theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Sir Julian Lewis:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she plans to take to increase protection of town and parish council clerks against bullying by elected councillors. \p Jim McMahon: In December the Government launched a consultation seeking views on proposed measures to strengthen the local government standards and conduct framework for local authorities in England. The response to the consultation will be issued in due course. After its release, we will continue to work actively with local government on developing the detailed policies for implementation.

We are committed to empowering local authorities of all types and tiers, including town and parish councils, to deal with member misconduct where it arises.
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Samantha Niblett:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if the Class F exemption for The Council Tax Exempt Dwelling Order 1992 will be extended to include properties where the conclusion or Final Order has been made on an Inheritance Act 1975 claim and the property is ordered to be vacated. \p Jim McMahon: When a property has been left empty following the death of its owner or occupant, it is exempt from council tax for as long as it remains unoccupied and until probate is granted. Following a grant of probate (or the signing of letters of administration), a further six months exemption is possible, so long as the property remains unoccupied and has not been sold or transferred to someone else.
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Calum Miller:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions she has had with her US counterpart on the security of the proposed embassy. \p Matthew Pennycook: The government regularly engages with representatives of foreign governments, including the United States government, to discuss a broad range of issues. The details of these discussions are not made public.

In dealing with any planning application, Ministers act in accordance with published propriety guidance on planning casework decisions. More information can be found on gov.uk here.
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Cameron Thomas:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that new housing developments incorporate measures to reduce noise pollution. \p Matthew Pennycook: The National Planning Policy Framework is clear that planning policies and decisions should contribute to, and enhance, the natural and local environment by preventing new and existing development from contributing to, being put at unacceptable risk from, or being adversely affected by, unacceptable levels of noise pollution.

New development should be appropriate for its location taking into account the likely effects (including cumulative effects) of pollution on health, living conditions and the natural environment, as well as the potential sensitivity of the site to the wider area.

Guidance sets out further detail on how new housing developments can incorporate measures to mitigate noise pollution, including the use of engineering, layout and planning conditions.

It is for local authorities to assess excessive noise in a neighbourhood. Local authorities have a range of powers available to them to assess nuisance such as in cases where there is excessive noise from residential and commercial properties. These are set out in various pieces of legislation, including the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and Noise Act 1996.
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Lewis Cocking:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the Molior London report entitled Residential Development in London: Q1 2025, April 2025. \p Matthew Pennycook: The government recognises the significant challenges affecting housing delivery challenge in London. We are committed to working in partnership with the Mayor of London, boroughs, and others to significantly increase rates of housebuilding in the capital.
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Lewis Cocking:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 14 July 2025 to Question 65373 on Private Rented Housing: Licensing, what estimate she has made of the average annual licensing and registration fee under (a) selective licensing, (b) Private Rented Sector Database and (c) PRS Ombudsman. \p Matthew Pennycook: Selective licensing schemes are introduced by local authorities. Fees differ based on regional variations in the administrative and operational costs of schemes. Due to these factors, no estimate of an annual average across all schemes has been made.

Fees to register on the PRS Database will be set out in secondary legislation and will take account a range of factors, including burden on landlords.

