theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Perran Moon:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department has held discussions with the Department of Health and Social Care on integrating public access defibrillators into housing infrastructure planning. \p Matthew Pennycook: The Government recognises the importance of improving access to automated external defibrillators (AEDs) in public spaces.

We have no current plans to require the installation of public access defibrillators in new housing developments through planning guidance or building regulations. However, we keep planning policies, guidance and building regulations under review.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government regularly engages with other government departments on matters relating to planning policy and guidance.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

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Dr Roz Savage:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that householders in conservation areas whose permitted development rights were removed by local authorities are not required to submit a full householder planning application in order to install air source heat pumps, in the context of the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) (Amendment) Order 2025, Section G, protections safeguarding the amenities of conservation areas. \p Matthew Pennycook: National permitted development rights enable the installation of air and ground source heat pumps without the need for a planning application.

Local authorities are able to remove permitted development rights by making an Article 4 direction if this is justified. In such cases an application for planning permission will be required in order to carry out the development previously allowed by the permitted development right.

We continue to keep permitted development rights under review.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

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Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 8 September 2025 to Question 72484 on Inheritance Tax: Valuation, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the free home care threshold on trends in the number of unoccupied homes. \p Matthew Pennycook: My Department does not hold records on the impact of care costs on the number of vacant homes.
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Nadia Whittome:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the prevalence of property owners (a) misusing and (b) providing false information to obtain Temporary Exemption Notices. \p Matthew Pennycook: No assessment has been made of the prevalence of property owners misusing and/or providing false information to obtain Temporary Exemption Notices.
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Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the collection entitled Crown Development and Urgent Crown Development applications and decisions, published on 10 September 2025, what criteria are used to assess whether a development is of national importance. \p Matthew Pennycook: I refer the Rt Hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement made on 13 February 2025 (HCWS454).
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Blake Stephenson:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the financial sustainability of housing associations. \p Matthew Pennycook: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given Question UIN 76512 on 16 September 2025.
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Mr Lee Dillon:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department plans to require registered providers of social housing to provide data on (a) the number and (b) location of all market sales over the past five years and the (i) value, (ii) age, (iii) condition and (iv) other information on stock in the forthcoming housing strategy. \p Matthew Pennycook: The Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) sets out when it must be notified if a private registered provider disposes of homes – including where these might be disposed of by market sale.

RSH sets out different requirements dependent on the nature of the disposal but requires providers that are selling homes out of the regulated sector to identify the location and number of homes sold. The relevant RSH guidance can be found on gov.uk here.

RSH publishes a range of statistics, including on sector and provider-level number of sales. These are available on gov.uk here.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much funding has been allocated from the Brownfield Infrastructure and Land fund to (a) Huntingdonshire District Council and (b) Cambridgeshire since the establishment of that programme. \p Matthew Pennycook: No funding has been allocated to Huntingdonshire District Council from the Brownfield, Infrastructure and Land (BIL) programme.

In Cambridgeshire, one BIL project is now in contract, for a £23.35m grant (alongside funding from the Cambridge City Deal) to support the relocation of the Waterbeach Village railway station which is a condition of the planning for the 4,500 home Waterbeach East New Town.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what progress he has made on the Local Land Charges Programme. \p Matthew Pennycook: HM Land Registry’s (HMLR’s) new national Local Land Charges search service went live for customers in 2018, the programme is making good progress in digitising this critical information on land and property, transforming how it is stored, searched and delivered. Since the launch of the programme, at the time of writing HMLR has transferred 8 million charges from 137 Local Authorities to the new service, and another 133 Local Authorities’ data is currently in the process of being digitised, ready for it to be transferred. So far, the new service has delivered over 1.9 million searches, which saves the average customer over £10 per search and approximately 12 days in waiting time. As a result, customer sentiment is overwhelmingly positive, with 74% of them rating the service as good to excellent.
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Mrs Elsie Blundell:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will consider mandating the allocation of sites for HGV parking as part of the conditions for consent for larger infrastructure projects. \p Matthew Pennycook: The government takes the view that it is for the relevant Secretary of State to decide, on a case-by-case basis, whether conditions relating to HGV traffic movement or the provision of HGV parking should be attached when granting development consent for nationally significant infrastructure projects.
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Charlotte Cane:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans he has to bring forward legislative proposals to classify static caravans as buildings. \p Matthew Pennycook: Caravans are temporary structures and the government has no plans to legally define them as buildings.
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Mohammad Yasin:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to facilitate downsizing for social housing tenants under-occupying homes. \p Matthew Pennycook: The government encourages the efficient use of existing housing stock.

