theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Ian Sollom:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many (a) people and (b) groups have been consulted during summer 2025 as part of the PIP review. \p Sir Stephen Timms: To date, I have met with representatives from more than 50 organisations including representatives of disabled people’s organisations, disability, welfare and carers’ charities, think tanks, co-production experts and more.

I am grateful to all of those who I have engaged with to discuss and listen to how we should approach co-production of the Timms Review. As the Review progresses, I am committed to ensuring it offers a broad spectrum of opportunities for engagement and involvement and hears from a diverse range of perspectives.
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Liz Jarvis:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of housing costs on the ability of people over 65 to retire. \p Torsten Bell: The Department has made no such assessment.

The Pensions Commission will consider the outcomes and risks for future cohorts of pensioners, taking into consideration the role housing plays amongst other factors.
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Lisa Smart:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the Winter Fuel Payment changes on residents of Hazel Grove constituency in (a) 2024 and (b) 2025. \p Torsten Bell: Data on Winter Fuel Payments made in winter 2024/25 is available on Stat Xplore. In Winter 2024/25, 1,855 Winter Fuel Payments were made in Hazel Grove constituency to households with someone receiving Pension Credit or certain other income-related benefits. This compares to 21,000 payments made in Hazel Grove constituency in winter 2023/24, when Winter Fuel Payments were made universally to those above State Pension age.

The Government has increased the level at which Winter Fuel Payments are means-tested in England and Wales from winter 2025/26 so that the vast majority of pensioners, around 9 million individuals, will benefit from them.

The Government has been clear that the Winter Fuel Payment should be means-tested on the basis of income. Winter Fuel Payments will thereby remain targeted by income, but with lower- and middle-income pensioners benefitting. For higher income pensioners, those with an annual income of more than £35,000, the payment will be recovered via the tax system.

Estimates for winter 2025/26 are not available at the Parliamentary Constituency level. Statistics covering the winter 2025/26 period will be published in September 2026.
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Fred Thomas:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether staff in his Department have access to information about claimants' known (a) disabilities and (b) mental health conditions when the claimant contacts his Department by phone. \p Sir Stephen Timms: Claimants who make an application for Personal Independence Payment (PIP), or whose entitlement is being reviewed, are required to provide all relevant evidence relating to their health condition—whether that be a physical disability, mental health condition, or both. This evidence is essential for determining their entitlement to benefit.

All decisions made regarding a claimant’s entitlement are recorded on the PIP Computer System (PIPCS). Staff deployed to our telephone lines, who handle customer calls, have access to PIPCS. They are able to:

This ensures that customer interactions are informed, accurate, and that any updates are promptly reflected in the system.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

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Edward Morello:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he plans to introduce reforms to ensure equal benefit access for separated parents with equal caring responsibilities. \p Sir Stephen Timms: Universal Credit child element is payable to the person who is responsible for a child or young person. Where a child or qualifying young person normally lives with two or more persons who are not a couple, only one of them is to be treated as responsible and that is the person who has the main responsibility. This is in line with the approach generally adopted across the benefit system, including Child Benefit. There are no plans to review this policy at this time.
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Dr Scott Arthur:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 5 September 2025 to Question 71920 on Pensions: Trusts, what the (a) terms of reference are and (b) delivery schedule is for that consultation. \p Torsten Bell: The Government will consult on trust-based pension scheme governance, professional and sole trustees, accreditation and skills, member voice and supporting lay trustees. We would encourage interested parties to engage with the consultation when it launches later this year.
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Alex Easton:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he plans to table an amendment to the Pension Schemes Bill to allow him to amend the Pension Protection Fund through secondary legislation. \p Torsten Bell: We are committed to actively consider and reflect on what we have heard regarding the Pension Protection Fund and Financial Assistance Scheme rules on the indexation of pre-1997 pension accruals. We understand that it is an important issue for affected members.
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James McMurdock:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what comparative assessment his Department has made of rates of pensioner poverty between people receiving the (a) pre-2016 and (b) new state pension. \p Torsten Bell: Estimates of the rates of pensioner poverty categorised by people receiving the pre-2016 State Pension or new State Pension are not available, as this categorisation is not recorded in the Family Resources Survey.

