Written questions by Simmonds.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 13 January 2025 to Question 21626 on Renters' Rights Bill, for what reason the Impact Assessment to the Planning and Infrastructure Bill was not published in a timely manner.

The Department aims to publish Impact Assessments in a timely manner, in line with the ‘Better Regulation Framework’ guidance, which states that an Impact Assessment ‘should be published alongside relevant legislation when it is laid before Parliament.’In exceptional circumstances this may not be possible, for example, where the legislation is urgent, further work is needed following concerns expressed by the Regulatory Policy Committee (RPC) or where the assessment is with RPC for review. In those circumstances, the Department works with the RPC to ensure the Bill Impact Assessment and RPC opinion is published as soon as possible.The Impact Assessment for the Planning and Infrastructure Bill was published 6 May 2025 ahead of the Bill’s Commons committee stage.

Communities and Local Government, whether (a) Ministers, (b) officials in her Department and (c) Best Value Commissioners have had any involvement in the interlocutory injunctions in relation to the industrial action in Birmingham.

The response to the ongoing disruption in Birmingham’s waste services rightly continues to be led at the local level. Best Value Commissioners are not directly involved in negotiations between the Council and Unite but continue to work constructively with the Council to ensure that a fair, meaningful and sustainable resolution is found as quickly as possible. Decisions on trade union facility time are a matter for the Council as the employer. There are no plans to expand the remit of the Commissioners to intervene in workforce matters of this nature. Commissioners were appointed to oversee the Council’s broader improvement journey and to ensure compliance with the ‘Best Value’ Duty. Ministers, departmental officials and Commissioners have been updated on, but are not involved in, the interlocutory injunctions related to the industrial action. These are legal proceedings initiated by the Council, and it is for the Council to determine how to respond to the operational risks arising from the dispute. The government is supportive of the Council’s work to prevent any escalation in disruption.

Communities and Local Government, if she will make it her policy to expand the remit of her Best Value Commissioners in Birmingham City Council and instruct them to suspend the council trade union facility time given to the Unite trade union whilst the Birmingham bin strike organised by Unite is ongoing.

The response to the ongoing disruption in Birmingham’s waste services rightly continues to be led at the local level. Best Value Commissioners are not directly involved in negotiations between the Council and Unite but continue to work constructively with the Council to ensure that a fair, meaningful and sustainable resolution is found as quickly as possible. Decisions on trade union facility time are a matter for the Council as the employer. There are no plans to expand the remit of the Commissioners to intervene in workforce matters of this nature. Commissioners were appointed to oversee the Council’s broader improvement journey and to ensure compliance with the ‘Best Value’ Duty. Ministers, departmental officials and Commissioners have been updated on, but are not involved in, the interlocutory injunctions related to the industrial action. These are legal proceedings initiated by the Council, and it is for the Council to determine how to respond to the operational risks arising from the dispute. The government is supportive of the Council’s work to prevent any escalation in disruption.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the Written Statement of 2 September 2024 on Building Safety, HCWS62, what the evidential basis is for the proposition that the European standard (BS EN 13501) is more rigorous and robust than the British fire door testing standard (BS 476-22).

The withdrawal of National Classes fire testing standards (BS 476) from Approved Document B in favour of the European Standard (BS EN 13501) aimed to enhance fire protection by simplifying compliance routes within the guidance. This change makes it easier and clearer to ensure products meet required standards and enabling simpler performance comparison. The suitability of BS 476 and the transition to the EN standard was also scrutinised during the Grenfell Tower Inquiry. The EN suite of standards is constantly reviewed, periodically updated, and does not rely on withdrawn standards and is therefore seen as more suitable in the long term. The consultation response published alongside the Written Statement on 2 September 2024 shows a majority of respondents were in support of moving to the European Standard. The Building Safety Regulator will keep these standards under review as part of their continuous review of Approved Document B, in line with their duty under the Building Safety Act to keep the safety and standard of buildings under review in England.

Communities and Local Government, whether a business case was prepared for her visit to Ethiopia; and whether she plans to make other foreign visits.

All ministerial visits are assessed against the government’s domestic and international priorities in the normal way. As set out on gov.uk, the Deputy Prime Minister’s role includes acting in support of the government’s international agenda, including through overseas travel.

