David Simmonds MP: written questions 2026
460 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Roads: Repairs and MaintenanceDepartment for TransportTabled 21 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 107473More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Written Ministerial Statement on Local roads and highways, published on 12 January 2026, HCWS1232, when her Department told local authorities which data sets were to be used to complete th
Answer: The Prime Minister announced on 24 March 2025 that local highway authorities would be rated on their progress in maintaining local roads and highways. This was announced alongside the introduction of new reporting requirements for local highway authoritie...
Answered 30 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordRoads: Repairs and MaintenanceDepartment for TransportTabled 21 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 107472More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to Written Statement of 12 January 2026 on Local roads and highways, HCWS1232, whether it is her policy that local authorities that have spent all of their Highway Maintenance Grant allocations c
Answer: Local highway authorities that stated they had plans to spend 100% of their DfT capital grant for highways maintenance on this purpose in 2025/26 received an amber, not red, spend scorecard. The vast majority of local highway authorities stated they had p...
Answered 4 Feb 2026
Original Parliament recordAsylum: HotelsHome OfficeTabled 12 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 104903More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, Pursuant to the answer of 2 December 2025, to Question 94192, on Holiday Accommodation: Taxation, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of applying the levy to asylum seekers in hotel
Answer: The Home Office has a statutory obligation to provide support to destitute asylum seekers and as such these are not discretionary overnight stays.The Government’s position remains that the use of hotels to accommodate asylum seekers is undesirable and uns...
Answered 20 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordPublic Order Act 1936Home OfficeTabled 12 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 104902More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department is issued guidance on the political uniform ban in the Public Order Act 1936 and the definition of a uniform.
Answer: The Public Order Act 1936 aimed to control and regulate the wearing of uniform in a public place or at a public meeting if that uniform signifies association with a political organisation or promotes a political object.The Home Office has not considered i...
Answered 20 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordPolicing and Crime BoardsHome OfficeTabled 12 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 104901More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 9 December 2025, to Question 96551, on Police: accountability, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of adding district-level licensing authorities in tw
Answer: The Government intends to legislate as soon as Parliamentary time allows to create Policing and Crime Boards to replace Police and Crime Commissioners where it is not possible for policing functions to be held by a Strategic Authority Mayor. These changes...
Answered 20 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordPolice: FinanceHome OfficeTabled 12 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 104900More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the answer of 9 December 2025, to Question HL12288, on Council tax, what is the increase in police spending power on average across the Phase 2 settlement excluding the revenue raise
Answer: The provisional police funding settlement (18 December) published that total funding to Territorial Police Forces will be up to £18.3 billion, an increase of up to £746 million compared to the 2025-26 police funding settlement. This equates to a 4.2% cash...
Answered 27 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordMigrants: ReligionHome OfficeTabled 12 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 104899More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what data her Department collects on the religion of migrants, other than through the Census.
Answer: UVKI do not request this information as part of the visa application process.Asylum claimants are asked for information about their religion as part of the asylum screening (registration) process, during the substantive asylum interview and when submittin...
Answered 20 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordWest Midlands PoliceHome OfficeTabled 12 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 104898More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on what intelligence was shared by West Midlands Police with (a) the UK Football Policing Unit, (b) the National Police Chiefs Council and (c) her Department.
Answer: The Home Affairs Select Committee held evidence sessions on 1 December and 6 January to examine West Midlands Police’s intelligence assessments underpinning the ban on Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters.As I committed to the House of Commons, I have provided det...
Answered 20 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordStrategic Migration Partnerships: FinanceHome OfficeTabled 12 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 104897More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much funding her Department provided to strategic migration partnership in (a) 2024-25 and (b) 2025-26.
Answer: The Home Office does not currently publish funding levels to Strategic Migration Partnerships, previous years funding can be found here Government Grants Data and Statistics
Answered 20 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordAsylum: FinanceHome OfficeTabled 12 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 104896More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 8 December 2025, to Question 95340, on Asylum: Hillingdon, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of publishing grant payments made to local authorities; and if
Answer: The Home Office does not publicly publish grant payment levels by local authority, and we have no plans to do so. We do however publish the grant funding instructions, which can be found here:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/unaccompanied-asylum...
Answered 16 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordElizabeth Line: Business RatesDepartment for TransportTabled 12 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 104895More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate she has made of the potential impact of the higher Rateable Values in the 2026 business rate revaluation on revenue from the Crossrail Business Rate Supplement; and whether the multiplier or thres
Answer: This is a matter for the Mayor of London.
Answered 20 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordBusiness Rates: ValuationTreasuryTabled 12 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 104894More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 8 December 2025 to Question 95397 on Business Rates, if he will publish the change in rateable values by special category code by local authority.
Answer: The Valuation Office Agency currently have no plans to publish this information.
Answered 20 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordBusiness Rates and Council Tax: AppealsTreasuryTabled 12 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 104893More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of trends in the size of the Valuation Office Agency’s backlog in relation to (a) business rates and (b) council tax appeals.
