Written questions by Cleverly.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 18 March 2026, to Question 120066, on Electoral Register: EU Nationals, whether he has an estimate of the number of qualifying EU citizens in (a) England and (b) Northern Irelan who are eligible to register to vote, following the implementation of the Elections Act 2022, who are not otherwise entitled to be on the franchise by virtue of being Irish or qualifying Commonwealth citizens.

The Government does not hold data on the number of qualifying EU citizens who are eligible to register to vote in England or Northern Ireland following the implementation of the Elections Act 2022. As set out in the answer to Question UIN 120066 on 18 March 2026, the Office for National Statistics has not produced updated estimates of EU citizens eligible to vote following the changes to voting rights implemented through the Elections Act 2022.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 18 March 2026, to Question HL15191, on Absent Voting, whether the Electoral Commission tracks or monitors the level of postal vote renewals, or the number and proportion of postal vote applications that were renewed or expired, over any period.

The Electoral Commission operates independently of government and addressed the volume of postal vote applications in its report on the 2024 General Election.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to his Department's factsheet entitled Political Donations Overview: existing rules and what is changing, published on 2 March 2026, whether the new provisions on (a) crypto-currency, (b) overseas, (c) company and (d) due diligence donations will apply to donations to hon. Members.

Existing controls on political donations apply to Members of Parliament. The reforms we are making to political donation rules through the Representation of the People Bill will also apply to Members of Parliament.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the London Borough of Tower Hamlets: Ministerial Envoys’ second report, published on 17 March 2026, paragraph 3.3.11, what the evidence basis is in relation to concerns of patronage in relation to (a) recruitment, (b) promotion and (c) performance management under the Mayoral administration.

Concerns regarding the London Borough of Tower Hamlets’ practices, including matters relating to alleged patronage, have been raised over a number of years by a range of stakeholders. The Ministerial Envoys are undertaking a deep dive project as part of the strengthened intervention package to provide assurance in relation to these long-standing concerns.

Communities and Local Government, further to the Cabinet Office and HM Treasury small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) action plan: 2025 to 2028, published on 24 March 2026, whether his Department will be publishing an SME Action Plan.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government published its Small and Medium sized Enterprises Action Plan 2025 to 2028 on 24 March 2026, the same day as the Cabinet Office and HM Treasury published their cross government Small and Medium sized Enterprises Action Plan.The Action Plan is publicly available on gov.uk here.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 17 March 2026, to Question 118887, on Voting Rights, and to Question 118889, on Political Parties: Finance, whether the same residency tests will apply to the owners/directors of companies wishing to make donations.

The Representation of the People Bill makes clear the new tests that will apply in respect of political donations made by companies. The company must be majority owned or controlled by registered UK electors, or UK citizens usually resident in the UK.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer, of 21 November 2025, to Question 90712, on Elections: Proof of Identity, whether cash, debit and credit cards issued by a foreign bank, not regulated or based in the United Kingdom, and based in a foreign currency, will be accepted as proof of identity.

The Representation of the People Bill 2026 provides that only bank cards issued by UK‑regulated or authorised issuers will be accepted as voter identification. Consequently, cards issued by foreign banks that are not regulated or authorised in the UK, will not be able to be used.

Communities and Local Government, further to the OBR Economic and fiscal outlook, March 2026, para 3.41, what estimate has been made of the effect on the department’s forecast of average increase in Band D council tax from the uprated council tax referendum principles in (a) 2026-27, (b) 2027-28 and (c) 2028-29.

The average increase in Band D council tax excluding local precepts for 2026-27 is 4.8%, published here.Referendum principles for 2027-28 and 2028-29 will be confirmed in the Council Tax reports for 2027-28 and 2028-29 respectively.

Communities and Local Government, whether he intends to consult on the implementation of Automatic Voter Registration.

The Government has included powers in the Representation of the People Bill to enable the testing and introduction of new methods of registration. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government will continue to consult with a range of relevant stakeholders to ensure that any changes to the registration process are based on robust evidence, user research and thorough testing. During the development of this work, the Government has worked closely with the Electoral Commission, the Association of Electoral Administrators, local authorities, devolved governments and civil society organisations. We will also continue to offer engagement with political parties.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 13 March 2026, to Question 117886, on Election: Campaigns, whether sectarianism is being monitored by the Joint Election Security and Preparedness Unit.

