Written questions by Morello.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of trends in the levels of under-occupied homes in West Dorset constituency.

Under-occupation is recorded in the English Housing Survey’s annual statistics.The choice to sell a home is ultimately one for the owner of the property to make.However, the government are taking steps to modernise the home buying and selling process, including through digital innovation.As set out in the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 26 November 2024 (HCWS249), we are also giving careful consideration to the recommendations from the Older People’s Housing Taskforce report.

Communities and Local Government, whether her Department plans to expand schemes to help encourage downsizing in (a) West Dorset constituency and (b) rural areas.

Under-occupation is recorded in the English Housing Survey’s annual statistics.The choice to sell a home is ultimately one for the owner of the property to make.However, the government are taking steps to modernise the home buying and selling process, including through digital innovation.As set out in the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 26 November 2024 (HCWS249), we are also giving careful consideration to the recommendations from the Older People’s Housing Taskforce report.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of trends in the number of under-occupied homes on housing availability in West Dorset constituency.

Under-occupation is recorded in the English Housing Survey’s annual statistics.The choice to sell a home is ultimately one for the owner of the property to make.However, the government are taking steps to modernise the home buying and selling process, including through digital innovation.As set out in the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 26 November 2024 (HCWS249), we are also giving careful consideration to the recommendations from the Older People’s Housing Taskforce report.

Communities and Local Government, whether her Department plans to incentivise the use of existing housing stock to help tackle low room occupancy rates.

Under-occupation is recorded in the English Housing Survey’s annual statistics.The choice to sell a home is ultimately one for the owner of the property to make.However, the government are taking steps to modernise the home buying and selling process, including through digital innovation.As set out in the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 26 November 2024 (HCWS249), we are also giving careful consideration to the recommendations from the Older People’s Housing Taskforce report.

Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to make water companies statutory consultees in the planning system.

As the hon. Member is aware, the government does not plan to make water companies statutory consultees in the planning system.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of nutrient neutrality credit costs on the affordability of new housing developments in West Dorset.

In December 2023, the previous government awarded Dorset council £4.63m in Round 1 of the Local Nutrient Mitigation Fund to support the delivery of local nutrient mitigation schemes that would provide mitigation and unblock stalled development.The present government awarded Poole Harbour a further £100,000 in Nutrient Support Funding in Autumn 2024.These funds are intended to be used and recycled locally in a way which helps to unlock housing while mitigating the effects of nutrient pollution.The government has not made an assessment of the potential impact of the scheme on affordability.

Communities and Local Government, if she will provide additional support to Dorset Council to help develop local nutrient mitigation schemes.

In December 2023, the previous government awarded Dorset council £4.63m in Round 1 of the Local Nutrient Mitigation Fund to support the delivery of local nutrient mitigation schemes that would provide mitigation and unblock stalled development.The present government awarded Poole Harbour a further £100,000 in Nutrient Support Funding in Autumn 2024.These funds are intended to be used and recycled locally in a way which helps to unlock housing while mitigating the effects of nutrient pollution.The government has not made an assessment of the potential impact of the scheme on affordability.

Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to introduce regulations requiring the disclosure of future maintenance liabilities through asset management plans during property transactions.

Providing essential information upfront during the home buying and selling process is important in supporting potential buyers to make informed decisions about whether a property is suitable for them. There is already a requirement under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 that any property information that would help a prospective homebuyer to make an informed decision is not hidden or omitted. On 9 February, the government announced action to improve the availability of property information. Improving access to key home buying and selling data will help transactions run more smoothly by ensuring all parties are able to access the information they need at the right time. We recognise the benefits to leaseholders of Asset Management Plans. As per my Written Ministerial Statement of 21 November 2024 (HCWS2440), the government will consult on new reforms to the section 20 ‘major works’ procedure that leaseholders must go through when they face large bills for such works. We continue to work with stakeholders across industry, government, and the public sector to understand the most effective way of supporting buyers to make the right decisions.

Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to help increase the supply of nutrient neutrality credits for housing development in West Dorset constituency.