Statistics on the number of individuals living in families where at least one member is in receipt of State Pension that are in Absolute and/or Relative Poverty in 2023/24 are published on Stat-Xplore (https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/) in the Households Below Average Income dataset.
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Sir John Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of people claiming housing benefit in South Holland and the Deepings constituency in each of the last five years. \p Sir Stephen Timms: Monthly statistics for the number of Housing Benefit claimants in Great Britain are published quarterly on Stat-Xplore. The statistics are available for various geographies, including local authority and parliamentary constituency, and are currently available to May 2025.

Users can log in or access Stat-Xplore as a guest, and if needed, can access guidance on how to extract the information required.
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Blake Stephenson:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has made an assessment of the likely mix of housing occupancy types for people attaining state pension age in each of the next five decades. \p Torsten Bell: The Government has relaunched the Pensions Commission to consider the outcomes and risks for future cohorts of pensioners, taking into consideration the role housing plays amongst other factors. The Commission will report in 2027.
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Juliet Campbell:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of banning silica. \p Sir Stephen Timms: The merits of banning silica have not been considered as it is a naturally occurring material found in sand, glass, and many rocks and minerals.

Great Britain has a well-established regulatory framework under the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) Regulations 2002 (as amended), which already require employers to prevent exposure to Respirable Crystalline Silica (RCS) to protect workers’ health.
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Kirsteen Sullivan:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many actions the Health and Safety Executive took against companies for failing to meet personal protective equipment legal standards in the (a) 2022, (b) 2023 and (c) 2024 reporting year. \p Sir Stephen Timms: The requirement to provide suitable and sufficient personal protective equipment is addressed in different health and safety legislation, including the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, The Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002, The Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005, The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012, The Personal Protection Equipment at Work Regulation 1992.

Where breaches of health and safety legislation are identified, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) will consider enforcement action in line with its Enforcement Policy Statement and Enforcement Management Model. Enforcement action includes verbal warnings, letters of Notification of Contravention, Enforcement Notices and prosecution.

The data provided below is the number of enforcement notices served for breaches of the Personal Protection Equipment at Work Regulation 1992. Information on all enforcement taken by HSE relating to the provision of personal protective equipment is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Year

Notices served

2022/23

16

2023/24

11
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Jon Trickett:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of the additional costs disability payment proposal from the Commission on Social Security; and whether he has had discussions about the ACDP proposals with relevant authorities. \p Sir Stephen Timms: I am aware of the Commission’s report and welcome its contribution to these important discussions.

The Commission’s paper is one of many proposals which the Timms Review will be able to consider. Once the Review’s core leadership group is in place, it will have the ability to set its focus and to draw on evidence from diverse perspectives.

As part of this work, the Review will seek input from the diverse views and voices and consider a wide range of evidence and sources.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of restoring occupational pensions to people who withdrew them prior to the establishment of the Pension Protection Fund. \p Torsten Bell: This Government has not made an assessment on the matter.

The Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS) existed prior to the Pension Protection Fund, to make payments to members of qualifying DB schemes that started to wind-up between 1 January 1997 and 5 April 2005.

The FAS provides compensation to eligible members of DB pension schemes, such as in cases where the employer has undergone a qualifying insolvency event and the scheme lacks sufficient assets to meet its liabilities. It makes payments to eligible members who are unable to receive the full value of their accrued pension benefits, helping to safeguard retirement income where the scheme itself cannot secure those benefits in full.
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James McMurdock:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he plans to review the uprating mechanism for the pre-2016 State Pension. \p Torsten Bell: There are no current plans to review the uprating mechanism for the pre-2016 State Pension.
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Charlotte Cane:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to strengthen retrospective rural-proofing of his Department's policies. \p Dame Diana Johnson: I refer the hon. member to the answer I gave on 10 September to PQ 73922
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John Milne:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will take steps to include people with lived experience of (a) fluctuating conditions, (b) invisible symptoms and (c) challenges with mobility in the membership of the core group overseeing the Timms Review. \p Sir Stephen Timms: The Timms Review will be co-produced with disabled people, the organisations that represent them and other experts to ensure that expertise from a wide range of perspectives is drawn upon. This means the Government will share ownership and responsibility for how the Review runs and what it recommends.

