Written questions by Pinkerton.

Communities and Local Government, whether her Department plans to make an assessment of the potential (a) costs and (b) merits of local government reorganisation in Surrey.

As set out to the House on 17 June, two proposals for Local Government Reorganisation in Surrey were received on 9 May. In accordance with the guidance provided to two-tier areas, it is for councils to develop robust and sustainable proposals that are in the best interests of their whole area. Councils are responsible for working through the implications relating to local government reorganisation, including costs and merits. Following the Government’s consultation which closed on 5 August, the proposals for Surrey will be considered carefully against the published criteria, alongside the responses received and all other relevant information. It would be inappropriate to comment at this stage or give a view on specific unitary proposals, or to pre-empt future decisions under the statutory process for unitarisation.

Communities and Local Government, whether her Department plans to publish a report on proposals for local government reorganisation in Surrey.

On 17 June, MHCLG launched a consultation on two proposals for unitary local government made by Surrey councils. That consultation closed on 5 August. A decision will now be made on which proposal, if any, to implement by assessing the proposals against the criteria set out in the statutory guidance accompanying the invitation, and having regard to all representations received to the consultation, and to all other relevant information available. In line with usual practice, a summary of the consultation responses will be published in due course.

Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to support Surrey County Council in delivering sustainable growth.

Our number one mission is economic growth, and every area across the country has a vital contribution to make to this mission. In Surrey we are supporting this through inviting councils, including Surrey County Council, to come together and consider proposals for reorganisation and devolution which aim to improve service delivery, governance, and long-term economic resilience to support sustainable growth. Surrey will also benefit from the cross-cutting policies and solutions being delivered by the Industrial Strategy, to help ensure a pro-business environment across the UK.

Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that local councils in Surrey operate on a financially sustainable basis.

The Department works closely with local authorities and other government departments to understand specific demand and cost pressures facing local government on an ongoing basis. Any council that has concerns about its ability to set or maintain a balanced budget should approach the Department in the first instance, where we will treat all discussions in confidence and with respect. The Government accepts that Woking Borough Council holds significant unsupported debt that cannot be managed locally in its entirety. We are committed to providing an initial tranche of financial support for debt repayment for Woking in 2026-27, ahead of the implementation of re-organisation in Surrey. Government-appointed Commissioners are in place in both Woking and Spelthorne, and have been engaged in the development of proposals for unitarisation. The 2025 Spending Review provides over £5 billion of new grant funding over the next three years for local services that communities rely on. This includes £3.4 billion of new grant funding which will be delivered through the Local Government Finance Settlement within financial years 2026-27 to 2028-29. We will publish the provisional Local Government Finance Settlement later this year, which will inform local authorities of their provisional multi-year allocations.

Communities and Local Government, whether her Department plans to review (a) accountability and (b) oversight arrangements for Section 151 officers as part of local government reorganisation in Surrey.

There are no plans to review accountability and oversight arrangements for S151 officers as part of local government reorganisation in Surrey.

Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to support Hong Kong British National (Overseas) passport holders in Surrey Heath constituency.

I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to Question UIN 58070 on 30 June 2025, Question UIN 23695 on 21 January 2025, and Question UIN 52871 on 4 June 2025.In Surrey Heath, BN(O)s benefit from the support of the South East Welcome Hub, which offers advice and guidance to new arrivals.Surrey County Council has supported BN(O)s to access English language course via the Welcome Programme.

Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to support people under Ukrainian Permission Extension schemes in Surrey Heath constituency.

We provide a tariff of £5,900 per Ukrainian arrival to councils. Councils can use this funding flexibly to support households as best suits the local area, including supporting guests to rebuild their lives and fully integrate into communities. All Ukrainian guests have access to public services, including benefits to support housing, healthcare, education, as well as other essential services. The Citizens Advice Bureau can advise on which benefits individuals may be eligible for and how to apply for those. Thank you payments have also been extended for sponsors/hosts under the Ukraine Permission Extension scheme. This allows sponsors/hosts to continue to support guests who wish to remain in sponsorship. We recently closed a competitive tender process for the delivery of a new programme to continue our English language and employment support for Ukrainians and Hong Kong British Nationals (Overseas) visa holders. This programme will provide support for up to 4,000 individuals. This builds on the success of the STEP Ukraine pilot which has supported over 13,000 Ukrainians, with an impressive 84% successfully completing the programme and 73% achieving a 100% in their English language test.

Communities and Local Government, if she will hold discussions with local authorities on the potential merits of enabling people to voluntarily pay for rooms for homeless people in shelters.

The government has invested £3.57 million in 2025/26 through the Night Shelter Transformation Fund to enhance emergency accommodation provision in the homelessness sector. This funding forms part of the government’s £1 billion funding for homelessness and rough sleeping services in 2025/26.MHCLG’s team of homelessness and rough sleeping advisers hold regular discussions with local authorities on the provision and delivery of homelessness services in their areas. Many local authorities and charities provide ways for the general public to support services and individuals.

Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to reduce the number of people rough sleeping in Surrey Heath constituency.

The government has increased funding for homelessness services by £233 million in 2025/26 to a total of £1 billion to prevent rises in the number of households in temporary accommodation and to help prevent rough sleeping. This includes £185.6 million through the Rough Sleeping Prevention and Recovery Grant. The allocations for this grant can be found on gov.uk here.The government’s forthcoming homelessness strategy will set out the steps to be taken by government, in partnerships with Mayors, local authorities, and the homelessness sector, to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the support available to fire and rescue services who attend traumatic callouts in Surrey Heath constituency.