In December 2023, the previous government awarded Dorset council £4.63m in Round 1 of the Local Nutrient Mitigation Fund to support the delivery of local nutrient mitigation schemes that would provide mitigation and unblock stalled development.The present government awarded Poole Harbour a further £100,000 in Nutrient Support Funding in Autumn 2024.These funds are intended to be used and recycled locally in a way which helps to unlock housing while mitigating the effects of nutrient pollution.The government has not made an assessment of the potential impact of the scheme on affordability.

Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to help reduce the time taken for local plan adoption when linked to the availability of nutrient neutrality credits.

Local planning authorities can only adopt a local development plan that is sound. That requires them to be consistent with national planning policy, be supported by evidence, and take the views of local people into account. If nutrient neutrality credits are available as supporting evidence for the inclusion of a site allocation proposed in an emerging plan this can reduce the risk of delays when the plan is examined.

Communities and Local Government, what estimate her Department has made of the cost to developers of nutrient neutrality credits; and what assessment she has made of the potential impact of this on housing supply in impacted catchment areas.

Through the Local Nutrient Mitigation Fund, the government has provided £110m in direct grant funding to local planning authorities to deliver high quality, locally led nutrient mitigation schemes. This funding is distinct from the £30m provided to Natural England to fund the Nutrient Mitigation Scheme.The Local Nutrient Mitigation Fund will be recycled locally until nutrient mitigation is no longer needed, at which point it will be used for measures to help restore the relevant Habitats sites. This will enable sustainable development, unlocking stalled housing delivery whilst delivering benefits like enhanced public access to nature and supporting our commitment to leave our environment in a better state than we found it.The cost of credits – either through the LNMF or private providers – will vary by area depending on factors such as the cost of land and the cost of delivery relevant mitigation measures.

Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to support the inclusion of asset management plans in standard pre-sale agreements for residential properties.

Providing essential information upfront during the home buying and selling process is important in supporting potential buyers to make informed decisions about whether a property is suitable for them. There is already a requirement under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 that any property information that would help a prospective homebuyer to make an informed decision is not hidden or omitted. On 9 February, the government announced action to improve the availability of property information. Improving access to key home buying and selling data will help transactions run more smoothly by ensuring all parties are able to access the information they need at the right time. We recognise the benefits to leaseholders of Asset Management Plans. As per my Written Ministerial Statement of 21 November 2024 (HCWS2440), the government will consult on new reforms to the section 20 ‘major works’ procedure that leaseholders must go through when they face large bills for such works. We continue to work with stakeholders across industry, government, and the public sector to understand the most effective way of supporting buyers to make the right decisions.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the availability of nutrient neutrality credits in the Poole Harbour catchment area.

In December 2023, the previous government awarded Dorset council £4.63m in Round 1 of the Local Nutrient Mitigation Fund to support the delivery of local nutrient mitigation schemes that would provide mitigation and unblock stalled development.The present government awarded Poole Harbour a further £100,000 in Nutrient Support Funding in Autumn 2024.These funds are intended to be used and recycled locally in a way which helps to unlock housing while mitigating the effects of nutrient pollution.The government has not made an assessment of the potential impact of the scheme on affordability.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the impact of nutrient neutrality credit costs on the affordability of new housing developments.

In December 2023, the previous government awarded Dorset council £4.63m in Round 1 of the Local Nutrient Mitigation Fund to support the delivery of local nutrient mitigation schemes that would provide mitigation and unblock stalled development.The present government awarded Poole Harbour a further £100,000 in Nutrient Support Funding in Autumn 2024.These funds are intended to be used and recycled locally in a way which helps to unlock housing while mitigating the effects of nutrient pollution.The government has not made an assessment of the potential impact of the scheme on affordability.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of wastewater capacity in West Dorset for planned housing developments.

