Written questions by Hollinrake.

Representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, whether any local government boundary restructuring exercises have been (a) cancelled and (b) paused by the Local Government Boundary Commission for England as a result of potential unitary local government restructuring; and whether the Commission has had discussions with the Government on the potential (a) cancellation and (b) postponement of scheduled local elections in May 2026.

In February 2025, following the issuing of a statutory invitation to submit unitary proposals to all two-tier authorities, the Local Government Boundary Commission for England took the decision to pause all live reviews in those areas.In total, 40 reviews have been paused as a result. No reviews have been cancelled as a result of local government reorganisation.The Commission has had no discussions with the Government on the potential for cancellation or postponement of the local elections scheduled for May 2026.

Representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, what information the Speaker's Committee holds on whether the Electoral Commission has held discussions with the Government on the length of time councillors will have remained in post during the process of unitary local government restructuring.

The Electoral Commission has had discussions with MHCLG officials about the proposals for local government reorganisation and the implications for elections.The Commission has said that delaying elections for more than one year can affect the legitimacy of local decision making and risks damaging public confidence. Scheduled polls should only be postponed in exceptional circumstances when no alternative options are available.The Commission understands the Government is working with councils on their reorganisation plans, and in the meantime, continues to support the electoral community as it prepares for the scheduled polls next May.

Whether she has discussed the proposed Chinese Embassy in London with the Chinese Government.

The Chancellor has engaged with the Chinese Government on a number of occasions, including during her visit to China for the 2025 UK-China Economic and Financial Dialogue, and has discussed a range of economic and financial issues. The Chancellor published a written ministerial statement about her visit to China on the morning of Monday 13 January (found here) and delivered an oral statement to the House of Commons on Tuesday 14 January (found here).

If he will set out the (a) remit and (b) responsibilities of each Deputy National Security Adviser, including how they differ from those of the National Security Adviser.

There are currently three Deputy National Security Advisers (DNSAs), one for International Affairs, one for International Economics and Global Issues, and one for Defence, Intelligence and Security. The National Security Adviser (NSA) is the most senior figure that provides advice to the Prime Minister and the Cabinet on national security matters. The NSA attends the National Security Council and oversees cross-government delivery of the National Security Strategy 2025. The DNSAs also provide advice to the Prime Minister on issues within their portfolios, and coordinate relevant policy and operational issues across government at Director-General level. The DNSAs have additional responsibilities as Civil Servant leaders which the NSA does not undertake. They act as secretaries to the National Security Council and chair the National Security Council (Official-level) meetings. The Executive DNSA, who currently also holds the post of Defence, Intelligence, and Security DNSA, is also responsible for managing the National Security Secretariat’s corporate responsibilities such as headcount, finances, and compliance, as well as being a member for the Cabinet Office Executive Committee.

Innovation and Technology, what information his Department holds on when the Information Commissioner plans to respond to the letter from the hon. Member for Thirsk and Malton of 12 June 2025 on data protection in local government.

Although the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) acts as the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO)’s sponsor within government, it is an independent regulator and they manage their own casework function. The ICO has informed me that they will be responding shortly to the member’s letter.

Communities and Local Government, what guidance has been given to local billing authorities by (a) his Department and (b) its agencies on council tax (i) avoidance and (ii) evasion in relation to the second homes council tax premium.

The Government has not issued guidance to billing authorities on this issue. Council tax is a local tax and administered by local authorities. It is therefore for them to manage and address any potential cases of avoidance or evasion in the council tax system.

Pursuant to the Answer of 13 October 2025 to Question HL9585, on Deputy Prime Minister: Admiralty House, on what date was the former Minister’s residence registered with Westminster City Council as a secondary residence according to records held by the Government Property Agency.

Before the Second Home premium was introduced in Westminster, the Cabinet Office was aware that the former Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) was occupying Admiralty House (AH) as a second home and that council tax would therefore be payable by Government. In line with long standing precedent under successive administrations, as the property was a second residence the Government was responsible for paying the Council Tax on Admiralty House, not the former DPM. Similarly, the Cabinet Office is responsible for liaising with Westminster City Council (WCC) for matters concerning residency at Admiralty House. WCC were notified at the beginning of May that the former DPM was occupying AH as a second home for council tax purposes, and details were provided for WCC to issue a bill accordingly. GPA wrote to WCC in June to confirm that the second home's premium applied. WCC issued an invoice in July which was paid the same day.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to paragraph 99 of the policy paper entitled Restoring trust in our democracy: Our strategy for modern and secure elections, published on 17 July 2025, to what activities would the proposed thresholds of (a) £11,180 and (b) £2,230 apply.

Our ‘Strategy for Modern and Secure Elections’ sets out how we will respond to the threat of foreign interference by strengthening the rules around political donations. This includes ensuring that unincorporated associations are prevented from making significant campaign contributions unless they can verify and disclose the source of their funding, and requiring donors to declare any benefits received in connection with their donation. We will ensure the appropriate thresholds for these requirements are uprated from £7,500 to £11,180 in line with other thresholds in electoral law.