When it comes to social housing, local authorities and housing associations are encouraged to support under-occupiers to transfer to smaller properties, including through mutual exchanges.

In the five-step plan for delivering a decade of renewal for social and affordable housing published on 2 July (which can be found on gov.uk here), the government set out its intention to review how effectively social housing providers use their properties, and explore ways to encourage movement within the sector through mutual exchanges (particularly where homes are overcrowded and under-occupied).
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Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what information his department holds on the (a) amount of green belt that has been de-designated and (b) number of developments that have been built on green belt land since the publication of the revised National Planning Policy Framework in December 2024. \p Matthew Pennycook: As part of our annual Green Belt release, my Department published the extent of England’s Green Belt as at 31 March 2025. It can be found on gov.uk here.

These statistics give the area of land designated as Green Belt by local authority in England, and also provide details on each local authority who made changes to their Green Belt between 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025. Data is collected by financial year.

Figures for 2025-26 will be published in our next release at the end of 2026.
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Dan Norris:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to improve levels of community (a) involvement and (b) engagement in planning processes. \p Matthew Pennycook: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Questions UIN 58236 on 17 June 2025 and UIN 72839 on 15 September 2025.
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Bradley Thomas:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what data his Department holds on the number of long-term vacant homes in Bromsgrove constituency. \p Matthew Pennycook: Statistics are published annually on gov.uk which include a breakdown of vacant dwellings by local authority district. We do not hold records on vacant homes on a constituency basis.
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Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the answer of 5 August 2025 to Question HL9889 on Asylum: Housing, what the £500 million will be spent on; over what time period that funding is for; and whether it will involve a bidding process. \p Matthew Pennycook: As allocated as part of the Spending Review, the government is investing £500 million in a new, more sustainable asylum accommodation model, developed in consultation with local authorities.

The model supported by this funding will be delivered by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) in partnership with the Home Office and local authorities.

Its aim is to deliver better outcomes for communities and taxpayers by supporting local authorities to make available basic alternative accommodation that can be used on a temporary basis to house asylum seekers waiting for their cases to be processed. In the longer term, our intention is to ensure that the accommodation made available benefits local communities and reduces pressure on local housing markets.

We continue to engage with local government on the design of the model and will confirm the process for distributing funding in due course.
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Dr Ellie Chowns:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 26 March 2025 to Question 39353 on Housing: Fees and Charges, whether he plans to implement the recommendations in the final report of the Older People’s Housing Taskforce. \p Matthew Pennycook: As set out in the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 26 November 2024 (HCWS249), the government is giving careful consideration to the recommendations from the Older People’s Housing Taskforce report.
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Alex Brewer:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when he plans to fully implement the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024. \p Matthew Pennycook: I refer the hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement made on 21 November 2024 (HCWS244).
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Andrew George:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to help raise awareness in local communities on the concept of community-led housing delivery via community land trusts. \p Matthew Pennycook: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 74018 on 16 September 2025.
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Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 15 September 2025, to Question 72839, on Planning Permission, whether the increased digitalisation of the planning system review will examine removing the requirement for statutory notices to be placed in local newspapers. \p Matthew Pennycook: I refer the Rt. Hon Member to the answer to Question UIN 75991 on 26 September 2025.
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Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of council responses to the raising of UK national flags on (a) integration and (b) community relations. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: The Prime Minister has been clear that he supports the flying of flags across the country. Flags should be an embodiment of bringing our country and our communities together. Decisions about whether flags should be removed are devolved to Local Authorities and it is for them to assess the impacts of removing or allowing flags to remain. Guidance exists, such as ‘Flying flags: a plain English guide” - as set out in the Town and Country Planning (Control of Advertisements) Regulations 2007 (as amended in 2012 and 2021) – which outlines the regulations related to the flying of flags in England.

It is important that the decisions taken by Local Authorities reflect the character and values of the communities they serve. Where symbols are used in ways that threaten public safety, it is right that action is taken to address this.
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Alex Mayer:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the cost to his Department of extreme weather related to climate change since 1 January 2020. \p Samantha Dixon: The government’s third UK Climate Change Risk Assessment (CCRA3),published in 2021 under the UK Climate Change Act 2008, includes a Monetary Valuation of Risks and Opportunities assessment of the current and future costs of climate change to the UK. A 2022 study from the London School of Economics’ Grantham Institute estimates that with current policies, the total UK cost of climate damage is equivalent to 1.1% of GDP currently.

