Written questions by Dhesi.

Communities and Local Government, what information his Department holds on the number of cashless car parks in (a) Slough and (b) Berkshire.

Central Government does not collect this information.

Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment he has made of the affordability of (a) private and (b) social housing in Slough.

According to 2024 Office for National Statistics (ONS) data, private renters in Slough spent on average 27.9% of their income on rent. This compares to 29.6% in the South East as a whole and 36.3% in England. The ONS does not publish data on social housing affordability at a local authority level. However, according to the latest English Housing survey results from 2023/24 social renters spent on average 26.4% of their incomes on rent.

Communities and Local Government, what recent discussions she has had with local councils on the provision of free parking near (a) parks (b) recreational areas and (c) high streets.

Local authorities are empowered to determine their parking arrangements, as they are best suited to understand the best way of responding to local needs.They must do so in a way which meets standards set by national government that parking policies should be proportionate, support town centre prosperity, and reconcile competing demands for kerb space, and ensure traffic moves freely and quickly on their roads and the roads of nearby authorities as required in the Traffic Management Act 2004.As such the Secretary of State has not held any discussions with local councils regarding the provision of parking.

Communities and Local Government, what engagement her Department has had with local authorities on compliance with their Covenant Legal Duty.

I refer the hon Member to my letter of 4 April 2025 to the Defence Committee on this subject. I will also share a copy of the letter with his office.As lead department for the Covenant, the Ministry of Defence also engages regularly with local authorities on implementation and delivery of the Covenant.

Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure that councils are financially stable.

We have delivered a Settlement that begins to fix the foundations of local government by providing significant investment, redirecting funding towards the services and places that need it most. The 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. The government is committed to pursuing a comprehensive set of reforms for public services to return the local government sector to a sustainable position. This will be done in partnership with local government and on the principle of giving forward notice and certainty to allow time for councils to plan. From 2026-27, we want to fundamentally improve the way we fund councils and direct funding to where it is most needed through the first multi-year settlement in 10 years.

Communities and Local Government, what recent progress her Department has made on working with developers to ensure unsafe buildings are remediated quickly.

54 developers have signed the developer remediation contract. MHCLG publishes quarterly updates on progress that developers are making. As of 31 March 2025, those developers had identified 1,700 buildings with life-critical fire safety defects that they are obligated to directly remediate. Developers had started or completed work on 49% of these buildings. Further detail is in the monthly Building Safety Data Release here.On 2 December 2024, we published a joint plan to accelerate developer-led remediation and improve resident experience. 39 developers (accounting for over 95% of buildings to be remediated by developers) have signed up to the joint plan. In doing so, those developers have committed to ambitious stretch targets to finish assessing all their buildings by July 2025, and to start or complete remedial works on 80% of relevant buildings by July 2026 and on all relevant buildings by July 2027.Government is holding developers to account. This includes working with developers to overcome barriers to remediation and improve resident experience through a monthly Remediation Action Group.

Communities and Local Government, whether her Department has made an assessment of the effectiveness of its statutory intervention at Slough Borough Council since December 2021.

After publishing the fifth report from Slough Commissioners together with my response in October 2024, I confirmed to the House on 20 November that I had extended the statutory intervention at Slough Borough Council until 30 November 2026, and reappointed the Commissioner team together with a Managing Director Commissioner.

Communities and Local Government, what the median age is of computers issued to officials in their Department.

The median age of devices in use at MHCLG is 2.5 years old (deployed in 2023).

Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the availability of homeless shelter services in (a) Slough and (b) Thames Valley.

The government is clear levels of homelessness and rough sleeping are too high. As announced at the Budget, funding for homelessness services is increasing next year by £233 million compared to this year (2024/25). This increase brings total homelessness grant funding to nearly £1 billion in 2025/26. The eight local authorities in the Thames Valley area have been allocated a total of £23,007,657, including an allocation of £3,943,746 in Slough, through the Rough Sleeping Prevention and Recovery Grant in 2025/26. This funding is to enable local authorities to provide the services needed to tackle rough sleeping locally.

Communities and Local Government, what recent steps she has taken to help support Slough Borough Council to provide adequate temporary accommodation to people who are eligible.

Homelessness levels are far too high which can have a devastating impact on those affected. The Deputy Prime Minister is leading cross-government work to deliver the long-term solutions we need to get us back on track to ending all forms of homelessness. This includes chairing a dedicated Inter-Ministerial Group, bringing together ministers from across government to develop a long-term strategy.As announced at the Budget, funding for homelessness services is increasing next year by £233 million compared to this year (2024/25). This increased funding will help to prevent rises in the number of families in temporary accommodation and prevent rough sleeping. This brings total spend to nearly £1 billion in 2025/26, a record level of funding.In December, MHCLG announced that £633.2 million will be provided to councils in England through the Homelessness Prevention Grant 25/26, of which £2,538,151 has been allocated to Slough Borough Council. This funding represents an uplift of £1,184,119 for Slough compared with 24/25 allocations, an increase of 87.5%.MHCLG’s homelessness advice and support team continue to work closely with local authorities under the highest pressures, including to develop B&B elimination plans, to reduce households being placed in bed and breakfast accommodation for longer than six weeks.

Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to ensure property management companies approved for the Cladding Safety Scheme are carrying out remediation works within a reasonable timeframe.

The Cladding Safety Scheme interacts with all applicants, including property management companies. We are a data-led programme and have designed key performance indicators into our system to ensure we can monitor and track progress and escalate applications as required. The system allows RAG ratings for all buildings to ensure that we are able to support and engage buildings experiencing delays or blockers. Where we experience delays with applications, we engage with applications to understand what the key blockers are and we are able to support them with Cladding Safety Scheme tools, such as instructing Client-Side Support for their applications.We receive regular updates on progress from applicants and a key tenet of the programme is ensuring leaseholders and residents receive regular communications from the applicant so that they are aware of progress. Our key focus is to support applications to ensure progress occurs at pace, to provide leaseholders and residents with the necessary comfort to know that their buildings will be remediated within a reasonable timeframe.

Communities and Local Government, whether she is taking steps to support individuals whose mortgage offers have been withdrawn following investigations of malpractice in relation to the issuing of EWS1 forms.

As per the answer to Question UIN 31497 on 27 February 2025, my officials engage regularly with the mortgage lending industry to encourage them to take a proportional approach to buildings without an EWS1 (External Wall System Fire Review) or where there are concerns about the EWS1, and support leaseholders looking to sell or re-mortgage. It is important to note EWS1s are not a legal or regulatory requirement.Mortgage lenders who have signed the public statement on cladding (link here) should be open to approving mortgage applications for properties in buildings which require remediation, regardless of whether they accept the EWS1 for that building. Leaseholders should provide alternative evidence that their building is in the Cladding Safety Scheme, Building Safety Fund or covered by a developer that has signed the Developer Remediation Contract. This evidence could be, for example, a letter from MHCLG or the developer. Leaseholders can also complete a Leaseholder Deed of Certificate to evidence they qualify for the leaseholder protections in the Building Safety Act.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 10 February 2025 to Question 28567 on Permitted Development Rights, what her planned timetable is for amending the existing permitted development rights on heat pumps.

Further announcements in respect of permitted development rights for air source heat pumps and electric vehicle charging points will be made in the coming months.

Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to support Slough Borough Council to reduce homelessness.

Homelessness levels are far too high which can have a devastating impact on those affected.The Government is looking at these issues carefully and will develop a new cross government strategy, working with mayors and councils across the country to get us back on track to ending homelessness once and for all. This is why we have committed to a total spend of nearly £1billion in 25/26 for homelessness, a record level of funding.In December, MHCLG announced that £633.2 million will be provided to councils in England through the Homelessness Prevention Grant 25/26, of which £2,538,151 has been allocated to Slough Borough Council. This funding represents an uplift of £1,184,119 for Slough compared with 24/25 allocations, an increase of 87.5%.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of increasing permitted development rights.

The government has announced its intention to amend the existing permitted development rights for air source heat pumps and electric vehicle charging points to support homeowners. Further information is available on gov.uk here and here.We continue to keep permitted development rights under review.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of progress of remediation works by property management companies on properties approved for the Cladding Safety Scheme in Slough.

Speeding up the remediation of buildings throughout England is essential. More than seven years have passed since the Grenfell tragedy, yet progress remains unacceptably slow. In the Slough area, there are five live applications to the Cladding Safety Scheme - two from social sector organisations and three from private sector applicants. Of the remaining three, one began its application at the end of January and remains in the early stages of the process. Two projects are in the initial tender stage, planning their works, and we are monitoring monthly progress updates to ensure they are on track. We remain committed to driving timely progress for every building with unsafe cladding. As set out in our Remediation Acceleration plan, by intensifying efforts to identify at-risk buildings and accelerate pace of remediation for buildings, including by fully utilising the efficiencies of the Cladding Safety Scheme, we are mitigating the ongoing threat posed by unsafe cladding in the Slough area, and across the country.The Cladding Safety Scheme interacts with all applicants. It is a data-led programme designed with key performance indicators to ensure we can monitor and track progress and escalate applications as required. The system allows RAG ratings for all buildings to ensure that we are able to support and engage buildings experiencing delays or blockers. A key tenant of the programme is ensuring leaseholders and residents receive regular communications from the applicant so that they are aware of progress. In the Slough area, there are five live applications to the Cladding Safety Scheme of which two are experiencing delays. One is still within the design phase, while the other building is more complex having discovered potential additional works required. We are engaging these buildings to receive regular updates on their progress and are closely monitoring their performance. Our key focus is to support these applications to ensure progress at pace resumes to provide leaseholders and residents with the necessary comfort to know that their buildings will be remediated without further delay.

Communities and Local Government, what recent discussions she has had with property management companies which manage property in Slough with cladding that requires remediation.

