David Simmonds MP: written questions
1010 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Housing: Greater ManchesterMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71481More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 4 July 2025 to Question 62596 on Greater Manchester Combined Authority: Property Development, what information (a) her Department and (b) Homes England
Answer: The Greater Manchester Housing Investment Loan Fund is operated by Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA). MHCLG and Homes England do not hold information in individual developments in this programme. GMCA is therefore best placed to respond to this...
Answered 15 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordRefugees: FinanceMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71480More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much funding is provided to councils with high numbers of people granted refugee status; and whether the Fair Funding 2.0 proposals would affect this level of funding.
Answer: The government has been listening closely to the views expressed by the public, local authorities and other stakeholder bodies on the proposals set out in the Fair Funding Review 2.0 consultation.No final decisions on the outcome of the review have yet be...
Answered 5 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordMotability: ParentsDepartment for EducationTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71479More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has issued guidance to local authorities on taking into account the provision of Motability Scheme transport to parents when considering requests for the provision of home to school trans
Answer: The department issues statutory guidance for local authorities on travel to school for children of compulsory school age, 5 to 16. This explains that a child’s eligibility for free travel is not affected by any further benefits or allowances a parent may ...
Answered 3 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordMayors: MembersMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71478More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she has had recent discussions with combined authority mayors on provisions in the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill on restrictions on being Members of P
Answer: My department has engaged with Mayors and the local government sector ahead of publication of the English Devolution White Paper, where this policy was introduced.The post of mayor is a significant role at the forefront of delivering change and demands th...
Answered 5 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordHousing: Greater LondonMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71477More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the number of housing starts in London in Q2 2025 on her target to build 1.5 million homes over this Parliament
Answer: Delivering historic levels of housebuilding in London is a critical part of the government’s commitment to build 1.5 million homes within this parliament. The government fully recognises the scale and breadth of the housing delivery challenge in London. W...
Answered 15 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordEnglish Language: EducationMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71476More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much funding was allocated to English for Speakers of Other Languages in 2024-25; what is the budget for 2025-26; and what proportion in each case was allocated as grants to
Answer: The below answer refers to funding made by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government only. The provisions described are in addition to what other departments may offer. Councils receive a tariff of £5,900 per Homes for Ukraine arrival in t...
Answered 12 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordEnglish Language: EducationDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71475More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much funding was allocated to English for Speakers of Other Languages provision in 2024-25; what is the budget for 2025-26; and what proportion in each case was allocated as grants to local authorit
Answer: Funding for adults to develop the English language skills they need is made available across government – from the Home Office, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Education. The d...
Answered 15 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordAsylum: HousingHome OfficeTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71474More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 23 June 2025 to Question 59362 on Asylum: Housing, whether her Department provides guidance on objections to specific properties which (a) should be accepted by accommodation
Answer: The Home Office Asylum Accommodation and Support Contracts (AASC) are published and set out our requirements for the sourcing and procurement of accommodation, including how providers should work and consult with local authorities on a range of issues, fr...
Answered 10 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordAsylum: HousingHome OfficeTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71473More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 9 June 2025 to Question 55303 on Asylum: Housing, if she will publish the template accommodation contract for housing asylum seekers between (a) her Department, (b) its contr
Answer: The document is available at https://atamis-8888.my.salesforce.com/sfc/p/#58000000L5A4/a/4I000001QuuT/sGjvxn0.zVTmJRxP5zk64Vp4prQLfMGIuGWdVxlBIsA as Schedule 22 in Home Office AASC contracts.
Answered 12 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordPolice: FinanceHome OfficeTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71472More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the (a) cash terms and (b) real terms increase in the police settlement for 2025-26 includes (i) the increase in council tax and (ii) the compensatory funding for the increase in National Insu
Answer: The 2025-26 final police funding settlement provides funding of up to £19.6 billion for the policing system in England and Wales. This is an overall increase of up to £1.2 billion when compared to the 2024-25 settlement.This includes precept actuals, whic...
Answered 8 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordAsylum: HotelsHome OfficeTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71471More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department,, how many asylum hotels are in operation in each local authority area.
Answer: The asylum accommodation estate is provided by Serco, Mears, Clearsprings Ready Homes and CTM. The latest published Immigration Statistics detail the number of supported asylum seekers accommodated in each local authority area. These statistics can be fou...
Answered 4 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordAsylum: HousingHome OfficeTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71470More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will list the name of each contractor who currently provides asylum hotels and accommodation to her Department.
Answer: The asylum accommodation estate is provided by Serco, Mears, Clearsprings Ready Homes and CTM. The latest published Immigration Statistics detail the number of supported asylum seekers accommodated in each local authority area. These statistics can be fou...
Answered 4 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordAsylum: HousingHome OfficeTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71469More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 15 July 2025, to Question 65280, on Asylum: Housing, if she will place the requested information from Question 65280 in the Library of the House in light of the hyperlinks on
Answer: The award notices Asylum Accommodation and Support Contracts are already published and available on Contracts Finder as follows:Wales AASC - Asylum Accommodation & Support Services Contract Wales - Contracts Finder(opens in a new tab)South AASC - Asyl...