In line with practice across other ombudsmen, the PRS ombudsman will set the fee members would be required to pay. This will be on the basis of their running costs and service provision. The ombudsman would not be able to make profit and the government will ensure that the fee is proportionate and is good value.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to merge Homes England into her Department. \p Matthew Pennycook: There are no plans to merge Homes England into MHCLG.
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Sir Alec Shelbrooke:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to reinstate funding for local Neighbourhood Development Plans. \p Matthew Pennycook: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 59114 on 19 June 2025.
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Blake Stephenson:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of delivery timescales for New Towns Development Corporations on the ability of those corporations to build beautiful houses. \p Matthew Pennycook: Development corporations are well placed to achieve significant volumes of housebuilding at the same time as delivering high-quality and well-designed homes and neighbourhoods.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to reduce the amount of planning paperwork for new build (a) homes and (b) flats. \p Matthew Pennycook: On 28 May 2025, the government published the Planning Reform Working Paper: Reforming Site Thresholds (which can be found on gov.uk here) which sought views on taking a gradated approach to the planning system, removing and streamlining disproportionate requirements on small and medium sites.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what guidance her Department has provided to local planning authorities on whether a reserved matters planning application can be rejected on the principle of development established in approved outline planning application. \p Matthew Pennycook: The government have published no such guidance. Guidance relating to outline planning permission and approval of reserved matters is set out in Planning Practice Guidance on making an application which can be found on gov.uk here.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what guidance she has provided to local authorities on (a) spending Community Infrastructure Levy receipts, (b) deriving related interest from unspent funds and (c) how such interest should be allocated in two-tier areas between districts and counties. \p Matthew Pennycook: My Department has published guidance on CIL which includes how receipts should be spent. The guidance, which is available gov.uk here, makes clear that charging authorities should work closely with county councils in setting priorities for how CIL receipts will be spent.

I otherwise refer the hon. Member to the answers given to Question UIN 56282 on 10 June 2025 and Question UIN 54059 on 6 June 2025.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what her policy is on the use of Special Development Orders for private sector development which does not engage matters of national security. \p Matthew Pennycook: Special Development Orders are a long-established part of the planning system. Each case is considered on its individual merits. The government has no plans to change this approach.
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Lewis Cocking:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 4 July 2025 to Question 62977 on Housing Construction, what financial guarantees for housing will be provided by her Department for 2025-26. \p Matthew Pennycook: As of 30 June 2025, MHCLG has provided £270 million of financial guarantees for housing in the 2025-26 financial year.

My Department’s guarantees schemes are demand-led and it is therefore not possible to estimate the total guarantees the Department will provide in the 2025-26 financial year.
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Chris Coghlan:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure that there is adequate infrastructure in place to support new housing developments. \p Matthew Pennycook: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 65505 on 14 July 2025.
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Lee Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill on (a) levels of access to green spaces and (b) wildlife. \p Matthew Pennycook: The Impact Assessment for the Planning and Infrastructure Bill was published 6 May 2025 and can be found on gov.uk here.
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Helen Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department has issued guidance on redress in circumstances where adding a storey to a property under permitted development regulations results in the blocking of the sun to pre-existing solar panels on an adjoining property. \p Matthew Pennycook: My Department has not issued any such guidance.
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David Simmonds:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the guidance entitled Summary: Planning and Infrastructure Bill, Government Amendments to Part 3 (Lords Committee Stage), published on 17 July 2025, in what circumstances the mitigation measures would have to be (a) in place and (b) be completed before the substantive development is allowed to be (i) started and (ii) occupied. \p Matthew Pennycook: Where a developer has been granted permission relying on the payment of the Nature Restoration Levy, Natural England will be responsible for securing the necessary conservation measures to outweigh the negative effects of the development.

Natural England are being given the powers they need to deliver conservation measures at pace, to reduce any short-term impacts on the environment. There is no strict requirement to always have conservation measures in place in advance of impacts as there are instances when this could unnecessarily delay development and create liabilities for public finances.

However, an Environmental Delivery Plan must however set out the anticipated sequencing of the implementation of the conservation measures by reference to the development to which the Environmental Delivery Plan applies.

Ultimately, an Environmental Delivery Plan can only be put in place where the Secretary of State is satisfied the delivery of conservation measures will materially outweigh the negative effects of development by the plan’s end date.
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Sir Julian Lewis:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to proposed local government reorganisation in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, what protection will be given to the (a) culture and (b) interests of the New Forest Commoners when considering any proposal to subdivide the area currently administered by New Forest District Council by separating Totton and the Waterside from the perambulation of the Forest. \p Jim McMahon: Local government reorganisation will lead to better outcomes for residents, save significant money which can be reinvested in public services, and improve accountability.

