Every parliamentary written question tabled by David Simmonds this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 141–160 of 874 · this parliament
Communities and Local Government, with reference to the Answer of 7 January 2026 to Question 97134 on Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government: Departmental Responsibilities, for what reason the Secr
At the events on 28 October and 24 November the Secretary of State spoke about the overall government approach to housing. No other departmental business was discussed. As these were party political events, it would not be appropriate for the Department t...
Communities and Local Government, whether guidance has been given to the London Assembly on whether Assembly Members in council tax arrears may vote on the setting of the Greater London Authority’s council tax pr
No specific government guidance has been issued to the London Assembly in relation to whether Assembly Members in council tax arrears may vote on council tax requirements arising from the Mayor of London’s annual budget proposals.
Communities and Local Government, whether his Department has published any guidance on the operation of Section 9I of the Localism Act 2011.
Section 9I is a provision of the Local Government Act 2000. The Department has not published specific guidance on this provision.
Communities and Local Government, with reference to the Surrey County Council paper, "Implementation Programme Update Report, Annex 3 – Draft Illustrative Financial Baseline", of April 2026, what assessment has h
Multi-year allocations for all councils, including those which have been invited to undergo reorganisation, were set out in the final Local Government Finance Settlement. The majority of funding in the Local Government Finance Settlement is unringfenced r...
Communities and Local Government, further to the High Court Consent Order in relation to Nair v London Borough of Tower Hamlets of March 2024, whether Ministerial Envoys in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets hav
Ministerial Envoys do not take, or assess the impact of, individual funding and regulatory decisions by the authority; the responsibility for which remains with the Council. As part of the statutory intervention in Tower Hamlets, the Envoys are supporting...
Communities and Local Government, with reference to his Department's Council tax information letter 3/2026 published on 15 April 2026, whether a new burdens payment will be made to local authorities further to th
The government, in its response to the council tax administration consultation, committed to conduct a New Burdens assessment to ensure changes are appropriately funded. The published response can be found here.
Communities and Local Government, how the proposed ban on crypto-donations and overseas donations over £100,000 will apply to hon. Members.
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 124668 on 20 April 2026.
Communities and Local Government, whether the Ministerial Envoys to the London Borough of Tower Hamlets have reviewed the council's 2025-26 expenditure and procurement of the Mosque Engagement Programme.
Ministerial Envoys do not take, or assess the impact of, individual funding and regulatory decisions by the authority; the responsibility for which remains with the Council. As part of the statutory intervention in Tower Hamlets, the Envoys are supporting...
Communities and Local Government, whether the new unitary councils will be required to give 12 months notice to apply the second homes or empty homes council tax premium in their unitary council area, if (a) some
Restructured councils must make a determination to introduce the second homes premium at least 12 months before the financial year in which it will be charged in a predecessor area for the first time. The government has recently made The Local Government ...
With reference to the answer of 17 March 2026 to Question 118523 on Council Tax: Valuation, whether new DwellingHouseCodes were added by the Valuation Office to assist the council tax revaluation in Wales.
For the Council Tax revaluation in Wales, the Valuation Office has not collected additional DwellingHouse Codes over and above those already used within England and Wales.
With reference to the answer of 27 April 2026, to Question 126743, on Home Office: Greenpeace, when the Home Office last engaged with Greenpeace; and whether it is subject to a formal policy of non-en
There is no standing policy of non-engagement with Greenpeace. Ministerial engagements with external stakeholders are published and available online. Home Office: ministerial gifts, hospitality, travel and meetings - GOV.UK
Communities and Local Government, further to the press release, Red tape slashed to revamp high streets with new cafes and bars, of 26 July 2025, whether (a) combined authority mayors and (b) the Greater London A
Through the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act 2026, the Government has conferred new licensing functions on the Mayor of London and the Greater London Authority. This is to enable a more coherent, city-wide approach to licensing decisions a...
What steps she is taking to ensure asylum seekers are securely dispersed from short-term holding facilities when those facilities reach capacity.
