theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Alex Brewer:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that levels of adult social care funding are adequate to (a) meet care requirements, (b) support people at risk of being placed into residential homes and (c) ensure quality of life. \p Stephen Kinnock: To enable local authorities to deliver key services such as adult social care, the Government is making available up to £3.7 billion of additional funding for social care authorities in 2025/26, which includes an £880 million increase in the Social Care Grant.

This is alongside an £86 million uplift to the Disabled Facilities Grant to support an approximate additional 7,800 adaptations to homes for those with social care needs, to reduce hospitalisations and prolong independence.

Local authorities are best placed to understand and plan for the needs of their population, which is why, under the Care Act 2014, they are tasked with the duty to shape their care market to meet the diverse needs of all local people.
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Gregory Stafford:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if her Department will consider the adoption of new formal partnership mechanisms with Town and Parish Councils in new unitary authorities formed through Local Government reorganisation in England. \p Jim McMahon: The government values the role currently played by town and parish councils in local government. We strongly encourage all local authorities to involve their town and parish councils in their plans to ensure that their contribution to local public services is recognised in future arrangements.

Whether or not an area has town and parish arrangements in place, they will be expected to imbed neighbourhood working into new unitary councils empowering frontline councillors to be the community convenors they were elected to be.

Local authorities operate independently of central government. The government believes that individual local authorities are best placed to determine how they can most effectively collaborate to support the wellbeing of their citizens.
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Patricia Ferguson:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will consider amending legislation to allow overseas voters to receive ballots for elections by secure email. \p Rushanara Ali: I refer the hon Member to the answer given to Question UIN 40375  on 27 March 2025.
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Afzal Khan:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when she plans to publish the Homelessness Strategy. \p Rushanara Ali: The Deputy Prime Minister is leading cross-government work to deliver the long-term solutions we need to get us back on track to ending all forms of homelessness. This includes chairing a dedicated Inter-Ministerial Group, bringing together ministers from across government to develop a long-term strategy.

We expect to publish the strategy following the conclusion of Phase 2 of the Spending Review.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 8 April 2025 to Question 43777, what proportion of the total number of bedspaces were available for men. \p Rushanara Ali: This government is committed to supporting victims of domestic abuse, including male victims.

Local authorities, under their statutory duties under Part 4 of the Domestic Abuse Act 2021, are required to assess the need for and provide support for all victims of domestic abuse and their children while in safe accommodation, including male victims. It is for local authorities to commission services based on local need.

The Department collects data on the number of refuge bedspaces and the number of individuals, including male victims, that receive support in safe accommodation. This data is published annually: the most recent data can be found here. This data does not break down bedspace provision by gender-specific accommodation.

According to Women's Aid 2025 Annual Audit report, there were 50 refuges in England with bedspaces for men in May 2024, an increase of 11 from the previous year.
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Clive Lewis:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights' publication Concluding observations on the seventh periodic report of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, published on 12 March 2025, whether she will make it her policy to adopt the Committee's recommendations on guarantees for (a) safe and (b) adequate living conditions in temporary accommodation through a comprehensive regulatory framework. \p Rushanara Ali: The Government notes the UN Committee's recommendations on ensuring safe and adequate living conditions in temporary accommodation.

Our Homelessness Code of Guidance provides a summary of the homelessness legislation duties, powers and obligations on local housing authorities, including the quality standards of temporary accommodation.

Legislation is clear that temporary accommodation must be suitable for the needs of the household and that suitability of accommodation should be kept under review. Households may ask for a review of their accommodation if they feel it is unsuitable.

Through the Renters’ Rights Bill, the government will consult on a reformed Decent Homes Standard for the social and private rented sectors in due course. It is the government’s intention that the Decent Homes Standard should apply to as much of the temporary accommodation sector as possible.
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Lee Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to reduce homelessness among veterans. \p Rushanara Ali: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 903640 on 7 April 2025.
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Afzal Khan:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will make an estimate of the total cost to the public purse of local authorities providing crisis support to families affected by No Recourse to Public Funds conditions. \p Rushanara Ali: The majority of funding in the local government finance settlement is unringfenced, recognising that local leaders are best placed to identify local priorities. It is at the discretion of each local authority as to how much is allocated to the packages of support they provide to families in crisis, including those impacted by No Recourse to Public Funds conditions.
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Steve Barclay:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to explore alternative funding models of Internal Drainage Boards. \p Jim McMahon: I refer to the Answer of 10 April 2025 to Question 43491 on Internal Drainage Boards: Finance.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the statutory guidance entitled Guidance on the flexible use of capital receipts, updated on 26 March 2025, whether the sale of a local authority school playing field would qualify as a capital receipt. \p Jim McMahon: Under the general direction on “Flexible Use of Capital Receipts” (FUCR), authorities may use the proceeds from qualifying asset sales (capital receipts) to fund the revenue costs of projects designed to generate ongoing savings or reduce the costs of service delivery. This is to help councils deliver transformation and invest-to-save projects they might not otherwise be able to afford from their budgets.

