Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of cases referred by the Criminal Cases Review Commission for appeal were successful in each year since 2019.

Answered by Laura Farris - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Ministry of Justice) (jointly with Home Office)

The number and proportion of successful cases referred by the CCRC and heard by appeal courts each year since 2019/20 is:

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to help support victims of historic miscarriages of justice to appeal their convictions.

Answered by Laura Farris - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Ministry of Justice) (jointly with Home Office)

Where the normal time limit for appeals through the courts has passed and where an individual believes they have been wrongly convicted of a crime in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, including in historic cases, they can apply to the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) which is an independent public body funded by the Ministry of Justice. The CCRC can investigate and where it considers that there is a real possibility that the conviction would not be upheld were the reference to be made, can refer cases back to the courts.

There is no time limit on any application and the service is free.

To ensure that the appeals system is working effectively, the Government has asked the Law Commission to conduct an independent and wide-ranging Review of the appeals system. The Review will consider the issues raised by the Westminster Commission (2021) on miscarriages of justice, which includes the tests used by the CCRC and the Court of Appeal, and the government will then consider the review’s findings, and any recommendations for change in the law, very carefully.

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he plans to review legislation that allows landowners to use their farmland for (a) motocross and (b) other non-agricultural activities.

Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)

Under nationally set permitted development rights, land may be used for any purpose and moveable structures be set up on the land for up to 28 days per calendar year, of which up to 14 days can be used for motor car and motorcycle racing.

Where it is considered necessary to protect the local amenity or wellbeing of an area the local planning authority can consult the local community on removing a permitted development right by making an Article 4 direction.

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of legislation on the proximity of motocross events to residential areas.

Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)

Under nationally set permitted development rights, land may be used for any purpose and moveable structures be set up on the land for up to 28 days per calendar year, of which up to 14 days can be used for motor car and motorcycle racing.

Where it is considered necessary to protect the local amenity or wellbeing of an area the local planning authority can consult the local community on removing a permitted development right by making an Article 4 direction.

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he is taking steps to reform the eligibility criteria for the Flood Recovery Framework to include more (a)households and (b) businesses that have experienced flooding.

Answered by Simon Hoare - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

A review of the Flood Recovery Framework is currently under way with stakeholders.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how many premises will benefit from current live gigabit contracts in North Shropshire constituency.

Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

According to the independent website ThinkBroadband.com, almost 68% of premises in the North Shropshire constituency currently have access to a gigabit-capable connection, up from just 3% in December 2019.

The Project Gigabit contract with the supplier Freedom Fibre will deliver gigabit-capable connectivity to over 12,000 hard-to-reach premises across the North Shropshire region by the end of 2026. Approximately 9,000 of these premises are in the North Shropshire constituency.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how many households in North Shropshire constituency currently do not have access to a gigabit broadband connection.

Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

According to the independent website ThinkBroadband.com, almost 68% of premises in the North Shropshire constituency currently have access to a gigabit-capable connection, up from just 3% in December 2019.

The Project Gigabit contract with the supplier Freedom Fibre will deliver gigabit-capable connectivity to over 12,000 hard-to-reach premises across the North Shropshire region by the end of 2026. Approximately 9,000 of these premises are in the North Shropshire constituency.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many additional projects the Environment Agency has completed in response to flooding in the last two years.

Answered by Robbie Moore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

We are in the fourth year of the current 6-year £5.6 billion Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management (FCERM) investment programme. This investment programme will better protect hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses from flooding and coastal erosion.

At the end of March 2024, approximately £2.3 billion of this funding has been invested with over 88,000 properties better protected from flooding and coastal erosion. This was delivered through 300 completed projects.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many convictions under joint enterprise legislation have been successfully overturned on appeal.

Answered by Laura Farris - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Ministry of Justice) (jointly with Home Office)

The Ministry of Justice does not currently collate data on whether a prosecution or conviction relied on the doctrine of joint enterprise or whether an appeal in such a case resulted in the conviction being quashed or the sentence changed.

The Crown Prosecution Service has recently updated their case management system to enable better tracking of homicide and attempted homicide cases involving joint enterprise.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of deferring eligibility for Agricultural Property Relief for all environmental land management schemes on the estates of (a) landowners and (b) farmers who will die prior to 6 April 2025.

Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)

Spring Budget 2024 announced that the government will introduce legislation to extend the existing scope of agricultural property relief from 6 April 2025 to land managed under an environmental agreement with, or on behalf of, the UK government, Devolved Administrations, public bodies, local authorities, or approved responsible bodies.

The date of implementation is consistent with the normal tax-policy making process and with previous changes to the inheritance tax system.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of Basis Period Reform on the availability of accounting resources for (a) sole traders and (b) partnerships.

Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)

Basis period reform is an important simplification to the tax system. The government introduced this reform in Finance Act 2022 to create a simpler, fairer, and more transparent set of rules for the allocation of self-employment and partnership income to tax years.

The reform simplifies tax computations for businesses, making it easier to complete self assessment tax returns and reducing administrative burdens. Basis period reform has no effect on the availability of accounting resources for the self-employed or partnerships.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that financing is available to farmers who wish to invest in sustainable energy projects.

Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The Farming Investment Fund has supported renewable energy projects through its grants for rooftop solar. In our recent Improving Farm Productivity grant, farmers and horticultural businesses in England were able to apply for capital grants towards solar equipment to increase energy resilience and the take-up of renewable energy generation on their farms. Grants of between £15,000 and £100,000 were available at an intervention rate of 25%. This scheme has now closed for new applications. We will continue to consider how to support farmers to invest in renewable energy projects in the future.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many women were turned away from mammogram screening tests because they were unable to hold the required position for sufficient time in each of the last five years.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

NHS England does not hold this information at a national level. NHS England is committed to improving the accessibility of the screening programmes it commissions and contractually, providers of National Health Service screening services are required to make reasonable adjustments to ensure that their services are accessible for people with disabilities.

Services make reasonable adjustments within the constraints of mammography equipment, to ensure that people with disabilities are offered the opportunity to have screening; However, there may be situations where this is not possible.

Local providers will have a better understanding of any accessibility issues for individual patients and will deal with these on a case by case basis. Providers will offer an alternative approach as necessary. For example, for women who are unable to have a mammogram, may be offered a referral to a symptomatic breast clinic for a physical check.

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how many councils had a completed audit on time for the financial year 2023-2024.

Answered by Simon Hoare - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

The deadline for councils in England to publish audited accounts for financial year 2023/24 has not yet passed.

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, pursuant to the Answer of 23 November 2023 to Question 1227 on Local Government Finance: Audit, how many new professionals have qualified to audit local authority accounts from the Chartered Institute of Public Accountancy; and how that figure compares with expectations for 2024.

Answered by Simon Hoare - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

The Local Audit Qualification was launched by the Chartered Institute of Public Accountancy. The department does not hold the requested information.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to provide financial assistance to farmers in debt.

Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The recent ‘Balance Sheet Analysis’ publication highlights that average liquidity in the sector has been consistently improving over the latest five years of data and reached a ten-year high in the latest year of data (2022/23). This suggests that levels of debt in the farming sector are lower than average.

We support farmers in a range of ways to ensure they have profitable and sustainable businesses. This includes free business advice as well as access to a wide range of Government funding to improve business resilience, productivity and environmental performance.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to ensure there are effective pathways for early detection of liver disease in Shropshire.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Early detection of liver disease is vital to enable interventions, and encourage behavioural changes that can potentially lead to recovery. Liver disease is one of the primary risk factors for liver cancer. Across the Shropshire, Telford, and Wrekin Integrated Care Board (ICB) area, the early detection of liver disease is led by primary care partners, and the ICB encourages general practitioners to follow best practice in the delivery of patient care pathways, to ensure the early detection of liver disease in patients. The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust is working with primary care partners to increase awareness and provide tools to support this work. The hospital also carries out active outreach into the community for drug and alcohol patients.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the efficiency and effectiveness of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme in its assessment of mortgage mis-selling complaints.

Answered by Bim Afolami - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Financial Services Compensation Scheme may be able to pay compensation to customers who have lost money as a result of bad mortgage advice or been mis-sold mortgage endowments. The FSCS can only pay compensation if the firm, broker, or advisor that the customer dealt with was regulated and has failed. Any complaints about live regulated firms should be addressed to the Financial Ombudsman Service. For mortgage claims, the FSCS carries out its compensation function within rules set by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), but is operationally independent of them. The FSCS publishes an annual report and levy class statements, including for the home finance intermediation levy class. The FSCS’s certified accounts and audit report are provided to HM Treasury each year, and copies are laid before Parliament.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many and what proportion of appeals to the Financial Services Compensation Scheme have resulted in an over-turned decision.

Answered by Bim Afolami - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) is the UK’s compensation scheme of last resort and pays compensation to consumers when authorised financial firms fail. If a claimant is unhappy with the FSCS’s decision on their claim, they can launch an appeal which will be reviewed by someone independent of the original decision. The FSCS operates a 2-stage internal appeal process. In the financial year 2022-2023, the FSCS made just under 97,000 claims decisions, and 1,695 customers asked the FSCS to review its decisions. The FSCS does not publish data on the proportion of appeals that are upheld or rejected at each stage. Customers who are unhappy at the end of the FSCS’s internal appeal process have the option of seeking a Judicial Review of the FSCS’s decision on their claim.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to improve the quality of service accommodation.

Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

Currently, 96% of Service Family Accommodation (SFA) meets or exceeds the Government’s Decent Homes Standard.

The Defence Command Paper Refresh 2023 committed an investment of £400M for SFA over two years. In 2023/24, the Ministry of Defence allocated and spent £220 million to implement damp and mould remediation in approximately 4,000 homes, refurbished c1,000 long term empty homes, provided 3,000 homes with replacement windows and doors, 1,000 homes with replacement kitchens and bathrooms, and upgraded heaters and boilers in 1,500 homes.

In 2024/25, £180 million is allocated to improve insulation in c600 homes, implement c1,000 long-term damp and mould remediations and refurbish 200 long-term empty homes. 1,700 minor damp and mould improvement packages are planned, and 30 more homes will receive upgraded heating solutions.

Allocation of levelling up funding

Love Your Local Market campaign 2024

No confidence in His Majesty's Government

Safety of electric powered vehicles and lithium-ion batteries

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Found: Kelly Foy Kate Hollern Alex Sobel Ian Byrne Derek Thomas Ben Lake Mrs Natalie Elphicke Helen

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