Every parliamentary written question tabled by Joshua Reynolds this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 201–220 of 464 · this parliament
How many directors with responsibility for human resources are employed across government departments and their executive agencies; and how many of those directors hold professional HR qualifications from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development and equivalent professional bodies.
We are unable to answer this question as this data is not centrally held by the Cabinet Office.
Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the 10% sales commission on park home residents.
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 97962 on 15 December 2025.
Communities and Local Government, what discussions he has had with park home resident groups on the sales commission rate in the last 12 months.
I attended a meeting of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Park Homes on 10 February 2025 to hear the sector’s views on the commission payment.At that meeting, I announced the government’s intention to seek further evidence to clarify the rationale for the payment of the commission and other aspects of the existing legislation. We will set out plans in due course.
What steps his Department is taking to help reduce regulatory barriers for exporting businesses through digitisation.
DBT is taking steps to reduce regulatory barriers for exporting businesses by supporting the uptake of digitalised trade processes. Through the Digital Trade Corridors programme, focused on key European markets such as France and Germany, we are identifying regulatory and policy barriers and encouraging businesses to adopt digital tools. This is complemented by an SME capability programme helping smaller firms benefit from digitalisation. Internationally, the UK works with partners, including through UNCITRAL, the WTO, and the Commonwealth, as well as bilaterally through Trade Committees and Dialogues, to promote legal and regulatory harmonisation.
What digital resources his Department provides to support small and medium-sized enterprises with exporting.
The Department for Business and Trade has integrated its support for SMEs in a single, accessible place – the Business Growth Service – making it easier and quicker for businesses to access the right support at the right time.Business.gov.uk hosts our online export offer and is the route into DBT’s wider network of export support. Businesses can access a wealth of information on exporting, including advice on paperwork, rules of origin, customs duties, and regulations.The support available also includes the Business Academy, which offers free online training through webinars to help businesses build market knowledge and export capability.
What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the repayment term for post-2012 student loans being set at 40 years on (a) graduates in lower-paid or insecure employment, (b) social mobility and (c) students from lower-income backgrounds.
The repayment term for Plan 2 loans is 30 years. They were designed and implemented by previous governments. Students in England starting degrees under this government have different arrangements. The student loan system is designed to protect borrowers, and repayments are determined by income, not the amount borrowed or the rate of interest. Borrowers only start repaying their student loan once earnings exceed the threshold, after which they pay 9% of income above that level. To protect lower earners, if a borrower’s earnings drop, so do their repayments, and if earnings fall below the repayment threshold, then they repay nothing at all. After 30 years any outstanding loan and interest is cancelled at the end of the loan term, and debt is never passed on to family members or descendants. A borrower on Plan 2 entering repayment at age 21 would have any outstanding loan amount written off at age 51. No commercial loan offers this level of protection.
What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the student loan repayment threshold remaining at its current level on (a) graduates in lower-paid or insecure employment, (b) social mobility and (c) students from lower-income backgrounds.
It was announced at the Autumn Budget that the repayment and interest thresholds for Plan 2 student loans will be frozen from the 2026/27 financial year until April 2030, when they will increase annually by inflation.The department has produced the attached analysis regarding the impact of freezing the repayment and interest thresholds.If a borrower is earning above the repayment threshold and their income stays the same, then their repayments will remain the same. If a borrower is not earning above the repayment threshold and their income remains the same, they will continue to not be required to make any repayments.
What level of recurrent funding has been identified to fund new treatments through NHS England’s Clinical Priorities Advisory Group Prioritisation meeting.
The Clinical Priorities Advisory Group is an advisory committee that makes recommendations on the relative priority of treatments to be commissioned subject to the available discretionary funding. It is not a decision-making body and does not allocate funds or have a budget for approving new treatments. Further information is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/commissioning/cpag/
What the (a) total number of full-time equivalent customer service staff employed by HM Revenue and Customs was in each of the last ten financial years and (b) number of these positions that were based in (i) call centres, (ii) face-to-face service locations and (iii) digital support teams.
