The call for evidence for the Seventh National Action Plan for Open Government (NAP7) was undertaken by Cabinet Office to assess the potential for the co-creation of open government commitments, but did not adopt any specific policy proposals, and the development of commitments is currently ongoing. MHCLG is keeping the Local Transparency Code under review in the context of wider policy relating to local government accountability including reforms to the local audit system and simplifying local authority accounting.

The Single Data List (SDL) is a list of all the datasets that local government must submit to central government. The SDL is reviewed and updated annually. The Local Government Transparency Code 2015 sets transparency requirements for local authorities. The Government has no current plans to update the SDL or the Transparency Code in response to HM Treasury's Sustainability Reporting Guidance 2026-27, which relates to central government. Local authorities are subject to their own reporting and transparency requirements on sustainability and reducing waste.

The list of externally commissioned research is currently being reviewed and updated, with the aim of reissuing an updated list in autumn 2026 on gov.uk.

The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act 2026 requires mayors who exercise police and crime commissioner functions to appoint a Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime.

Mayors who do not exercise police and crime commissioner functions are not required to appoint a deputy mayor for policing or any other function.

Mayors can appoint commissioners to support them within a given area of competence, including public safety, but they are not required to do so.

The Government’s current devolution framework does not provide mayoral combined authorities with responsibility for public utilities. Strategic Authorities hold functions in defined areas, as set out in legislation and the devolution framework. Any further devolution of functions would be considered on a case-by-case basis as part of the Government’s forward approach to devolution which will be set out in the Rewiring the State delivery plan. This will support the shift of power, funding and accountability from Whitehall to local leaders to drive growth, improve public services and give communities greater control over their future.

The Prime Minister has announced that Baroness Casey's Independent Commission on Adult Social Care will now report by summer 2027. The Government intends to publish a substantive response as soon as possible following publication of the commission's final report.

The previous two-phase approach has been replaced by a single, accelerated process. Baroness Casey will therefore provide one final set of recommendations by summer 2027, rather than publishing an interim report followed by a later final report. In the meantime, the Government is continuing to take forward work on Baroness Casey's initial recommendations and wider adult social care reform.

The requirements for noise assessments and/or the setting of noise limits are for local planning authorities to decide as part of their planning responsibilities, unless installations fall within the specifications of permitted development rights, where defined standards apply.

Further to the answer given to Question UIN 20437, MHCLG is unaware of any guidance issued.

The requirements for noise assessments and/or the setting of noise limits are for local planning authorities to decide as part of their planning responsibilities, unless installations fall within the specifications of permitted development rights, where defined standards apply.

The Local Government Transparency Code 2015 states that public data should be published in a format and under a licence that permits open reuse, including for commercial and research purposes, to maximise its value to the public. The department is keeping the Code under review in the context of wider policy relating to local government accountability including reforms to the local audit system and commitments to simplify local authority accounting.

The previous Conservative government introduced national fee caps of £500 for new pavement licence applications and £350 for renewals, which came into force on 31 March 2024. This remains unchanged.

We have committed to taking forward the recommendations of the Licensing Taskforce related to outdoor spaces by increasing the maximum term length for pavement licenses and consulting on the case for a minimum term length.

The department retains information from public consultations/calls for evidence only for as long as is necessary to fulfil the relevant business need and statutory requirements. The department's standard retention period for public consultation responses is two years from the consultation closing date, although this is a guideline rather than a fixed requirement, and the final retention period is determined on a case-by-case basis.

Retention decisions must comply with data protection principles, including data minimisation and storage limitation, ensuring personal data is kept only for as long as necessary. For example, confidential or sensitive personal information may require a shorter retention period and may be deleted or anonymised once analysis is complete.

The applicable retention period for personal information is normally set out in the published consultation documentation.

Similarly decisions on retention of summaries of responses will be determined on a case-by-case basis in line with the departmental retention policy. Retention decisions are made by officials responsible for the consultation/call for evidence in consultation with the department’s records management and data protection teams.