The government has been clear with councils on the importance of local engagement in developing their proposals for unitary government. This should include residents, community groups, public service providers, workforces and their representatives, Members of Parliament and businesses.

Boundary changes are possible, and as a starting point existing district areas should be considered the building blocks for proposals. Where there is a strong justification, including having regard to local identity, then more complex boundary changes will be considered.
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Shaun Davies:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many lower-layer super output areas are within Telford constituency; how those areas are ranked by top (a) 1%, (b) 5% and (c) 10% in the index of multiple deprivation; and what impact that data has on the allocation of funding by her Department. \p Jim McMahon: The indices of multiple deprivation (IMD) are publicly available, including information about the lower super output areas.

The government has consulted on updating the distribution of local government finance in the Fair Funding Review 2.0. This includes proposals for a 'Foundation Formula' to assess relative demand for most non-social care services. More detail about the formula, including how it incorporates IMD data, can be found in the consultation document.

The consultation has now closed and the government is considering the comments received.
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John Whitby:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he plans to introduce a cap on ground rents. \p Matthew Pennycook: The government remains firmly committed to its manifesto commitment to tackle unregulated and unaffordable ground rents, and we will deliver this in legislation.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 4 July 2025 to Question 62604 on Planning: Disclosure of Information, whether information on the internal layout of Embassy developments can be redacted by a planning applicant, before it is submitted to a local planning authority. \p Matthew Pennycook: The submission of application documents is a matter for applicants themselves.
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Andrew Gwynne:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she has taken to (a) minimise rent increases and (b) increase affordable renting provisions. \p Matthew Pennycook: The £39 billion announced at the Spending Review for the new Social and Affordable Homes Programme for 2026-27 to 2035-36 is the biggest long-term investment in social and affordable housing in recent memory.

Our ambition is to deliver up around 300,000 social and affordable homes over the programme’s lifetime. If we achieve this ambition and our target of at least 60% of the homes being for Social Rent, the new programme will deliver around 180,000 homes for Social Rent – approximately a sixfold increase on the number of grant-funded Social Rent homes delivered in the decade up to 2024.

We also announced a 10-year rent settlement (that will permit increases by up to CPI+1% each year), which will give providers the financial certainty to invest in new and existing homes, but also crucially protect tenants from excessive rent increases.
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David Simmonds:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what information her Department holds on the number of (a) private and (b) social homes started in London between 1 January and 31 March 2025. \p Matthew Pennycook: My Department publishes a quarterly release entitled ‘Housing supply: Indicators of New Supply, England’, which includes estimates of new build starts and completions, by tenure of developer, in London. Statistics to the quarter ending March 2025 can be found in Table 217 on gov.uk here. This dataset covers new build dwellings only and should be regarded as a leading indicator of overall housing supply.

My Department also publishes an annual release entitled ‘Affordable Housing supply, England’, which is the primary and most comprehensive measure of affordable housing supply. This includes estimates of new social homes started in London, in each financial year, to 2023-24 and can be found in Table 1006-1008 on gov.uk here. Data for 2024-25 will be published in November/December 2025.
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Lewis Cocking:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 4 July 2025 to Question 63255 on Property Development: Repairs and Maintenance, whether the 2026-36 Affordable Homes Programme will allow a proportion of programme delivery to come from (a) acquisitions of existing (i) new build and (ii) second hand homes and (b) funding replacement homes on regeneration schemes. \p Matthew Pennycook: The government’s new Social and Affordable Homes Programme will not have numerical targets for particular types of homes other than Social Rent nor will it have ringfenced budgets for particular regions or types of home beyond the portion allocated to the Greater London Authority.

While the new programme will focus on the supply of new homes, it will also continue to support some regeneration schemes that provide a net increase in homes on a site. The programme will also allow for a limited number of acquisitions of existing housing stock,  to support wider delivery while more rapidly increasing the supply of social and affordable homes.