The Joint Election Security and Preparedness Unit (JESP), led by the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) and the Cabinet Office is an enduring election security function, dedicated to coordinating a collective effort across Government to safeguard our elections against the range of threats we face.Before an election takes place, an ‘Election Cell’ is set up by the Joint Election Security and Preparedness Unit (JESP). This brings together government departments, the police, the intelligence agencies, the Devolved Governments, and external partners to monitor and respond to any emerging issues across candidate, cyber and information security. MHCLG's Community Cohesion Unit is also a core part of JESP’s Election Cell; the Community Cohesion Unit works closely during election campaigns with local partners, including the police and local councils to monitor and address issues related to cohesion. Harassment and intimidation of voters, electoral staff, candidates and campaigners, both online and in person, is totally unacceptable, whatever the driving cause, and has a profoundly detrimental impact on our democratic process. Government is also working closely with the Electoral Commission to develop an updated Code of Conduct for campaigning to set clear expectations for behaviour during election campaigns. Ahead of the updated Code of Conduct, the Electoral Commission has recently published a set of principles for campaigning respectfully and safely, which are welcomed by this Government.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to his plans to commence Section 9 of the Political Parties and Elections Act 2009, what consideration has been made of whether the new Section 54A requirements can be fulfilled through electronic submissions and electronic consent.

The Government has committed to commencing section 54A of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000, as inserted by section 9 of the Political Parties and Elections Act 2009, and intends to do so before the end of this Parliament. The Electoral Commission is responsible for producing guidance to support compliance with political finance rules. The Department does not intend to issue separate guidance. Matters relating to the practical operation of the declaration requirement, including whether declarations may be made electronically, are for the Electoral Commission to consider as part of its role in supporting compliance. There is presently no intention to commence sections 10 and 11 of the 2009 Act.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the revenue test being introduced for political donations from companies, what assessment has been made of the effect on the ability of political parties with holding companies with low or no trading income, to bequest property or investment assets to other party accounting units or to the central party.

The revenue test will form part of the donor permissibility requirements for companies and limited liability partnerships under provisions included in the Representation of the People Bill. It will apply to the donating entity for the purposes of determining whether a donation is permissible. Companies that do not make sufficient revenue to fund their donation will not be eligible.

Communities and Local Government, whether his Department or Homes England undertakes liquidity tests on strategic partners.

I refer the Rt Hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 119480 on 17 March 2026.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment has been made of the economic and social impact of the diversion of funds from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund and Towns Fund to the Pride of Place programme, in relation to the ending of government funding for small towns and high streets that are not a designated constituency in the Pride of Place programme.

The UK Shared Prosperity Fund and the Towns Fund were time limited programmes with specific aims. No funding from these programmes has been diverted to the Pride in Place Programme. The Pride in Place Programme is helping to deliver this government’s ambition targeting support to the most in-need communities to have the biggest impact. Full details of the methodologies used for place selection have been published on gov.uk.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 11 March 2026 to Question 117311 on Chinese Embassy: Construction, which public body will determine whether the Chinese Embassy complies with building regulations.

I refer the Rt Hon. Member to Paragraphs 100-102 of the Secretary of State’s decision letter which can be found on gov.uk here. The letter and associated Inspector’s Report must be read in their entirety.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to Land value estimates for policy appraisal 2023, published on 16 March 2026, why the values are only up to date to 2023.

The land value estimates in question are expressed in October 2023 prices to provide a consistent and comparable base. However, the data used to produce the estimates is more recent. For example, while the estimates of non-residential land produced by the Valuation Office Agency draw on data up to August 2024, the estimates of residential land produced by my Department draw on data up to September 2025.

Communities and Local Government, what the Government’s working estimate is of the number of pub and live music hereditaments that will claim the pub and live music relief.

All 39,000 pubs and live music venues in England will benefit from the relief unless they are already receiving 100% business rates relief. This relief is awarded at the discretion of Local Authorities, who determine eligibility using guidance published by the Government and based on existing definitions. For the purposes of these figures the following Special Category (SCat) codes are assumed to be in scope: 014, 062, 070, 199, 226, 227, and 303. Hereditament counts by SCat are published in Table RVL_4_2 here: Non-domestic rating: change in rateable value of rating lists, England and Wales, 2026 Revaluation (compiled list) - GOV.UK.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 9 February 2026, to Question 110416, on Government Departments: Publicity, whether there are any plans for HM Land Registry to remove the HM reference in its public branding.

The government has no plans to remove the HM reference in HM Land Registry’s public branding.

Communities and Local Government, further to his oral statement of 23 February 2026, Official Report, Col.80, on Local Government Reorganisation, if he will place in the Library a copy of the bundle of evidence that would have been released to the claimant under the duty of candour had the judicial review hearing gone ahead.

I refer the Rt Hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 113744 on 26 February 2026.

Communities and Local Government, whether localities and Parliamentary constituencies not in receipt of Pride of Place funding will receive any financial support from central government for community asset funding and transfers.

The government is committed to supporting and strengthening community asset ownership and transfers. This includes wider reforms such as the new Community Right to Buy, introduced through the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill, which will apply across England.