Communities and Local Government, whether the (a) security agencies and (b) Bank of England have been able to make representations about the cyber-security of telecommunication cables in the BT Openreach exchange next to the proposed Chinese Embassy without providing that information to the Chinese Government.

As the hon. Member is aware, any party can make representations in respect of a planning application. Representations on planning applications are dealt with in accordance with paragraphs 18, 19 and 20 of the published propriety guidance on planning casework decisions found on gov.uk here. The Secretary of State is able to issue a direction under section 321 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. This allows specific evidence to be withheld from public inspection. Again, as the hon. Member is aware, no section 321 direction was made during the public inquiry on this matter, which closed on 19 February 2025.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to paragraphs 99 and 102 of his Department's policy paper entitled Restoring trust in our democracy: Our strategy for modern and secure elections, published on 17 July 2025, whether the donation threshold of £7,500 will be uprated to £11,180, in line with the threshold for unincorporated associations.

Our ‘Strategy for Modern and Secure Elections’ sets out how we will respond to the threat of foreign interference by strengthening the rules around political donations. This includes ensuring that unincorporated associations are prevented from making significant campaign contributions unless they can verify and disclose the source of their funding, and requiring donors to declare any benefits received in connection with their donation. We will ensure the appropriate thresholds for these requirements are uprated from £7,500 to £11,180 in line with other thresholds in electoral law.

Communities and Local Government, if he will make it his policy to ensure that his decision on the called-in Chinese Embassy planning application is announced through a statement to Parliament.

The House will be notified when the decision is made.

With reference to the Civil Service Management Code, updated on 9 November 2016, whether his Department has internal guidance on the process for the dismissal of a Cabinet Secretary.

The Permanent Secretary model contract sets out the contractual detail on exits and disciplinary procedures for all Permanent Secretaries. This applies to the Cabinet Secretary and there is no separate internal guidance. A copy of the model contract has been placed in the House Library.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to the Answer on 13 October 2025 to Question HL10731 on Deputy Prime Minister: Admiralty House, when the property was vacated.

The former Deputy Prime Minister has vacated the property. The Government agreed the terms of vacation of Admiralty House with the former Deputy Prime Minister in the usual way.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 24 October 2025 to Question 77559 on Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government: Aviation, what was the topic of the training course.

The topic of the course was risk management.

Communities and Local Government, how many applications for a selective licensing designation were approved between 4 July 2024 and 23 December 2024.

My Department approved applications for Selective Licensing submitted by Waltham Forest and Blackpool in November 2024. Between July 2024 and the introduction of the 2024 General Approval on 23 December 2024, Burnley, Barking and Dagenham, and Lambeth submitted applications to introduce or expand large schemes. These were superseded by the 2024 General Approval which enables local authorities to introduce selective licensing schemes of any size without seeking approval from the Secretary of State. These applications therefore did not require approval from my Department.

Communities and Local Government, whether his Department has had discussions with (a) Camden Council and (b) Southwark Council on (i) regulation of landlords and (ii) selective licensing since 4 July 2024.

My Department engages regularly with a broad range of local authorities on matters including the regulation of landlords and selective licensing.

When her Department will provide a response to the letter from the Hon. Member for Thirsk and Malton dated 18 September 2025.

A response to the letter from the Hon. Member for Thirsk and Malton was issued on 6 November.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her Department's policies of the ongoing Natural Environment Research Council study on the role of prescribed burns in reducing wildfires.

Defra will consider the outcomes of this study when published, as with all new evidence in this area.

What steps he is taking with the National Fraud Initiative to tackle evasion of the council tax second homes premium.

The National Fraud Initiative (NFI), as part of the Public Sector Fraud Authority (PSFA), works closely with local authorities to help them identify and prevent fraud. As part of this, the NFI is currently collaborating with local authorities to understand the fraud risks related to council tax second home premiums. The NFI will use that insight to inform options to detect and prevent fraud in this area. This collaboration is also helping local authorities to address fraud in other areas of council tax, such as fraudulent claims for a ‘single person discount’ (SPD). In its most recent report, the NFI detected £20.4m in fraudulent SPDs in England, with £20.2m, or 99%, in recovery.

Whether the hon Member for Hampstead and Highgate received a Ministerial severance payment.

Ministerial severance is payable under the Ministerial and other Pensions and Salaries Act 1991 when a Minister leaves office and meets the following statutory conditions: Ministers who have not attained the age of 65 and are not appointed to a relevant ministerial or other paid office within 3 weeks of the last day of service, are eligible for a severance payment of one quarter of the annual ministerial salary being paid. Details of HM Treasury ministerial severance payments, including recipients and amounts, are published in the annual report and accounts.