We will allow bids for individual projects on an ongoing basis, and for Strategic Partnerships over the life of the programme, including bids for funds over the entire 10 years of starts with homes completing after 2036 also eligible. A competitive bidding round for Strategic Partnerships will launch this winter, followed by later opportunities.

It is our intention to publish a full prospectus for the new Social and Affordable Homes Programme in autumn 2025 and open it for bids in the winter.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 8 July 2025 to Question 62598 on Right to Buy Scheme, what estimate she has made of the number of Right to Buy sales per year following those further reforms to the Right to Buy. \p Matthew Pennycook: Preliminary modelling of the effects of lowering percentage discounts and extending the qualifying tenancy period for the Right to Buy indicates that sales could fall to c.1,000 homes per year in the short run. This estimate is based on early analysis and should be treated as indicative, pending further refinement. We will provide a fuller assessment ahead of introducing the necessary legislation.
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Esther McVey:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many affordable homes were delivered as part of projects funded by the Greater Manchester Housing Investment Loan Fund in the postcodes (a) M15 4TP and (b) M15 4PA, in each of the last ten years. \p Matthew Pennycook: The Greater Manchester Housing Investment Loan Fund is operated by Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA). GMCA is therefore best placed to respond to this question.
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David Simmonds:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 17 July 2025 to Question 66191 on Private Rented Housing: Rents, whether she has made an assessment of the reasons for those increases. \p Matthew Pennycook: The factors affecting changes in rents are complex and difficult to disentangle. They include house prices, supply and demand, taxation policy, interest rates and the movement of tenants into homeownership or social rented housing. It is not possible to assess the specific impact of each of these factors.
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Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to regulate second home ownership in coastal communities with housing shortages. \p Matthew Pennycook: The government recognise that excessive concentrations of second homes impact on the availability and affordability of homes for local residents to buy and rent, as well as local services.

Local authorities are now able to apply a premium of up to 100% extra on the council tax bills of second homes. The premium will provide additional funding for councils and help local leaders to address the impacts of second homes and improve the sustainability of communities where they consider it necessary.

From 31 October 2024, the higher rates of Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) on additional dwellings were increased from three percentage points above standard rates to five percentage points above standard rates. This is to ensure that those looking to move home, or purchase their first property, have a greater advantage over second home buyers, landlords, and businesses purchasing residential property.

We are considering what additional powers we might give local authorities to enable them to respond to the pressures created by second homes and short-term lets.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 30 June 2025 to Question 61622 on MHCLG: Translation Services, if she will list (a) the foreign languages and (b) the documents that were (i) translated and (ii) interpreted. \p Alex Norris: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 67129 on 22 July 2025.

The department does not hold a central list of documents that were translated and interpreted.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 18 June 2025 to Question 59784 on MHCLG: Research, if she will publish the specification of the research commissioned from the Department for Education on 19 March 2025 costing £57,600, published in the March 2025 transparency data. \p Alex Norris: MHCLG commissioned Policy Lab to conduct a series of workshops with the Digital Planning Programme, on supporting the growth of the Property Technology market and exploring the barriers to greater adoption. The write up of these workshops is informing current policy development but contains information that is commercially sensitive. We will take a decision on publication after that process once the commercially sensitive information has been reviewed.
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Lewis Cocking:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the ban on upward-only rent reviews on (a) pension funds and (b) property investments owned by councils. \p Alex Norris: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 68122 on 24 July 2025.
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Lewis Cocking:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to her Department's policy paper entitled Restoring trust in our democracy: Our strategy for modern and secure elections, published on 17 July 2025, whether the code of conduct for campaigning will be statutory. \p Alex Norris: As set out in our strategy, we will work with the Speaker’s Conference and the Electoral Commission to consult with political parties to develop a code of conduct which is fit for purpose. This code will be non-statutory.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 8 July 2025 to Question 64625 on Electoral Register: Young People, whether political parties were consulted. \p Alex Norris: Pursuant to the answer given to Question UIN 64625 on 8 July 2025, the government was elected on a manifesto commitment to give 16- and 17-year-olds the right to vote in all elections. We are committed to act during this Parliament to do so – in turn strengthening our democracy, empowering young people to participate and building an informed and engaged electorate.

