Written questions by Hollinrake.

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, 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.

What estimate he has made of the level of English language proficiency of adult migrants to the United Kingdom in the last year for which figures are available.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 27th January is now available in the House Library.

If he will make an assessment with Cabinet colleagues of the potential impact of the level of adult English language proficiency on (a) workforce participation and (b) integration.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 27th January is now available in the House Library.

What proportion of households in England have resident adults with no English language proficiency.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 27th January is now available in the House Library.

What proportion of households have resident adults with no English language proficiency.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 27th January is now available in the House Library.

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 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, 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 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.

Whether it remains her Department's policy to introduce a unified consent regime to include (a) pavement licensing and (b) licensing consent for the consumption and sale of alcohol in that pavement area.

The previous Government explored the feasibility of creating a unified consent regime that would grant businesses a pavement licence and the ability to sell alcohol for consumption there. Unifying the two regimes did not prove workable, so the then Government launched a consultation on alternative options relating to the consumption of alcohol in licensed pavement areas in May 2024.The Government is carefully considering the results of this consultation and will publish the results shortly alongside next steps.The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) is responsible for pavement licences. The Government supports the use of pavement licences to encourage better use of outdoor space on our high streets, supporting businesses and revitalising the spaces that communities use. We have no plans to change the streamlined application process introduced under the last government.

Pursuant to the Answer of 20 January 2025 to Question 22044 on Council of the Nations and Regions, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of inviting council representatives from (a) Wales, (b) Scotland and (c) Northern Ireland to the Council of the Nations and Regions.

As set out in its Terms of Reference, the Council of the Nations and Regions is a central, driving, forum that brings together governments and authorities with devolved responsibilities to determine actions for tackling some of the biggest and most cross-cutting challenges the country faces. Local government in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland is devolved, with the devolved governments responsible for the further devolution of powers to, and direct relationships with, respective local governments.

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 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 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.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 14 January 2025 to Question 22048 on Housing: Energy, whether the average cost for private sector landlords who need to make improvements to their domestic properties as a result of the consultation proposal includes the new metrics for fabric performance, heating system type and smart readiness.

We are currently consulting on the Reforms to the Energy Performance of Buildings regime.The average costs shown in the Consultation Stage Impact Assessment are based on landlords meeting the existing requirements of the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) regulations. This is currently set at a minimum standard of EPC band E using the current cost and carbon metrics.