Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds Central and Headingley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve (a) diagnosis of and (b) medical support for people with achalasia in Leeds Central and Headingley constituency.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to supporting those with achalasia. Achalasia can affect both adults and children. The paediatric aspect is commissioned through specialised commissioning but if it is missed in childhood, any adults who present with it are usually managed within locally commissioned, secondary care gastroenterology, endoscopy, upper gastrointestinal surgical services. Diagnosis usually requires oesophageal manometry, which most large secondary care gastro/endoscopy units can provide.
Management of the condition is usually endoscopic or surgical with a myotomy, splitting the muscle in the lower oesophageal sphincter valve. The Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust is one of the handful of centres in the United Kingdom offering endoscopic myotomy. Leeds also has an established surgical service offering keyhole myotomy and anti-reflux surgery and these procedures can sometimes be done with robotic assistance. They also have specialist dietetic support for patients requiring nutritional support leading up to surgery.
In addition, the 10-Year Health Plan sets out the Government’s vision for the Neighbourhood Health Service. The Neighbourhood Health Framework has now been published, and will enable a more joined-up approach that delivers more preventative, local, personalised, and digitally enabled care for everyone, including people living with achalasia. Central to the plans are Neighbourhood Health Centres, which will bring more care closer to where people live. This is supported by the NHS App, which will become a health companion that makes it easier for patients to access the NHS. It will give patients a more seamless experience across their health journey.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds Central and Headingley)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what support is available to ensure that individuals with dyslexia can access practical, skills-based career pathways.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Good work is good for health, so we want everyone to get work and get on in work, whoever they are and wherever they live. In our Pathways to Work Green Paper we set out our Pathways to Work offer, backed by £1 billion a year of new funding by the end of the decade.
Disabled people are a diverse group so access to the right work and health support, in the right place, at the right time, is key. The Government is committed to supporting disabled people, including dyslexic people, with their employment journey.
We therefore have a range of specialist initiatives to support individuals to stay in work and get back into work, including those that join up employment and health systems. Existing measures include support from Work Coaches and Disability Employment Advisers in Jobcentres and Access to Work grants. The new Jobs and Careers Service will play a crucial role in helping everyone, including dyslexic people, to find meaningful work, develop their skills and progress in their careers. Through Pathways to Work we are building towards a guaranteed offer of personalised work, health and skills support for all disabled people on out of work benefits.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds Central and Headingley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if she will consider the potential merits of adding Iraq to the list of countries where British nationals can register their presence with her Department.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The safety and security of British nationals is our top priority, and on that basis, we continue to recommend against all travel to all regions of Iraq. We keep our travel advice and our response to the current crisis under constant review, but there are no plans to launch the Register My Presence service for Iraq at this time.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds Central and Headingley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether the UK will sign the Council of Europe memorandum to the Special Tribunal on Crimes of Aggression Against Ukraine.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is a strong and consistent supporter of the Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine, which will hold to account those senior political and military leaders responsible for the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The UK has been active in negotiations alongside Ukraine and international partners to ensure the Tribunal is both politically and financially sustainable. The UK welcomes the conclusion of negotiations on the Enlarged Partial Agreement (EPA), which outlines the Tribunal's operating model. Once EPA adoption plans are finalised, an update will be given on the UK's position and the operational arrangements for the Tribunal prior to formal adoption.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds Central and Headingley)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to his answer of 27 February 2026 to question 113391 regarding the climate impact of Drax’s burning of wood, how many years it takes for the carbon debt to be paid off by replacement trees.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Biomass feedstocks for power production at Drax utilise waste wood and residues from productive forestry for other wood products. The carbon balance of these depends on forest type and management, amongst other variables, and cannot be attributed to the growth of replacement trees alone. The Government only supports the use of sustainable biomass and operators only receive subsidies for biomass that meets our sustainability criteria. UK sustainability criteria include requirements on sustainable forest management in the sourcing region, which applies to both domestically sourced and imported biomass.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds Central and Headingley)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to his Answer of 27 February 2026 to Question 113391 on the role of Drax in the power system, including its private sector clients, how many tonnes of wood were burned by Drax in each of the last five years and how many he expects to burned in each of the next five years.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Government does not gather or hold information on fuel used by Drax each year, however this data is published by Drax in the company’s annual ESG report, ESG Performance Report - Drax Global. Fuel use is also monitored and assured as part of the operation of subsidy schemes for large-scale electricity generation. This includes Ofgem, for Drax’s units under the Renewables Obligation, and the Low Carbon Contracts Company, for Drax’s unit currently operating on a Contract for Difference.
Future fuel use at Drax will depend on demand at the station, linked to its new dispatchable operation under the Low Carbon Dispatchable Contract for Difference from 2027. Drax will play a much more limited role in the system, providing dispatchable power only when the system really needs it. It will be supported to operate at a maximum load factor of 27%, operating less than half as often as it currently does. Accordingly, we anticipate that fuel use will reduce substantially under the new contract running from 2027-2031.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds Central and Headingley)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to his answer of 27 February 2026 to Question 113391 regarding the impact of Drax’s burning of wood on carbon sequestration, what is his calculation for the number of years it takes for the carbon debt to be paid off by replacement trees.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Biomass feedstocks for power production at Drax utilise waste wood and residues from productive forestry for other wood products. The carbon balance of these depends on forest type and management, amongst other variables, and cannot be attributed to the growth of replacement trees alone. The Government only supports the use of sustainable biomass and operators only receive subsidies for biomass that meets our sustainability criteria. UK sustainability criteria include requirements on sustainable forest management in the sourcing region, which applies to both domestically sourced and imported biomass.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds Central and Headingley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 4 of March 2026 to Question 115500 on Private Rented Housing: Repairs and Maintenance, what steps his Department is taking to encourage private landlords to bring properties up to the Decent Homes Standard before the 2035 deadline.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government encourages landlords to consider the benefits and feasibility of bringing properties up to our new Decent Homes Standard (DHS) at the earliest opportunity.
By publishing the standard now, we are providing a clear framework for landlords to do this.
We will begin monitoring rates of compliance with the new DHS ahead of the final deadline and will work with the sector to ensure that landlords are clear about the new requirements the DHS places on them.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds Central and Headingley)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential risks posed by lithium-ion batteries on public safety.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Product safety laws require consumer products containing lithium-ion batteries, and batteries themselves, to be safe when they are placed on the market. Businesses have obligations to ensure the safety of products they manufacturer or import, and regulators have powers to act when products do not comply. In 2024, my department published statutory guidelines covering the safety of lithium-ion e-bike batteries. In 2025 the Office for Product Safety and Standards published research by Warwick Manufacturing Group into e-bike battery safety, which provides new insight into how lithium-ion batteries fail in real-world scenarios, and best practices for safer battery design.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds Central and Headingley)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the number of lithium-ion battery-related fire incidents recorded in 2023–24 on the environment.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra has not carried out a formal assessment of the potential impact on the environment of lithium-ion battery-related fires recorded between 2023 and 2024. Battery-related fire incidents are a significant concern, and we remain engaged with wider Government and with industry, including waste disposal operators, on this issue.
We are currently considering options for reform of the batteries regulations in the UK as a means to address a range of issues, including fires, and we are in the process of engaging further with industry and other stakeholders on those options.
In relation to battery energy storage systems sites, which can use large numbers of lithium-ion batteries, the Government has consulted on the principle of including these within environmental permitting regulations to manage the potential environmental and public health risks from fires at these facilities. The Government response to this consultation will be published at the earliest opportunity.