For estimating future costs of extreme weather, decisions on key government spending are subject to clear requirements through the Green Book. This includes supplementary guidance which covers the impacts of climate change, i.e. accounting for the effects of climate change. This ensures policies, programmes and projects are resilient to the effects and future costs of climate change, and that such effects are being taken fully into account when appraising policy options.

The Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has not estimated the costs of extreme weather related to climate change in our policy remit. MHCLG’s emergency response and recovery planning considers a suite of risks covered by the National Security Risk Assessment. Risks of which those associated with climate change form a part.
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Mr Joshua Reynolds:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of requiring leasehold contracts to (a) include (i) a clear summary of the key terms and conditions and (ii) accessible web links to the full documentation, and (b) require leaseholders to sign to confirm they have read and understood those terms and conditions. \p Matthew Pennycook: My Department has not carried out an assessment on this specific issue.

It is essential that leaseholders understand their rights and responsibilities and are able to access information regarding their leasehold arrangements.

Leaseholders can view high level information on their lease on the title register or request an official copy of their lease from HM Land Registry (HMLR) using form OC2. A dataset of registered leases is also published by HMLR and can be accessed free of charge for personal use. It can be found on gov.uk here.

On 4 July, the government published a consultation on strengthening leaseholder protections over charges and services. It can be found on gov.uk here. For an overview of the proposals set out in the consultation, I refer the hon. Member to the associated Written Ministerial Statement (HCWS780). The consultation closed on 26 September, and we are analysing responses.

On 6 October 2025, the government published a consultation on proposals to improve to the home buying and selling process. It can be found on gov.uk here.

The consultation includes proposals to require sellers and estate agents to provide upfront property information. This might include information relating to leasehold terms, property condition, and purchasing chains.

Under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, property listings must already not omit information that the average consumer needs to make an informed transactional decision.
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Linsey Farnsworth:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to prevent developers seeking to (a) reduce and (b) remove obligations under agreements entered into under section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 on viability grounds; and whether he plans to reform the viability assessment process. \p Matthew Pennycook: The government is committed to strengthening the system of developer contributions to ensure new developments provide necessary affordable homes and infrastructure.

As part of this commitment, we are reviewing the planning practice guidance PPG on viability.

Further details will be set out in due course.
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Ben Coleman:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that (a) repairs in social housing are carried out (i) promptly and (ii) effectively and (b) sufficient (A) funding and (B) oversight of repairs are in place. \p Matthew Pennycook: Alongside delivering the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding a generation, the government is committed to driving a transformational and lasting change in the safety and quality of homes.

Social housing tenants deserve to live in safe and decent homes, to be treated with fairness and respect, and to have their problems quickly resolved.

All registered providers of social housing are required to meet the outcomes of the regulatory standards set by the independent Regulator of Social Housing. This includes providing an effective, efficient, and timely repairs service for the homes and communal areas they are responsible for, including setting timescales for completion, and communicate this to tenants. The Regulator has a series of powers at its disposal when it identifies serious failings in the way a landlord is delivering the outcomes of their standards.

On 2 July 2025, we launched consultations on an updated and modernised Decent Homes Standard and on a new Minimum Energy Efficiency Standard. These new standards would be binding on registered providers of social housing.

The government will bring Awaab’s Law into force for the social rented sector on 27 October. Awaab’s Law is vital legislation that will empower social tenants to hold their landlords to account using the full force of the law if they fail to investigate and fix hazards within their homes within set timescales. It will also allow tenants to access the Housing Ombudsman if their landlord does not adhere to strict timelines for action.

New requirements relating to electrical safety will also require social landlords to carry out electrical safety checks at least every five years, as well as mandatory appliance inspections on all electrical appliances that are provided by the landlord.