We are currently working through how to best co-produce the Review, taking into account the feedback from extensive stakeholder engagement over the summer. I anticipate it will be led by a core leadership group of around a dozen people, the majority of whom will be disabled people.

Through co-production, it will be for this core leadership group – building from the Terms of Reference – to set the Review’s strategic direction, priorities and workplan. The Review will invite input from a wide range of perspectives. I will share more details about our approach to the Review, and recruitment of its leadership group, shortly.
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Connor Naismith:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has considered introducing voluntary pension-sharing orders in cases of life-changing events. \p Torsten Bell: We have no plans to introduce further pension sharing provisions.
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Alex Easton:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has issued guidance to Capita on routinely recording interviews for all Personal Independence Payment assessments; and if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of requiring Capita to routinely record such interviews on (a) claimant experience and (b) access to information relevant to an appeal. \p Sir Stephen Timms: Currently, claimants can opt-in to having their Personal Independence Payment assessment recorded. Audio recording is available for face-to-face and telephone assessments with all the Department’s assessment providers. These arrangements are publicised on providers’ websites and in assessment invitation letters.

We announced in the Pathways to Work Green Paper our intention to change this approach to one where we record all health assessments as standard, with a process for claimants to opt-out of a recording should they choose. By doing so, we hope to improve people’s trust in the health assessment process, and we are currently developing our plans to implement this measure. We have not yet issued guidance to Capita or any health assessment provider about recording assessments as standard.

The Department is committed to monitoring the impacts of its policies. This includes monitoring the impact of audio recording health assessments as standard for disability benefits.
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Samantha Niblett:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he plans to ensure parity in the pension contributions made by employers. \p Torsten Bell: The Pensions Act 2008 sets out the legal minimum requirements for workplace pension contributions under automatic enrolment (AE). The total minimum level of contributions required is 8% of an eligible employee’s qualifying earnings, of which at least 3% must come from the employer.

Although the Pensions Act 2008 sets these statutory minimums, some employers may choose to pay contributions at a higher rate.

The Government have recently revived the Pensions Commission which will consider the broader questions of adequacy, fairness, and sustainability to guide the long-term future of our pensions system.
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Dr Scott Arthur:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made with Cabinet colleagues of the potential impact of the two-child benefit cap on incentivising employment among affected families. \p Sir Stephen Timms: Tackling child poverty is at the heart of this Government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity.

The Child Poverty Taskforce will publish a Child Poverty Strategy in the autumn that will deliver measures to tackle the structural and root causes of child poverty.

The Strategy will look at levers across four key themes of increasing incomes, reducing essential costs, increasing financial resilience; and better local support especially in the early years.
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James McMurdock:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment he has made of the potential impact of maintaining two different types of state pension on the economy. \p Torsten Bell: No recent assessment has been made. State Pensions are paid in accordance with the rules in place at the point the person reaches State Pension age.

This Government is committed to supporting both current pensioners and future retirees and ensuring a decent standard of living for all. That is why the Government have recently launched the Pensions Commission to ensure our pensions system delivers this in the decades ahead. The Pensions Commission will consider what is required in the long term to deliver a pensions framework that is stronger, fairer and more sustainable.
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Juliet Campbell:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate his Department has made of the number of pensioners who are affected by the absence of statutory indexation on pre-1997 contributions in Broxtowe constituency; and what assessment his Department has made of the potential financial impact of this on pensioners in Broxtowe. \p Torsten Bell: The Pensions Regulator has published data which shows that as of March 2023, only 17 per cent of members of private sector defined benefit pension schemes do not receive any pre-1997 indexation. This is available at: https://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/en/document-library/research-and-analysis/data-requests#f3a5fe60511a445f91112bd7dd8a64ae