Communities and Local Government, what guidance her Department has provided to Electoral Registration Offices on the mechanisms by which qualified Commonwealth citizens should be verified for their eligibility to join the local government and UK Parliamentary electoral roll; what guidance her Department has provided on what steps should be taken to ensure that non-qualified Commonwealth individuals are not signed up to the electoral roll; and what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of automatic voter registration on that issue.

Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) are responsible for maintaining accurate electoral registers. As part of the voter registration process, applicants must declare their nationality. EROs hold legal powers which allow them to request documentary evidence to confirm an applicant’s nationality if they are not satisfied as to any applicant's nationality. The application form to register to vote is clear about the possibility of applicants being required to provide additional evidence about their nationality, and that their nationality or immigration status may be checked against government records. The Electoral Commission has also published guidance for EROs on the types of evidence they may request, and advice on how to check immigration records held by the Home Office. The Government is committed to improving electoral registration. We are exploring a wide range of options to deliver on this manifesto commitment, including making greater use of data and online Government services. Any changes will be based on robust evidence and user research.

Communities and Local Government, what guidance her Department provides to the Electoral Registration Offices on the mechanisms by which qualified EU nationals should be verified for their eligibility to join the local electoral roll; what guidance her Department provides to ensure that non-qualified individuals are not signed up to the electoral roll; and what assessment she is made of the merits of automatic electoral registration in this context.

Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) are responsible for maintaining accurate electoral registers. As part of the voter registration process, applicants must declare their nationality. EROs hold legal powers which allow them to request documentary evidence to confirm an applicant’s nationality if they are not satisfied as to any applicant's nationality. The application form to register to vote is clear about the possibility of applicants being required to provide additional evidence about their nationality, and that their nationality or immigration status may be checked against government records. The Electoral Commission has also published guidance for EROs on the types of evidence they may request, and advice on how to check immigration records held by the Home Office. The Government is committed to improving electoral registration. We are exploring a wide range of options to deliver on this manifesto commitment, including making greater use of data and online Government services. Any changes will be based on robust evidence and user research.

Communities and Local Government, what criteria will her Department use to determine whether scheduled elections in 2026 (a) will and (b) will not be postponed in the context of the ongoing two-tier local government restructuring.

There are no plans to postpone council elections in 2026. The government’s starting point is for all elections to go ahead unless there is strong justification.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the proposed transition period for moving from the BS 476-22 national fire door safety testing standard to the EN1634-1 standard on (a) the productivity of and (b) costs to timber fire door manufacturers.

On 2 September 2024, the Government announced the withdrawal of National Classes fire testing standards from Approved Document B, ending the dual classification system in favour of the European Standard (BS EN 13501). This change aimed to enhance fire protection by simplifying compliance routes within Approved Document B (ADB) and followed scrutiny during the Grenfell Tower Inquiry where the suitability of BS 476 was questioned. The Government recognises the potential economic impact that could result from this change. The overall impact and associated benefits were carefully evaluated to inform the policy decision and are set out in the Impact Assessment that accompanied the policy announcement. Market analysis and sector engagement showed limited impact on developers for the reaction to fire classification. Changes took effect on 2nd March 2025, with a six-month transition period provided for fire reaction. We identified a larger impact on sectors involved in bespoke wooden fire doors, cavity barriers, smoke vents, and roofs due to re-testing requirements for the fire resistance classification. Concerns were also raised about testing site capacity. An extended transition period of 5 years was developed through discussions with the sector allowing manufacturers time to retest their products ahead of compliance with BS EN 13501 coming into force on 2nd September 2029. We and the Building Safety Regulator will continue to support industry to develop new standards and testing capacity to minimise disruption to supply chains through the transitional period. The Building Safety Regulator will keep these standards under review as part of their continuous review of Approved Document B, in line with their duty under the Building Safety Act to keep the safety and standard of buildings under review in England.

Communities and Local Government, what the evidential basis is for proposals to remove the national BS 476-22 classification for fire door resistance from Approved Document B.

