David Simmonds MP: written questions
1010 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Council Tax: SurchargesTreasuryTabled 6 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 103460More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate she has made of the administrative cost of implementing the council tax surcharge, including the estimated cost of the valuations for the dwellings.
Answer: Local authorities will collect this revenue on behalf of central Government. The Government will work closely with local government over the next two years to ensure the administration of the tax is not an excessive burden for local government. The Govern...
Answered 14 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordCouncil Tax: SurchargesTreasuryTabled 6 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 103459More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether Energy Performance Certificate data will be used by the Valuation Office Agency to assist the council tax surcharge valuations.
Answer: The Valuation Office Agency is developing its specific approach to the High Value Council Tax Surcharge work and will set out more details in due course, alongside the government's consultation.
Answered 14 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordBusiness RatesTreasuryTabled 6 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 103458More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 9 December 2025 to Question 95892 on Business Rates, and with reference to paragraph 4.38 of the OBR's report entitled Economic and Fiscal Outlook, November 2025, CP1439, published on 26 No
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 recordCouncil Tax: Tax Rates and BandsTreasuryTabled 6 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 103457More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 8 December 2025 to Question 95402 on Council Tax: Tax Rates and Bands, if he will place in the Library a copy of the (a) analysis and (b) evidence base used to calculate the 2.5% impact on
Answer: A breakdown of the costing methodology used on the policy costing for the High Value Council Tax Surcharge is available on page 51 of the Autumn Budget 2025 policy costings document: Budget_2025-Policy_Costings.pdf
Answered 14 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordInflationTreasuryTabled 6 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 103456More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what her Department’s latest forecasts are for the value of annual CPI inflation in (a) September 2026 and (b) September 2027.
Answer: HM Treasury does not produce forecasts for the UK economy. Forecasting the economy is the responsibility of the independent Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), which published its latest forecast on 26 November 2025.In their most recent Economic and F...
Answered 13 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordCouncil Tax: ValuationTreasuryTabled 6 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 103455More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether leasehold properties are valued for council tax based on their actual sale price or a notional assumed lease length.
Answer: The VOA values all properties for Council Tax in line with legislation.
Answered 14 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordBusiness Rates: ValuationTreasuryTabled 6 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 103454More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the answer of 22 December 2025, to Question 99863, on Business Rates, for what reason do some hereditaments not have an Unique Address Reference Number listed in their entry in the Valuation Office Agenc
Answer: The current dataset for the 2023 Rating List includes a “proxy record” for each hereditament that has been deleted from the 2023 Rating List. They are included in the data to provide an effective date of deletion from the 2023 Rating List. As these are he...
Answered 14 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordLandlords: Regulation and TaxationCabinet OfficeTabled 6 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 103453More
Question: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Prime Minister has recused himself on matters relating to the regulation and taxation of landlords.
Answer: This Government has strengthened the Ministerial Code. Decisions relating to recusals are made with advice from the Independent Adviser on Ministerial Standards. Any relevant ministerial interests are published in the quarterly ‘List of Ministers’ Interes...
Answered 12 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordPoverty: ChildrenDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 6 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 103452More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what weight is given to the level of (a) private rented sector rents and (b) council tax in the statistical determination of child poverty.
Answer: The UK's headline child poverty statistics are provided via the Households Below Average Income (HBAI) statistics publication: Households below average income (HBAI) statistics - GOV.UK. Children are defined as being in income-based poverty if the net inc...
Answered 13 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordAsylum: HousingHome OfficeTabled 6 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 103451More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reason her Department has paused the sharing of regional asylum dispersal pack data with local government led strategic migration partnerships; and if she will change the policy of her Depart
Answer: The Home Office regularly publishes official accredited statistics, setting out the numbers of asylum seekers in receipt of Home Office support, broken down by local authorities These statistics are published on Gov.uk and are freely available to local au...
Answered 14 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordNational Underground Asset RegisterDepartment for Science, Innovation and TechnologyTabled 16 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 100816More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether the National Underground Asset Register will enter full operational service on 1 January 2026 for safe digging and what formal safety and risk assessments the Department has rec
Answer: The National Underground Asset Register (NUAR) is operational now, and in January 2026 all of its core functionality for use in street works will be in place. Development and continuous improvement will continue beyond this point, informed by user feedbac...
Answered 23 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordNational Underground Asset RegisterDepartment for Science, Innovation and TechnologyTabled 15 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 100084More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of integrating the National Underground Asset Register with existing safe digging services such as Linesearchbefore
Answer: We have conducted a discovery project and testing phase to investigate the potential to broaden access to information held in NUAR, and through other channels, including via third-party access. The outputs of this will be communicated to the sector in due...