Speeding up the remediation of buildings throughout England is essential. More than seven years have passed since the Grenfell tragedy, yet progress remains unacceptably slow. In the Slough area, there are five live applications to the Cladding Safety Scheme - two from social sector organisations and three from private sector applicants. Of the remaining three, one began its application at the end of January and remains in the early stages of the process. Two projects are in the initial tender stage, planning their works, and we are monitoring monthly progress updates to ensure they are on track. We remain committed to driving timely progress for every building with unsafe cladding. As set out in our Remediation Acceleration plan, by intensifying efforts to identify at-risk buildings and accelerate pace of remediation for buildings, including by fully utilising the efficiencies of the Cladding Safety Scheme, we are mitigating the ongoing threat posed by unsafe cladding in the Slough area, and across the country.The Cladding Safety Scheme interacts with all applicants. It is a data-led programme designed with key performance indicators to ensure we can monitor and track progress and escalate applications as required. The system allows RAG ratings for all buildings to ensure that we are able to support and engage buildings experiencing delays or blockers. A key tenant of the programme is ensuring leaseholders and residents receive regular communications from the applicant so that they are aware of progress. In the Slough area, there are five live applications to the Cladding Safety Scheme of which two are experiencing delays. One is still within the design phase, while the other building is more complex having discovered potential additional works required. We are engaging these buildings to receive regular updates on their progress and are closely monitoring their performance. Our key focus is to support these applications to ensure progress at pace resumes to provide leaseholders and residents with the necessary comfort to know that their buildings will be remediated without further delay.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the quality of temporary accommodation provided in (a) Slough and (b) the South East.

Homelessness levels are far too high. This can have a devastating impact on those affected. We must address this and deliver long term solutions. The Government is developing a new cross-government strategy, working with mayors and councils across the country to get us back on track to ending homelessness.As announced at the Budget, funding for homelessness services is increasing next year by £233 million compared to this year (2024/25). This increased spending will help to prevent rises in the number of families in temporary accommodation and help to prevent rough sleeping. This brings total spend to nearly £1 billion in 25/26.More widely, we are taking action to tackle the root causes of homelessness, including delivering the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation and building 1.5 million new homes over the next parliament. We are also abolishing Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions, preventing private renters being exploited and discriminated against, and empowering people to challenge unreasonable rent increases.The Homelessness Prevention Grant (HPG) is allocated to councils across England based on local homelessness pressures and is used to meet local needs. Slough will receive £2,538,151 for 2025-26 through the HPG.The legislation is clear that all temporary accommodation must be suitable, and local authorities should keep the suitability of accommodation under review. Where an individual feels that the council has applied their statutory duties incorrectly, they can take action in the courts or bring their concerns to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman.The £1.2 billion Local Authority Housing Fund will provide capital funding directly to English councils and is expected to provide up to 7,000 homes by 2026. It will create a lasting asset for UK nationals by building a sustainable stock of affordable housing for local communities. The Local Authority Housing Fund will ease local homelessness pressures, reduce spending on unsuitable B&B accommodation, and provide safe and sustainable housing for those on Afghan resettlement and Ukrainian sponsorship schemes.

Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking with Slough Borough Council to tackle homelessness.

Homelessness levels are far too high. This can have a devastating impact on those affected. We must address this and deliver long term solutions. The Government is developing a new cross-government strategy, working with mayors and councils across the country to get us back on track to ending homelessness.As announced at the Budget, funding for homelessness services is increasing next year by £233 million compared to this year (2024/25). This increased spending will help to prevent rises in the number of families in temporary accommodation and help to prevent rough sleeping. This brings total spend to nearly £1 billion in 25/26.More widely, we are taking action to tackle the root causes of homelessness, including delivering the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation and building 1.5 million new homes over the next parliament. We are also abolishing Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions, preventing private renters being exploited and discriminated against, and empowering people to challenge unreasonable rent increases.The Homelessness Prevention Grant (HPG) is allocated to councils across England based on local homelessness pressures and is used to meet local needs. Slough will receive £2,538,151 for 2025-26 through the HPG.The legislation is clear that all temporary accommodation must be suitable, and local authorities should keep the suitability of accommodation under review. Where an individual feels that the council has applied their statutory duties incorrectly, they can take action in the courts or bring their concerns to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman.The £1.2 billion Local Authority Housing Fund will provide capital funding directly to English councils and is expected to provide up to 7,000 homes by 2026. It will create a lasting asset for UK nationals by building a sustainable stock of affordable housing for local communities. The Local Authority Housing Fund will ease local homelessness pressures, reduce spending on unsuitable B&B accommodation, and provide safe and sustainable housing for those on Afghan resettlement and Ukrainian sponsorship schemes.

Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of funding provided by the Government to local councils.

We are providing a significant boost to local authorities in England. 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. This includes an additional £2 billion of grant through the Settlement in addition to a guarantee that local authorities in England will receive at least £1.1 billion in total in 2025-26 from the new Extended Producer Responsibility for packaging (pEPR) scheme, and a further £233 million of additional funding for homelessness services.The provisional Settlement for 2025-26 makes available £69 billion for local government, which is a 3.5% real terms increase in councils’ Core Spending Power on 2024-25. The final Settlement will increase further, to incorporate the £515 million of funding announced for National Insurance Contributions.The Department works closely with local government and other government departments to understand specific demand and cost pressures facing local government on an ongoing basis. This involves looking at a range of cost and demand data, as well as regular engagement with local authorities.