We will take time to engage with stakeholders in the electoral sector, devolved and local government, education, civil society - and importantly, with young people themselves - to ensure the change is implemented successfully.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of extending the vote to 16 and 17-year-olds on the size of the proposed unitary councils in Cambridgeshire. \p Alex Norris: As outlined in the recently published ‘Restoring trust in our democracy: Our strategy for modern and secure elections’, the government believes that enabling 16- and 17-year-olds to vote in all UK elections will foster early and sustained participation in civic life and enhance engagement in our democratic processes. By delivering this manifesto commitment, we want young people to find their voice and exercise their right to vote.

In June 2025, the House of Commons Library published constituency-level estimates of the number of 16- and 17-year-olds across the UK, based on Office for National Statistics (ONS) data from 2022 for Great Britain and 2023 for Northern Ireland. These figures provide indicative estimates of the population and should be treated as approximations rather than precise counts.

The government recognises the importance of understanding the implications of this policy change. Accordingly, an Impact Assessment will be published alongside forthcoming legislation in due course.
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Lewis Cocking:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to paragraph 63 of her Department's policy paper entitled Restoring trust in our democracy: Our strategy for modern and secure elections, published on 17 July 2025, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of allowing dual registration on election spending limits. \p Alex Norris: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN HL9888 on 4 August 2025.

With regards to the impact on election spending limits, we continue to work through the detail on the application of this measure.
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Lewis Cocking:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she consulted the Parliamentary Parties Panel on the policy paper entitled Restoring trust in our democracy: Our strategy for modern and secure elections, published on 17 July 2025. \p Alex Norris: The government has worked closely with its partners in local and devolved government, with the electoral sector, with education providers and civil society, and with citizens themselves in the development of the strategy for modern and secure elections. We will continue to engage with a range of stakeholders, including with political parties and sector representative organisations such as the Association of Electoral Administrators, to ensure these changes are delivered successfully.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what her planned timetable is for the extension of the franchise to 16 and 17 year olds. \p Alex Norris: The government is committed to delivering on the manifesto commitment to give 16- and 17-year-olds the right to vote in all elections during this Parliament, strengthening our democracy, empowering young people to participate and building an informed and empowered electorate. Legislation will be introduced as soon as parliamentary time allows during the lifetime of this Parliament.
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Brian Mathew:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions her Department has had with the National Trading Standards Estate Agency Team on the (a) prevalence of conditional selling practices by estate agents and (b) the effectiveness of that Agency's enforcement of the Estate Agents Act (1979) in relation to conditional selling. \p Matthew Pennycook: It is unacceptable for estate agents to withhold offers from sellers because the potential buyer declines to use their additional services. Where there is evidence of such practices, agents can face sanctions including a ban.

The government is committed to protecting people from abuse and poor service at the hands of unscrupulous property agents and to improving estate agent standards more generally.

The National Trading Standards Estate Agency Team (NTSEAT) is the lead estate agent enforcement authority. Alongside local authority Trading Standards teams, they are responsible for ensuring estate agents comply with the Estate Agents Act 1979 and other relevant legislation. NTSEAT have powers to issue warnings and banning orders against rogue agents. In cases of conditional selling, it is essential that any misconduct or manipulation in the offer process is reported to help build a clearer picture of the problem and support potential investigations.