Answer: The VOA works closely with government partners to ensure it is adequately resourced and to develop delivery plans which align with planned consultation and legislative timelines.
Answered 20 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordBusiness Rates: Tax AllowancesTreasuryTabled 12 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 104892More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the gross cost of the Retail, Hospitality and Leisure relief was in 2025-26.
Answer: The information requested is available at this link.
Answered 20 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordCouncil Tax: SurchargesTreasuryTabled 12 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 104891More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the answer of 9 December 2025, to Question 95885, on Council tax, what estimate she has made of the potential impact of the council tax surcharge on other tax receipts.
Answer: As set out in response to Question 95885 on 9th December 2025, the forecast impact on other tax receipts is set out in the published costings document here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/692872fd2a37784b16ecf676/Budget_2025-Policy_Costing...
Answered 20 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordCouncil TaxTreasuryTabled 12 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 104890More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 9 December 2025 to Question 95894 on Housing: council tax, whether the Valuation Office Agency holds council tax dwelling data by band based on those geographies.
Answer: The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) publishes Council Tax statistics on GOV.UK. The Council Tax stock of properties publication provides the number of properties by Council Tax band, administrative area and Westminster Parliamentary Constituency in England ...
Answered 20 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordCouncil Tax: SurchargesTreasuryTabled 12 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 104889More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the Valuation Office Agency has made an estimate of the number of dwellings in each local authority that could be liable for the council tax surcharge.
Answer: The Valuation Office Agency estimates fewer than 1% of properties in England are expected to be liable for the High Value Council Tax surcharge.
Answered 20 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordBusiness Rates: Tax AllowancesTreasuryTabled 12 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 104888More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 10 December 2025 to Question 97277 on Business Rates: Tax Allowances, whether the Valuation Office Agency’s online calculator on the gov.uk website is correctly applying 2025-26 Retail, Hos
Answer: The business rates estimator tool was, in accordance with standard practice, taken down on Friday 16 January ahead of local authorities issuing business rates bills in the coming weeks.
Answered 22 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordCamping Sites and Caravan SitesTreasuryTabled 12 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 104887More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what information the Valuation Office Agency. holds on the number of (a) religious retreats, (b) caravan parks for recreational use and (c) recreational campsites there are in each local authority.
Answer: The Valuation Office Agency publishes an annual stock of properties in the Rating List on GOV.UK. The most recent release details the stock and value of properties on the 2023 rating lists as at 31 March 2025. Information relating to your request can be f...
Answered 20 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordPublic Houses: Business RatesTreasuryTabled 12 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 104864More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many and what proportion of pubs with Valuation Office Agency Special Category (i) Code 226 and (ii) Code 227, will see their business rates bills (a) increase, (b) fall or (c) remain the same, in 2026-27 relati
Answer: I refer the hon. Members to the answer given to UIN 101363.
Answered 19 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordCouncil Tax: SurchargesTreasuryTabled 6 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 103465More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the effect of the council tax surcharge on house prices of higher valued homes, and the associated effect on the wider housing market.
Answer: House prices are affected by lots of different factors – this is forecast by the Office for Budget Responsibility in its recent Economic and Fiscal Outlook here: https://obr.uk/docs/dlm_uploads/OBR_Economic_and_fiscal_outlook_November_2025.pdf
Answered 14 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordTreasury: ResearchTreasuryTabled 6 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 103464More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, further to the the publication entitled Areas of research interest, updated 27 November 2025, when will (a) her Department, (b) HMRC and (c) the Valuation Office Agency publish their 2025 areas of research interests
Answer: The Areas of Research Interest (ARI) documents you refer to, published in November 2024, set out a range of long-term and enduring research questions across the remit of HMT, HMRC and the Valuation Office Agency. The Government’s objectives, including rel...
Answered 14 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordCouncil Tax: ValuationTreasuryTabled 6 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 103463More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what powers the Valuation Office Agency has to fine householders, and at what level, for (a) not providing information to assist a council tax valuation request and (b) refusing a power of entry request which has be
Answer: The VOA does not have the power to directly fine householders.
Answered 15 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordCouncil Tax: SurchargesTreasuryTabled 6 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 103462More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, further to the OBR Economic and fiscal outlook report of 26 November 2025, Table 3.9, what is her Department's estimate of the monetary annual value of the behavioural effects from the introduction of the council ta
Answer: Estimates of the direct behavioural effects are set out on page 78 of the Office for Budget Responsibilities Economic and Fiscal Outlook:https://obr.uk/docs/dlm_uploads/OBR_Economic_and_fiscal_outlook_November_2025.pdf A breakdown of the policy costing is...
Answered 13 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordBusiness RatesTreasuryTabled 6 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 103461More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the OBR, Economic and fiscal outlook, of November 2025, CP1438m paragraph 4.38, what assessment has been made by (a) her Department and (b) the Valuation Office Agency, of the cause and drivers of
Answer: The Government does not hold data on the breakdown of business rates revenue. The total change in business rates revenue is set out in the OBR’s Economic and Fiscal Outlook.
Answered 14 Jan 2026
Original Parliament record
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