Written questions by Babarinde.

Communities and Local Government, what affordable housing targets apply to a) Eastbourne and b) East Sussex.

National planning policy makes clear that it is for local planning authorities to assess the affordable housing need of their areas, including the need for social rent, and set policies to meet this local need. This includes setting out the proportion and type of affordable housing that should be delivered on new development. The government does not set individual social and affordable housing targets for individual areas. The government is currently consulting on a new National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), including proposals designed to further support the delivery of affordable housing. This includes support for affordable housing in rural areas, proposals to give affordable housing needs clearer weight in the planning system and specifying a minimum proportion of social rent housing that would be required of major development unless otherwise specified in development plans. The consultation on changes to the NPPF can be found on gov.uk here, and will remain open for responses until 10 March 2026.

Communities and Local Government, whether he plans to provide future funding to increase supported accommodation stock in a) Eastbourne and b) East Sussex.

The Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act 2023 introduced a duty for all local housing authorities in England to formulate and publish local supported housing strategies. The government will provide new burdens funding and publish guidance shortly, setting out how local authorities should undertake an analysis of existing supported housing provision, current unmet need and future need.Young people need the right support alongside housing to improve health, wellbeing and access employment, enabling them to access and retain housing and reducing their risk of homelessness and rough sleeping. Funding for housing support services is primarily through the Local Government Finance Settlement and commissioning of services is for local authorities to determine. We have confirmed a new 10-year £39 billion Social and Affordable Homes Programme to kickstart social and affordable housebuilding at scale across the country. We want to see new supply of supported housing in England through the new programme, in greater numbers and also across a diverse range of cohorts and housing types, including for vulnerable young people.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the current stock of supported accommodation in a) Eastbourne b) East Sussex.

The Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act 2023 introduced a duty for all local housing authorities in England to formulate and publish local supported housing strategies. The government will provide new burdens funding and publish guidance shortly, setting out how local authorities should undertake an analysis of existing supported housing provision, current unmet need and future need.Young people need the right support alongside housing to improve health, wellbeing and access employment, enabling them to access and retain housing and reducing their risk of homelessness and rough sleeping. Funding for housing support services is primarily through the Local Government Finance Settlement and commissioning of services is for local authorities to determine. We have confirmed a new 10-year £39 billion Social and Affordable Homes Programme to kickstart social and affordable housebuilding at scale across the country. We want to see new supply of supported housing in England through the new programme, in greater numbers and also across a diverse range of cohorts and housing types, including for vulnerable young people.

Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to inform people of their housing rights under the Renters Rights Act 2025.

On 13 November 2025, the government published a roadmap for implementing the Renters' Rights Act 2025. The roadmap sets out how we are helping tenants, landlords and other interested parties understand their new rights and responsibilities. It can be found on gov.uk here. We have already published guidance for local councils and landlords to help them prepare ahead of implementation of Phase 1 from 1 May 2026. Guidance for tenants will follow in April. In addition, we have launched a multi-platform communications campaign to raise awareness of the Act. This includes a paid landlord-focused campaign, press work, and a new campaign site. This campaign will be extended in April to reach tenants and inform them of their rights. We are continuing to work closely with sector representative organisations and advice providers to make sure those who may be harder to reach understand what the reforms mean for them and have access to up-to-date advice. To support this, we have increased our existing funding to Shelter’s Expert Housing Advice Line.

Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to support local initiatives that build resilience to homelessness, including through volunteering, community donations, and partnership working.

The National Plan to End Homelessness recognises the important role of voluntary, community and faith groups in delivering homelessness prevention work and forming partnerships with other local services and encourages councils and Mayors to develop their partnership working to strengthen services in their areas. Through the £37 million Ending Homelessness in Communities Fund, we will invest in these services to help people rebuild their lives and stay off the streets for good. This will support over 100 voluntary sector organisations and reach over 60,000 people a year. Local authorities can also use government funding for homelessness and rough sleeping to commission services delivered by charities and voluntary groups in their area. The government has invested more than £1 billion in homelessness services this year.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Housing Revenue Account freeze on local authority finances.

There has been no freeze on the Housing Revenue Account since the social housing rent reduction policy between 2016 and 2020.For steps the government is taking to support the sustainability of the Housing Revenue Account, I refer the hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement made on 2 July (HCWS771).The government has today announced further measures to support local authorities to build more social and affordable homes, including confirmation of our approach to Social Rent convergence. Details can be found in the Written Ministerial Statement (HCWS1283).

Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to ensure people experiencing homelessness can access mental health and addiction support.

