David Simmonds MP: written questions
1010 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Local Government: ReorganisationMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 10 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8780More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, on what date does the ban on councils adopting the Committee system of governance take effect, and whether councils will be required to phase out existing use of the Committee sy
Answer: All councils currently operating the committee system, unless they are protected, must adopt the Leader and Cabinet model within the period of one year after commencement of relevant provisions in the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act. Thos...
Answered 16 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordHousing: Greater LondonMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 10 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8779More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what is the latest assessment of the number of homes that have been (a) started and (b) completed in the Old Oak Common site in West London since July 2024, and what steps are (i
Answer: Data on starts and completions at the Old Oak Opportunity area in West London are not centrally collected. The Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation (OPDC) is a Mayoral Development Corporation established by the Mayor of London to regenerate the ...
Answered 24 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordRoad Signs and MarkingsMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 10 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8777More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the answer of 9 September 2024, to Question 3012, on Road Signs and Markings, what is the status of his Department's monitoring of the partly commenced legislat
Answer: I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to Questions UIN 63029 on 4 July 2025 and UIN 90725 on 21 November 2025.
Answered 22 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordAffordable Housing: FinanceMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 10 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8775More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 21 May 2026, to Question 198, on Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government: Departmental Responsibilities, what amount and proportion of the
Answer: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 60128 on 4 July 2025.
Answered 22 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordBuilding Alterations: Permitted Development RightsMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 10 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8774More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans he has to amend permitted development rights relating to householder (a) loft extensions and (b) conservatories.
Answer: The government has no such current plans.
Answered 22 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordBuilding Alterations: Planning PermissionMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 10 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8773More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what number and proportion of existing planning applications considered by local authority Planning Committees relate to householder (a) loft extensions and (b) conservatories.
Answer: My Department does not hold the information requested.
Answered 22 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordPolitical Parties: FinanceMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 10 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8772More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the interaction of the provisions of the Representation of the People Bill on corporate donations with the proposed draft guidance by t
Answer: The Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 (PPERA) sets out a comprehensive framework governing political donations and controls on permissible sources of funding. This includes provisions relevant to sponsorship and other forms of support ...
Answered 19 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordElections: Greater ManchesterMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 10 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8771More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what representations his Department has received from the Greater Manchester Combined Authority or its mayor on (a) Supplementary Vote and (b) Proportional Representation since J
Answer: We have not received any representations from Greater Manchester Combined Authority or its mayor on Supplementary Vote or Proportional Representation.
Answered 19 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordTribunals: RentsMinistry of JusticeTabled 10 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8770More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the capacity of the Tribunal Service to handle the number of rent reviews following recent legislative reforms.
Answer: The Ministry of Justice has and continues to work closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to ensure that the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) has the capacity to handle the number of rent appeals following commencement...
Answered 18 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordNurseriesMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 10 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8769More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to improve the provision of nursery places in and near large new developments.
Answer: The importance of ensuring that a sufficient choice of early years places is available to meet the needs of existing and new communities is recognised in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF). It makes clear that local planning authorities should ...
Answered 22 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordFlats: SalesMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 10 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8768More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the number of completed flats which are unsold.
Answer: My Department has made no such estimate.
Answered 22 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordFlags: PalestineMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 10 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8767More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 27 May 2026 to Question 2010 on Flags: Palestine, and with reference to the Answer of 21 November 2025 to Question 88668 on Flags: Palestine, whether th
Answer: The United Kingdom formally recognises the State of Palestine as an independent sovereign state. The Palestinian flag is a country’s national flag and would therefore come under category a) of the guidance in question i.e. flags which can be flown without...
Answered 22 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordCouncil Tax: SurchargesMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 10 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8766More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the council tax surcharge on (a) housebuilding and (b) house prices.
Answer: The Government expects a minimal effect on properties subject to the new charge and very little impact on properties below the threshold. House prices are affected by a range of factors, the Surcharge is targeted at fewer than 1% of the highest value prop...
Answered 19 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordWest Surrey Council: FinanceMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 10 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8765More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether West Surrey Council will receive exceptional support funding given its inherited debt and legacy debt payments.