Answered 23 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordNational Underground Asset RegisterDepartment for Science, Innovation and TechnologyTabled 15 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 100083More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what data her Department holds on (a) underground asset strikes and (b) asset strikes in areas where the National Underground Asset Register has been operating in the past five years; a
Answer: The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology does not currently hold data on asset strikes, including in areas where NUAR has been operational. It is important to note that, over the past five years, NUAR has progressed through several delivery p...
Answered 22 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordLocal Government: ReorganisationMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 9 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 98459More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if his Department will take steps to ensure that suitable provision is made for uninsured historical liabilities that succeeding authorities may inherit following reorganisation;
Answer: There is a suite of general continuity regulations for local government reorganisation made under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 which ensure smooth transfer to new unitary councils.These general regulations provide transit...
Answered 18 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordLocal Government: ProcurementMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 9 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 98458More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if his Department will provide local authorities with flexibility in applying the provisions of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 or Procurement Act 2023 during periods of lo
Answer: There is a suite of general continuity regulations for local government reorganisation made under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 which ensure smooth transfer to new unitary councils.These general regulations provide transit...
Answered 18 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordAsylum: HillingdonHome OfficeTabled 2 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 96570More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much central government funding was made available to the London Borough of Hillingdon in 2024-25 to compensate for costs relating to asylum.
Answer: The Home Office does not publicly publish grant payment levels by local authority, we do however provide funding to Local Authorities under the following grant agreements Asylum, Unaccompanied Asylum-seeking children & former unaccompanied asylum-seek...
Answered 9 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordAsylum: HousingHome OfficeTabled 2 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 96569More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 11 November 2025, to Question 86658, on Asylum: Housing, what specific function or role will the Greater London Authority have in relation to asylum housing.
Answer: The Home Office is working with local authorities to develop several potential asylum accommodation models that could ‘pilot’ a more sustainable, flexible and collaborative outcome. Decisions on the provision of alternative asylum accommodation sites will...
Answered 11 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordIslamophobiaHome OfficeTabled 2 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 96568More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, further to her Department's press release entitled Review of public order and hate crime legislation, published on 15 November 2025, whether (a) anti-Muslim hatred and (b) the Government's proposed de
Answer: Following the horrific attack on a synagogue in Manchester on 2 October, the Home Secretary launched an independent review of public order and hate crime legislation on 5 October. The Review will be led by Lord Ken Macdonald KC of River Glaven, supported ...
Answered 9 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordAsylum: HousingHome OfficeTabled 2 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 96567More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 11 November 2025, to Question 86658, on Asylum: Housing, if she will outline what specific responsibilities and powers will strategic authorities have in this regard; whether
Answer: The Home Office is working with local authorities to develop several potential asylum accommodation models that could ‘pilot’ a more sustainable, flexible and collaborative outcome. Decisions on the provision of alternative asylum accommodation sites will...
Answered 11 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordAsylum: HousingHome OfficeTabled 2 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 96566More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 5 November 2025, to Question 86342, whether there is an internal document that sets out her Department's new accommodation strategy.
Answer: The Prime Minister has been clear he wants every asylum hotel closed by the end of this Parliament. In delivering that, every Department has been asked to look at what more it can do. Accordingly, we are reviewing the long-term strategy to reflect the wor...
Answered 10 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordAsylum: HotelsHome OfficeTabled 2 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 96565More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will publish a copy of the current version of the Home Office guidance entitled Hotel Contingency Asylum Accommodation: Local authority version.
Answer: Hotel Contingency Asylum Accommodation is procured under the Accommodation and Support Contracts (AASC). The AASC are published and set out our requirements for the sourcing and procurement of accommodation, including how providers should work and consult...
Answered 10 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordAsylum: HousingHome OfficeTabled 2 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 96564More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 5 November 2025, to Question 86340, on Asylum: Housing, for what policy reason the monetary value of Grant 7 and Grant 6 payments to individual local authorities is confident
Answer: The Home Office do not publicly publish our grant payment levels by Local Authority to protect our relationship with Local Government.
Answered 31 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordReligious Freedom: Public PlacesHome OfficeTabled 2 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 96563More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to support the freedom to pray silently in public places.
Answer: Freedom of religion or belief, and freedom of expression are fundamental human rights. The government is committed to ensuring that individuals are protected from discrimination on the basis of religion or belief, and that they are able to hold and manife...
Answered 10 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordAsylum: HousingHome OfficeTabled 2 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 96562More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 5 November 2025, to Question 86772, on Asylum: Housing, whether the Home Office holds an unpublished guidance or manual on assessing suitability.
Answer: I refer the Honourable Member to the answer provided in PQ 86772.
Answered 10 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordAsylum: HousingHome OfficeTabled 2 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 96561More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 5 November 2025, to Question 85954, on Asylum: Housing, whether there is a guidance document that the Department follows when reviewing and considering a local authority obje
Answer: I refer the Honourable Member to the answer provided in PQ 85954.
Answered 10 Dec 2025
Original Parliament record
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