My Department engages regularly with NTSEAT to discuss how best to address specific issues, including conditional selling, and continue to look at options to improve standards across the estate agent sector.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-09-03)

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Sir Oliver Dowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of permitted development on the number of Houses of Multiple Occupation in Hertsmere constituency. \p Matthew Pennycook: My Department has made no such an assessment.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-09-03)

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Andrew George:To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on the potential impact of the Universal Credit Bill on disabled people. \p Sir Stephen Timms: We want disabled people, where they can, to be able to thrive in work. The current system traps people out of work, so the UK, uniquely in the G7, still has a lower employment rate than before the pandemic. The Bill removes work disincentives, increasing the Universal Credit Standard Allowance above inflation for the first time ever.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-09-03)

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Mr Richard Quigley:To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help support people fleeing domestic abuse. \p Jess Phillips: Our ambitious, cross-government strategy to tackle violence against women and girls will seek to drastically improve the system for all victims. This year the Home Office has invested £19.9 million to support victims and prevent violence against women and girls. This includes £6 million for helplines and £1.96 million into the flexible fund to support victims to flee abuse.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-09-03)

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Graeme Downie:To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help tackle violence against the transgender community. \p Dame Nia Griffith: This Government is determined to tackle all forms of hate crime, including transphobic hate crime.

Via the Crime and Policing Bill, we are delivering our manifesto commitment to treat such crimes as aggravated offences and ensure that perpetrators who carry out crimes against someone based on their transgender identity, sexual orientation or disability will spend longer behind bars. We will also deliver a full trans-inclusive ban on conversion practices.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-09-03)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-09-03 conversation_292

Noah Law:To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what steps she is taking to support women’s economic empowerment. \p Seema Malhotra: This government is breaking down barriers to opportunity for working people, driving up household income for everyone. A 5% increase in female employment could boost the UK economy by up to £125 billion every year; which is why women’s economic empowerment is so crucial.

Through the Employment Rights Bill, we are setting out the first steps towards requiring employers to publish action plans alongside their gender pay gap figures; detailing the steps they are taking to narrow their gap and support employees during the menopause. We have already launched practical guidance to help employers to narrow their pay gap.

A number of other measures in the Bill will also support women’s economic empowerment; by increasing access to flexible working; improving protections for pregnant women and new mothers; and, strengthening protections against workplace sexual harassment.

We understand that the barriers women may face are diverse, whether it be access to investment to start or grow a business, to being able to receive timely healthcare in order to remain in work. This government recognises the varied challenges women face, and is committed to removing them.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-09-03)

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Zöe Franklin:To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, whether she has had recent discussions with Cabinet colleagues on the provision of funding to support cross-community interfaith work. \p Seema Malhotra: Interfaith relations are vital for strong, cohesive communities.

That is why the Government funded Inter Faith Week last year and then commissioned a consultation on its future.

The consultation report was published in May and provides a strong evidence base for future planning and co-ordination of interfaith relations.

Government is currently finalising support for Inter Faith Week 2025.

Alongside this, MHCLG funds grassroots programmes such as Near Neighbours and Schools Linking which promote dialogue and understanding across communities.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-09-03)

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Josh Newbury:To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what recent steps she has taken with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care to reform the Gender Recognition Certificate process. \p Dame Nia Griffith: We are absolutely clear that trans people should be able to live openly with dignity and respect.

We have set out our immediate priorities in our Plan for Change. Our priorities for trans people are to pass a trans-inclusive ban on conversion practices, strengthen protections from hate crime for trans people and improve their healthcare. This Government is committed to delivering gender recognition reform, and we will deliver on that.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-09-03)

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Cat Smith:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department subsidises inspections of independent schools undertaken by Ofsted. \p Stephen Morgan: Ofsted inspects around 50% of the 2,496 (July 2025) registered private schools in England. There is disparity between the fees charged for inspections and full cost recovery. Private school inspections carried out by Ofsted cost around £6.5 million per annum (2024/25), whilst only around £2.2 million will be recovered from fee income.