HMRC operates a flexible resourcing model, meaning staff are deployed across different types of customer service work throughout the year. This approach allows the department to direct people to the areas of highest demand, whether that is helplines, post correspondence, webchat, or other customer contact channels. Because staff move between these activities as demand changes, HMRC does not separate out staffing into specific categories. However, HMRC can provide overall full‑time equivalent figures for Customer Services from 2019-20 to 2024-25, noting that these staff may work across several frontline customer service functions depending on business need. HMRC is unable to provide figures prior to 2019-20 because doing so would exceed the cost threshold for answering written parliamentary questions. This is due to the information, where it is available, being held across multiple systems that do not align with current reporting definitions, and producing the data would require significant separate interrogation and analysis. Average number of frontline customer service staff (000):2019-20: 20.02020-21: 19.62021-22: 19.22022-23: 19.42023-24: 18.22024-25: 17.4 Most customers are satisfied with the service they are receiving from HMRC. Satisfaction with phone, webchat and digital services was 80.0% to the end of November 2025-26, meeting their 80% customer satisfaction target. Customer satisfaction with digital services is consistently above 80% (82.9% up to the end of November 2025-26). Notes:Staff numbers represent averages of monthly data.Numbers include permanent and temporary staff for HMRC Customer Services Group. Numbers are for full-time equivalents.
What estimate his Department has made of the average time taken to complete earnings assessments for carers in receipt of Carer's Allowance who undertake part-time self-employment; and if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing monthly online income reporting for self-employed carers to streamline the assessment process.
For most self-employed earners the department relies on their accounts to calculate the relevant weekly net earnings figure for Carer’s Allowance (CA) purposes. The modernisation of DWP IT systems will provide the foundation to deliver DWP’s long-term strategy to improve how earnings are treated in CA. This is being explored through discovery work to explore potential solutions including the automation of earnings. The department does not collect data on the average time taken to complete earnings assessments for unpaid carers in receipt of CA who are self-employed.
What steps he is taking to reduce the backlog for NHS England’s Clinical Priorities Advisory Group Prioritisation meeting.
The next Clinical Priorities Advisory Group (CPAG) prioritisation meeting is planned for spring 2026, where policies that are ready and require investment decisions to be taken will be considered. It is expected up to 20 such policies will be considered at the next meeting.CPAG also continues to meet monthly to consider policy and service specifications that are categorised as cost saving or cost neutral.
How many times NHS England’s Clinical Priorities Advisory Group Prioritisation meeting happens each year; and when the next meeting will be.
NHS England’s Clinical Priorities Advisory Group (CPAG) meets monthly to consider policy and service specifications that are categorised as cost saving or cost neutral. CPAG prioritisation meetings are held annually. The next prioritisation meeting is planned for spring 2026.
Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department plans to review the proposed timelines to implement the safety measures required for the transition to alternative refrigerants with flammability or toxicity characteristics in the consultation entitled Amending the hydrofluorocarbon phasedown schedule, published on 5 November 2025.
Information submitted through the consultation, which closed on 17 December 2024, is being used to inform our consideration of next steps. A response and an outline of next steps will be published on GOV.UK in due course. Other regulatory changes may be considered in the future in relation to fluorinated gases (which include hydrofluorocarbons). The UK Government, in collaboration with the Scottish and Welsh Governments, is committed to further exploring areas for reform considered out of scope of last year’s consultation. This includes assessing the situation regarding training on alternatives to fluorinated gases.
Food and Rural Affairs, when her Department plans to publish its response to the consultation entitled Amending the hydrofluorocarbon phasedown schedule, published on 5 November 2025.
Information submitted through the consultation, which closed on 17 December 2024, is being used to inform our consideration of next steps. A response and an outline of next steps will be published on GOV.UK in due course. Other regulatory changes may be considered in the future in relation to fluorinated gases (which include hydrofluorocarbons). The UK Government, in collaboration with the Scottish and Welsh Governments, is committed to further exploring areas for reform considered out of scope of last year’s consultation. This includes assessing the situation regarding training on alternatives to fluorinated gases.
