowering them with the tools and levers to drive meaningful change that reflects their priorities.

The Pride in Place programme will provide up to £5bn over 10 years to support up to 244 places. This will serve as the cornerstone of this Government’s support for communities, incorporating the existing 25 trailblazer areas announced at Spending Review and the 75 Plan for Neighbourhoods programme areas that were announced in March.
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Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to help ensure that local communities are consulted the type of shops permitted on high streets. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: We want local people to work together to create thriving high streets. Through our Pride in Place Programme we are investing up to £5bn and giving communities more say over the make-up of their high streets. Alongside this, we have announced other tools such as a community right to buy to help communities take ownership of valued high street buildings, such as shops and pubs.

We have also introduced High Street Rental Auctions to bring persistent vacant units back into use. Councils are required to consult on the high street designation and have the power to exclude certain uses at auction.
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Alex Brewer:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to support (a) parish and (b) district councils to improve access to disabled toilet facilities in rural communities. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: Local authorities are best placed to assess and manage toilet provision and location.

However, through our £30.5 million Changing Places Toilet programme, we have supported the installation of 483 new disabled toilet facilities across 220 local authority areas in England. This targeted investment helped address gaps where provision was limited or non-existent, particularly in rural towns and coastal areas.

Although this programme closed on 31 March 2025, changes to building regulations have made it mandatory to include Changing Places facilities in new public buildings (or those undergoing major redevelopment) that fall above a certain size threshold. This aims to significantly increase the availability of these vital facilities over time and makes accessibility a mainstream consideration in how we plan and build our public spaces.
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Blake Stephenson:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will ask the Office for National Statistics to produce deprivation statistics at output area level. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government announced recently that the English Indices of Deprivation 2025 will be published on Thursday 30th October 2025. This has been confirmed on GOV.UK

As part of this, the Department is working to enhance and update its measures of deprivation in line with recommendations from its 2022 user consultation - Indices Futures: Updating the English Indices of Deprivation (IoD) - consultation - GOV.UK. This includes assessing the feasibility and provision of data at Output Area (OA) level.
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UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-22 conversation_350

Dr Roz Savage:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of changes in the number of (a) firefighter posts since 2010, (b) (i) fire stations and (ii) control rooms and (c) fire engines on the frontline on (A) levels of public safety and (B) response times; and if he will make it his policy to (1) prevent reductions to fire and rescue services, (2) provide more funding for frontline resources and (3) introduce national response standards to ensure consistent protection. \p Samantha Dixon: The Government acknowledges the vital contributions made by fire and rescue services. Decisions on how their resources are best deployed are a matter for each fire and rescue authority (FRA) as employer, based on its analysis of risk and local circumstances.

Priorities for fire and rescue reform are subject to regular discussion with sector representatives through the Ministerial Advisory Group on Fire and Rescue Reform (MAGFRR) and other relevant forums.

The MAGFRR, established by this Government, serves as a platform for engaging with senior leaders across the sector to address policy challenges. Delivering on manifesto and other commitments, reform priorities endorsed by the Group aim to support FRAs’ drive to modernise fire and rescue services to ensure they are equipped to meet the evolving needs of communities. The Government remains committed to working collaboratively with all sector partners to drive meaningful change and ensure fire and rescue services have the resources they need to keep the public safe.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-22)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-22 conversation_351

Mr Calvin Bailey:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment his Department has made of the risk of wildfires crossing the rural-urban interface in London. \p Samantha Dixon: Outdoor fires, especially wildfires, are expected by many academics to increase in frequency and impact in the future, predominantly driven by climate change. Wildfires are difficult to predict as risk is based on many factors - such as weather and human activity - and can happen across a wide range of landscapes.

Each fire and rescue authority, including the London Fire Commissioner, is required to plan for the foreseeable risks in their area (including wildfire), through their Community Risk Management Plan (CRMP), and having regard to the views of other key local responders.

The Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) works closely with a wide range of stakeholders including the National Fire Chiefs Council, England and Wales Wildfire Forum and other Departments and Agencies including DEFRA and the Met Office to promote planning and prevention for wildfire incidents in England. This includes working closely with partners to consider options for enhancing forecasting, monitoring and public communications around wildfire.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-22)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-22 conversation_352

Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the press notice entitled Government launches working group on Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia definition, published on 28 February 2025, whether he plans to produce guidance to public bodies on the definition of Islamophobia after the working group on Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia has delivered against its aims. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: The Working Group have now submitted their independent advice to Ministers who will take the time to review and consider the advice carefully before confirming next steps in due course.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-22)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-22 conversation_353

Connor Naismith:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department plans to take steps to help incentivise the temporary use of vacant commercial spaces for (a) community-based and (b) start-up projects. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: The Government is committed to bringing empty buildings back into use. That’s why we introduced High Street Rental Auctions giving local authorities the power to auction the lease of persistently vacant commercial properties and make town centre tenancies more accessible and affordable for any organisation including start-up businesses and community groups.