On 2 September 2024, the Government announced the withdrawal of National Classes fire testing standards from Approved Document B, ending the dual classification system in favour of the European Standard (BS EN 13501). This change aimed to enhance fire protection by simplifying compliance routes within Approved Document B (ADB) and followed scrutiny during the Grenfell Tower Inquiry where the suitability of BS 476 was questioned. The Government recognises the potential economic impact that could result from this change. The overall impact and associated benefits were carefully evaluated to inform the policy decision and are set out in the Impact Assessment that accompanied the policy announcement. Market analysis and sector engagement showed limited impact on developers for the reaction to fire classification. Changes took effect on 2nd March 2025, with a six-month transition period provided for fire reaction. We identified a larger impact on sectors involved in bespoke wooden fire doors, cavity barriers, smoke vents, and roofs due to re-testing requirements for the fire resistance classification. Concerns were also raised about testing site capacity. An extended transition period of 5 years was developed through discussions with the sector allowing manufacturers time to retest their products ahead of compliance with BS EN 13501 coming into force on 2nd September 2029. We and the Building Safety Regulator will continue to support industry to develop new standards and testing capacity to minimise disruption to supply chains through the transitional period. The Building Safety Regulator will keep these standards under review as part of their continuous review of Approved Document B, in line with their duty under the Building Safety Act to keep the safety and standard of buildings under review in England.

Communities and Local Government, whether her Department plans to pause the proposed move from the British fire door safety testing standard (BS 476-22) to the European Standard (EN 1634-1) until the current review of the European Standard has been completed.

On 2 September 2024, the Government announced the withdrawal of National Classes fire testing standards from Approved Document B, ending the dual classification system in favour of the European Standard (BS EN 13501). This change aimed to enhance fire protection by simplifying compliance routes within Approved Document B (ADB) and followed scrutiny during the Grenfell Tower Inquiry where the suitability of BS 476 was questioned. The Government recognises the potential economic impact that could result from this change. The overall impact and associated benefits were carefully evaluated to inform the policy decision and are set out in the Impact Assessment that accompanied the policy announcement. Market analysis and sector engagement showed limited impact on developers for the reaction to fire classification. Changes took effect on 2nd March 2025, with a six-month transition period provided for fire reaction. We identified a larger impact on sectors involved in bespoke wooden fire doors, cavity barriers, smoke vents, and roofs due to re-testing requirements for the fire resistance classification. Concerns were also raised about testing site capacity. An extended transition period of 5 years was developed through discussions with the sector allowing manufacturers time to retest their products ahead of compliance with BS EN 13501 coming into force on 2nd September 2029. We and the Building Safety Regulator will continue to support industry to develop new standards and testing capacity to minimise disruption to supply chains through the transitional period. The Building Safety Regulator will keep these standards under review as part of their continuous review of Approved Document B, in line with their duty under the Building Safety Act to keep the safety and standard of buildings under review in England.

Communities and Local Government, whether her Department has made an estimate of the testing site capacity required to carry-out fire door tests for the new European Standard (EN1634-1) classification within the proposed transition period.

On 2 September 2024, the Government announced the withdrawal of National Classes fire testing standards from Approved Document B, ending the dual classification system in favour of the European Standard (BS EN 13501). This change aimed to enhance fire protection by simplifying compliance routes within Approved Document B (ADB) and followed scrutiny during the Grenfell Tower Inquiry where the suitability of BS 476 was questioned. The Government recognises the potential economic impact that could result from this change. The overall impact and associated benefits were carefully evaluated to inform the policy decision and are set out in the Impact Assessment that accompanied the policy announcement. Market analysis and sector engagement showed limited impact on developers for the reaction to fire classification. Changes took effect on 2nd March 2025, with a six-month transition period provided for fire reaction. We identified a larger impact on sectors involved in bespoke wooden fire doors, cavity barriers, smoke vents, and roofs due to re-testing requirements for the fire resistance classification. Concerns were also raised about testing site capacity. An extended transition period of 5 years was developed through discussions with the sector allowing manufacturers time to retest their products ahead of compliance with BS EN 13501 coming into force on 2nd September 2029. We and the Building Safety Regulator will continue to support industry to develop new standards and testing capacity to minimise disruption to supply chains through the transitional period. The Building Safety Regulator will keep these standards under review as part of their continuous review of Approved Document B, in line with their duty under the Building Safety Act to keep the safety and standard of buildings under review in England.

Communities and Local Government, if she will make it her policy to replace the Exceptional Financial Support regime with long term debt-restructuring.

We are under no illusion about the fragile state of the sector and the pressures that some councils are facing, and recognise the potential for continued instability as we work to fix the foundations of local government. That is why we have a framework in place to support councils in the most difficult financial positions. On 20 February 2025 we wrote to thirty councils to confirm in-principle support, primarily in the form of capitalisation, through the Exceptional Financial Support process. It is the responsibility of councils to manage their budgets, and it is standard for councils to borrow and to hold debt in the normal course of business. There are councils currently under statutory Best Value intervention that hold exceptional levels of debt. As part of the Spending Review, we are working with those councils, particularly in the context of local government re-organisation to understand how these councils’ exceptional debt can be managed.

