Written questions by Woodcock.

Communities and Local Government, how many members of the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel have been allocated to support the drafting of (a) primary and (b) secondary legislation in pursuit of planning reforms, in (i) total headcount and (ii) full-time equivalent.

Within the Office of Parliamentary Counsel (OPC) and Ministry for Housing Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) legal teams there are lawyers working on MHCLG related business, alongside members in the Government Legal Department. There is no group of Parliamentary Counsel within OPC that is assigned to work exclusively on planning reform for MHCLG.

Innovation and Technology, what assessment her department has made of the potential economic impact of an increase in notifications to mobile telecommunications companies under the Notice to Quit regime.

The Electronic Communications Code allows for site providers to serve Notices to Quit in specific limited circumstances, including if land is to be redeveloped and is no longer suitable to host telecommunications apparatus, or needs to be moved. We recognise that mobile operators have raised concerns about the impact of Notices to Quit on the deployment of mobile infrastructure, particularly in more urban areas, as operators search for alternative sites to host equipment. To minimise the impact of this on mobile coverage and capacity, in its recent Call for Evidence on reforms to planning legislation, the government proposed to extend the period by which equipment can be deployed on an emergency basis without planning permission from 18 months to 36 months. This will ensure operators can continue to provide connectivity to local areas without planning permission while they identify new permanent sites. We are considering the responses to this Call for Evidence and will set out the next steps in due course.

Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of reforming the Notice to Quit regime to reduce disruption to mobile data coverage and capacity.

The Electronic Communications Code allows for site providers to serve Notices to Quit in specific limited circumstances, including if land is to be redeveloped and is no longer suitable to host telecommunications apparatus, or needs to be moved. We recognise that mobile operators have raised concerns about the impact of Notices to Quit on the deployment of mobile infrastructure, particularly in more urban areas, as operators search for alternative sites to host equipment. To minimise the impact of this on mobile coverage and capacity, in its recent Call for Evidence on reforms to planning legislation, the government proposed to extend the period by which equipment can be deployed on an emergency basis without planning permission from 18 months to 36 months. This will ensure operators can continue to provide connectivity to local areas without planning permission while they identify new permanent sites. We are considering the responses to this Call for Evidence and will set out the next steps in due course.

Communities and Local Government, whether he has considered the report published by TYI on 18 March 2026, titled ‘Small Changes, Big Rewards: Ensuring planning connects with mobile infrastructure ambitions’.

On December 18 2025, my Department, in conjunction with the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, launched a joint Call for Evidence on reforming planning rules to accelerate deployment of digital infrastructure. This Call for Evidence closed on 26 February 2026 and can be found on gov.uk here.My officials are aware of the report in question, and it will be taken into account as part of the wider body of evidence submitted to the Call for Evidence.

Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to support veterans affected by homelessness.

We have increased funding for homelessness services and supported veterans to access social housing by exempting them from local connection tests for social housing in England. The Deputy Prime Minister is chairing an Interministerial Group, which includes the Veterans Minister, to develop a long-term cross-Government strategy to end homelessness.

Communities and Local Government, if she will list every case in which Secretaries of State have granted consent under Section 128(1) of the 1972 Local Government Act for disposal of building for (a) less than be

Information in respect of this question is only available from 2018 onwards. The requested information is provided below.AddressCounty Postcode Local AuthorityDate Consent Granted Besson StreetGreater LondonSE14 5AELondon Borough of Lewisham10/05/2018Litt...