When applying the direction, the Authorities are required to have regard to the Guidance on Flexible Use of Capital Receipts issued by the Secretary of State under section 15(1)(a) of the Act. This sets out best practice in using the flexibility.

For the purposes of this direction, authorities may use the proceeds from any qualifying asset disposal made while the direction is in force, provided the use is not otherwise restricted. For example, receipts from the sale of Right to Buy assets are excluded. Disposals must also be genuine: the flexibility does not apply to sales made to companies owned or controlled by the authority or in which it has a financial interest.

It is for local authorities to determine how best to use this flexibility, including decisions on which assets to sell. However, the Government expects all decisions to demonstrate value for money and to be in the best interests of local residents.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 24 March 2025 to Question 38622 on Council tax, whether there is a (a) minimum and (b) maximum level of average Band D council tax in England that the she plans to achieve in this Parliament. \p Jim McMahon: The government does not set council tax levels. The government sets referendum principles to give residents the final say over excessive increases. Decisions on council tax referendum principles are taken annually.
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Victoria Collins:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department plans to improve the rights of residents in non-traditional housing against (a) eviction, (b) sudden contract cancellations and (c) large rent increases. \p Matthew Pennycook: All renters, regardless of tenure or agreement type, deserve to feel safe and secure in their homes.

Residents in non-traditional housing who fall outside the assured tenancy system are likely to possess a licence to occupy and thus are excluded from the scope of reforms in the Renters’ Rights Bill.

The government is satisfied that protection exists for residents with a licence to occupy the property through the Protection from Eviction Act 1977 and broader consumer protection legislation.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the policy paper entitled New approach to ensure regulators and regulation support growth, published on 17 March 2025, what steps her Department is taking to review the compliance costs related to planning regulations. \p Matthew Pennycook: My Department is progressing a bold set of reforms to the planning system to support the delivery of new homes and critical infrastructure. These reforms will streamline planning procedures and reduce the cost of planning for developers, local planning authorities and others engaged in the planning system.

Key measures in the Planning and Infrastructure Bill include a faster and more certain Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project regime, a new strategic approach to nature recovery for development, and the modernisation of planning committees. We are also reviewing the role of statutory consultees.

All reforms to planning law and regulations which affect businesses are subject to Impact Assessments to identify the costs and benefits of those reforms.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to freeze council tax. \p Jim McMahon: Council tax levels are decided by individual local authorities. The government sets referendum principles to give residents the final say over excessive increases. Decisions on council tax referendum principles are taken annually. The government will set out its proposed principles for 2026-27 as part of the local government finance settlement in the usual way later this year.
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Steve Witherden:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions she has had with the Welsh Government on their decision not to legislate to end no-fault evictions for private rented sector tenants in Wales; and what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of this decision. \p Matthew Pennycook: The Department has engaged with a wide range of stakeholders during the development of our reforms to the private rented sector, and we have sought to learn from the experience of the devolved nations.

However, housing within Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are matters for the respective devolved government. Respect for devolution and collaboration with the devolved governments is central to this government’s approach to rebuilding the country.
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Siân Berry:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the press release entitled £2 billion new investment to support biggest boost in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation, published on 25 March 2025, how many and what proportion of these homes will be social housing for people experiencing homelessness. \p Matthew Pennycook: At Spring statement, the government announced an immediate injection of £2 billion to support delivery of the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation and contribute to our ambitious Plan for Change milestone of building 1.5 million safe and decent homes in this Parliament. Further detail can be found in the Written Ministerial Statement made on 25 March 2025 (HCWS549).

The investment made at Spring statement follows the £800 million in new in-year funding which has been made available for the 2021-26 Affordable Homes Programme and that will support the delivery of up to 7,800 new homes, with more than half of them being Social Rent homes.

