Written questions by Hollinrake.

Communities and Local Government, how much funding each council will receive from the Rural Services Delivery Grant in (a) 2024-25 and (b) 2025-26.

I refer the hon Member to the answer given to Question UIN 20652 on 27 December 2024 and the answer to Question UIN 22380 on 15 January 2025.We have published the latest Core Spending Power figures which includes a breakdown of Rural Services Delivery Grant funding for individual councils here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/core-spending-power-table-provisional-local-government-finance-settlement-2025-to-2026.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the policy paper entitled Local Government Finance Report 2025 to 2026: draft, published on 18 December 2024, how much and what proportion of additional funding will be provided to deprived councils.

The final Settlement for 2025-26 makes available over £69 billion for local government, which is a 6.8% cash terms increase in councils’ Core Spending Power on 2024-25.This included introducing a new ‘Recovery Grant’, worth £600 million, which will go to places where, weighted by population, deprivation outweighs council tax raising ability.As a result of this and other measures, the most relatively deprived areas of England (the upper decile of the Index of Multiple Deprivation) will receive 23% more per dwelling in available resource through the 2025-26 settlement than the least deprived areas.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the end of fixed term tenancies on student accommodation in the private rented sector.

We want all tenants renting privately, including students, to benefit from the increased security and flexibility the Renters’ Rights Bill will provide.Students will benefit from the removal of fixed term tenancies. Fixed terms mean that renters are obliged to pay rent regardless of whether a property is up to standard, and they reduce renters’ flexibility to move when they need to. The government is clear that there is no place for fixed terms in the future assured tenancy system.To facilitate the yearly cycle of short-term student tenancies, the Bill introduces a new ground for possession which will allow landlords renting to full-time students in Houses of Multiple Occupation to seek possession ahead of each new academic year.The department has engaged with a range of stakeholders in the student accommodation market and will continue to do so.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 3 January 2025 to Question 20640 on Housing: Ownership, what estimate she has made of the number of new build replacements in (a) 2025-26 and (b) 2026-27.

As set out in the answer given to Question UIN 17553 on 11 December 2024, our modelling suggests a long-run average of c. 1,700 sales annually under new maximum discounts. As a result, we believe local authorities will now be in a stronger position to replace the homes that are sold.

Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to retain office-to-residential permitted development rights.

The office to residential permitted development right (Class O) was subsumed into the commercial, business and service uses to residential permitted development right (Class MA) in August 2022.Using the most recently available published data, in each quarter between October 2022 and September 2024 there were 248, 297, 296, 290, 352, 297, 410 and 476 prior approval applications under the new right.The government continue to keep permitted development rights under review.

Communities and Local Government, how many office-to-residential prior approval planning applications there have been in each quarter of the last 24 months.

The office to residential permitted development right (Class O) was subsumed into the commercial, business and service uses to residential permitted development right (Class MA) in August 2022.Using the most recently available published data, in each quarter between October 2022 and September 2024 there were 248, 297, 296, 290, 352, 297, 410 and 476 prior approval applications under the new right.The government continue to keep permitted development rights under review.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 3 January 2025 to Question 19964 on Land Registry: Buildings, how many members of Land Registry staff attended the office in person on average each day in November 2024.

3209

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the oral contribution of the Minister of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities in response to the question from Hon. Member for Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner during the Urgent Question on Community Engagement Principles and Extremism Definition of 21 January 2025, Official Report, Column 967, what the Government’s policy is on engaging with (a) people who and (b) organisations which publicly condone criminal activity.

The government does not knowingly engage with any individual or group that condones criminal activity.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to her Department’s policy paper entitled Planning Reform Working Paper: Development and Nature Recovery, published on 15 December 2024, and pursuant to the Answer of 3 January 2025 to Question 20226 on Environmental Impact Assessment, whether she plans to introduce the new regime through (a) secondary legislation under the Levelling up and Regeneration Act 2023 and (b) primary legislation.

The Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023 gave the government powers to bring forward Environmental Outcomes Reports.The detail of the new system will be set out in secondary legislation through regulations as well as in guidance.Until a new system is implemented current legislation on environmental assessment and its supporting guidance continues to apply.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 17 January 2025 to Question 22929 on Treasury: Employers' Contributions, whether she has received any requests for pricing reviews, in the context of changes to employers' National Insurance contributions.

The information is not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost as it would require collating information from individual contract managers from across the department.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 13 January 2025 to Question 21612 on Vagrancy Act 1824, whether the Act’s provisions will remain in place until replaced.

Further to the answer of 13 January 2024 to Question UIN 21612, the Vagrancy Act 1824 remains in force. We are carefully considering the Vagrancy Act in developing our new cross-government homelessness strategy.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to paragraph 236 of the National Planning Policy Framework, published on 12 December 2024, whether relevant councils are required to begin a new local plan (a) during or (b) upon the conclusion of the examination of their local plan.