Communities and Local Government, what information her Department holds on the number of former foreign national asylum seekers granted (a) refugee status and (b) settlement claiming (i) emergency homeless and (ii) temporary accommodation.

The most recent statutory homelessness statistics (July – September 2024) is available at: Homelessness statistics - GOV.UK, which includes former asylum seeker households that are owed a homelessness duty.

Communities and Local Government, what information her Department holds on the number of former foreign national asylum seekers granted (a) refugee status and (b) settlement claiming social housing.

My Department does not hold information on former foreign national asylum seekers claiming social housing who were formally granted refugee status and/or settlement. The Department’s social housing lettings in England statistical series includes information based on self-reported status. It can be found on gov.uk here. It shows that 2.0% of new social housing lettings in 2023/24 were to households who self-reported as refugees (4,100 households). There were 1,000 households who self-reported that they were housed by The National Asylum Support Service immediately before their new social letting (0.4% of new social lettings). Care should be taken when considering figures for new social lettings to refugees and asylum seekers. CORE data is based on specific definitions and there may be overlaps and households missing from the statistics presented above.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of reliability of the Index of Multiple Deprivation to accurately reflect levels of deprivation and need.

The English Indices for Deprivation are a designated National Statistic. They have demonstrated, through assessment, that they meet the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value, set out in the Code of Practice for Statistics by the Office for Statistics Regulation.Building on the measures in the 2025-26 Local Government Finance Settlement, the Government is committed to introducing an improved and updated approach to funding local authorities from 2026-27.We sought views on our principles and objectives for funding reform through a consultation which ran from 18 December 2024 - 12 February 2025. This consultation and engagement will inform the development of our detailed proposals, which will follow the multi-year Spending Review concluding later this year.

Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the exceptional financial support regime for local authorities.

The government is under no illusion about the fragile state of the sector and the pressures that some councils are facing to deliver for residents. We also recognise the potential for continued instability as we work to fix the foundations of local government. That is why we confirmed in the autumn that we will continue to have a framework in place to support councils in the most difficult financial positions. However, this government has been clear that we will take a different approach to supporting councils in financial difficulty, to ensure it is effective, collaborative and delivers value for money – while still protecting the interests of taxpayers. For example, we have been clear that we do not believe in punishing councils and have removed the punitive approach of making borrowing more expensive where a council seeking additional financial support has no other choice. On council tax flexibility for areas seeking exceptional financial support, we have put taxpayers at the forefront by avoiding excessively high increases and only agreeing increases where councils have comparatively low existing levels of tax and plans to protect the lowest income residents.

Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to account for housing costs when measuring deprivation as part of local government funding reform.

The English Indices for Deprivation are a designated National Statistic. They have demonstrated, through assessment, that they meet the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value, set out in the Code of Practice for Statistics by the Office for Statistics Regulation.Building on the measures in the 2025-26 Local Government Finance Settlement, the Government is committed to introducing an improved and updated approach to funding local authorities from 2026-27.We sought views on our principles and objectives for funding reform through a consultation which ran from 18 December 2024 - 12 February 2025. This consultation and engagement will inform the development of our detailed proposals, which will follow the multi-year Spending Review concluding later this year.

Communities and Local Government, whether she has made an assessment of the merits of introducing a separate needs formula for homelessness.

The previous government committed to improving and updating the way in which local authorities are funded through the “fair funding review” - but this was not delivered. We will make good on this commitment and implement long-awaited reforms through a multi-year settlement in 2026-27. We invited views from the local government sector through the “local authority funding reform objectives and principles consultation”, which was open from 18 December 2024 to 12 February 2025. It sought views on the approach to local authority funding reform to be implemented via the Local Government Finance Settlement from 2026-27. We will be consulting on more detailed proposals, including our proposed relative needs formulae, following the Spending Review in June.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of local authority finances in London.

The Local Government Finance Settlement for 2025-26 makes available up to £13.35 billion for London, including the GLA. This is a £726 million increase on 2024-25, representing a 5.8% cash terms increase. The Department works closely with local government and other government departments to understand specific demand and cost pressures facing local government on an ongoing basis. This involves looking at a range of cost and demand data, as well as regular engagement with local authorities.