Written questions by Hollinrake.

Communities and Local Government, what (a) research and (b) evaluation she has undertaken on the impact of the number of empty homes on empty home premiums for council tax.

The government annually publishes data on the number of dwellings liable for a premium, and the number of dwellings classed as empty homes for council tax purposes. The government monitors this data with interest and will keep this policy under review. However, it is ultimately for councils to decide whether to make use of the premium. In doing so they will consider relevant local factors and how this will shape their approach to empty homes.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 30 January 2025 to Question 25695 on Empty Property: Shops, by what date she plans to end funding on a bidding scheme basis.

The High Street Rental Auction fund application period runs from the 15 January 2025 to 31 January 2026, or until the funds are fully allocated.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 11 February 2025, to Question 28309 on Freeports: Trade Unions, whether freeport board members are subject to fiduciary duty to shareholders.

Freeports are either incorporated as Companies Limited by Guarantee or sit within the governance structures of a Mayoral Combined Authority; in either case, they do not have shareholders. Freeport boards have a clear and specific remit for delivering the public policy objectives of the Freeports Programme and the resultant responsibilities of individual board members (both full members and observers) are defined in articles of association, where the Freport is incorporated, or terms of reference for the board, where it is not.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 15 January 2025 to Question 22385 on Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government: Cost Effectiveness, if she will itemise efficiency savings in 2024-25.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has already outlined savings found as part of the Fixing the Foundations: Public Spending Audit 2024-25. This included an agreement to £154 million in savings in response to the HM Treasury (HMT) Savings Commission - for an itemised list please refer to the answer given to Question UIN 2635 on 5 September 2024.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 23 January 2025 to Question 23789 on Eden Project: Morecambe, when her Department expects the project to be (a) completed and (b) open to visitors.

The final full business case for the Levelling Up Fund (LUF) Round 2 project “Eden Project North” was received by the department on the 23 September 2024. A memorandum of understanding was issued to Lancaster City Council on the 18 November 2024 and signed by the department on the 19 November 2024.It is expected that this project will have full match funding of £50 million making the total LUF project cost £100 million.I can confirm that all allocated funding will be available from Quarter one of 2026.The latest delivery milestones timetable is for each milestones including dates is set out below. Full design stage – (RIBA 2-4) March 25 - October 26 Initial enabling works during design - August 2025 - November 2025Main site enabling works commences - March 2026 - July 2026Main construction commences - March 2026 - July 2028 Main Construction Practical Completion – July 2028 - August 2028Operational Readiness, Activation and Transition – May 2028 - October 2028

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 23 January 2025 to Question 23789 on the Eden Project: Morecambe, what estimate she has been made of any change in the (a) build and (b) operating costs of the project in light of the delay in opening date.

The final full business case for the Levelling Up Fund (LUF) Round 2 project “Eden Project North” was received by the department on the 23 September 2024. A memorandum of understanding was issued to Lancaster City Council on the 18 November 2024 and signed by the department on the 19 November 2024.It is expected that this project will have full match funding of £50 million making the total LUF project cost £100 million.I can confirm that all allocated funding will be available from Quarter one of 2026.The latest delivery milestones timetable is for each milestones including dates is set out below. Full design stage – (RIBA 2-4) March 25 - October 26 Initial enabling works during design - August 2025 - November 2025Main site enabling works commences - March 2026 - July 2026Main construction commences - March 2026 - July 2028 Main Construction Practical Completion – July 2028 - August 2028Operational Readiness, Activation and Transition – May 2028 - October 2028

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 27 January 2025 to Question 22777 on Land Registry: Buildings, what the methodological definition is of a volume of people who attended an office location during November 2024; and what the frequency of attendance in a week is that would class as a staff member attending.

Further to the answer given to Question UIN 22777 on 27 January 2025, the figure given for each office is the number of individual members of staff based at that office who attended the office on at least one day within the specified month.A member of staff is recorded as having attended the office on any given day if they spent the majority of that day at a HM Land Registry office (or another workplace that is not a HM Land Registry office such as other government department, supplier premises or customer offices, where they needed to do so for work).The number of staff assigned to each of HM Land Registry’s offices on 30 November 2024 and 26 February 2025 can be found in the table below. No adjustment has been made to attendance numbers to account for those on short term leave. Office LocationNet Headcount (excluding long-term absences) 30 November 2024Net Headcount (excluding long-term absences) 26 February 2025Birkenhead547540Coventry278286Croydon398402Durham827816Fylde444445Gloucester361358Hull371383Leicester310326Nottingham580566Peterborough297300Plymouth804803Swansea879881Telford359353Weymouth275272Total67306731

Communities and Local Government, whether national security is a material planning consideration.

