Every parliamentary written question tabled by Charlotte Cane this session, with the full answer and department. Back to the MP page.
Showing 61–80 of 324 · this parliament
What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the Ely Area Capacity Enhancement Scheme on the (a) economy and (b) environment.
The Department recognises the benefits that the Ely Area Capacity Enhancement scheme could bring to the region. The previous government stated their support for the project but did not provide funding for it to progress.
Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help maintain the Fens.
Over 600,000 people live in the Fens, the region generates over £58 billion of benefits. Sustaining the system is getting more challenging in the face of a changing climate.Through Fens 2100+ the Environment Agency (EA) aims to transform how it maintains its assets and invest in flood and coastal resilience. The EA has invested £7.6m million in asset maintenance in 25-26 but is aware that a long-term investment plan is needed to ensure the Fens continues to thrive. In Spring 2026, Fens 2100+ will be launching a strategic case and 15-point Partnership action plan for continued investment and maintenance in the Fens.
What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of pharmaceutical pollution in waterways on public health.
The Environment Agency routinely monitors for a wide range of chemicals as part of their chemical surveillance of inland water bodies. In addition, the UK Health Security Agency assesses the potential public health impact of these.
Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department plans to monitor levels of pharmaceutical pollution in waterways.
The Environment Agency (EA) routinely monitors for over 100 pharmaceuticals within rivers using semi-quantitative methods that are routinely updated as new risks are identified by the EA's Prioritisation and Early Warning System (PEWS). The EA works with the water industry on the Chemicals Investigation Programme (CIP), which considers pharmaceuticals in sewage effluent. The Government has been working with water companies under their Chemical Investigations Programme (CIP), to improve the evidence base on the fate of contaminants following treatment processes. The current phase of the Chemicals Investigation Programme (CIP4) includes a specific project to monitor pharmaceuticals in wastewater. As a founding member of the Pharmaceuticals in the Environment (PiE) group, the EA advises on policy initiatives that will reduce pharmaceutical contamination of surface waters.
Media and Sport, what recent discussions she has had with stakeholders on the potential merits of extending the Listed Places of Worship Scheme beyond March 2026.
The Minister for Heritage and her officials have had numerous conversations with stakeholders about the Listed Places of Worship scheme. The scheme is funded until March 2026 or when the budget is spent, whichever is earlier.The future of the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme after March 2026 will be announced when the outcome of the Spending Review and business planning processes have completed.
Whether she plans to reform business rates for the hospitality sector.
In April 2026, the Government will introduce permanently lower business rates multipliers for retail, hospitality, and leisure properties with ratable values below £500,000. This permanent tax cut will ensure that eligible hospitality businesses, including pubs, benefit from much-needed certainty and support. Ahead of the new multipliers being introduced, the Government prevented RHL business rates relief from ending in April 2025, extending it for one year at 40 per cent up to a cash cap of £110,000 per business. Business rates are a vital source of Local Government funding and support critical local services, including children's and adult social care. As such, the Government has no plans to abolish business rates for pubs. VAT is a broad-based tax on consumption that applies to most goods and services.
Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make an assessment of the potential implications for her policies on flooding of Aviva's report entitled Building Future Communities, published on 14 October 2025.
I recently met with Aviva's CEO of UK General Insurance at the second Insurance Roundtable on 13 October and welcome ongoing engagement to improve support to policyholders. This Government has committed record investment in flood and coastal erosion defences and introduced the most significant change in flood and coastal erosion funding policy for nearly fifteen years. Through our new floods funding policy, we will invest at least £300 million in natural flood management over ten years – the highest figure to date for the floods programme. The Government is committed to building the homes the country needs while maintaining the highest levels of flood protection. We intend to consult on planning policy later this year, including policies on flood risk and SuDS. As flooding policy is a devolved matter, the information provided relates to England only.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps her Department is taking with (a) retailers and (b) police forces to tackle organised shoplifting.