We will set out set details of new investment to succeed the 2021-26 Affordable Homes Programme at the Spending Review. This new investment will deliver a mix of homes for sub-market rent and homeownership, with a particular focus on delivering homes for social rent.

Homes England and GLA will assess bids received in the usual way before awarding funding. Exact funding to different places and the locations of homes that will be built will depend on the bids received from local authorities and housing associations.

This new investment will deliver a mix of homes for sub-market rent and homeownership. We have asked HE, GLA and bidders to prioritise homes for social rent, and will publish the number of homes delivered at each tenure in an annual report to Parliament.

Local authorities are responsible for their own allocation scheme within the framework of legislation. By law, people who are homeless must be given ‘reasonable preference’ (priority) and local authorities can give ‘additional preference’ (high priority) to those who have urgent housing needs.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to give additional powers to local authorities to tackle unauthorised traveller (a) development and (b) encampments. \p Matthew Pennycook: The Planning Policy for Traveller Sites, which can be found on Gov.uk here, sets out that local planning authorities should produce their own assessment of Gypsy and Traveller accommodation need and plan to meet this need through their Local Plan. This includes setting pitch targets for Gypsies and Travellers and plot targets for travelling showpeople, which address the likely permanent and transit site accommodation needs of Travellers in their area.

Gypsy and Traveller pitches are part of the overall calculation and information submitted for the purpose of the Housing Delivery test. Non-permanent dwellings are included only if they are the resident’s main residence and council tax is paid on them.

Local planning authorities have a wide range of enforcement powers, with strong penalties for non-compliance, which they can use to tackle all types of unauthorised development.
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Helen Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she has made a recent assessment of the potential merits of Government funding for Local Welfare Assistance. \p Jim McMahon: Local welfare assistance funding is delivered through the Local Government Finance Settlement. The majority of funding in the local government finance settlement is unringfenced recognising that local leaders are best placed to identify local priorities.
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Perran Moon:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of including (a) ground source heat pumps and (b) shared ground loops in the Future Homes Standard. \p Alex Norris: The Building Regulations prescribe performance outcomes, rather than specific technologies, materials or fuels to be used. This allows builders and homeowners the flexibility to innovate and select the most practical and cost-effective solutions appropriate in any development.

However, the upcoming Future Homes Standard will set our new homes and buildings on a path that moves away from relying on volatile fossil fuels and towards more clean, secure energy. The future is likely to see a mix of low carbon technologies used for heating, including heat pumps and heat networks. Ground source heat pumps and share ground loops are effective technical solutions which are very much aligned with the ambition of the Future Homes Standard.
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Ben Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure that landlords cannot lawfully obstruct emergency vehicle access to residential properties. \p Alex Norris: The Emergency Workers (Obstruction) Act 2006 makes clear that it is an offence to obstruct or hinder certain emergency workers from responding to present or imminent emergency circumstances. As a matter of public safety, property owners and managers should keep access routes clear, so that emergency vehicles can gain access if needed.
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Andrew Rosindell:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what proportion of invoices from UK suppliers were paid by her Department within 10 days of receipt between 1 September 2024 and 28 February 2025. \p Alex Norris: Data on the percentage of invoices paid within 5 days and 30 days is routinely reported under Regulation 113 of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015. MHCLG publishes this information on Gov.uk and a link to Q3 2024/25 is here MHCLG's prompt payment data 2024 to 2025 - GOV.UK

