3 Jun 2026·Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs·Answered
AskedFood and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure the domestic food production to supply ratio remains above at least 60 per cent during the next 20 years.
ReplyIn the recently published Land Use Framework, the Government made a clear, long-term commitment to maintain overall food production in England by increasing farm productivity and profitability. The Government will support this ambition through a range of ...
29 May 2026·Department for Business and Trade·Answered
AskedWhether he plans to introduce (a) exemptions and (b) alternative arrangements for specialist steel products that are not manufactured in the UK under the UK steel trade safeguard measures from 1 July 2
ReplyThe product scope of the measure is designed to only cover steel requirements that can be met in the UK. In some instances, this isn’t feasible for technical reasons and quotas have been set with the aim of allowing continued availability of these goods t...
29 May 2026·Department for Business and Trade·Answered
AskedWhat assessment he has made of the potential impact of the UK steel trade safeguard measures due to come into force on 1 July 2026 on specialist steel importers supplying the aerospace, Formula One, re
ReplyThis Government recognises the value of downstream, including specialist importers for defence and aerospace, alongside a resilient steel sector. The steel measure has been designed to strike a balance between securing steelmaking while maintaining secure...
29 May 2026·Department for Business and Trade·Answered
AskedWhat discussions she has had with HMRC on the capacity of customs systems to distinguish between generic steel products and specialist aerospace-grade steel imports under the UK steel trade safeguard m
ReplyThe steel trade measures have been designed, as far as is technically possible, only to cover steel requirements that can be met in the UK. Quotas have been set with the aim of allowing continued availability of goods to UK downstream users without unnece...
20 May 2026·Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs·Answered
AskedFood and Rural Affairs, what enforcement mechanisms are planned to ensure compliance with a potential trail hunting ban.
ReplyThis Government is committed to introducing an effective ban on trail hunting. On 26 March 2026, Defra launched a Consultation on Proposals to Prohibit Trail Hunting in England and Wales seeking views on how to deliver a ban. The approach to implementing ...
20 May 2026·Department for Transport·Answered
AskedWhat assessment her Department has made of the potential role of Digital Twin technology in supporting the delivery of an integrated transport system in the UK.
ReplyAs outlined in the Transport AI Action Plan (2025) and the Transport Climate Adaptation Strategy (2025), digital twins hold vast potential to improve the performance and resilience of the whole transport system, through better integration, data sharing an...
20 May 2026·Department for Transport·Answered
AskedWhat data her Department holds on the number of reported incidents of (a) physical assault and (b) verbal abuse against bus drivers in England in each of the last five years; and what steps her Department is ta
ReplyThe Department does not hold this data. Employers are responsible for ensuring the health, safety and welfare of their employees, and must comply with relevant health and safety legislation. Where people report incidents to the police, under the Home Offi...
20 May 2026·Department for Work and Pensions·Answered
AskedWhat recent assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of introducing a maximum workplace temperature.
ReplyThe Government is committed to ensuring workplaces are safe in the modern world and in ‘Next Steps to Make Work Pay’, we committed to look at how to modernise health and safety guidance for extreme temperatures. As part of this, the Health and Safety Exec...
20 May 2026·Department for Energy Security and Net Zero·Answered
AskedWhat assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of permanently moving social and environmental levies from electricity bills into general taxation on (a) average household ene
ReplyAt the Autumn Budget, HMG took £150 of costs off energy bills, partially achieved through moving 75% of the cost of the domestic Renewables Obligation (RO) to the Exchequer. This arrangement will continue for the next 3 years. The transfer of these RO cos...
20 May 2026·Department for Energy Security and Net Zero·Answered
AskedWhat assessment his Department has made of how the replacement of circulator pumps could be more effectively reflected in Government energy efficiency advice and guidance for households.
ReplyThe Government keeps its energy efficiency guidance for households under regular review to ensure it reflects the full range of measures available. While current guidance does not provide specific advice in relation to circulator pumps, ecodesign regulati...
20 May 2026·Treasury·Answered
AskedWhat assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the planned end of the zero rate of VAT on energy-saving materials on the uptake of domestic renewable energy and energy efficiency installations.
ReplyThis Government is committed to improving the quality and sustainability of our housing stock, through improvements such as low carbon heating, insulation, solar panels and batteries. This will be vital to making the UK more energy resilient and meeting o...
22 Apr 2026·Home Office·Answered
AskedWhat guidance her Department has issued to police forces on assessing the risk of self-harm of people released under investigation.
ReplyDecisions on release and safeguarding are operational matters for individual and operationally independent police forces, taken in accordance with the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, its Codes of Practice, and national professional guidance. His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary, Fire and Rescue Services regularly inspects police forces, including on how they protect vulnerable people.The Home Office hold statistics on the numbers of individuals Released Under Investigation by duration in the Police Custody and Pre-Charge Bail release, which covers the years 2022/23 to 2024/25:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/69d50f114d39faba1f3b27a9/released-under-investigation-data-tables-year-ending-march-2025.odsPrior to this, for 2020/21 and 2021/22 the Released Under Investigation statistics were published as Experimental Statistics.https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/61b74f1fe90e070445fd782c/released-under-investigation-data-tables-police-powers-and-procedures-year-ending-march-2021.xlsxhttps://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/636e3e4a8fa8f559604a0b2f/pre-charge-bail-statistics-police-powers-and-procedure-year-ending-march-2022.xlsx.odsDue to the provisional and incomplete nature of this dataset, statistics on Released Under Investigation have been designated as ‘Official Statistics in Development’, to acknowledge that further development is ongoing to improve data quality.Additionally, as different numbers of police forces have been able to provide Released Under Investigation data in each year, any trends on the number of people who were on Released Under Investigation for longer than a year should be interpreted with caution.
