Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Topical Questions

Monday 14 July 2025 · 17 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 11 Partly answered 6 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Ministerial support is available for communities seeking assistance with various projects and issues.
  • The Government support selective licensing to address poor housing management in local areas.
  • The Secretary of State will respond formally to written inquiries regarding specific reports and issues.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Dan Aldridge Lab Weston-super-Mare
Culture, Media & Sport Local Government
Context

The restoration project for Weston-super-Mare's nationally important Birnbeck pier is at risk after the Royal National Lifeboat Institution pulled out, leaving a £5 million shortfall. The project has been supported by the Birnbeck Regeneration Trust.

Question

Despite decades of hard work, not least by the Birnbeck Regeneration Trust, the restoration of Weston-super-Mare’s nationally important Birnbeck pier is now at risk after the Royal National Lifeboat Institution pulled out, leaving a £5 million shortfall. Will the Minister outline how the Government might support the project, and will he meet me urgently to discuss next steps to restore that vital part of my town’s soul?

Answer from The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government (Alex Norris)

I recognise the efforts of the Birnbeck Regeneration Trust. My hon. Friend is a doughty campaigner for his community. We announced support for 350 communities at the spending review, and further details will follow, but I would be delighted to meet him to speak about Birnbeck in particular.

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Q2 Luke Myer Lab Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland
Immigration Housing Local Government
Context

Residents in parts of East Cleveland are concerned about unscrupulous landlords dumping individuals with serious criminal histories in their villages. This issue affects the local community negatively.

Question

Residents in parts of East Cleveland are rightly sick of unscrupulous landlords dumping individuals with serious criminal histories in our villages. Will the Department support my call for the council to introduce selective licensing in the area, and what further support can the Secretary of State offer to help us take back control of our villages?

Answer from The Minister for Housing and Planning (Matthew Pennycook)

The Government support selective licensing as a tool to tackle the impact of poor housing management on local communities. The general approval that we granted in December gives councils full powers to introduce schemes, regardless of their size. My hon. Friend’s own authority will have heard loud and clear his call for it to consider doing so.

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Q3 Neil Duncan-Jordan Lab Poole
Housing
Context

The MP noted a wide gap between average wages and rent in his constituency of Poole, indicating that new homes are not affordable for many residents.

Question

Can the Minister explain how we will ensure that the new homes that we build will be truly affordable and not subject to excessive rent increases?

Answer from Matthew Pennycook

My hon. Friend will have noted the £39 billion allocated at the spending review to our new 10-year social and affordable homes programme, which we think will deliver about 300,000 affordable homes over its lifetime, with about 180,000 for social rent. He will also know that our Renters’ Rights Bill includes provisions that will empower tenants to challenge unreasonable rent increases.

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Q4 Siân Berry Green Brighton Pavilion
Housing
Context

The MP cited reports showing that people from some minority groups experience worse outcomes and direct discrimination in housing access, even beyond structural racism.

Question

Will the Secretary of State commit to writing a formal response to me on the recommendations in those reports?

Answer from Matthew Pennycook

If the hon. Lady writes to me about the issue, I will certainly respond to her.

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Q5 Ben Goldsborough Lab South Norfolk
Context

The MP highlighted a 60% hike in fees from the residential management group for unutilized playgrounds, described as a rip-off practice.

Question

What action will the Government be taking to stop these rip-off practices and support my residents in South Norfolk?

Answer from Matthew Pennycook

My hon. Friend raises a matter that I know is of concern to hon. Members across the House. It is precisely to protect residential freeholders in Hethersett and other freehold estates across the country from unfair charges that we will consult in the near future on how we implement the consumer protection provisions in the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 relating to the payment of estate management charges.

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Q6 Charlie Dewhirst Con Bridlington and The Wolds
Context

The MP expressed interest in empowering residents to take over management of shared spaces from unaccountable estate management firms.

Question

Is it the Government’s intention to legislate to make that possible?

Answer from Matthew Pennycook

The hon. Gentleman draws the House’s attention to an important point about freehold estates, and I direct his attention to the report by the Competition and Markets Authority on the matter if he wants to read further. There is a problem here: too many amenities and infrastructures are not being delivered to common adoptable standards, and therefore many local authorities rightly say that they do not expect to pick up the tab for bringing those amenities up to the relevant standard and then maintaining them. We have got to tackle both issues as we look to end the prevalence of these freehold estate arrangements going forward.