The data for Q4 2024/25 will be published on Gov.uk by the end of April 2025.
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Mark Sewards:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of allowing Council Housing tenants to sell their property to buyers other than their Local Authority if they are still within the 10 year purchase period. \p Matthew Pennycook: Former council tenants who have purchased their home under the Right to Buy scheme but wish to resell or dispose of it within a 10 year period, must first offer the property for sale at the full market value to either the former landlord or to another social landlord in the area. This is known as the right of first refusal. The market value must be agreed between the parties or, if they are unable to agree, will be determined by the District Valuer. If an offer has not been accepted within 8 weeks, the tenant is free to sell the property to anyone on the open market. The government has no plans to change existing policy on the right of first refusal.
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Blake Stephenson:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 31 March 2025 to Question 36495 on Derelict Land: Regeneration, how this will be funded. \p Matthew Pennycook: The £51.5 million regeneration package announced on 13 February 2025 will be funded through existing departmental budgets for brownfield remediation and regeneration.
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Gregory Stafford:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she plans to take through the Planning and Infrastructure Bill to require (a) developers and (b) housing associations to have robust warranties in place which include cover for (i) incomplete and (ii) inadequate work. \p Matthew Pennycook: The government’s plans to ensure new build homes are of sufficient quality are being taken forward outside of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill. This includes reforms set out in the answer to Question UIN 37745 on 19 March 2025.
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Stuart Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to support park home owners. \p Matthew Pennycook: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 39735 on 27 March 2025.
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Ben Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of undertaking a review of the Mobile Homes Act 2013 to help support full time residential park-home owners. \p Matthew Pennycook: A review of the effectiveness of the Mobile Homes Act 2013 was undertaken in 2017 and it made a number of recommendations. Most have been implemented, such as the introduction of a fit and proper person test and changes to the pitch fee review inflationary index from the Retail Price Index to the Consumer Price Index.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department has undertaken Environment Act environmental principles assessments when issuing (a) new and (b) revised planning practice guidance since July 2024. \p Matthew Pennycook: Planning practice guidance published since July 2024 supports the implementation of matters that have been set through legislation or policy. Environmental principles assessments were undertaken for the changes to policy once the requirement for them had been commenced.
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Afzal Khan:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she has made an assessment of the effectiveness of the Housing First Unit established by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority. \p Matthew Pennycook: The government supports Mayor Burnham’s initiative to improve access to quality housing across Greater Manchester.

Nationally, we are increasing funding for homelessness to nearly £1 billion in 2025/26 and working to reduce homelessness by delivering 1.5 million new homes over the next Parliament and abolishing ‘no fault’ evictions through our Renters’ Rights Bill.

The government is committed to taking further action to raise quality standards in both rented sectors. Reforms are underway to drive up social housing standards, with stronger regulations to hold landlords accountable to regulatory standards. We will introduce Awaab’s Law to both rented sectors and bring forward consultation on the Decent Homes Standard that all social housing landlords must meet.

For more information on the steps we are taking to increasing the supply of social and affordable housing, I refer the hon. Member to my answer to Question UIN 41721 on 3 April 2025.
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Lee Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many foreign nationals have been granted social housing in the last year. \p Matthew Pennycook: People are generally eligible for social housing if they have leave to remain in the UK and have recourse to public funds. The Home Office decides whether persons from abroad have leave to remain in the UK and whether they have recourse to public funds.

Only individuals that are eligible can join housing registers and be given a social housing tenancy. For those who are eligible, housing needs will be considered on an equal basis in accordance with the relevant local authority’s housing allocation scheme.

There were 33,000 new social lettings in England to households whose lead tenant was a non-UK national in 2023/24. This constitutes 13% of all new social lettings that year (262,000 lettings). The Department does not hold data on the nationality of individual members of households in social housing, but such households can contain UK nationals as well as non-UK national lead tenants.
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Mr Paul Kohler:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to support leaseholders with the cost of lease renewal. \p Matthew Pennycook: The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 includes provisions that will make it cheaper and easier for existing leaseholders to extend their lease or buy their freehold.

As set out in my Written Ministerial Statement of 21 November 2024 (HCWS244), the government intends to act quickly to provide homeowners with greater rights, powers, and protections over their homes by implementing the Act’s provisions.

These include an amended valuation scheme that leaseholders must follow to calculate how much they should pay to enfranchise. The method set by the Act for the valuation process removes the requirement for marriage value to be paid, caps the treatment of ground rents in the valuation calculation at 0.1% of the freehold value and allows Government to prescribe the rates used to calculate the enfranchisement premium. Rates will be set by the Secretary of State in secondary legislation, and we will consult on valuation rates this summer.

The Act also includes a new statutory right to a 990-year lease extension for leaseholders of both houses and flats and makes extending a lease cheaper for leaseholders by requiring each side to pay their own process costs, such as valuation and solicitor's fees.

The implementation of the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 will require an extensive programme of secondary legislation and we will set out the details in due course.
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Steve Witherden:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of outlawing 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, what estimate her Department has made of the number of houses that will be built in each year between 2025-26 and 2029-30. \p Matthew Pennycook: As the hon. Member is aware, the government has not set interim annual targets in respect of its ambitious Plan for Change milestone of delivering 1.5 million safe and decent homes in this Parliament.

However, due to the reduced levels of housing supply that we inherited, the government has been clear that rates of housebuilding will have to increase significantly in the later years of the Parliament to meet that milestone.
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Daisy Cooper:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of requiring home insurers to offer insurance to landlords offering tenancies to tenants on benefits. \p Matthew Pennycook: Rental discrimination against people who receive benefits has no place in a fair and modern housing market.