Answered 4 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordIslamophobia: Non-crime Hate IncidentsHome OfficeTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71468More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to use the Islamophobia Working Group definition for non-criminal hate incidents.
Answer: The work he refers to is being overseen by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.As agreed with the Home Secretary, the National Police Chiefs’ Council and College of Policing are currently conducting a review of non-crime hate inciden...
Answered 8 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordAsylum: HousingHome OfficeTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71467More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 30 April 2025 to Question 46900 on Asylum: Housing, how many dwellings have been procured via Cushman and Wakefield across England since July 2024; and what the total number
Answer: The Home Office does not publish information on the location of asylum accommodation sites for safety and security reasons. The Home Office continues to work with Cushman and Wakefield to identify potential sites for Home Office acquisition as part of the...
Answered 17 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordAsylum: HousingHome OfficeTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71466More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to her Department's asylum support statistics, how much (a) initial accommodation, (b) dispersal accommodation and (c) contingency accommodation across the country is provided by (i) Se
Answer: The Home Office is working closely with a range of stakeholders to fulfil its statutory obligations, while seeking to reduce the overall cost of asylum accommodation for the taxpayer.Data, published quarterly, on the number of supported asylum seekers in ...
Answered 9 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordAsylum: HousingHome OfficeTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71465More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the NISTA Annual Report 2024–25 dashboard, for what reason no evaluation has been completed for the project Asylum Support Accommodation Programme in the Home Office.
Answer: The Asylum Support Accommodation Programme (ASAP) is still in the early implementation phase. As such, a formal evaluation has not yet been undertaken. However, evaluation planning is underway, and the programme is being designed with a robust evaluation ...
Answered 12 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordAsylum: HousingHome OfficeTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71464More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much was a allocated each individual local authority from (a) Grant 7 and (b) Grant 6 programmes for asylum in 2024-25.
Answer: The Home Office does not publicly publish grant payment levels by local authority.The total amount allocated to Local Authorities in 2024/25 for Asylum Dispersal Grants 6 and 7 was £121,840,400.Current accommodation funding arrangements are published on A...
Answered 10 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordEnglish Language: EducationHome OfficeTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71463More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much funding was allocated for English for Speakers of Other Languages provision by her Department in 2024-25; what the budget is for 2025-26; and what proportion in each case was allocated as gra
Answer: Please refer to the 4th of July response from the former Minister for Children and Families, Janet Daby MP, for more detail on how ESOL is funded [UIN 63247].
Answered 26 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordLicensing LawsHome OfficeTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71462More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the press release entitled Red tape slashed to revamp high streets with new cafes and bars, published on 26 July 2025, whether the Government intends to consult on the new National L
Answer: This government has committed to launching a call for evidence to seek views on a range of pro-business reforms proposed by the recent Licensing Taskforce, including the development of a National Licensing Policy Framework.This will provide an opportunity...
Answered 8 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordAsylum: HousingHome OfficeTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71461More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 23 June 2025 to Question 59362 on Asylum: Housing, whether local authorities have a right of objection to the housing of asylum seekers in (a) hostels, (b) hotels, (c) HMOs a
Answer: An important part of our procurement process allows for local authorities across the UK to feed in local intelligence before our providers commit to accommodation. They have the opportunity to respond to consultation requests from our providers regarding ...
Answered 8 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordCounter-terrorism: FinanceHome OfficeTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71460More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance her Department has issued to local authorities on (a) transparency and local scrutiny on how Prevent funding is spent and (b) which organisations receive it.
Answer: In 2023, the Home Office updated its assurance process to help ensure that local authorities are delivering their statutory Prevent duty in line with the Prevent duty guidance. This includes assurance of local authorities that receive Prevent funding due ...
Answered 8 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordCounter-terrorism: FinanceHome OfficeTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71459More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which individual local authorities have received funding from her Department under the Prevent scheme in 2024-25; and what the (a) mechanism and (b) timing is by which the funding will be distributed
Answer: The Following local authorities received funding under the Prevent Programme in 2024-25: Priority Areas FY24/25 (Alphabetical order)1Birmingham2Blackburn with Darwen3Bradford4Brent5Bristol6Calderdale7Cardiff8Croydon9Derby10Ealing11Enfield12Hackney13Haring...
Answered 8 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordCounter-terrorism: FinanceHome OfficeTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71458More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much her Department has provided to local authorities to distribute as grants under the Prevent scheme in 2024-25; and what the budget is for 2025-26.
Answer: The Home Office provides Prevent funding to those local authorities (LAs) assessed to have the highest threat and risk from terrorism. This funding can be used by LAs in support of dedicated Prevent posts, with Prevent coordinators employed by the local a...
Answered 9 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordChinese Embassy: Planning PermissionHome OfficeTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 71457More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 8 July 2025 to Question HL8772 on Chinese Embassy: Planning Permission, through what mechanism her Department had access to the unredacted drawings.
Answer: It would not be appropriate to comment in detail on issues of national security, but as set out in the written representations by the Home Secretary and the Foreign Secretary to the Planning Inspectorate, we have carefully considered the breadth of nation...
Answered 8 Sept 2025
Original Parliament record
Published records only — not a full account of an MP’s work. How we work →