Government policy is that costs associated with inspections by government bodies should be recoverable. This will reduce the need for government subsidy. The government is considering options to close the gap.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-09-03)

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Grahame Morris:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much funding will be reprioritised away from (a) journalism, (b) media studies, (c) publishing and (d) information services courses in the most recent Strategic Priorities Grant; and to which subject areas that funding has been reallocated. \p Janet Daby: I refer my hon. Friend, the Member for Easington to the answer of 22 July 2025 to Question 67279.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-09-03)

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Mims Davies:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she plans to take steps to help reduce regional differences in SEND funding. \p Catherine McKinnell: The government is providing an increase of £1 billion for high needs budgets in England in the 2025/26 financial year. This brings total high needs funding for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) to over £12 billion. Of this, West Sussex Council is being allocated over £140 million through the high needs funding block of the dedicated schools grant (DSG), an increase of over £11 million on their 2024/25 DSG high needs block.

The operation of the high needs funding system is currently under review. The department's aim is to establish a fair education funding system that directs funding to where it is needed, taking account of the different levels of need in different parts of the country, and to enable improved support for children and young people with SEND in line with the reforms that we intend to set out in a White Paper in the autumn.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-09-03)

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Edward Morello:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she plans to take to (a) improve early identification of SEND needs and (b) reduce waiting times for diagnosis and support. \p Catherine McKinnell: The department knows that early identification and intervention is critical in improving the outcomes of children and young people with a special educational need or disability (SEND). An inclusive education system requires moving away from the current reliance on labels and diagnoses before support materialises. It needs to be able to accurately assess children and young people’s learning and development, and to effectively support their educational needs with evidence-based responses. To support this, the department is strengthening the evidence base of what works to improve early identification in all types of settings, including through commissioning evidence reviews from University College London, which will highlight the most effective tools, strategies and approaches for teachers and other relevant staff.

In addition, each Best Start Family Hub will have a children and family services professional specifically trained in working to support parents of children with additional needs. This will help identify children with SEND who may need extra help early on, making links with local early years settings and health services.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-09-03)

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Shaun Davies:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many lower-layer super output areas are within Telford constituency; how those areas are ranked by top (a) 1%, (b) 5% and (c) 10% in the index of multiple deprivation; and what impact that data has on the allocation of funding by her Department. \p Catherine McKinnell: The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) have published the Indices of Deprivation Local Authority dashboard which displays the number and level of deprivation of each Lower-layer Super Output Area (LSOA) within every local authority. This dashboard can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/english-indices-of-deprivation-2019-mapping-resources.

Whilst the Index of Multiple Deprivation is not used to allocate funding in the schools, high needs or early years national funding formulae (NFFs), the associated Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index (IDACI), is used in all three of these NFFs to target funding towards deprivation.

In the schools NFF, IDACI funding is based on the IDACI 2019 area-based index measuring the relative deprivation of LSOAs. IDACI ranks are divided into seven bands, with more funding directed to pupils in the more deprived bands.

In the high needs NFF, the IDACI factor targets funding towards more deprived local authorities, assuming high needs costs are greater in these areas.

In the early years NFF, the IDACI factor is used as a proxy for relative levels of deprivation and is used in the 2 year-old and under 2s formula.

Further information on the NFFs is available here:
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-09-03)

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Samantha Niblett:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will take steps to require the Joint Council for Qualifications to ensure that all exam regulatory boards action requests for a name change following marriage. \p Catherine McKinnell: This is a matter for Ofqual, the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation. I have asked its Chief Regulator, Sir Ian Bauckham, to write to my hon. Friend, the Member for South Derbyshire directly and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-09-03)

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Alistair Strathern:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of prioritising issues of sexual consent in sexual health education. \p Catherine McKinnell: The revised relationships, sex and health education statutory guidance was published on 15 July and sets out that secondary schools should cover the role of consent, including in romantic and sexual relationships. This includes the law about the age of consent, how to recognise, respect and communicate consent and boundaries in relationships, including in early romantic relationships in all contexts, including online. The guidance also makes the point that kindness and care for others requires more than just consent.

Curriculum content also includes that there are a range of strategies for identifying, resisting and understanding pressure in relationships from peers or others, including sexual pressure, and how to avoid putting pressure on others.