Registered providers rely on income from social housing rents in order to manage and maintain their homes to the required standards.
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Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he plans to repeal the Parliamentary Elections Act xx-xxxx-xxxx. \p Samantha Dixon: The majority of the Parliamentary Elections Act xx-xxxx-xxxx was repealed by the Representation of the People Act 1948. The one remaining section (section 7) related to the minimum age of candidacy for elections to the House of Commons and was repealed by the Electoral Administration Act 2006 when that Act reduced the minimum age of candidacy for elections to the House of Commons from 21 to 18 years.
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Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 29 August 2025 to Question 68791 on MHCLG: English Language, if he will make an assessment of whether publications issued by his Department use (a) clear and (b) understandable language. \p Samantha Dixon: While there is no legal requirement for government documents to be published in plain English, the department always asks teams to use clear, understandable language in its publications.
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Stuart Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what funding is available for community ownership projects. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: The government is committed to supporting community ownership and empowering local people to take control of valued community assets.

As part of the forthcoming English Devolution Bill, this government will legislate to introduce a new Community Right to Buy. This will enable communities to acquire assets such as empty shops, pubs, and community spaces when they come up for sale, helping to bring them back into community use and tackle the issue of vacant premises on high streets.

In addition, the government has launched the Pride in Place programme, which will invest up to £5 billion over ten years, supporting 244 places across the United Kingdom. Community ownership projects such as youth clubs, libraries, community grocers, cultural venues, and health and wellbeing services will be eligible for support where they align with the needs and ambitions of local communities.

We have also launched the Pride in Place Impact Fund, with £150 million to invest in up to 95 communities, helping to rebuild community pride in local areas. One of the objectives is to support community spaces; creating, extending, improving or refurbishing existing community facilities and enabling community organisations to take control or ownership of underused but valued local assets.
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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 whether overseas electors in (a) Australia and (b) UAE can receive postal ballot papers posted from the United Kingdom in line with the legal deadlines for returning them. \p Samantha Dixon: The responsibility for arranging the timing and dispatch of postal votes sits with the Returning Officer for each electoral area. As such, it falls to them to assess the likelihood of an elector’s postal ballot pack being dispatched, returned and completed before the close of poll.

The Electoral Commission advises Returning Officers to prioritise overseas postal ballot packs. Since 2016, the Government has supported Returning Officers by funding the use of the International Business Response Licence - which expedites the return of ballot packs from overseas, as well as covering any postage costs that might otherwise be incurred.

The Electoral Commission also advises that, in cases where it may not be realistic for a postal ballot pack to be dispatched, completed and returned before the close of poll, the Electoral Registration Officer should make the elector aware of this and advise that they vote by proxy instead. The online absent vote application service includes similar advice for electors applying for a postal vote.
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Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, which international conferences were attended by representatives of his Department since 4 July 2024; and what the cost was of attending each conference. \p Samantha Dixon: The requested information cannot be reported on centrally and can only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
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Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the press release entitled Red tape slashed to revamp high streets with new cafes and bars, published on 26 July 2025, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of licensing hospitality zones on the regulation of licensed premises not designated as a hospitality zone. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: The government is exploring a range of reforms proposed by the recent Licensing Taskforce to support the hospitality industry and night-time economy. This includes designating zones to promote or preserve economic and cultural activity. Similar approaches have been successful in the UK and overseas – for example, in New South Wales.

We have launched a call for evidence to provide an opportunity for the public and a range of stakeholders to shape early policy development on the designation of licensing hospitality zones, alongside other possible reforms to the licensing system. The call for evidence is open to the public on gov.uk here.
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Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what (a) Home England's and (b) his Department’s definition is of a housing start. \p Matthew Pennycook: When referring to housing starts, my Department uses the definition for “new build dwelling start” in housing supply statistics and “start on site” in its affordable housing statistics. Homes England also uses the term “start on site” to refer to housing starts. Both terms are defined in the Housing Statistics and English Housing Survey glossary which can be found on gov.uk here.
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Ben Coleman:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to help reduce waiting lists for social housing. \p Matthew Pennycook: I refer the hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement made on 2 July 2025 (HCWS771).
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Dr Allison Gardner:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of private parking firms using payment by app only on users who cannot use a mobile phone. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: In accordance with the Private Parking (Code of Practice) Act 2019, the government has recently consulted on its proposals for a new code of practice for private parking operators to follow.

The government is aware that predominantly elderly and disabled motorists are the most likely to experience challenges when using mobile phones to pay for parking.

As part of the consultation, the government sought views on the impact its proposals would have on protected groups, as defined by the 2010 Equality Act.