The Home Office has a statutory obligation to support asylum seekers who would otherwise be destitute by providing appropriate support which usually includes accommodation.Accommodation Plans consider a range of suitability factors for dispersal in each Local Authority covering market availability, viability, social factors and other supported cohorts.Full dispersal remains a key priority which aims to achieve a fairer and more equitable accommodation spread of asylum seekers across the UK. We remain committed to housing asylum seekers in cost-effective and suitable accommodation in communities, achieving the best value for money for the taxpayer.
Communities and Local Government, whether his Department has issued governance guidance to local authorities on whether a sitting Chairman or civic Mayor can preside over, and participate in, a Full Council debate and vote, where there is a motion for the annual Full Council to re-appoint that Chairman or civic Mayor for another year, including any guidance on the application of the case law of R v Owens (1858) to modern day Annual Council selection meetings.
Local authority governance arrangements are a matter for councils themselves, operating within the statutory framework set by the Local Government Act 1972.
Communities and Local Government, what estimate his Department has made of the number of Commonwealth citizens resident in the United Kingdom with an immigration status allowing them to be a qualifying Commonwealth elector.
There are no official statistics on the number of qualifying Commonwealth citizens living in the UK who are eligible to register to vote, either in England or across the United Kingdom. The Office for National Statistics publishes population estimates by nationality. These statistics suggest there are over one million Commonwealth nationals living in the UK. However, these figures cannot be used as an estimate to those eligible to register to vote, as it does not account for individuals’ immigration status or other eligibility criteria. As set out in the answer to Question UIN 120063 of 18 March 2026, the Electoral Commission has previously estimated that around 66% of qualifying Commonwealth citizens may be registered to vote (as at 2023). The Commission’s estimate is based on their survey data and provides an indication of the proportion registered; however no corresponding estimate exists for the total number eligible to register.
How much funding was provided by her Department to the London Borough of Hillingdon for asylum support in 2024-25.
The Cabinet Office publish annual grant funding data (Government Grants Data and Statistics) where you can find details of grant levels by local authority area broken down per year. The Home Office does not publish any additional information.
Whether her Department engages with Greenpeace.
There has been no recent engagements with Greenpeace.
With reference to the answer of 6 March 2026 to Question HL14718 on Public Bodies: Human Rights, whether an (a) equality impact, (b) human rights, (c) regulatory impact and (d) environmental principles assessment has been produced for amending police powers on unauthorised traveller encampments.
The Government takes all necessary steps to ensure that legislation is developed in line with its statutory obligations and established processes, including the need to act compatibly with human rights.In response to the declaration of incompatibility made by the High Court in May 2024, the Government brought forward an amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill to reduce the no‑return period from twelve months to three months, addressing the incompatibility identified by the Court while retaining appropriate enforcement powers in relation to unauthorised encampments.The human rights implications of the amendment were considered as part of the usual Bill process, including through the published European Convention on Human Rights memorandum for the Crime and Policing Bill.The Government will consider equality impacts and other statutory duties in line with its usual processes.
Which taxes (a) local authorities and (b) combined authority mayors will retain local revenues for.
The Government is developing a roadmap for fiscal devolution, which will set out plans to give mayors of strategic authorities control of a share of some national taxes that for too long have been allocated by central government. The Government will be working closely with mayors and businesses to develop the details of the roadmap, which will be published at this year’s Budget. Local authorities already retain revenues from council tax, and a locally retained share of business rates under the Business Rates Retention System, subject to reliefs and exemptions.
What discussions she has had with the police on stationing police officers near polling stations in areas with previous instances of disorder, intimidation and undue influence.
Government is in close contact with partners, including police, to ensure the integrity of the local elections.The decisions on the deployment of officers at polling stations is a matter for the police and Ministers cannot not intervene in any operational decisions. To do so would undermine the principle that the police are entirely independent of Government.The police have a range of powers to deal with any behaviour that causes harassment, alarm or distress to others. The Government fully supports the police in their use of these powers to maintain public order and keep communities safe.