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Q7 Jenny Riddell-Carpenter Lab Suffolk Coastal
Housing Environment
Context

The MP highlighted the housing crisis in rural areas and expressed interest in incorporating nature conservation into future development.

Question

Will the Minister comment on what plans the Government have to ensure that we build in for nature, and specifically on the prospect of, and appetite for support for, swift bricks?

Answer from Matthew Pennycook

Although swift brick coverage is increasing, we want to drive up swift brick installation. As I made clear on Report of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, we are considering using a new sweep of national policies for decision making, to require swift bricks to be incorporated into new buildings unless there are compelling reasons that preclude their use or would make them ineffective.

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Q8 Lewis Cocking Con Broxbourne
Local Government
Context

The MP requested information on new planning powers to prevent unwanted houses in multiple occupation (HMOs).

Question

Will the Minister outline what new planning powers could be provided to local councils to ensure that my local communities in Broxbourne can say no to HMOs where they are not wanted?

Answer from Matthew Pennycook

The hon. Gentleman—who I have great affection for, as we go through our tenure—is a highly experienced former councillor, and he will know that local authorities already have article 4 powers. If he has evidence that those powers are not proving effective, I would really like to have more information.

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Q9 Sally Jameson Labour (Co-op) Doncaster Central
Economy Employment Local Government
Context

The MP expressed desire for fast delivery of the Coalfields Regeneration Trust industrial project in Doncaster.

Question

Does the Minister share my desire for the fast delivery of the Coalfields Regeneration Trust industrial project? It is also important to transfer any potential funds directly to the CRT, so as not to delay any delivery with bureaucratic processes and bidding.

Answer from Alex Norris

The Government are committed to investing in coalfield communities, and I was pleased to meet my hon. Friend and Mayor Ros Jones to talk about their exciting plans in Doncaster, which we are investing in. We are looking very closely at what the Coalfields Regeneration Trust has sent us; the trust is, of course, a great legacy of the previous Labour Government, and we are committed to working with it.

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Q10 Gagan Mohindra Con South West Hertfordshire
Housing
Context

The MP's constituent expressed concerns about a lack of community spaces alongside government housing targets.

Question

Will the Minister reassure the House that the Government will ensure there are community spaces to support any new housing developments?

Answer from Matthew Pennycook

I say two things to the hon. Gentleman. He will forgive me if he knows this already, but we did strengthen the provision for infrastructure in our recent changes to the national planning policy framework. Beyond that, we want to strengthen the existing system for developer contributions—where infrastructure and affordable housing comes through planning agreements—so that local authorities can extract more public gain from that process.

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Q11 Alison Hume Lab Scarborough and Whitby
Housing Local Government
Context

The MP highlighted the need for appropriate infrastructure in Cayton, a village potentially home to 2,500 new homes through government housing targets.

Question

What steps is the Minister taking to develop a coastal strategy to ensure that new developments for coastal villages like Cayton are delivered alongside infrastructure?

Answer from Alex Norris

The Government take a similar interest in coastal communities. As Local Growth Minister, I work closely with coastal authorities and have a significant eye on coastal communities. We want to strengthen the system of developer contributions to make sure that the new developments provide that infrastructure, with further details to come. The changes in the national planning policy framework, mentioned by the Minister for Housing and Planning, will support increased provision and modernisation of infrastructure. With regards to the south of Cayton, the new homes accelerator is supporting the delivery of 2,500 homes.

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Q12 Florence Eshalomi Labour (Co-op) Vauxhall and Camberwell Green
Housing
Context

A coalition of 150 charities supporting young people are calling for a specific youth-focused section in the ending homelessness strategy, estimating it would save £8.5 billion a year.

Question

The Secretary of State will be aware that a coalition of 150 charities supporting young people are calling for a specific youth-focused section in the ending homelessness strategy; estimates show that would save £8.5 billion a year. Does the Minister agree that it is not only morally right but economically smart to have a youth-specific chapter in that new strategy?

Answer from The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government (Rushanara Ali)

I commend my hon. Friend for her work on this really important agenda. I met representatives from the youth homelessness sector at a recent roundtable. We are determined to ensure that the concerns and interests of young people experiencing homelessness are integrated into our report on ending homelessness, and we are working with the sector to tackle the root causes of youth homelessness.

Partly answered
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Q13 Jim McMahon Labour (Co-op) Macclesfield
Local Government
Context

The fair funding review is intended to address cost pressures and ensure that every local authority can afford decent services.