The consultation closed on 26 September and the government will respond in due course.
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Blake Stephenson:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 30 June 2025 to Question 61255 on Planning: Apprentices, if he will make it his policy to collect data on the number of planners with a Level 7 Chartered Town Planner Apprenticeship qualification that are employed by (a) local authorities and (b) developers. \p Matthew Pennycook: My Department currently has no plans to collect data on the number of planners with a Level 7 Chartered Town Planner Apprenticeship qualification employed by local authorities or developers.
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Liz Jarvis:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to ensure that there is an adequate supply of age-appropriate housing for people over 65. \p Matthew Pennycook: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 74681 on 12 September 2025.
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James Wild:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to encourage investment in high streets. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: The Government is committed to leveraging investment in our high streets. Through the Pride in Place programme, we are investing up to £5 billion to back regeneration in the places that need it most, including funding to unlock high street renewal.

We are committed to supporting more strategic investment in town centres by enabling property owner BIDs to operate across England.

We are also empowering local leaders through devolution to develop strategic, place-based investment plans, leveraging their deep regional insight for more targeted and effective investment.

Together, these approaches reflect a broader commitment to ensure high streets flourish and town centres remain vibrant, attractive places to live, work, and visit.
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UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-20 conversation_366

Neil Coyle:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking with the Secretary of State for Transport to (a) expand electricity capacity and (b) ensure the adequacy of the number of EV charging stations in new housing developments. \p Matthew Pennycook: The National Planning Policy Framework makes clear that strategic policies set out in development plans should make sufficient provision for energy.

The government recently amended the existing permitted development rights for electric vehicle charging points to support homeowners through the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) (Amendment) Order 2025.

We continue to keep the regulations under review.
wrans/answers2025-10-20 conversation_367
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-20 conversation_367

Sir Julian Lewis:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 15 October 2025 to Question 77959 on Landscapes Review, if he will make it his policy to maintain the Protected Landscapes duty as enacted through the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023, in the context of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill. \p Matthew Pennycook: The government has no plans to repeal the Protected Landscapes duty.
wrans/answers2025-10-20 conversation_368
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-20 conversation_368

Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the guidance entitled Local Regeneration Fund: accounting officer assessment, published on 2 September 2025, which projects were safeguarded following the consultation entitled Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill: consultation on implementation of plan-making reforms of February 2025. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: A list of the projects safeguarded is published on gov.uk: Local Regeneration Fund Culture Projects.
wrans/answers2025-10-20 conversation_369
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-20 conversation_369

Mr Joshua Reynolds:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that leaseholders’ reserve funds are (a) legally protected, (b) transparently accounted for and (c) subject to independent oversight. \p Matthew Pennycook: Landlords and managing agents are responsible for handling billions of pounds of service charge monies each year, including reserve fund monies. Service charge monies are legally protected since they must be held in trust and at a financial institution authorised under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000.

On 4 July, the government published a consultation on strengthening leaseholder protections over charges and services. It can be found on gov.uk here. For an overview of the proposals set out in the consultation, I refer the hon. Member to the associated Written Ministerial Statement (HCWS780). The consultation closed on 26 September, and we are analysing responses.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-20 conversation_370

Alberto Costa:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to ensure that information on (a) settlement payments and (b) legal costs incurred by local authorities in cases of staff misconduct is shared with (i) relevant board members and (ii) the public. \p Alison McGovern: Local authorities are independent employers responsible for the management of their own workforces and compliance with all relevant employment legislation. This includes responsibility for cases of staff misconduct.
wrans/answers2025-10-20 conversation_371
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-20 conversation_371

Tom Morrison:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the potential (a) transport and (b) road infrastructure requirements arising from the proposed new town at Adlington, Cheshire East. \p Matthew Pennycook: On 28 September 2025, the government published the independent New Towns Taskforce report as well as its initial response to that report. Both can be found on gov.uk here.

As set out in the initial government response, we warmly welcome all 12 of the locations it has recommend. Prima facie, each has the clear potential to deliver on the government’s objectives, with Tempsford, Crews Hill and Leeds South Bank looking particularly promising as sites that might make significant contributions to unlocking economic growth and accelerating housing delivery.

On 28 September 2025 we commenced a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) to understand the environmental implications of new towns development. This will support final decisions on precisely which locations we take forward. No final decisions on locations will be made until that SEA concludes and preferred locations could change as a result of the process.

Ministers and officials will now begin work with local partners to develop detailed proposals and enhance our understanding of how different locations might meet the government’s expectations of what a future New Towns Programme can deliver, with all promising sites and reasonable alternatives assessed and considered through the SEA process. Appropriate assessment under the Habitats Regulations will also be undertaken when required.

