King’s Speech 2026: Housing, communities and local government

Approximate time to read: 16 minutes

This briefing explores what announcements the government could make in the King’s Speech on 13 May 2026 about housing, communities and local government.

The government committed to several housing, planning and local governance reforms during the 2024–26 parliamentary session. In January 2026, it published a draft Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill. The draft legislation proposed making commonhold the “default tenure” for new flats by placing a statutory restriction on granting or assigning long leases of new flats. It also proposed capping ground rents in older leases at £250 annually, reducing to a “peppercorn” (zero financial value) after 40 years, and abolishing forfeiture and replacing it with a statutory lease-enforcement scheme. The government also outlined reforms to the right to buy scheme, including proposals to increase the minimum eligibility period before tenants can apply to buy their home.

Additionally, the government proposed a remediation bill intended to accelerate the removal of unsafe cladding and strengthen protections for residents. The planned measures would introduce a legal duty on landlords to remediate unsafe cladding, set out clearer responsibilities for identifying buildings that require work and determining liability. The government also proposed creating a backstop to ensure works are completed where necessary.

The government has also discussed potential planning and local government reforms. These include removing the cap on costs for groups bringing a judicial review against nationally significant infrastructure projects, introducing a mandatory code of conduct for local authorities in England, and giving mayoral strategic authorities in England the power to introduce a visitor levy for overnight stays.

This briefing has been prepared to assist members of the House of Lords in the debates on the King’s Speech. It draws upon material from the public domain and does not constitute official information about the government’s intentions or provide a complete list of bills to be announced.