As part of the rental discrimination measures in the Renters’ Rights Bill, any clauses within a new or renewed contract of insurance that would prohibit the letting of a property to a tenant in receipt of benefits will be rendered of no effect.

Many insurers already offer services to landlords who rent to tenants receiving benefits and, following engagement with the sector, we are not expecting any destabilising effect on the market as a result of the provisions in the Renters’ Rights Bill.
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Ellie Chowns:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate her Department has made of the number of open public spaces in new housing developments that are owned by private companies. \p Matthew Pennycook: The government does not hold comprehensive information on the number of open public spaces in new housing developments that are owned by private companies.
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Stuart Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to encourage developers to use design features that provide nesting facilities for endangered birds. \p Matthew Pennycook: I refer the hon. Member to the answer to Question UIN 22080 on 15 January 2025.
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Paul Davies:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how she plans to implement her planning reform policy; and when she expects her reforms to start to impact regional development. \p Matthew Pennycook: The government will continue to implement its ambitious planning reform agenda through a combination of legislation, policy, and guidance. No general statement can be made about when the impact of individual measures will be felt in specific areas.
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Steve Darling:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what guidance her Department issues on whether community engagement should be carried out through distinct channels from business engagement as part of local development planning. \p Matthew Pennycook: Planning Practice Guidance on plan-making, which can be found on gov.uk here, highlights the importance of local communities and interested parties being able to track the progress of local development plans through Local Development Schemes. These must be made available publicly by local planning authorities and kept up to date.

Together with Statements of Community Involvement, they outline how the local planning authority will engage and undertake public consultation in the preparation of the emerging local development plan, including with communities and other stakeholders.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-22)

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Paul Davies:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she plans to take to (a) increase housing affordability and (b) ensure balanced regional development. \p Matthew Pennycook: Boosting the supply of homes of all tenures must be at the heart of any strategy to improve housing affordability which is why the government’s Plan for Change includes a hugely ambitious milestone of building 1.5 million safe and decent homes in England in this Parliament.

At Spring statement, the government announced an immediate injection of £2 billion to support delivery of the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation. Further detail can be found in the Written Ministerial Statement made on 25 March 2025 (HCWS549).

The investment made at Spring statement follows the £800 million in new in-year funding which has been made available for the 2021-26 Affordable Homes Programme and that will support the delivery of up to 7,800 new homes, with more than half of them being Social Rent homes.

We will set out set details of new investment to succeed the 2021-26 Affordable Homes Programme at the Spending Review. This new investment will deliver a mix of homes for sub-market rent and homeownership, with a particular focus on delivering homes for social rent.

Through the revised National Planning Policy Framework published on 12 December 2024, the government implemented a new standard method for assessing housing needs to increase supply and better direct new homes to the areas where they are currently least affordable and therefore most needed.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-22)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-04-22 conversation_306

Edward Argar:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of planning control and enforcement in preventing (i) vibration and (ii) damage to neighbouring properties during construction works. \p Matthew Pennycook: The Department has not undertaken such an assessment.

Planning conditions can be used to mitigate the adverse effects of a development, such as vibration, where they meet the tests set out in the National Planning Policy Framework.

It is for local planning authorities to consider whether it is appropriate to attach conditions to the grant of planning permission and to take any subsequent enforcement action where there is a breach of planning control on a case-by-case basis.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-22)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-04-22 conversation_307

Lee Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many disabled people were on the waiting list for social housing in the last 12 months. \p Matthew Pennycook: My Department does not hold data on the number of disabled people on social housing registers (waiting lists).
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-22)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-04-22 conversation_308

Perran Moon:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department plans to regulate short-term lets. \p Matthew Pennycook: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 43634 on 8 April 2025.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-22)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-04-22 conversation_309

Fabian Hamilton:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of Part 3 of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill on protected habitats (a) on the Humber Estuary and (b) in general. \p Matthew Pennycook: When it comes to development and the environment, we know we can do better than the status quo, which too often sees both sustainable housebuilding and nature recovery stall. Instead of environmental protections being seen as barriers to growth, we want to unlock a win-win for the economy and for nature. The Planning and Infrastructure Bill will introduce a new Nature Restoration Fund that will unlock and accelerate development while going beyond neutrality to unlock the positive impact development can have in driving nature recovery.