The government’s Plan for Change includes an ambitious milestone of delivering 1.5 million safe and decent homes in this Parliament.Delivering on that milestone requires local planning authorities to plan for sufficient homes, as well as commercial development and wider infrastructure, through their local development plans.Local plans clearly spell out to developers and communities where development will and will not take place, bringing certainty to all parties. They are also the mechanism through which local communities can have their say in how homes are built.The government inherited a planning system in which only 31% of local planning authorities have adopted plans in the last five years. That is not sustainable, and I am clear that it is unacceptable for local planning authorities to not make a local plan.We are determined to drive local plans to adoption as quickly as possible, to progress towards our ambition of achieving universal plan coverage and ensure plans contribute positively to our ambition of delivering 1.5 million homes.To that end, the transitional arrangements contained within the revised National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) published on 12 December 2024 make clear that plans which are submitted for examination on or before 12 March 2025 will continue to be examined under the relevant previous version of the NPPF.However, where the draft housing requirement in the plan to be adopted meets less than 80% of local housing need, the authority will be expected to begin working on a new plan, as soon as the new plan-making system is brought into force this summer/autumn, to address the shortfall in housing need.We want to work in partnership with local planning authorities to deliver for their communities, but where they fail to do so the Deputy Prime Minister will make use of the intervention powers available to her to get local plans in place.We will provide more information on the rollout of the new plan-making system in due course.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 16 January 2025 to Question 22334 on Local Government: Reorganisation, what her Department's policy is on facilitating local government reorganisation if such plans are opposed by (a) the majority of and (b) all the principal councils in the local area.

It will be essential for councils to work with local partners, including MPs, to develop plans for sustainable unitary structures capable of delivering the high-quality public services that residents need and deserve. It is for councils to decide how best to engage locally in a meaningful and constructive way when developing their proposals. We will consult a range of stakeholders in areas where we receive proposals for reorganisation, as required by statute. I will write to local authorities in further detail, inviting proposals for local government reorganisation and setting out the criteria to be used to assess proposals, in due course.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the Local Government Association's publication entitled Local government finance policy statement – LGA response. published on 28 November 2024, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her Department's polices of the finding that the planned increase in employer National Insurance contributions could cost the local government sector £1.7 billion in financial year 2025-26.

The government has announced an additional £515 million of support for local government , specifically to manage the impact of changes to employer NICs announced at the Autumn Budget. Final allocations to LAs will be published as part of the final Local Government Finance Settlement.We recognise the challenges that local authorities are facing as demand increases for critical services.Taken together, the additional funding announced by the Chancellor at the Autumn Budget and at the 2025-26 provisional Local Government Finance Settlement will provide over £5 billion of new funding for local services over and above local council tax.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 17 January 2025 to Question 22644 on Council tax, if she will take steps to advertise the council tax discounts, disregards and exemptions for (a) the severely mentally impaired and (b) their carers.

The government does not have any current plans for a publicity campaign for council tax disregards. The government does make this information publicly and freely available through its plain English guide to council tax. The government’s approach is the same as that of the previous government.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 20 January 2025 to Question 23142 on Unitary Councils, if she will publish the (a) numeric population range and (b) area size of a small unitary.

As set out in the English Devolution White Paper, the Government will facilitate a programme of local government reorganisation for two-tier areas, and for unitary councils where there is evidence of failure or where their size or boundaries may be hindering their ability to deliver sustainable and high-quality public services.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 17 January 2025 to Question 22645 on Workplace Pensions: Councillors and Mayors, whether she has had discussions with local authorities on reinstating pensions for (a) mayors and (b) councils since 5 July 2024.

Since 5 July 2024, the Secretary of State has not held discussions with any local authorities regarding re-instating access to the Local Government Pension Scheme for mayors or councillors in England, though it is recognised that the subject has been raised by the sector over many years since the scheme was closed to those office holders in 2014.

Communities and Local Government, how many research reports were (a) commissioned and (b) published by her Department and its predecessors on local government restructuring since 1997; and what the title of each report was.

The Department has not commissioned a research report into local government restructuring and is not aware of such a report being commissioned by its predecessors. However, in October 2006 the Department of Communities and Local Government published a report “Population size and local authority performance”, which commented on the implications of its findings for proposals for reorganisation.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 17 January 2025 to Question 22648 on Smoking: Public Places, if she will bring forward legislative proposals to prevent local authorities from introducing byelaws on smoking restrictions that go further than provided for in the Tobacco and Vapes Bill.

The Tobacco and Vapes Bill and byelaw reform commitments outlined in the English Devolution White Paper are both subject to public consultation, and we will consider all views.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 15 January 2025 to Question 22336 on Faith Matters and Tell MAMA: Finance, what her Department's timetable is for confirming funding for (a) monitoring and (b) supporting victims of Islamophobia in the 2025-26 financial year; and whether she plans to put that contract out to tender.

The government recognises the discrimination and intolerance faced by British Muslims and will not tolerate Islamophobia of any form. Making sure that British Muslims are not only safe, but also feel safe, is one of our top priorities.We are grateful for all the work that Tell MAMA has provided for the last decade. We are assessing future funding and will update in due course.