The Department and the Pensions Regulator do not hold this information at a constituency level.
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Dr Scott Arthur:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many existing claimants are awaiting a Work Capability Assessment; what the average wait time is; and when he expects the backlog to be cleared. \p Sir Stephen Timms: During the second half of 2024, DWP experienced a much higher level of demand for new Work Capability Assessments (WCA) than envisaged. As a result, 35,000 reassessments built up from individuals reporting a change in their condition before May 2025. We have worked with suppliers to rapidly increase capacity to clear this, including by accelerating the recruitment of assessors. 6,000 of these referrals have already been progressed, and we expect the vast majority of the remainder to be cleared over the next six months.

In the meantime, claimants awaiting a reassessment will continue to be paid their current rate and when an individual is reassessed, if the outcome of the assessment means they are entitled to a higher rate of benefit, that rate will be backdated accordingly.

Please note:
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Patricia Ferguson:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of adjusting in line with inflation the £30,000 threshold over which advice must be sought before a pension is transferred. \p Torsten Bell: The Government is committed to ensuring that pension savers receive clear and essential information, and that pension transfers are conducted on an informed basis.

To support this principle, individuals with pensions that include a guarantee remain required to take independent financial advice before converting their pension pot, where the value exceeds £30,000. This requirement is intended to ensure savers are made aware of valuable guarantees that could provide a secure income in retirement, before they choose to relinquish those guarantees through a transfer.

The £30,000 threshold aligns to the trivial commutation rules and raising this figure could increase the risk of transfers being made without sufficient understanding.

A review of the regulations conducted in 2023 identified potential concerns regarding the cost and availability of independent financial advice and the Government is keen to explore the extent of these issues. As such, the Department for Work and Pensions is working closely with the Financial Conduct Authority, the pensions industry, and His Majesty’s Treasury . We intend to consult on the outcome of this work in the coming months.
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Helen Whately:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many PIP claims were (a) withdrawn before submitting a PIP2 form, (b) disallowed due to failure to return the PIP2 form, (c) withdrawn after submitting a PIP2 form but before assessment, (d) disallowed due to failure to attend an assessment and (e) (i) closed and (ii) withdrawn for other reasons prior to a decision in each of the last five financial years by intended mode of assessment. \p Sir Stephen Timms: Information on Personal Independence Payment (PIP) outcomes for the last five financial years is shown in table 1 below.

Table 1: Volume of PIP claims by assessment outcomes for the last five financial years.

Outcome Type

Financial Years

2020-21

2021-22

2022-23

2023-24

2024-25

Disallowed pre-referral to AP (Assessment Provider)

5,500

7,100

9,700

9,200

11,700

Disallowed pre referral to AP due to non-return of PIP2

66,500

85,500

69,700

73,800

96,000

Disallowed pre-referral to AP due to failure to attend

4,000

6,400

19,100

19,600

18,900

Withdrawn at any stage

9,100

11,200

15,700

18,100

22,300

Notes:

The Department does not hold data on intended modes of assessments.
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Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to his Department's statistics entitled Housing supply: indicators of new supply, England: April to June 2025, published on 19 September 2025, what data Glenigan collects for his Department; and whether Glenigan provides figures on unbuilt-out planning permissions. \p Matthew Pennycook: My Department obtains a range of planning-related data from Glenigan Ltd through a contract.

Its estimates of the numbers of residential planning permissions granted are routinely published in its quarterly statistical releases.