22 Apr 2026·Home Office·Answered
AskedWhat information her Department holds on the numbers of people who have been released under investigation for more than a year during the last five years.
ReplyDecisions on release and safeguarding are operational matters for individual and operationally independent police forces, taken in accordance with the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, its Codes of Practice, and national professional guidance. His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary, Fire and Rescue Services regularly inspects police forces, including on how they protect vulnerable people.The Home Office hold statistics on the numbers of individuals Released Under Investigation by duration in the Police Custody and Pre-Charge Bail release, which covers the years 2022/23 to 2024/25:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/69d50f114d39faba1f3b27a9/released-under-investigation-data-tables-year-ending-march-2025.odsPrior to this, for 2020/21 and 2021/22 the Released Under Investigation statistics were published as Experimental Statistics.https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/61b74f1fe90e070445fd782c/released-under-investigation-data-tables-police-powers-and-procedures-year-ending-march-2021.xlsxhttps://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/636e3e4a8fa8f559604a0b2f/pre-charge-bail-statistics-police-powers-and-procedure-year-ending-march-2022.xlsx.odsDue to the provisional and incomplete nature of this dataset, statistics on Released Under Investigation have been designated as ‘Official Statistics in Development’, to acknowledge that further development is ongoing to improve data quality.Additionally, as different numbers of police forces have been able to provide Released Under Investigation data in each year, any trends on the number of people who were on Released Under Investigation for longer than a year should be interpreted with caution.
17 Apr 2026·Department for Culture, Media and Sport·Answered
AskedMedia and Sport, what recent discussions she has had with the BBC about the potential effect of staff reductions on local and regional news coverage.
ReplyThe BBC is a vital national institution and an engine of the nations and regions. In that context, this news is concerning for the BBC workforce who are facing significant uncertainty, and for the sector as a whole. The BBC is delivering significant savings, which requires difficult decisions to be made independent of the Government. The BBC have stated that there will be more information on their plans later this year. Looking ahead, the Charter Review aims to deliver a BBC that is sustainably funded in a way that sets the BBC on a path to thrive until well into the latter half of this century.
10 Apr 2026·Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs·Answered
AskedFood and Rural Affairs, what data her Department holds on trespassing incidents in waterways in quarries.
ReplyDefra holds no data on trespassing in waterways in quarries, but the Mining Remediation Authority may hold some information on this matter.
10 Apr 2026·Department for Transport·Answered
AskedWhat assessment her Department has made of the potential implications for her policies of Transport Focus’s document entitled Your Bus Journey 2025, published on 25 March 2026.
ReplyThe Government is committed to improving local bus services for passengers and the Department for Transport welcomes the valuable insight provided by Transport Focus's 'Your Bus Journey' report, published on 25 March 2026. We were encouraged to see overall bus passenger satisfaction rising to 85%, and the report’s findings will continue to help inform the Department’s work to drive better bus services across the country.
10 Apr 2026·Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs·Answered
AskedFood and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of levels of fly-tipping in woodland areas in the last 12 months.
ReplyThe Government has made no specific assessment of fly-tipping levels in woodland areas over the last 12 months. Local authorities in England are required to report fly-tipping incidents to Defra, which are published annually, which can be found on: Fly-tipping statistics for England - GOV.UK Local authorities are required to report to Defra the size of a fly-tipping incident, its waste type and the land-type where it occurred. However, this does not cover if the area is a particular habitat or a woodland.
10 Apr 2026·Department for Science, Innovation and Technology·Answered
AskedInnovation and Technology, what recent discussions he has had with mobile network operators on the rollout of standalone 5G.
ReplySince her appointment in September 2025, the Minister for Digital Economy, the Minister responsible for digital infrastructure, has met with the Chief Executive Officers of all the mobile network operators to discuss a range of issues, including digital infrastructure rollout, the market, and challenges the sector is facing.All network operators have committed significant investment in line with Government's ambition for standalone 5G to be available in all populated areas by 2030. Government continues to work closely with operators to identify and address barriers to deployment where appropriate to do so, to support investment and improve mobile coverage and connectivity nationwide.
10 Apr 2026·Department for Education·Answered
AskedHow many additional childcare places have been created due to funding from her Department's National Wraparound Childcare Programme in (a) Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard constituency and (b) England.
ReplyFollowing the launch of the national wraparound childcare programme in September 2024, over 105,000 places were made available by November 2025, supporting more families to access the childcare they need. The department does not hold delivery data broken down to constituency level.
10 Apr 2026·Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government·Answered
AskedCommunities and Local Government, whether his Department is taking steps to encourage councils to reduce their ownership of (a) unused and (b) underused office space.
ReplyLocal authorities are independent bodies responsible for managing their own estates. Decisions regarding council offices are therefore for local authorities to make rather than MHCLG.