Question

I thank my hon. Friend for the work she has done to champion fair funding across local government, particularly for York. I absolutely understand the issues. The fair funding review is meant to do two things. It takes into account the need—the cost pressures driving local authorities—set against the resource, which is how much local authorities can raise in council tax at a local level. It is the Government’s role to be the equaliser to ensure that every local authority can afford decent local services, but I absolutely take into account her representations.

Answer from The Minister for Housing and Planning (Matthew Pennycook)

Under our proposals in the Planning and Infrastructure Bill for a national scheme of delegation, it will still be local planning authorities that make recommendations and decisions. As the hon. Gentleman will know if he looks at the consultation, all we propose is a two-tier system in which a set of minor applications go to expert local planning officers. A separate tier can go to a planning committee, where the chair of planning and the chief planning officer decide that that is the case. Again, I encourage the hon. Gentleman to respond to the consultation.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The answerer did not directly address the specific issues related to fair funding for York mentioned by the questioner.

How: Changed Subject

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Q14 Martin Vickers Con Brigg and Immingham
Local Government
Context

The Planning Minister had previously stated a desire to increase the number of people involved in local plan preparation.

Question

In reply to an earlier question, the Planning Minister said that he wanted to increase the number of people who engage in the preparation of local plans. He will know that even if that number was doubled, it would still be a small proportion of the local community. When applications are being considered, local communities want them to be decided and determined by local authorities with minimal central input. Will the Minister guarantee that local authorities will continue to have that power?

Answer from Matthew Pennycook

Under our proposals in the Planning and Infrastructure Bill for a national scheme of delegation, it will still be local planning authorities that make recommendations and decisions. As the hon. Gentleman will know if he looks at the consultation, all we propose is a two-tier system in which a set of minor applications go to expert local planning officers. A separate tier can go to a planning committee, where the chair of planning and the chief planning officer decide that that is the case. Again, I encourage the hon. Gentleman to respond to the consultation.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The answerer did not provide a direct guarantee as requested by the questioner but outlined plans for decision-making power retention.

How: Changed Subject

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Q15 Catherine Atkinson Lab Derby North
Policing & Resources Local Government
Context

There is significant investment in Derby city centre, including new venues and the reopening of a market hall.

Question

We are seeing massive investment in the regeneration of Derby city centre, including the opening of a new entertainment venue and the reopening of our market hall, which is bursting with small and independent businesses. Regeneration also means ensuring that our city feels safe, welcoming and inclusive. Will the Minister tell us how the Department is working with the Home Office to ensure that our cities and towns are thriving and safe?

Answer from Alex Norris

My hon. Friend is tempting a Member of Parliament for Nottingham to say something nice about Derby, which is slightly challenging for my prospects when I go home on Thursday. I do recognise the characterisation of the exciting plans ahead for Derby, and I share exactly her point on policing. We can have the most vibrant community possible, but people will not participate unless they feel safe. We are talking with the Home Office, and I would tell my hon. Friend to watch this space.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The answerer did not provide specific details on the collaboration between the Department and the Home Office as requested by the questioner.

How: Changed Subject

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Q16 Alison Bennett Lib Dem Mid Sussex
Community Security Religion & Faith
Context

A former Methodist church in Hurstpierpoint was approved to be converted into flats despite the parish council registering it as an asset of community value.

Question

Last week, Hurstpierpoint’s former Methodist church received permission to be converted into flats, despite the parish council registering it as an asset of community value and expressing its sincere wish to purchase it. Does the Minister think that the regulations for assets of community value are fit for purpose? How can they be improved?

Answer from Alex Norris

No, we do not think that the regulations are fit for purpose, which is why we are planning to amend them through the Bill that we published last week.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The answerer did not provide specific suggestions for improvement as requested by the questioner.

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Q17 Jayne Kirkham Labour (Co-op) Truro and Falmouth
Economy Local Government
Context

There is a project in Truro aimed at revitalizing high street buildings.

Question

The “New life for city buildings” project in Truro is breathing new life into empty high street buildings and redeveloping them. I would love for the Minister to be able to see this for himself, so will he consider coming to Truro and attending our growth summit on 18 September?

Answer from Alex Norris

I do not have my diary for 18 September in front of me, but I do owe my hon. Friend a visit, and I will definitely make such a visit.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The answerer did not confirm the specific date as requested by the questioner.

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