The data provided by Glenigan Ltd includes information on developments that have been granted permission but do not constitute robust estimates of the number of planning permissions that have not been built out.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the number of people granted asylum who now reside in social housing since 5 July 2024. \p Matthew Pennycook: My Department does not hold data on the number of people granted asylum who now reside in social housing since 5 July 2024.
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Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the average house price for first time buyers in Lancashire. \p Matthew Pennycook: According to the Land Registry, the average price paid for a home by a first-time buyer was £245,000 in England and £158,000 in Lancashire as at July 2025.
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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 number of new build homes that were sold in the last 12 months. \p Matthew Pennycook: My Department does not hold the requested data.
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Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, under what circumstances would the HM Land Registry not publish title deeds on the gov.uk website following the purchase of a dwelling. \p Matthew Pennycook: HM Land Registry does not publish title deeds on gov.uk. Instead, it maintains a register, which is the official and definitive record of land and property ownership in England and Wales.

Once a property is registered, the register itself serves as proof of ownership. There is no requirement for title deeds to confirm ownership. An official copy of the register or title plan provides a true and legally recognised record of the property’s ownership and boundaries at a specific point in time.

While a property is the process of being registered with HM Land Registry, it will not appear on the register until that registration has been completed. However, legal ownership rights are secured and protected from the moment the application is received by HM Land Registry, not at the point at which processing of the application is completed. Applicants can contact HM Land Registry to check on the progress of their application.

Processing times for completing different application types can be found on GOV.UK.

Under the Land Registration Act 2002, the register, title plan, and certain associated documents are publicly accessible to all. These can be obtained for a small fee via the ‘search for land and property information’ service on gov.uk which can be found here. It should be noted that not all documents submitted during the registration process are retained, and not all retained documents are available electronically.

Access to documents is subject to the Land Registration Rules 2003. Some documents—such as identity documents—are classified as “excepted documents” and are not made available to the public.
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Greg Smith:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to support (a) local authorities and (b) housing associations to evict anti-social tenants more easily. \p Matthew Pennycook: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 45072 on 23 April 2025.
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Blake Stephenson:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many social houses have begun construction since 4 July 2024 in (a) England, (b) the East of England and (c) Bedfordshire. \p Matthew Pennycook: Data on new social and affordable housing supply, including starts, for the period between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2025 has been pre-announced for publication in November/December 2025 and can be found on gov.uk here. The pre-announcement will be updated with the release date soon, according to the code of practice for Statistics.

The subset of that data relating to the delivery in the aforementioned period by Homes England and the Greater London Authority is already available at England level in Live Table 1012, available on gov.uk here.

Data on affordable housing supply, including starts for the period between 1 April 2025 and 31 March 2026 has been pre-announced for publication in November/December 2026 and can be found on gov.uk here. This pre-announcement will be updated with the release date in due course and according to the code of practice for Statistics.
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Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department has undertaken research on the potential impact of rent controls on the housing market. \p Matthew Pennycook: My Department regularly reviews external research and evidence related to various aspects of the private rented sector.

The government has been clear it does not support the introduction of rent controls, including rent stabilisation measures.

We believe they could make life more difficult for private renters, both in terms of incentivising landlords to increase rents routinely up to a cap where they might otherwise not have done, and in pushing many landlords out of the market, thereby making it even harder for renters to find a home they can afford.
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Dr Rosena Allin-Khan:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department has had recent discussions with L&Q housing association. \p Matthew Pennycook: Officials in MHCLG regularly engage with representatives from across the housing sector, including local authorities, housing associations, developers and other groups.

Ministerial meetings are published quarterly on gov.uk here.
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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 68789 on Permitted Development Rights, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the Article 4 directions on the volume of new dwellings from conversions. \p Matthew Pennycook: No assessment of the impact in question has been made by my Department.
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Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much (a) capital and (b) revenue funding was allocated to the Affordable Housing Programme in each year since 2019-20. \p Matthew Pennycook: My Department published an update on targets in respect of the 2021-26 Affordable Homes Programme on 30 July 2024. It can be found on gov.uk here.

Delivery for the GLA on affordable housing can be found on their website here and Homes England set out their annual report and accounts for delivery outside of London here.

