English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill: Motion relating to Lords Amendments 85, 86, 97 to 116, 120, 121 and 123 etc

The Commons voted 271 to 171 on 27 April 2026 to back the government's position on a large group of Lords amendments to the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill. The motion covered amendments 85, 86, 97 to 116, 120, 121 and 123, among others, accepting some Lords changes in modified form, rejecting others outright, and proposing government amendments in lieu. It was one of several votes held the same day as the Bill moved through the final stages of parliamentary ping-pong (the back-and-forth process between the two Houses when they disagree). The vote advanced the government's preferred shape of the Bill, which reorganises local government in England and extends powers to mayoral strategic authorities. Key contested issues included whether brownfield land should be formally prioritised over greenfield development, whether the "agent of change" principle protecting existing music venues from complaints by new neighbouring residents should be placed on a statutory footing, and how much local consent should be required before the Secretary of State can impose structural changes on councils. The government rejected Lords amendments on brownfield prioritisation and the agent of change principle, arguing existing mechanisms are sufficient, while accepting a modified version of Lords amendment 2 to include rural and coastal affairs as explicit strategic competences. Labour and its Co-operative Party partners voted unanimously in favour, providing all 271 ayes. Conservatives, Liberal Democrats, the Greens, the DUP and other smaller parties voted against, with no crossover between the two sides from the named parties. The Conservatives framed the Bill as a centralising measure extending Whitehall control over local government. The Liberal Democrats pressed for stronger brownfield protections and for Cornwall's national minority status to be given legal recognition. The result mirrored the other divisions held the same day, all of which the government won by comparable margins.