Government responses to consultations are published in line with Government Consultation Principles Guidance Consultation principles: guidance - GOV.UK . The Government does not routinely publish details of individual respondents to calls for evidence.

The department retains information from public consultations/calls for evidence only for as long as is necessary to fulfil the relevant business need and statutory requirements. The department's standard retention period for public consultation responses is two years from the consultation closing date, although this is a guideline rather than a fixed requirement, and the final retention period is determined on a case-by-case basis.

Retention decisions must comply with data protection principles, including data minimisation and storage limitation, ensuring personal data is kept only for as long as necessary. For example, confidential or sensitive personal information may require a shorter retention period and may be deleted or anonymised once analysis is complete.

The applicable retention period for personal information is normally set out in the published consultation documentation.

Similarly decisions on retention of summaries of responses will be determined on a case-by-case basis in line with the departmental retention policy. Retention decisions are made by officials responsible for the consultation/call for evidence in consultation with the department’s records management and data protection teams.

Government responses to consultations are published in line with Government Consultation Principles Guidance Consultation principles: guidance - GOV.UK . The Government does not routinely publish details of individual respondents to calls for evidence.

The Government recognises the important role that pubs and restaurants play in local communities and the wider economy. The temporary easement introduced during the pandemic, which allowed on-trade premises to provide off-sales without a variation, expired on 31 March 2025.

Licensed businesses wishing to offer off-sales or takeaway pints can apply to vary their existing premises licence through existing processes under the Licensing Act 2003 for £89. New licence applicants already have the ability to request a licence for both ‘on’ and ‘off’ sales at no additional cost than if they were to apply for a licence for on-sales only.

Whilst we do not currently have plans to re-introduce the easement, we continue to consider how the licensing framework can better support hospitality businesses while maintaining appropriate safeguards.

As set out in the answer of 14 July 2026 to Question 14926, departments have been asked to contribute 1p in every £1 of their capital budgets to fund this Government’s Defence Investment Plan.

Revisions to departmental capital budgets will be reported to Parliament through the usual estimates process.

The Local Government DEL budget does not include capital expenditure and therefore no Local Government CDEL allocation is held.

My Department was responsible for managing the UK’s participation in nine 2014-2020 Interreg Programmes, which have now closed. My Department has not been notified of any financial correction applied by the European Commission or the European Court of Auditors.

A total of 4,573 financial corrections were applied across the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) 2014-20 England Programme, with a cumulative value of £73,454,209.

The Department keeps its workplace attendance arrangements under regular review and is satisfied that staff assigned to the Darlington campus have adequate access to office accommodation to support required attendance levels. Attendance expectations are applied alongside agreed workplace attendance exceptions where appropriate. Based on the most recent quarter, the attendance target for Darlington was 28%, reflecting the impact of approved exceptions, and actual attendance was 29%, exceeding the target for that period.

The Department's current workplace attendance expectations for Darlington are that Senior Civil Servants spend an average of 60% of their working time in the office, while junior colleagues are expected to spend an average of 40% of their working time in the office.

MHCLG holds information relating to new spending proposals that are subject to departmental approval processes, including in areas such as property, advertising, consultancy, technology and commercial activity.

The information held will vary depending on the nature of the approval proposal but will likely include details such as the contract value, duration and supplier information. Relevant approvals and assurances required as part of departmental governance processes are also captured. Consultancy and professional services spending is subject to specific approval arrangements within the Department.

In MHCLG savings are recorded by the Department’s Commercial Team in line with the cross government methodology agreed by Cabinet Office, Government Commercial and Finance Functions, this captures and reports savings over the duration of contacts. In 2025/26 an additional 212 individual savings records were added to the system in addition to those recorded in prior years. Savings were generated through a combination of competitive tendering and negotiation/renegotiation of contracts and scopes of works. This includes where appropriate the use of should cost models in line with the Government’s Sourcing Playbooks.