My Department publishes our annual reports and accounts here.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

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James McMurdock:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 15 September 2025 to Question 72662 on Timesharing: Regulation, whether this guidance applies to fractional ownership schemes as well as shared ownership schemes. \p Matthew Pennycook: The guidance referenced in the Answer of 15 September 2025 to Question 72662 applies specifically to shared ownership schemes that are grant-funded or delivered via Section 106 agreements.

Other types of housing ownership scheme or arrangement, that are not grant funded or supported by Government, are not covered by this guidance and are not subject to the same regulatory framework.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

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Manuela Perteghella:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to his Department's policy paper entitled UK government response to the Competition and Markets Authority’s (CMA) market study into housebuilding, published on 22 October 2024, when he plans to implement the recommendations agreed to in that paper. \p Matthew Pennycook: The government is already acting on many of the CMA’s recommendations and remains fully committed to delivering solutions that address the challenges identified in its October 2024 market study into housebuilding.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-20 conversation_316

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 74339 on Planning: Environment Protection, when he expects the Environmental Outcomes Reports framework to replace the environmental assessment systems. \p Matthew Pennycook: As set out in the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 16 December 2024 (HCWS317), we will, in due course, replace the current EU derived systems of Environmental Impact Assessment and Strategic Environmental Assessment with Environmental Outcomes Reports (EORs). These will be a more effective and outcome-focused tool for managing the effects of development on the natural environment.

The Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023 contains a number of duties to consult on the core elements of the new EOR system, including the setting of outcomes and repealing existing legislation.

The government will consult on draft regulations in due course following policy development and engagement with key stakeholders.

Until a new system is implemented, current legislation on environmental assessment and its supporting guidance continues to apply.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

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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 61251 on Affordable Housing: Greater London, what level of affordable housing delivery in London he is targeting; and what progress his Department has made on this. \p Matthew Pennycook: The GLA’s target range for the 2021-26 Affordable Homes Programme in London is 17,800-19,000.

The GLA last published their affordable housing statistics in August 2025. From the beginning of the programme to June 2025, there have been 5,500 starts, and 997 completions.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

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Rebecca Long Bailey:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of updating building (a) requirements and (b) regulations to make it mandatory to display a street building number on the outside of a building. \p Matthew Pennycook: The government has made no assessment of the merits of updating Building Regulations to accommodate street building numbers on the outside of buildings.

Local authorities already use their legal powers to manage requirements for street and building numbering.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

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Victoria Collins:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of Section 106 obligations on developer funding for the (a) long-term maintenance or (b) adoption of sustainable drainage infrastructure where those assets fall outside the red line boundary of new housing developments. \p Matthew Pennycook: The National Planning Policy Framework makes clear that developments of all sizes should use sustainable drainage techniques where the development could have drainage impacts. This is supported by National Planning Guidance which sets out that local authorities should be satisfied that all Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SUDS) have maintenance and adoption arrangements in place for the lifetime of the development.

It is the responsibility of local planning authorities to consider whether otherwise unacceptable development could be made acceptable through the use of conditions or planning obligations when determining applications. All section 106 contributions must comply with the three tests in regulation 122 of the CIL regulations (necessary to make the development acceptable in planning terms, directly related to the development; and reasonable in scale and kind). Infrastructure such as SUDS, which can lie outside the red line boundary of new housing developments, can be capable of being funded by section 106 contributions where it meets the statutory tests.

National design guidance, which is part of the Planning Practice Guidance, also explains that well-designed places are designed and planned for long-term stewardship, and well-managed and maintained by their users, owners and other stakeholders.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-20 conversation_320

Victoria Collins:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he is taking steps to help tackle the practice of subdividing agricultural land into multiple small plots for onward sale without an accompanying (a) planning and (b) change of use application; and what assessment he has made of the potential impact of such practices on (i) planning enforcement capacity and (ii) local communities. \p Matthew Pennycook: It is for individual local planning authorities to take enforcement action where development, including change of use of land, is undertaken without planning permission.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