My Department worked closely with the Department for Health and Social Care as part of the Inter-Ministerial Group on Homelessness and Rough Sleeping to develop our cross-government strategy, A National Plan to End Homelessness. Our Plan includes measures to support people experiencing homelessness to access mental health and drug and alcohol support. The Inter-Ministerial Group on Homelessness and Rough Sleeping will continue to work across government to maintain collaboration and assure delivery of the commitments in this strategy. It will also publish progress reports every two years that monitor progress on the implementation of measures set out in this strategy, including our national cross-government targets.

Communities and Local Government, how much funding he has allocated to support affordable housing delivery in a) Eastbourne and b) East Sussex.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 58440 on 17 June, the Written Ministerial Statement made on 2 July (HCWS771), and the Social and Affordable Homes Programme policy statement published on 7 November which can be found on gov.uk here.

Communities and Local Government, what support is available for young people requiring supported accommodation.

The Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act 2023 introduced a duty for all local housing authorities in England to formulate and publish local supported housing strategies. The government will provide new burdens funding and publish guidance shortly, setting out how local authorities should undertake an analysis of existing supported housing provision, current unmet need and future need.Young people need the right support alongside housing to improve health, wellbeing and access employment, enabling them to access and retain housing and reducing their risk of homelessness and rough sleeping. Funding for housing support services is primarily through the Local Government Finance Settlement and commissioning of services is for local authorities to determine. We have confirmed a new 10-year £39 billion Social and Affordable Homes Programme to kickstart social and affordable housebuilding at scale across the country. We want to see new supply of supported housing in England through the new programme, in greater numbers and also across a diverse range of cohorts and housing types, including for vulnerable young people.

Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to identify and disseminate best practice among local authorities in preventing homelessness.

Through the National Plan to End Homelessness the government has committed to publishing a range of toolkits which underpin the strategy. This will include a prevention toolkit, a youth Homelessness toolkit and a toolkit on homelessness prevention and support for survivors of domestic abuse. The toolkits will complement the Homelessness Code of Guidance and provide practical principles, tools, and best practice examples to help local authorities deliver on their statutory duties and ensure that services are designed to meet the needs of service users.

Communities and Local Government, what funding has been allocated to addiction support services to support people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.

The Rough Sleeping Drug and Alcohol Treatment Programme funds drug and alcohol treatment and wraparound support for people sleeping rough or at risk of sleeping rough. It aims to improve access to treatment, including for those with co-occurring mental health needs. For 2025/26, the Rough Sleeping Drug and Alcohol Treatment Programme has provided £419,394 to East Sussex County Council. From 2026/27 to 2028/29, we have committed £185 million to the Rough Sleeping Drug and Alcohol Treatment Programme overall and East Sussex will continue to receive funding. As set out in A National Plan to End Homelessness, we recognise the need for specialist mental health support for individuals who are, or are at risk of becoming, homeless. The NHS England Mental Health Rough Sleeping programme is supporting better access to specialist homelessness mental health support. Across the country, 37 multi-agency teams have developed services that have significantly reduced mental health crisis admissions to emergency departments as well as the length of stay in hospital. The independent evaluation of the NHS England Mental Health Rough Sleeping Programme will be published shortly and we will engage with local system leaders to share the full findings. It is the responsibility of local systems to commission mental health services for their population based on their assessment of local need.

Communities and Local Government, how many people are currently accessing mental health services who are homeless or at risk of homelessness in a) Eastbourne b) East Sussex c) Sussex.

Data on substance misuse treatment is available on the ViewIt statistics viewer on National Drugs Treatment Monitoring System website (NDTMS - ViewIt - Adult). This data is only available at an upper tier local authority level, therefore data for East Sussex and West Sussex only have been provided below.In East Sussex, there were 1,280 new treatment presentations with known housing status during 2024/25. Of these, 345 people were identified as experiencing homelessness, accounting for 27% of the total new presentations. In West Sussex, there were 1,465 new treatment presentations with known housing status during 2024/25. Of these, 350 people were identified as experiencing homelessness, accounting for 24% of the total new presentations.

Communities and Local Government, how many people are currently accessing addiction support services who are homeless or at risk of homelessness in a) Eastbourne b) East Sussex c) Sussex.

NHS England publishes data at a national level on accommodation status for people in contact with mental health services. Using accommodation types associated with homelessness, including rough sleeper, squatting, sofa surfing, staying with friends or family as a short‑term guest, bed and breakfast accommodation to prevent or relieve homelessness, sleeping in a night shelter, hostel to prevent or relieve homelessness, and temporary housing to prevent or relieve homelessness, the dataset at the end of November 2025 shows around 21,429 people fall into these groups out of 2,088,415 people in contact with services nationally (approximately 1.03%).78% of all service users have an ‘unknown’ recorded accommodation status, meaning the true number experiencing homelessness while accessing mental health services may be higher.