The health and wellbeing of firefighters is of the utmost importance. The government recognises the risks that firefighters face and is grateful to them for their bravery. Fire and Rescue Authorities (FRAs) are ultimately responsible for the health and wellbeing of firefighters and the government-issued National Framework directs that all Fire and Rescue Authorities should have a people strategy which sets out the mental and physical health and wellbeing support available to firefighters. National organisations such as The Fire Fighters Charity and Mind also offer valuable support to individuals and services. Their resources can assist Fire and Rescue Authorities in developing local approaches to managing mental health risks and promoting the wellbeing of their workforce. The health and wellbeing support provided by Fire and Rescue services is considered by the fire inspectorate (His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services) in the course of their work.

Communities and Local Government, whether her Department plans to review the guidance on the display of flags to ensure it remains aligned with (a) current practices and (b) community expectations.

The government has no current plans to amend the guidance in question.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of housing investment announced in the Spending Review 2025 on (a) the protection of Green Belt land and (b) new housing starts in Surrey Heath constituency.

The government has not made any such assessment.The allocation of housing investment announced at the Spending Review will depend on the bids received from registered providers.

Communities and Local Government, whether her Department is taking steps to address variation between local authorities in the application of discretionary business rates relief for not-for-profit organisations.

Section 47 of the Local Government Finance Act 1988 provides billing authorities with discretionary powers to award business rates reliefs to properties within their area. This is a local decision for individual billing authorities.

Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to ensure new housing developments are supported by (a) physical and (b) social infrastructure in Surrey Heath constituency.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 26106 on 5 February 2025.

Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of high annual ground rents on the ability of leaseholders to sell their properties in Surrey Heath constituency.

My Department is aware that some leaseholders may be experiencing problems with mortgaging or selling a property because of their ground rent terms. The government remains firmly committed to its manifesto commitment to tackle unregulated and unaffordable ground rents, and we will deliver this in legislation.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of establishing mechanisms to evaluate whether codes of practice issued by sector bodies are being effectively implemented in the management of retirement housing.

My Department has not assessed the effectiveness of trade associations in the retirement housing sector or the merits of evaluating codes of practices in the management of retirement housing.There are two government approved codes of practice which outline best practice for managing agents, landlords or other relevant parties for the residential leasehold sector and private retirement housing.Where residents in leasehold properties, including retirement housing, are concerned about the management of their homes they may make a complaint against their landlord or managing agent, or seek a determination at the relevant court or tribunal. The enforcement of standards set out in these codes can be taken into account as evidence, at court or tribunal hearings. We continue to work with industry on improving best practice including on any new codes proposed by the sector.As set out in the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 26 November 2024 (HCWS249), the government is giving careful consideration to the recommendations from the Older People’s Housing Taskforce report including developing an overarching regulatory approach to the sector to safeguard consumers and give certainty to investors: reviewing and assessing existing codes, their applicability to different sub-sectors and how large-scale monitoring programmes could be delivered to increase compliance with these codes.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of trade associations in the retirement housing sector in (a) setting and (b) monitoring standards for leasehold property management.

My Department has not assessed the effectiveness of trade associations in the retirement housing sector or the merits of evaluating codes of practices in the management of retirement housing.There are two government approved codes of practice which outline best practice for managing agents, landlords or other relevant parties for the residential leasehold sector and private retirement housing.Where residents in leasehold properties, including retirement housing, are concerned about the management of their homes they may make a complaint against their landlord or managing agent, or seek a determination at the relevant court or tribunal. The enforcement of standards set out in these codes can be taken into account as evidence, at court or tribunal hearings. We continue to work with industry on improving best practice including on any new codes proposed by the sector.As set out in the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 26 November 2024 (HCWS249), the government is giving careful consideration to the recommendations from the Older People’s Housing Taskforce report including developing an overarching regulatory approach to the sector to safeguard consumers and give certainty to investors: reviewing and assessing existing codes, their applicability to different sub-sectors and how large-scale monitoring programmes could be delivered to increase compliance with these codes.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of promoting transparency from the Building Safety Regulator through the regular publication of performance data on application processing times.

The Department and the Building Safety Regulator recognise the value to the sector in providing performance data. From this quarter, BSR will be publishing quarterly data demonstrating the volumes of applications received, recorded outcomes and decision times for determination. MHCLG and BSR jointly keep BSR’s operational set up under review as a departmental priority. We are working with the BSR to undertake a further programme of enhancements to improve application processing times which we recognise are too long. Enhancements to the service will continue to scale up in the coming months.

Communities and Local Government, what plans her Department has to support effective collaboration between hon. Members of Parliament and county councils in the context of local government reorganisation in Surrey.

On 5th February I wrote to all councils in two tier areas and their neighbouring small unitaries, including Surrey, to formally invite them to submit unitary proposals. In this invitation, we set out that we expect local leaders to engage their Members of Parliament, and to ensure there is wide engagement with local partners and stakeholders, residents, workforce and their representatives, and businesses on a proposal. We are committed to updating Parliament on the progress of local government reorganisation.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of requiring developers to include Blue Badge parking spaces in new residential housing developments.

The National Planning Policy Framework sets out that in assessing sites that may be allocated for development in plans, or specific applications for development, it should be ensured that safe and suitable access to the site can be achieved for all users. Within this context, applications for development should address the needs of people with disabilities and reduced mobility in relation to all modes of transport. Responsibility for traffic management and enforcement of all parking regulations, including the provision of disabled parking spaces, is the responsibility of local authorities. It is for individual authorities to decide on the nature and scope of these policies and to balance the needs of residents, emergency services, local business and those who work in and visit their areas. Where car parks are on private land and owned, for example, by a supermarket or retail park, it is for the landowner to determine the terms and conditions for how that land may be used, and how parking spaces may be allocated.