Through the Pride in Place strategy, we are going further by giving communities extra tools to improve their high street, alongside up to £5 billion funding over ten years to 244 neighbourhoods experiencing some of the highest levels of disadvantage.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-22)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-22 conversation_354

Lewis Cocking:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether councillors and mayors will be able to sit on her Department's new social cohesion taskforce. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: As set out in my response to UIN 78208, the Social Cohesion Taskforce is an internal Civil Service team comprised of civil servants. As part of our work, we have been engaging with a wide range of relevant stakeholders, including those with experience of delivering cohesion programmes within local government.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-22)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-22 conversation_355

Emily Thornberry:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Fair Funding Review 2.0 changes to inner-London council's funding on (a) London and (b) the UK's economic growth. \p Alison McGovern: The government has been listening closely to the views expressed by the public, local authorities and other bodies on the proposals set out in the Fair Funding Review 2.0 consultation. No final decisions on the outcome of the review have yet been taken. However, the government’s proposals will target central government grant funding to where it is needed the most. Subject to consultation, the proposals set out mean that the most relatively deprived places, which on average have higher levels of child poverty, will have more income than the least deprived places. The vast majority of councils with social care responsibilities will see their Core Spending Power increase in real terms over the multi-year Settlement. We will publish further information in the government’s consultation response in Autumn, followed by the provisional Local Government Finance Settlement later this year.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-22)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-22 conversation_356

Helen Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the August 2025 data breach for people with outstanding ARAP applications; and what assessment he has made of the potential impact of that breach on the (a) processing and (b) prioritisation of those cases. \p Luke Pollard: The Ministry of Defence assessed that this incident did not pose a significant threat to the safety of ARAP principals. This incident surrounded data for those arriving on flights into the UK, meaning that their eligible decisions had already been made.

The data incident of February 2022 was announced in the Defence Secretary’s Oral Statement of July 2025. For this cohort, the published Rimmer Review considered it “highly unlikely” that merely being on the February 2022 dataset would be grounds for targeting by the Taleban, noting the time that has passed since the fall of Kabul and the wealth of data the Taleban already have access to.

All outstanding ARAP applications will be considered on their own merits against the ARAP criteria. Where there is a unique or imminent circumstance, officials can also consider expedition on a case-by-case basis. We aim to complete the process of relocation before the end of this Parliament.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-22)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-22 conversation_357

Mr Angus MacDonald:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to strengthen military and defence cooperation with Estonia. \p Al Carns: The UK and Estonia maintain a strong defence relationship and have a long history of working alongside each other through Baltic Air Policing, the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF), Maritime and Land deployments through NATO and our enduring collaboration on NATO’s Forward Land Forces (FLF). The UK is the Framework Nation for NATO FLF Estonia and maintains a deployment of up to 1,000 UK Armed Forces personnel and saw hundreds of UK personnel rapidly deploy to Estonia earlier this year for Ex HEDGEHOG, which was a full demonstration of Estonia’s National Defence Plan.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-22)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-22 conversation_358

Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to page 90 of the Strategic Defence Review 2025, when plans for home defence were last fully updated. \p Al Carns: The Ministry of Defence routinely plans against a range of potential threats to ensure the UK remains prepared to respond swiftly and effectively to any threat, including an armed attack on the UK. While we keep these plans under regular review, we are taking the recommendations of the Strategic Defence Review forward, working closely with the Cabinet Office-led Home Defence Programme.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-22)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-22 conversation_359

Mr Angus MacDonald:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to strengthen military and defence cooperation with Denmark. \p Al Carns: The UK and Denmark are close defence partners with shared security interests in the High North, North Atlantic and Baltic Sea. We have a strong history of cooperation - bilaterally, in NATO and through the Joint Expeditionary Force. The Secretary of State for Defence met with the Danish Defence Minister on 15 October to discuss opportunities for further defence co-operation, including support to Ukraine. In September the UK deployed a specialist RAF Regiment counter-drone unit to Denmark to enhance security in response to the drone incursions at their airports.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-22)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-22 conversation_360

Emma Lewell:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the total cost to the public purse is for compensation paid to (a) (i) former and (ii) current armed forces personnel and (b) their solicitors in relation to the use of Lariam by the Armed Forces. \p Louise Sandher-Jones: The Ministry of Defence is unable to disclose the total amount of damages paid out for common law claims related to Lariam as they are subject to the usual confidentiality undertaking agreed with claimants' legal representatives. The same applies to claimant legal costs.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-22)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-22 conversation_361

Liz Jarvis:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his planned timetable is for the introduction of the Armed Forces Covenant into law. \p Louise Sandher-Jones: The Government’s election manifesto committed to placing the Armed Forces Covenant fully into law. During Armed Forces week in June, the Prime Minister announced that Military personnel, Veterans, their families and the bereaved are to have their unique circumstances legally protected by central and devolved Governments for the first time under new plans to extend the Covenant Legal Duty to more policy areas and across the UK.

It is our ambition to include these statutory changes in the next Armed Forces Bill, which is required every five years to continue to have an Armed Forces.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-22)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-22 conversation_362

Navendu Mishra:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress he has made on implementing the VALOUR pilot scheme in (a) Stockport and (b) Greater Manchester. \p Louise Sandher-Jones: The VALOUR pilot was launched on 26 June in partnership with Greater Manchester, Liverpool City Region, West Yorkshire, and South Yorkshire Combined Authorities. Work with our pilot partners to develop the VALOUR system is in progress, and I am grateful to them for their invaluable contributions so far.

VALOUR is a new programme that will give veterans across the UK easier access to the essential care and support that is available to them, overseen by the Office for Veterans' Affairs in the Ministry of Defence. It will improve the coordination of services at a national, regional and local level to ensure that veterans receive the support they need.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-22)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-22 conversation_363

Helen Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) military families and (b) veterans will be served by the forces first housing scheme. \p Luke Pollard: The Forces First approach will mean more Service personnel have access to the high-quality homes and home-ownership opportunities they deserve and will form part of the upcoming Defence Housing Strategy.

This approach will be applied by agreement with local authorities and development partners on a site-by-site basis, so it is not possible to estimate the number of military families or veterans who will currently benefit at this time.

A trailblazer for this approach is already underway at MOD Feltham in South-West London, where the MOD, the London Borough of Hounslow and the Greater London Authority have agreed to adopt a Forces First approach as part of a groundbreaking partnership to develop the site. Once vacated, this new development alone is expected to deliver hundreds of homes and jobs.