Environmental Delivery Plans (EDPs), and the conservation measures they propose, must be evidence-based and properly scrutinised before being put in place. An EDP can only be put in place where the Secretary of State is satisfied the delivery of conservation measures will outweigh the negative effects of development.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-22)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-04-22 conversation_311

Amanda Hack:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of requiring developers to use sustainable urban drainage systems in new developments. \p Matthew Pennycook: The government is committed to securing the delivery of high-quality sustainable drainage systems to help manage flood risk and adapt to the effects of climate change.

The revised National Planning Policy Framework we published on 12 December 2024 amended an existing paragraph regarding incorporating sustainable drainage systems in new development to make clear that developments of all sizes are expected to make use of sustainable drainage techniques where the development could have drainage impacts. These systems should be appropriate to the nature and scale of the proposed development.

We will consider whether further changes are required to manage sustainable drainage systems provision through the planning system when we consult on further reform.

National Planning Guidance is clear that local authorities should be satisfied that all Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems have clear maintenance and adoption arrangements in place for the lifetime of a development.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-22)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-04-22 conversation_312

Manuela Perteghella:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to help ensure that local authorities have adequate (a) powers and (b) resources to (i) adopt and (ii) manage sustainable drainage systems. \p Matthew Pennycook: The government is committed to securing the delivery of high-quality sustainable drainage systems to help manage flood risk and adapt to the effects of climate change.

The revised National Planning Policy Framework we published on 12 December 2024 amended an existing paragraph regarding incorporating sustainable drainage systems in new development to make clear that developments of all sizes are expected to make use of sustainable drainage techniques where the development could have drainage impacts. These systems should be appropriate to the nature and scale of the proposed development.

We will consider whether further changes are required to manage sustainable drainage systems provision through the planning system when we consult on further reform.

National Planning Guidance is clear that local authorities should be satisfied that all Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems have clear maintenance and adoption arrangements in place for the lifetime of a development.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-22)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-04-22 conversation_313

Lizzi Collinge:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many planning inspectors are qualified to run local planning examinations; and whether her Department plans to increase staffing at the Planning Inspectorate in the context of the timeframes proposed in the Planning and Infrastructure Bill. \p Matthew Pennycook: The Planning Inspectorate (PINS) currently has 60 Inspectors (55FTE) trained to carry out Local Plan Examinations.

The government is committed to achieving a more efficient and consistent local plans examination process. This includes ensuring there is sufficient resourcing in PINS to support such activity.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-22)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-04-22 conversation_314

Mike Wood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many Departments hire official photographers as staff members. \p Georgia Gould: Information on how many departments hire official photographers as staff members is not held centrally by the Cabinet Office.

The Cabinet Office Communications team employs two Digital Media Officers who support government work in Departments and undertake photography as a small part of their duties.

There are also 2 full time, dedicated photographers in the No10 team. Although they are funded by the Cabinet Office, their work is managed by No10.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-22)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-04-22 conversation_315

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps he is taking to encourage public service bodies to buy British-made products. \p Georgia Gould: The Government is committed to supporting British businesses and the products they produce, ensuring they have the best opportunities to win UK public contracts and deliver high-quality goods and services.

The new Procurement Act contains measures that help British businesses and manufacturers by creating a simpler and more transparent system that will deliver better value for money, giving small businesses greater access to £385 billion of annual spend.

Our new National Procurement Policy Statement encourages contracting authorities to consider how procurement can foster economic growth, support small businesses, strengthen UK supply chains and drive delivery of the Government’s Industrial Strategy and missions.

We have also recently announced a package of further measures to demonstrate how central government will implement the NPPS, further helping British firms succeed.

Furthermore, our modern Industrial Strategy will set out how public procurement can support growth and investment in key sectors of the economy by encouraging innovation and the development of new technologies.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-22)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-04-22 conversation_316

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps he is taking to ensure that Government procurement policies promote British (a) manufacturers and (b) suppliers. \p Georgia Gould: The Government is committed to supporting British businesses, ensuring they have maximum opportunities to win UK public contracts and deliver high-quality goods and services.

The new Procurement Act contains measures that help British businesses and manufacturers by creating a simpler and more transparent system that will deliver better value for money, giving small businesses greater access to nearly £400billion of yearly spend.

Our new National Procurement Policy statement also encourages contracting authorities to consider how procurement can foster economic growth, support small businesses, strengthen UK supply chains and drive delivery of the Government’s Industrial Strategy and missions.