We are determined to get spades in the ground on at least three new towns in this Parliament and the government is prepared to progress work on a far larger range of locations if it proves possible.

The post-war new towns programme was the most ambitious town-building effort ever undertaken in the UK. The next generation of new towns must match that post-war vision. The government will be looking for assurance that any location can be effectively and efficiently delivered in partnership with local communities, has a clear economic purpose, and will support national economic growth. We will also seek to test different delivery vehicles to learn lessons for how future large settlements are delivered and to contribute to a wider transformation of housing supply.

The government will publish the draft proposals and final SEA for consultation early next year, before confirming the locations that will be progressed as new towns later in the Spring alongside a full response to the New Towns Taskforce’s report.
wrans/answers2025-10-20 conversation_372
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-20 conversation_372

Neil Duncan-Jordan:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what comparative assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the proposed reforms to leasehold on (a) the relative value of existing flats and (b) new flats with no ground rent. \p Matthew Pennycook: The government is committed to addressing unregulated and unaffordable ground rents and we will do this in legislation. We will set out further details in due course.
wrans/answers2025-10-20 conversation_373
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-20 conversation_373

Paul Davies:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the installation of carbon monoxide alarms in (a) care homes, (b) student halls, (c) office spaces and (d) other residential settings not covered by the Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarms (Amendment) Regulations 2022. \p Matthew Pennycook: The goverrnment currently has no plans to extend the Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (England) Regulations 2015, which are designed specifically to address issues associated with rented residential accommodation. Other buildings, including workplaces and care settings, are already covered by other regulations.

The Building Regulations 2010 apply to new building work, including air supply and chimney or flue requirements for combustion appliances installed in buildings, and for dwellings only the provision of warnings of a release of carbon monoxide. The Gas Safety Installation and Use Regulations 1998 require owners of premises to ensure gas appliances are installed and maintained properly by a competent gas safe registered engineer, which the Health and Safety Executive advise is the most effective way to reduce the risk from carbon monoxide.

The 2015 smoke and CO alarm regulations provide important protections for renters, private and social, requiring landlords to fit smoke and carbon monoxide alarms in their homes. In addition to these regulations, fire and carbon monoxide safety requirements can be found in the Housing Act 2004, the Fire Safety Act 2021 and the Building Safety Act 2022. The government has also introduced additional safety legislation to protect tenants from health and safety hazards through the introduction of Awaab’s Law which will come onto force for damp, mould and all emergency hazards this month.
wrans/answers2025-10-20 conversation_374
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-20 conversation_374

Cat Eccles:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the time taken for Gateway (a) 2 and (b) 3 approvals under the Building Safety Regulator; and if he will provide additional support for (i) manufacturers and (ii) contractors whose businesses are affected. \p Samantha Dixon: The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) has established a dedicated external remediation team who assess all building control approval applications for cladding remediation. The team is already delivering engagement events to improve developers’ understanding of the requirements, and therefore increase the quality of applications and approval rates.

The BSR is also in the process of establishing a remediation enforcement unit, to oversee escalations from government/partner regulators where remediation is not progressing quickly enough. The unit will have access to additional, dedicated resources for building control work to deal with the increasing demand, and to help increase the pace of remediation works.

We recognise that delays in assessing Gateway approval applications are unacceptable, which is why we announced reforms on 30 June including carving out the BSR from the Health and Safety Executive and establishing the Regulator as a standalone body with a clear focus on building safety.

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.

In addition to this, BSR has initiated a new approach of batching applications so they can be processed by multidisciplinary teams formed by Registered Building Control Approvers with oversight from BSR.

The BSR is continually improving the suite of guidance that supports those with duties in understanding what the law requires of them and how they can comply. New guidance with the Construction Leadership Council (CLC) has been published to help applicants better understand what’s needed for a successful submission.
wrans/answers2025-10-20 conversation_375
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-20 conversation_375

Noah Law:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he plans to amend the Caravan Sites Act 1968 to prevent touring caravan sites becoming permanent without full planning permission requirements. \p Matthew Pennycook: To operate land as touring caravan sites, site operators are required to have the appropriate planning permission and a site licence (unless exempted) from the local authority. If a site operator fails to get the necessary permissions and licence, the relevant local authority can take enforcement action against them.