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Helen Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what enforcement mechanisms are in place to ensure developers implement and maintain Sustainable Drainage Systems to the required standards in new developments. \p Matthew Pennycook: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 37386 on 18 March 2025.
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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, for what reason there is a four year limit on Section 183 Town and Country Planning Act 1990 stop notices for cases involving the use of (a) hotels and (b) houses in multiple occupation. \p Matthew Pennycook: Stop notices are intended for use where the impact of a breach of planning control is such that it needs to be stopped quickly and before the related enforcement notice takes effect. The four-year time limit for their use was first introduced by the Planning and Compensation Act 1991 on the basis that, if a breach has already been in existence for more than four years it is less likely that it would need to be stopped quickly.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

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Jess Brown-Fuller:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department plans to update the National Planning Policy Framework to facilitate the installation of electric vehicle charging points for homeowners without driveways. \p Matthew Pennycook: The National Planning Policy Framework makes clear that in setting local parking standards for residential and non-residential development, planning policies should take into account the need to ensure adequate provision of spaces for charging plug-in and other ultra-low emission vehicles. This includes consideration of charging points for homeowners without driveways. The Framework is also clear that applications for development should be designed to enable charging of plug-in vehicles in safe, accessible, and convenient locations.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

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Mr Andrew Snowden: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 provide effective (a) oversight and (b) enforcement of road adoption processes in new housing developments. \p Matthew Pennycook: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 80700 on 20 October 2025.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

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Dr Simon Opher:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will consider amending statutory planning guidance for listed buildings to permit the use of reproduction stone slates on Grade 1 listed churches. \p Matthew Pennycook: Each listed building is different, and the government believes that decisions on which materials should be used should be a matter for the decision maker depending on the particular circumstances of each case. We therefore have no plans to issue statutory planning guidance in respect of the matter at this time.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-20 conversation_326

Patrick Hurley:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department's policies of the levels of furniture poverty in Southport; and what steps he is taking to reduce this. \p Matthew Pennycook: My Department engages actively with registered providers of social housing on all issues facing social housing tenants and with a range of stakeholders on issues facing residents and has engaged with groups such as End Furniture Poverty to understand their research on this issue.

On 2 July, we opened a consultation on a reformed Decent Homes Standard (DHS) for the social and private rented sectors. It can be found on gov.uk here. The consultation is now closed and responses are being analysed.

People in need may be able to get support from their local authorities via the ‘Household Support Fund’ and other services available locally.

The ministerial Child Poverty Taskforce is also considering the impacts of living in poor quality housing on children.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

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Chris Hinchliff:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to p.94 of the English Devolution White Paper, published on 16 December 2024, if he will publish his Department's (a) proposals and (b) timetable for implementing proposed powers to enable local authorities to take over the management of vacant residential properties. \p Matthew Pennycook: The government wants to see more empty homes brought back into use across the country.

Local authorities have strong powers and incentives to tackle empty homes. They have the discretionary powers to charge additional council tax on properties which have been left unoccupied and substantially unfurnished for one or more years. The maximum premium that a council can apply increases, depending on the length of time that the property has been empty for, with a premium of up to 300% on homes left empty for over ten years.

They can also access funding through the Affordable Homes Programme and Local Authority Housing Fund. Through the New Homes Bonus, local authorities can also receive the same level of reward for bringing an empty home back into use as building a new one.

Local authorities can also use powers to take over the management of long-term empty homes to bring them back into use in the private rented sector. Local authorities can apply for an Empty Dwelling Management Order (EDMO) when a property has been empty for more than two years, subject to the production of evidence that the property has been causing a nuisance to the community and evidence of community support for their proposal. More information can be found on gov.uk here.

The government outlined its intent to strengthen local authorities’ ability to take over the management of vacant residential premises in the English Devolution White Paper published in December 2024. Further details will be set out in due course.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-20)

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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 support councils to increase the supply of affordable housing in Chelsea and Fulham constituency. \p Matthew Pennycook: I refer the hon. Members to the Written Ministerial Statement made on 2 July (HCWS771).