What support his Department is providing to small and medium-sized exporters to maintain tariff relief secured under the US-UK Economic Prosperity Deal.
It was this government that got the first trade deal with the US, protecting British jobs and saving people money. We remain the only country to have secured a 10% tariff on cars within quota, agreed a 0% tariff on pharmaceutical exports to the US, and avoided the 50% global steel and aluminium tariff.The Department for Business and Trade has integrated its support for SMEs in a single, accessible place – the Business Growth Service – designed to help businesses across the UK start, scale, and succeed globally. UK businesses can access guidance on exporting, including to the US, via business.gov.uk.
If he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the UK-US Pharmaceuticals Deal concluded in December 2025 on (a) NHS procurement costs and (b) consumer access to affordable medicines before any provisions of that Deal take effect.
There are no current plans to publish an impact assessment or modelling on the United Kingdom and United States’ pharmaceutical trade deal. Further detail on the deal will be shared in due course.Tens of thousands of National Health Service patients will benefit from this deal, which will secure and expand access to vital drugs, and thereby safeguard our medicines supply chain.Costs will start smaller but will increase over time as the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) approves more life improving and lifesaving medicines. Total costs over the Spending Review period are expected to be approximately £1 billion. The final costs will depend on which medicines NICE recommends and the actual uptake of these.This deal is a vital investment that builds on the strength of our NHS and world leading life sciences sector, without taking essential funding from our frontline NHS services.
What plans he has to provide Parliament with the opportunity to scrutinise the US-UK Economic Prosperity Deal before its provisions take effect.
Any final agreement will be scrutinised by Parliament in line with established procedures. Any primary or secondary legislation required to implement an agreement will also be subject to standard legislative procedures.
What assessment he has made of the potential impact of trade negotiations with the United States under the US-UK Economic Prosperity Deal on UK food safety standards of agriculture provision.
On 8 May 2025, the UK Government announced a landmark economic deal with the US that included new reciprocal market access on beef – giving UK farmers a guaranteed quota for 13,000 metric tonnes of beef exports. All food imports into the UK, including those agreed with the US, must comply with all of the UK’s import requirements, including sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) rules. Decisions on food safety standards are always made in the interest of protecting human, animal or plant life or health in the UK.
What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the proposed increase in English language requirements to B2 level on Hong Kong families using the British National (Overseas) visa route where household members have varying levels of educational attainment.
The Government remains steadfast in its support for members of the Hong Kong community in the UK.BN(O) visa holders will attract a 5-year reduction in the qualifying period for settlement, meaning they will continue to be able to settle in the UK after 5 years’ residence, subject to meeting the mandatory requirements.We are seeking views on earned settlement through the public consultation A Fairer Pathway to Settlement and will continue to listen to the views of Hong Kongers. Details of the earned settlement model will be finalised following that consultation. An impact assessment will be developed alongside the finalised policy and published in due course.In the meantime, the current rules for settlement under the BN(O) route will continue to apply, including the current B1 English language requirement.
Whether her Department is taking steps to introduce a national awareness campaign as part of the new Road Safety Strategy.
Injuries and fatalities from road collisions caused by driving are unacceptable, and this Government will work hard to prevent these tragedies for all road users. That is why on 7 January 2026, we published our new Road Safety Strategy, setting out our vision for a safer future on our roads for all. The Government’s THINK! road safety campaign delivers paid advertising to change attitudes and behaviours among those at most risk on the road, currently focused on the priority issues of speed, drink driving and drug driving. THINK! campaigns will play a key role in encouraging safer road user behaviours to support delivery of the strategy. This will include paid campaign activity to raise awareness of any potential significant changes to road safety legislation, with the introduction of these potential changes also supported by wider communications including via DfT social channels and GOV.UK, media engagement and partner and stakeholder networks. As our road environment and technologies evolve, providing education for all road users throughout their lifetime is vital to improving road safety. As announced in the strategy to support a Lifelong Learning approach in the UK, the Government will publish for the first time national guidance on the development and delivery of road safety education, training and publicity. Alongside this, the Government will publish a manual to support the implementation of a Lifelong Learning approach for road safety.