Written questions by Hinchliff.

Communities and Local Government, if he will undertake an assessment of the impact of the Town and Country Planning (Discharge of Local Planning Authority Functions) (England) Regulations 2026 on the powers of lo

Awaiting answer.

Communities and Local Government, if he will publish the dates and attendees of meetings held with the Local Government Association regarding the Town and Country Planning (Discharge of Local Planning Authority F

Officials in my Department have had regular engagement with a range of stakeholders, including the Local Government Association (LGA) and the Planning Advisory Service (PAS), regarding the regulations in question. Officials held meetings with the LGA in J...

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 24 June 2026 to Questions 11520 on Planning, for what reason his Department did not make an assessment of the potential impact of the Town and Country P

In developing the regulations in question, the government gave careful consideration to the implications of the National Scheme of Delegation for local communities and their ability to influence development in their areas. We recognise the essential role ...

Communities and Local Government, whether his Department has made an assessment of the compatibility of the Town and Country Planning (Discharge of Local Planning Authority Functions) (England) Regulations 2026 w

The government considers that the regulations in question, as well as the enabling powers for them contained in the Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025, are compatible with the European Convention on Human Rights.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 24 June 2026 to Questions 11520 on Planning, whether minutes, notes, or records were taken of meetings held with stakeholders on the Town and Country Pl

Officials in my Department have had regular engagement with a range of stakeholders, including the Local Government Association (LGA) and the Planning Advisory Service (PAS), regarding the regulations in question. Officials held meetings with the LGA in J...

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 24 June 2026 to Questions 11040, 11042, 11044, 11045 and 11520, if he will publish a list of all stakeholders with whom (a) he and (b) officials in his

My Department does not routinely publish details of meetings between officials and stakeholders and has no plans to do so in respect of the regulations in question. Ministerial meetings are published quarterly. The latest publication is available on gov.u...

Communities and Local Government, what his Department's planned timetable is for the publication of best practice guidance on where tenants can access information on furniture provision to supplement the Decent H

We will publish the guidance in due course.

Communities and Local Government, if he will publish a list of stakeholders who he met with to discuss the Town and Country Planning (Discharge of Local Planning Authority Functions) (England) Regulations 2026 in

My Department has undertaken extensive consultation and engagement with a wide range of stakeholders including developers, the Local Government Association, professional bodies, community and campaign groups in respect of the measures in the Town and Coun...

Communities and Local Government, how many meetings he has had with housing developers in relation to The Town and Country Planning (Discharge of Local Planning Authority Functions) (England) Regulations 2026.

My Department has undertaken extensive consultation and engagement with a wide range of stakeholders including developers, the Local Government Association, professional bodies, community and campaign groups in respect of the measures in the Town and Coun...

Communities and Local Government, how many meetings he has had with the Town and Country Planning Association in relation to The Town and Country Planning (Discharge of Local Planning Authority Functions) (Englan

My Department has undertaken extensive consultation and engagement with a wide range of stakeholders including developers, the Local Government Association, professional bodies, community and campaign groups in respect of the measures in the Town and Coun...

Communities and Local Government, if he will publish an assessment of the potential impact of The Town and Country Planning (Discharge of Local Planning Authority Functions) (England) Regulations 2026 on democrat

My Department has undertaken extensive consultation and engagement with a wide range of stakeholders including developers, the Local Government Association, professional bodies, community and campaign groups in respect of the measures in the Town and Coun...

Communities and Local Government, how many meetings he has had with the Local Government Association in relation to the Town and Country Planning (Discharge of Local Planning Authority Functions) (England) Regula

My Department has undertaken extensive consultation and engagement with a wide range of stakeholders including developers, the Local Government Association, professional bodies, community and campaign groups in respect of the measures in the Town and Coun...

Communities and Local Government, how many meetings he had with (a) community rights campaign groups and (b) democratic planning campaign groups in relation to The Town and Country Planning (Discharge of Local Pl

My Department has undertaken extensive consultation and engagement with a wide range of stakeholders including developers, the Local Government Association, professional bodies, community and campaign groups in respect of the measures in the Town and Coun...

Communities and Local Government, what the latest available figure is for Housing Revenue Account debt owed to the Public Works Loans Board by local authorities, including (a) the collective figure for all local

Awaiting answer.

Communities and Local Government, whether guidance on furniture provision will encourage social landlords to offer furnished tenancies to low-income tenants.

People living without essential furniture can access support through their local authority, including via the Household Support Fund until 31 March, and from April, the Crisis and Resilience Fund, to provide discretionary help with essential items such as...

Communities and Local Government, whether his Department will meet bodies other than social landlords to discuss best practice guidance for furniture provision.

People living without essential furniture can access support through their local authority, including via the Household Support Fund until 31 March, and from April, the Crisis and Resilience Fund, to provide discretionary help with essential items such as...

Communities and Local Government, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of undertaking a pilot of furnished tenancies as part of the creation of best practice guidance on furniture provision; and

People living without essential furniture can access support through their local authority, including via the Household Support Fund until 31 March, and from April, the Crisis and Resilience Fund, to provide discretionary help with essential items such as...

Communities and Local Government, if he will take legislative steps to create a duty on housing associations to house homeless households.

As set out in the government’s National Plan to End Homelessness published on 11 December 2025, which can be found on gov.uk here, we expect social housing landlords to cooperate with councils in housing statutory homeless households and, where joint working is not operating effectively, we will consider levers to require social housing landlords to rehouse statutory homeless households referred by the council, including legislating if necessary.

Communities and Local Government, whether he plans to introduce a duty on housing associations to house homeless households.

As set out in the government’s National Plan to End Homelessness published on 11 December 2025, which can be found on gov.uk here, we expect social housing landlords to cooperate with councils in housing statutory homeless households and, where joint working is not operating effectively, we will consider levers to require social housing landlords to rehouse statutory homeless households referred by the council, including legislating if necessary.

Communities and Local Government, further to the Answer of 15 December to Question 97083 on Nature Conservation: Planning, what further external engagement is planned; at what stage in the implementation process will this take place; and how will external stakeholders be consulted.

In preparing Environmental Delivery Plans (EDPs), Natural England is engaging with a range of stakeholders. The government, and Natural England, will continue to work closely with local authorities, developers, environmental groups and other stakeholders to gather and assess the data needed to underpin each EDP. As required by the Planning and Infrastructure Act, all EDPs will also be subject to a 28 working day public consultation. The Implementation Plan for the Nature Restoration Fund was published on 18 December 2025 on and can be found on gov.uk here.