Paragraph 102 of the National Planning Policy Framework sets out how planning policies and decisions should promote public safety and take into account wider security and defence requirements. Each case is considered on their own merits.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 27 January 2025 to Question 22643 on Planning Permission: Applications and to the Answer of 7 February 2025 to Question 27165 on Chinese Embassy: Planning Permission, whether the guidance entitled Planning propriety guidance: planning casework decisions, published on 16 December 2021, applies to decisions to call in a planning application; and whether there is any additional guidance on this matter.

A decision on whether or not to call in a planning application is a matter of jurisdiction and does not deal with the merits of the case.The decision to call in these applications was made on the basis of the policy set out in the Written Ministerial Statement of 26 October 2012.The published propriety guidance relates particularly to recovered appeals and called in decisions, but the guidance is clear that the key propriety principles also apply to decisions on other planning matters.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to table 1b of Homes England's report entitled 2016 to 2021 Shared Ownership and Affordable Homes Programme summary: end of March 2021, published in December 2021, what the average funding per unit of affordable housing was in each region for an (a) affordable home ownership home, (b) affordable rent home and (c) social rent home.

The Department delegates delivery of the Affordable Homes Programme to Homes England outside London and to the Greater London Authority (GLA) in London. The government agrees budgets and targets with both agencies to deliver the programme’s overall targets for additional homes and specific types of tenure, as well as types of home, including those built using of Modern Methods of Construction and Supported Housing.In awarding contracts under the programme Homes England and the GLA assess the need for grant on a site-by-site basis. In agreeing how much grant a project requires they will take into account the costs for building out the site with how much grant is needed to make that project viable, and the overall value for money for the programme. The most recent publication, with data reflecting grant allocations to the end of March 2023, can be found on gov.uk here

Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of the proposal from Slough Borough council to become part of the administrative local government boundaries of Greater London; and what role the Local Government Boundary Commission for England has in such a decision.

No proposal has been received from Slough Borough Council to become part of the administrative local government boundaries of Greater London. The Local Government Boundary Commission for England (LGBCE) can conduct reviews of administrative boundaries such as the external boundaries of local authorities. This process is referred to as a Principal Area Boundary Review (PABR). Under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 the LGBCE is able to undertake PABR at the request of a local authority, on its own initiative or at the request of the Secretary of State. The LGBCE cannot be required by the Secretary of State to undertake a PABR as the LGBCE is independent of Government and accountable to Parliament through the Speakers Committee.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 6 February 2025 to Question 26848 on Local Government Finance, what the proportional change in Government funding will be excluding council tax and in real terms for each local authority between 2024-25 and 2025-26.

The Settlement for 2025-26 makes available over £69 billion for local government. This is a 6.8% cash terms increase or 4.3% real terms increase in councils’ Core Spending Power on 2024-25. Taken together, the additional funding announced by the Chancellor at the Autumn Budget and through the 2025-26 Local Government Finance Settlement will provide over £5 billion of new funding for local services over and above local council tax. Core Spending Power measures the core revenue funding available for local authority services through the local government finance settlement. Core Spending Power is the government’s chosen measure of resources because it gives a consistent measure of resources available to any local authority across revenue grant funding made available through the settlement, locally retained business rates and council tax. Further information about each local authority’s core spending power can be accessed using the following links: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/key-information-table-for-local-authorities-final-local-government-finance-settlement-2025-to-2026 and https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/core-spending-power-table-final-local-government-finance-settlement-2025-to-2026.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 27 January 2025 to Question 16551 on Arden Strategies: Special Advisers, whether special advisers have had meetings with Arden Strategies that are not (a) in scope of transparency requirements on reporting special advisers’ meetings with senior media executives, (b) readily available and (c) scheduled for future publication since 4 July 2024.