Communities and Local Government, how many people are currently accessing both mental health and addiction services who are homeless or at risk of homelessness in a) Eastbourne b) East Sussex c) Sussex.

NHS England publishes data at a national level on accommodation status for people in contact with mental health services. Using accommodation types associated with homelessness, including rough sleeper, squatting, sofa surfing, staying with friends or family as a short‑term guest, bed and breakfast accommodation to prevent or relieve homelessness, sleeping in a night shelter, hostel to prevent or relieve homelessness, and temporary housing to prevent or relieve homelessness, the dataset at the end of November 2025 shows around 21,429 people fall into these groups out of 2,088,415 people in contact with services nationally (approximately 1.03%).78% of all service users have an ‘unknown’ recorded accommodation status, meaning the true number experiencing homelessness while accessing mental health services may be higher.

Communities and Local Government, what progress has been made to implement the Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act 2023.

The government remains committed to improving the quality of supported housing and implementing the measures in the Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act 2023. A consultation on the Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act’s measures, including supported housing licensing proposals and the draft National Supported Housing Standards for support, was published in 2025. The government will publish its response as soon as possible, ahead of consulting on draft licensing regulations and guidance. Furthermore, guidance for the duty on local authorities to produce supported housing strategies will be published in February. New burdens funding will be allocated this financial year. The strategies will identify current provision, unmet need, enabling local authorities to plan for future demand. The Supported Housing Advisory Panel will be convened imminently, as soon as a Chair is in post.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to support investment in water infrastructure to improve water resilience in Eastbourne constituency.

The Government takes resilient water infrastructure seriously. Eastbourne, supplied by South East Water, is in a ‘Water Stressed’ area. To ensure future resilience, water companies must invest in new water supply infrastructure as set out in their Water Resources Management Plans, while reducing outages and leakage, and helping people use water more efficiently. These plans consider housing growth and drought risk. We will hold water companies accountable to ensure sufficient water for people, the economy, and the environment – now and for future generations.

What steps she is taking to help prevent bicycle theft in Eastbourne constituency.

Bike theft has a significant impact on individuals and for too long, many victims have felt not enough was being done to prevent their bikes being stolen or track down the thieves responsible. The Crime and Policing Bill, now at Committee Stage in the House of Lords, will amend the Theft Act 1968 to give police new powers. Officers will be able to enter and search premises where stolen items – such as GPS-tracked bicycles – are reasonably believed to have been stolen and located, and where it is not reasonably practicable to obtain a court warrant. This will significantly enhance the ability of the police to act swiftly and effectively in recovering stolen property. Additionally, the Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee will ensure that every community in England and Wales will have named and contactable officers dealing with local issues, and that neighbourhood teams spend the majority of their time in their communities providing visible patrols and engaging with local communities and businesses.

What steps she is taking to help reduce the (a) number of potholes in Eastbourne and (b) potential impact of those potholes on road users.

This Government takes the condition of our country’s roads very seriously and is committed to supporting local highway authorities in maintaining and renewing the local highway network. As announced at the Autumn Budget, the Government will commit over £2 billion annually by 2029/30 for local authorities to repair and renew their roads and fix potholes. For the first time, we have confirmed local authorities’ funding allocations for four years, enabling local authorities to plan ahead and move away from expensive, short-term repairs and instead invest in proactive and preventative maintenance. This is in addition to the Government’s investment of £1.6 billion this year, a £500 million increase compared to last year. The local highway authority for the Eastbourne constituency is East Sussex County Council. The table below sets out the total highways maintenance funding that East Sussex is eligible to receive from 2025/26 to 2029/30.Local Authority 2025/262026/272027/282028/292029/30East Sussex£21,000,000£21,739,000£25,328,000£27,374,000£31,295,000

Communities and Local Government, whether his Department plans to review the home-buying and selling process in England and Wales, with the aim of reducing transaction fall-through rates and associated financial losses for buyers and sellers.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 87197 on 7 November 2025.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to support Eastbourne residents with food prices.

ONS September 2025 CPI food price inflation was 4.5%, down from 5.1% in August. This was the first reduction in the annual rate since March 2025. We continue to monitor all key agricultural commodities and work with the food industry. The UK Agriculture Market Monitoring Group monitors UK agricultural markets including price, supply, inputs, trade, and recent developments. The Government monitors consumer food prices using the Consumer Prices Index (CPI). Consumer food prices depend on a range of factors including agri-food import prices, domestic agricultural prices, domestic labour and manufacturing costs, and Sterling exchange rates. Some of these factors are influenced by our trading arrangements with other countries. Change in food prices are dependent on changes in one or more of these factors. Defra regularly engages with supermarkets and producers on a range of food supply matters. However, it is not for the Government to set retail food prices nor to comment on day-to-day commercial decisions taken by businesses.