The government recognises the importance of water and wastewater provision on new developments.As set out in Paragraph 7 of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), the purpose of the planning system is to contribute to the achievement of sustainable development, including the provision of homes, commercial development and supporting infrastructure in a sustainable manner. Sustainable development should be pursued both through the preparation and implementation of local development plans, and the application of policies in the framework.The government is clear that housing must come with appropriate infrastructure, including appropriate water infrastructure. We believe that strategic issues such as water capacity are best dealt with at a strategic level through the plan-making process, rather than through individual planning applications.A key function of local development plans is to guide development to the most suitable and sustainable locations and to ensure that the associated infrastructure requirements are addressed. Effective co-operation early in the plan-making process is essential to ensuring not only that housing and infrastructure need is appropriately planned for, but that they are aligned with each other. The NPPF makes it clear that local planning authorities should collaborate with each other and with other public bodies, including infrastructure providers, to identify relevant strategic matters to be addressed, including providing for sustainable water supplies.Water companies are under a statutory duty to provide new water and sewerage connections to residential properties, as well as planning to meet the needs of growth as part of water resource management plans, and drainage and wastewater management plans. The water resources planning guideline published by the Environment Agency and Ofwat, sets out how those companies should forecast demand for water based on existing customers and planned levels of household and non-household growth, with the number of planned developments being based on published local plans.Relevant planning practice guidance sets out that good design and mitigation measures should be secured during development, both through site-specific and non-site-specific policies on water infrastructure. The revised NPPF published on 12 December 2024 makes clear that developments of all sizes should use sustainable drainage techniques when the development could have drainage impacts and should have appropriate maintenance arrangements in place. We continue to explore whether more needs to be done to ensure sustainable drainage technologies are taken up more widely in new development, either through planning policy or by commencing schedule 3 to the Flood and Water Management Act 2010, and a decision on the best way forward will be made in the coming months.Ensuring that we take a strategic spatial planning approach to the management of water, including tackling pollution and managing pressures on the water environment at a catchment, regional and national scale, is a core objective of the ongoing independent review into the regulatory system of the water sector, launched in October 2024 by the UK and Welsh Governments. The review is expected to report this summer, and we will carefully consider its findings.

Communities and Local Government, when her Department plans to bring forward amended regulations on the permitted distance of air source heat pumps from property boundaries under the Warm Homes Plan.

The relevant regulations were laid on 8 May 2025 and came into force on 29 May 2025. Further details on the changes can be found on gov.uk here.

Communities and Local Government, what plans she has to remove the one metre boundary rule for air source heat pumps in 2025.

The relevant regulations were laid on 8 May 2025 and came into force on 29 May 2025. Further details on the changes can be found on gov.uk here.

Communities and Local Government, what guidance her Department has issued on the classification of (a) annexes and (b) sculleries in listed buildings for council tax purposes.

The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) is the organisation responsible for determining the council tax band of all domestic properties. In doing this they will make an assessment of whether a property consists of one dwelling or multiple dwellings. They will make this decision based on legislation and case law. The government does not have any plans to change this approach. Where part of a property is liable as a separate dwelling, it will be liable for the standard rate of council tax for that band set by local authorities in the area. The council tax system does contain a number of discounts and exemptions to reflect different types of annexes. The government’s guidance on how annexes are treated for council tax purposes can be found here.

Communities and Local Government, whether her Department has made an estimate of the potential impact of the classification of ancillary spaces as separate dwellings for council tax purposes on costs for owners of listed buildings.

The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) is the organisation responsible for determining the council tax band of all domestic properties. In doing this they will make an assessment of whether a property consists of one dwelling or multiple dwellings. They will make this decision based on legislation and case law. The government does not have any plans to change this approach. Where part of a property is liable as a separate dwelling, it will be liable for the standard rate of council tax for that band set by local authorities in the area. The council tax system does contain a number of discounts and exemptions to reflect different types of annexes. The government’s guidance on how annexes are treated for council tax purposes can be found here.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of crash mat availability in (a) Dorset and (b) other rural fire services.

It is the responsibility of fire and rescue authorities to ensure that firefighters receive the equipment and training they need to safely respond to incidents, and to do so in light of their individual areas’ risk profiles and Community Risk Management Plans. We work closely with the National Fire Chiefs Council to ensure that the fire and rescue sector has sufficient resource to keep the public safe. The government does not hold any data or publish any statistics on equipment used at incidents.