In line with the practice of successive administrations, details of external meetings held by Special Advisers will be published in line with the requirements set out in guidance here.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 6 February 2025 to Question 26559 on Property Development: Environmental Protection, what her planned timeline is for the (a) consultation on and (b) implementation of environmental outcome reports.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer to Question UIN 31479 on 26 February 2025.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 27 January 2025 to Question 25922 on Conservation Areas and Listed Buildings: Energy, which of the policies set out in the cross-government review of the barriers to adapt and retrofit listed buildings and homes in conservation areas, published on 3 January 2024, which relate to her Department’s remit and have not yet been implemented remain her policy to implement; and which of policies she does not plan to implement.

This government is developing its approach to planning policy in respect of heritage and will consider the unimplemented actions identified in the review in question as part of that work.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 29 January 2025 to Question 22642 on Chinese Embassy: Planning Application, for what reason (a) Equality Impact Assessments and (b) Environmental Principles Assessments are not undertaken on decisions to call-in planning applications.

A decision on whether or not to call in a planning application is a matter of jurisdiction and does not deal with the merits of the case.The decision to call in these applications was made on the basis of the policy set out in the Written Ministerial Statement of 26 October 2012.The published propriety guidance relates particularly to recovered appeals and called in decisions, but the guidance is clear that the key propriety principles also apply to decisions on other planning matters.

Communities and Local Government, whether her Department has had discussions with (a) the Planning Inspectorate and (b) Lowick communications consultancy on the proposed new Chinese Embassy.

Officials within the Department have held routine discussions with the Planning Inspectorate regarding procedural matters. However, these did not relate to the merits of the case.There have been no such discussions between this Department and Lowick with regard to the proposed new Chinese Embassy.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 23 January 2025, to Question 23791, on Eden Project: Morecambe, what the total cost of the project is.

The final full business case for the Levelling Up Fund (LUF) Round 2 project “Eden Project North” was received by the department on the 23 September 2024. A memorandum of understanding was issued to Lancaster City Council on the 18 November 2024 and signed by the department on the 19 November 2024.It is expected that this project will have full match funding of £50 million making the total LUF project cost £100 million.I can confirm that all allocated funding will be available from Quarter one of 2026.The latest delivery milestones timetable is for each milestones including dates is set out below. Full design stage – (RIBA 2-4) March 25 - October 26 Initial enabling works during design - August 2025 - November 2025Main site enabling works commences - March 2026 - July 2026Main construction commences - March 2026 - July 2028 Main Construction Practical Completion – July 2028 - August 2028Operational Readiness, Activation and Transition – May 2028 - October 2028

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 23 January 2025, to Question 23789, on Eden Project: Morecambe, what the latest delivery milestones timetable is for each milestone including dates.

The final full business case for the Levelling Up Fund (LUF) Round 2 project “Eden Project North” was received by the department on the 23 September 2024. A memorandum of understanding was issued to Lancaster City Council on the 18 November 2024 and signed by the department on the 19 November 2024.It is expected that this project will have full match funding of £50 million making the total LUF project cost £100 million.I can confirm that all allocated funding will be available from Quarter one of 2026.The latest delivery milestones timetable is for each milestones including dates is set out below. Full design stage – (RIBA 2-4) March 25 - October 26 Initial enabling works during design - August 2025 - November 2025Main site enabling works commences - March 2026 - July 2026Main construction commences - March 2026 - July 2028 Main Construction Practical Completion – July 2028 - August 2028Operational Readiness, Activation and Transition – May 2028 - October 2028

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 23 January 2025 to Question 23790 on Eden Project: Morecambe, when the full business case was (a) submitted to and (b) confirmed by her Department.

The final full business case for the Levelling Up Fund (LUF) Round 2 project “Eden Project North” was received by the department on the 23 September 2024. A memorandum of understanding was issued to Lancaster City Council on the 18 November 2024 and signed by the department on the 19 November 2024.It is expected that this project will have full match funding of £50 million making the total LUF project cost £100 million.I can confirm that all allocated funding will be available from Quarter one of 2026.The latest delivery milestones timetable is for each milestones including dates is set out below. Full design stage – (RIBA 2-4) March 25 - October 26 Initial enabling works during design - August 2025 - November 2025Main site enabling works commences - March 2026 - July 2026Main construction commences - March 2026 - July 2028 Main Construction Practical Completion – July 2028 - August 2028Operational Readiness, Activation and Transition – May 2028 - October 2028