Answer: We have committed to significant and unprecedented debt repayment support for Woking Borough Council, recognising that the council holds unsupported debt that they can never fully repay locally. We will repay in-principle £500m of Woking’s debt in 2026-27...
Answered 16 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordLocal Government: Public BodiesMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 10 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8764More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what is the timetable for legislation on creating a new standards body for local government.
Answer: The Government Response to the ‘Strengthening the standards and conduct framework for local authorities in England’ consultation, published on 11 November 2025, states our intention to legislate for whole system reform of the local government standards re...
Answered 16 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordRadicalism: USAHome OfficeTabled 9 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8275More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of trends in the level of US funding of extreme far-right activism in the United Kingdom.
Answer: The Government takes extremism seriously and we are committed to ensuring that we have the required understanding, tools and powers needed to address this issue.Analysts within the Home Office assess all available information and intelligence in order to ...
Answered 23 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordTrade Unions: FinanceDepartment for Business and TradeTabled 9 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8274More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to the Government’s initial response to the Rycroft Review, whether trade unions’ political funds will be able to accept payments via cryptocurrencies.
Answer: The Government has accepted the recommendation of the independent Rycroft Review for a moratorium on the use of crypto assets as political donations to safeguard the integrity of our political finance system from foreign interference. Payments into trade ...
Answered 17 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordPolitical Parties: FinanceMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 9 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8273More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department has considered amending the exemptions on conference sponsorship using powers under PPERA.
Answer: The Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 (PPERA) sets out a comprehensive framework governing political donations and controls on permissible sources of funding. This includes provisions relevant to sponsorship and other forms of support ...
Answered 17 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordPolitical Parties: FinanceMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 9 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8271More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether political parties and regulated donees will be able to accept political donations from companies which have been trading less than three years.
Answer: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 6029 on 2 June 2026. Companies that have been trading for less than three years will not be excluded from making political donations, provided they meet the relevant eligibility criteria, includi...
Answered 17 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordPolitical Parties: FinanceMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 9 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8270More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the cap on overseas donations over £100,000 will apply to donations from Ireland to Northern Ireland.
Answer: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 6035 on 10 June 2026, which sets out the position on the interaction between the overseas electors cap and donations relating to Northern Ireland.
Answered 17 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordCouncillorsMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 9 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8269More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what (a) guidance and (b) advice his Department has given to local authorities on whether employees of (i) district and (ii) county councils can serve as a councillor of a shadow
Answer: The position is set out in the relevant standard disqualification provisions that are contained in existing legislation, including the Local Government Act 1972. The Electoral Commission provides guidance on disqualifications and working for a council, av...
Answered 22 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordPolitical Parties: FinanceMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 9 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8268More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what representations he has received on the provisions of political finance laws on declarations of political gifts, sponsorship and donations to (a) hon. Members in the 12 month
Answer: Following the publication of the independent Rycroft Review, which made recommendations on strengthening the political finance framework, including in relation to donations made to individuals before they become Members of Parliament, these issues have be...
Answered 17 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordZack PolanskiMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 9 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8267More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his department has received written representations from London Assembly member Zack Polanski, since July 2024.
Answer: Following a search of our correspondence system, we have not identified any correspondence from Zack Polanski AM.
Answered 17 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordHospitality Industry: Pedestrian AreasMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 9 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8265More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 27 May 2026, to Question 2007, on Hospitality Industries: Pedestrian Areas, what are the proposed changes on pavement licences that the Government inten
Answer: The Government brought forward licensing easements for the World Cup by extending pubs opening hours until 1am for England or Scotland matches in the knockout stages that kick off between 5pm to 9pm and until 2am for kick-offs between 9pm to 10pm. The Sec...
Answered 16 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordHospitality Industry: Pedestrian AreasMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 9 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 8264More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 27 May 2026, to Question 2007, on Hospitality Industries: Pedestrian Areas, whether the Government plans to introduce national easements in this regard
Answer: The Government brought forward licensing easements for the World Cup by extending pubs opening hours until 1am for England or Scotland matches in the knockout stages that kick off between 5pm to 9pm and until 2am for kick-offs between 9pm to 10pm. The Sec...
Answered 16 Jun 2026
Original Parliament record
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