Written questions by Cleverly.

Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to help tackle foreign financial interference in domestic politics from (a) Open Society Foundations and (b) think tanks and academics funded by foreign g

Awaiting answer.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the answer of 24 February 2026 to Question 111684 on Recreation Spaces: Planning Permission, whether he plans to introduce primary legislation to facilitate ref

For the review of the legislative protections of public recreational green spaces, we expect to engage with representatives of local government, including principal and parish councils, as well as the parks and green spaces and development sectors. There ...

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the answer of 9 February 2026 to Question 109623 on Local Government Finance: City of Westminster and Wandsworth, what assessment he has been made of the potent

The government is committed to ensuring the local government funding system is fair for taxpayers across the country. The relative strength of council tax bases has meant that some places can set far lower levels of council tax than others, and raise as m...

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the Answer 24 March 2026 to Question 121214 on Local Government Finance, if he will list the full title of each individual dataset whose data is used within the

I refer the Rt Hon Member to the answer given to Question UIN 121214 on 24 March 2026. Details on how funding allocations were calculated, including datasets and sources, were published as part of the final Local Government Settlement on 9 February 2026. ...

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the letter from the Secretary of State to the Leader of HM Opposition, dated 21 March 2026, how much and what percentage of the £62 billion of spending pledges

I refer the Rt. Hon Member to the answer given to UIN 9587 on 23 June 2026.

Communities and Local Government, whether Ministerial Envoys to Tower Hamlets have noted whether meetings of that council are wholly conducted in English.

Awaiting answer.

Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Answer of 16 March 2026 to Question 118757 on Wood-burning stoves, whether she has written to or received written correspondence from the Greater London Authority

Departmental records indicate that the Secretary of State has not written to, or received written correspondence from, the Greater London Authority on wood burning stoves since July 2024. Defra officials meet regularly with the Greater London Authority on...

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the answer of 10 April 2026 to Question 123196 on Local Government Finance, what the monetary amount is that each of those six areas will receive ahead of the m

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) provides funding for Investment Funds (IF), Mayoral Capacity Funding (MCF) and Spatial Development Strategies (SDS) for the Devolved Priority Programme areas. For Cumbria and Cheshire &...

Communities and Local Government, whether his Department collates figures on the (a) monetary levels of and (b) revenues from pavement licensee fees charged by local authorities.

Pavement licenses are directly administered by local authorities, and fees are capped at £500 for new pavement licences and £350 for renewals. The government does not hold information on the individual monetary levels and revenues that local authorities h...

Communities and Local Government, if he will make it his policy to publish the statistics his department collates on local authorities in an accessible open data format through an API interface.

The department publishes most of its statistics in open, accessible formats such as OpenDocument Spreadsheet (ODS) files, in line with Government Statistical Service standards. The department keeps its approach to dissemination under review, including opp...

Communities and Local Government, with reference to his Department's joint consultation entitled High Value Council Tax Surcharge, published 19 May 2026, what assessment he has made of the proposed policy on the

The Valuation Office will keep the HVCTS list up to date by adding new homes and recording changes to properties, including extensions and renovations. In most cases a property’s HVCTS band will not change to reflect improvements alone until it is sold, s...

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the document entitled Traveller caravan count statistics: government response, updated 7 April 2026, whether the ending of site-level data includes ending data

The government will continue to collect data on unauthorised encampments and developments.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the answer of 11 December 2025 to Question HL12896 on Recreation Spaces: Planning Permission, when the terms of reference of the review and public consultation

For the review of the legislative protections of public recreational green spaces, we expect to engage with representatives of local government, including principal and parish councils, as well as the parks and green spaces and development sectors. There ...

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 21 May 2026 to Question 184 on Countering Foreign Financial Influence and Interference in UK politics independent review, for what reason political part

It is, and always will be, an absolute priority to protect our democratic and electoral processes, including malign information operations and covert political funding. The Government’s decision to immediately accept two of the recommendations via amendme...

Communities and Local Government, further to the Answer of 16 April 2024 to Question 124632 on English language, whether his Department recommends local authorities comply with the guidance advising them against

As independent bodies who take their own decisions, local authorities are responsible for assessing the need and value for money in delivering any translation services for their residents. As outlined previously, Protecting What Matters outlined our commi...

Communities and Local Government, whether changes to Green Belt and Grey Belt planning policy in the National Planning Policy Framework since July 2024 apply to planning applications and enforcement appeals relat

The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) must be taken into account in preparing local development plans and is a material consideration in planning decisions. National planning policy is clear that it is the responsibility of local planning authorit...

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the Answer of 19 March 2026 to Question 120469 on Domestic Waste: Waste Disposal, if he will make it his policy to add a metric on the frequency of household wa

I refer the Rt hon. Member to the answer I gave on 19 March 2026, UIN 120469.

Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Answer of 24 March 2026 to Question 113652 on Foot and Mouth Disease: Contamination, what guidance on the disposal of carcasses her Department has published relat

The Animal and Plant Health Agency have instructions for the disposal of animals culled to control the disease. The Foot and Mouth Disease Control Strategy for Great Britain, and Defra’s latest Contingency plan for exotic notifiable diseases of animals in...

Communities and Local Government, what metrics will be used to determine court readiness for the Renters' Rights Act 2025.

My Department has worked closely with the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and HM Courts and Tribunal Service (HMCTS) to ensure that the justice system is well prepared for the ongoing implementation of the Renters’ Rights Act, including the potential impact of ...

Communities and Local Government, whether his Department holds information on councils which have adopted BDS policies against goods and services from firms (a) based and (b) which trade in Israel and the Occupie

I refer the Rt hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 85172 on 10 November 2025