Shop theft continues to increase at an unacceptable level. We will not stand for this.We are ensuring the right powers are in place. Through the Crime and Policing Bill, we are bringing in a new offence of assaulting a retail worker to protect the hardworking and dedicated staff that work in stores. We are also removing the legislation which makes shop theft of and below £200 a summary-only offence, sending a clear message that any level of shop theft is illegal and will be taken seriously.Additionally, we are providing over £7 million over the next three years to support the police and retailers tackle retail crime, including continuing to fund a specialist policing team – in partnership with the retail sector - to better understand the tactics used by organised retail crime gangs and identify more offenders.Tackling retail crime requires a partnership approach between policing representatives and business. The previous Minister for Crime and Policing launched the ‘Tackling Retail Crime Together Strategy’, which was jointly developed by the police and industry and aims to provide a collaborative and evidence-based approach to preventing retail crime, including organised shop theft.
What steps his Department plans to take to support the hospitality sector.
We recognise that hospitality businesses are at the beating heart of communities, providing not just a place to socialise but essential services and local jobs. That’s why we’re investing £440,000 with Pub is The Hub to help rural pubs diversify, aiming to support rural communities, create new jobs and services.In April, we launched a Taskforce to review premises licensing and develop proposals for a more balanced system that safeguards communities while supporting responsible businesses. These reforms form part of the Small Business Strategy, which is designed to tackle late payments, improve access to finance and reduce unnecessary regulatory burdens.We are also creating a fairer business rates system, including permanently lower rates for retail, hospitality and leisure properties with a rateable value under £500,000. We continue to work closely with the sector through the Hospitality Sector Council to address challenges.
What assessment he has made of access to dentistry in the Ely and East Cambridgeshire constituency.
Data on dentistry is available in the Dental statistics – England 2023/24 dataset, published by the NHS Business Services Authority on 22 August 2024, and available at the following link:https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/statistical-collections/dental-england/dental-statistics-england-202324The data for the NHS Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Integrated Care Board (ICB), which includes Ely and Cambridgeshire, shows that 27% of adults were seen by a National Health Service dentist in the previous 24 months up to June 2025, compared to 40% in England, and that 55% of children were seen by an NHS dentist in the previous 12 months up to June 2025, compared to 57% in England.We have asked ICBs to commission extra urgent dental appointments to make sure that patients with urgent dental needs can get the treatment they require. ICBs have been making extra appointments available from April 2025.ICBs are recruiting posts through the Golden Hello scheme. This recruitment incentive will see dentists receiving payments of £20,000 to work in those areas that need them most for three years.We are committed to reforming the dental contract, with a focus on matching resources to need, improving access, promoting prevention, and rewarding dentists fairly, while enabling the whole dental team to work to the top of their capability. The Government is committed to achieving fundamental contract reform by the end of this Parliament.
What information her Department holds on the number of children that have required access to free school meals in each of the last five years in Ely and East Cambridgeshire constituency.
The department publishes data on free school meals (FSM) in its annual ‘Schools, pupils and their characteristics’ publication, available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-pupils-and-their-characteristics/2024-25. The most recent data was published on 5 June, and the next publication is planned for summer 2026.To access FSM data for the Ely and East Cambridgeshire constituency for the 2024/25 academic year, refer to the file titled 'School level underlying data 2025 (CSV, 22 MB)', located in the 'Additional supporting files' section.To access data from previous academic years, visit the 'Releases in this series' section on the publication website. Then, locate the 'School level underlying data' file under 'Additional supporting files'.
Pursuant to the Answer of 7 November 2025 to Question 86919 on Railways: East of England, if he will take steps to estimate the funding required for Network Rail to undertake detailed planning for the Ely Area Capacity Enhancement Scheme.
The previous government had committed to a number of projects that were unfunded, including the Ely Area Capacity Enhancement (EACE) scheme. EACE will be kept under review. It is a worthy scheme that will be considered for potential progression in the future as funding becomes available.
What steps her Department is taking to progress the Ely Area Capacity Enhancement Scheme.
The previous government had committed to a number of projects that were unfunded, including the Ely Area Capacity Enhancement (EACE) scheme. EACE will be kept under review. It is a worthy scheme that will be considered for potential progression in the future as funding becomes available.
If she will make an assessment of the cost to the (a) freight sector and (b) economy of the time taken to commence work on the Ely Area Capacity Enhancement Scheme.
The previous government had committed to a number of projects that were unfunded, including the Ely Area Capacity Enhancement (EACE) scheme. The EACE was assessed as having a Benefit Cost Ratio of 4.89 against a cost estimate of £489m at Outline Business Case stage, at the point the programme was paused by the previous Government in 2022.
How many civil servants in her Department are working on the Ely Area Capacity Enhancement Scheme.
The previous government had committed to a number of projects that were unfunded, including the Ely Area Capacity Enhancement (EACE) scheme. EACE will be kept under review. It is a worthy scheme that will be considered for potential progression in the future as funding becomes available.
When she last met with freight companies to discuss the Ely Area Capacity Enhancement Scheme.
The Rail Minister regularly meets with the freight industry to discuss a range of issues. The previous government had committed to a number of projects that were unfunded, including the Ely Area Capacity Enhancement (EACE) EACE will be kept under review. It is a worthy scheme that will be considered for potential progression in the future as funding becomes available.
Whether she has considered allowing railcards to be used for (a) weekly, (b) monthly and (c) annual rail tickets.
Season tickets already provide significant savings to the cost of rail travel, which can exceed the savings provided by railcards in many cases. Although there are no current plans to extend the validity of railcards, the Government recognises their value. That is why the Railways Bill gives Great British Railway the flexibility to update and evolve concessionary offers as passenger needs change. The 16-17 Saver and the Jobcentre Plus Travel Discount Card already permit holders to purchase discounted season tickets.
Pursuant to the Answer of 31 October 2025 to Question 85514 on Social Security Benefits: Children, what those levers are.
As outlined in the response by my Rt. Hon. Friend the Minister for Social Security and Disability to Question UIN 85514 on 31 October 2025, we will be publishing our Child Poverty Strategy in the Autumn. The Strategy will look at levers across four key themes of increasing incomes, reducing essential costs, increasing financial resilience, and better local support especially in the early years. This will build on the reform plans underway across government and work underway in Devolved Governments.
Pursuant to the Answer of 7 November 2025 to Question 86918 on Legal Aid Scheme: Ely and East Cambridgeshire, by what amount each procurement area exceeds the required minimum number of legal aid providers; and what proportion of Ely and East Cambridgeshire constituency falls under each procurement area.
As explained in the answer to Question 86918, procurement areas are different for each category of civil law. The table below sets out details about which procurement area Ely and East Cambridgeshire falls into for each civil category and the number of providers in each of those procurement areas exceeding the minimum number. This data is sourced from contract and schedule data dated 29 September 2025. Category of Law Relevant Procurement Area Providers in excess of the minimum numberClaims Against Public AuthoritiesMidlands and East of England7Community CareEastern3DiscriminationMidlands & East3EducationMidlands & East2Housing and DebtCambridgeshire1ImmigrationMidlands and East of England42FamilyCambridgeshire4Clinical NegligenceMidlands and East of England11Mental HealthMidlands & East23Public LawMidlands and East of England13Welfare BenefitsMidlands & East2 The entirety of the Ely and East Cambridgeshire constituency falls under each procurement area listed. It is the procurement area which will be different depending on the category of law.In addition to local providers, national services are also available to your constituents. These include early legal advice through the Housing Loss Prevention Advice Service, and telephone-based support for housing, debt, education, and discrimination issues via Civil Legal Advice.
If she will commission data on the number of school-age pupils with dyslexia.
The department is committed to improving support for all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), including those with dyslexia. The SEND code of practice makes it clear that meeting the needs of a child with SEN does not require a diagnostic label. Instead, we expect teachers to monitor the progress of all pupils and put support in place where needed.Currently, the department commissions data on the number of school-age pupils whose primary SEN is Specific Learning Disabilities, which includes dyslexia.There are several assessments in place which measure progress and help teachers identify where pupils may require additional support with literacy. These include the Phonics Screening Check and end of KS1 non-statutory and KS2 statutory assessments.The department will introduce a mandatory reading test for all pupils in Year 8 so we can ensure children who are struggling do not fall through the cracks, or that those doing well at the end of primary maintain their standard.