Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Stamford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of appointing a Commissioner for Old People in England.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department for Work and Pensions has no current plans to appoint a Commissioner for Old People in England. Employment support, through the creation of our new Jobs and Careers Service, will enable everyone, including older people, to access good, meaningful work and support progression into work. More details are set out in our Get Britain Working White Paper published last year and additional employment support for eligible older jobseekers is already currently available through our UK network of Jobcentres.
To better hear the voices of older people and further develop the reforms set out in in our Pathways to Work Green Paper, we are committing to the establishment of ‘collaboration committees’. This will bring together groups of people, including older people, with civil servants to collaborate on discussions, challenges, and recommendations on specific areas of work.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Stamford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 19 September 2024 to Question 4548 on Winter Fuel Payment: Rutland and Stamford, how many people will be eligible for Winter Fuel Payment in Rutland and Stamford constituency after proposed changes to the eligibility criteria.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
From this winter, individuals with an income of £35,000 or below, will benefit from a Winter Fuel Payment. Winter Fuel Payments are £200 for a household with someone of State Pension age and £300 for a household with someone aged 80 or over. They will be paid automatically to anyone who has not opted out. Individuals with a taxable income above £35,000 a year will see any Winter Fuel Payment recouped via HMRC.
This means that the majority of pensioners in England and Wales – around 9 million individuals – will now benefit from Winter Fuel Payments.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Stamford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has settled on the title of Consular Envoy for the new position dealing with complex consular cases and arbitrary detention.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office is committed to strengthening support for British Nationals overseas, including through the appointment of an Envoy for complex consular detention cases. Further details will be announced in due course.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Stamford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether the role and responsiblites of the incoming Arbitrary Detention and Complex Consular Cases Envoy have been finalised.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office is committed to strengthening support for British Nationals overseas, including through the appointment of an Envoy for complex consular detention cases. Further details will be announced in due course.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Stamford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a mandatory Code of Ethical Practice for pre-1997 members of pension schemes, that promotes (a) transparency, (b) fairness and (c) accountability in managing discretionary pension increases.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
It is important that trustees make transparent and fast decisions about discretionary indexation. Defined Benefit Schemes are regulated by The Pensions Regulator (TPR) which has set out that trustees should consider the situation of those members who would benefit from a discretionary increase and whether the scheme has a history of making such awards.
Most schemes do pay some pre-1997 indexation, because of scheme rules or as a discretionary benefit. Analysis published last year by the Pensions Regulator shows that as of March 2023, only 17 per cent of members of private sector defined benefit pension schemes do not receive any pre-1997 indexation on benefits. This information can be found at: https://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/en/document-library/research-and-analysis/data-requests#f3a5fe60511a445f91112bd7dd8a64ae
The Government’s upcoming pension reforms on the use of surpluses in defined benefit schemes will make it easier for individual schemes to make decisions that improve outcomes for both sponsoring employers and members, which could include discretionary benefit increases.
These changes will be taken forward through the Pension Schemes Bill. TPR will be producing further guidance on surplus sharing once the legislation is in place.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Stamford)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of expanding the eligibility criteria of the Farming Equipment and Technology Fund to include all poultry.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Grants for Animal Health and Welfare items remain focused on the most commonly farmed species: pigs, dairy cows, beef cattle, laying chickens, broiler chickens and sheep. No new assessment was conducted on expanding eligibility to additional species for this round of the Farming Equipment and Technology Fund (FETF). Productivity and slurry items offered as part of FETF remain available to all eligible poultry keepers.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Stamford)
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 27 May 2025 to Question 53184 on Housing: Disability, on what date her Department will set out its policies on accessible new build housing.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
As per the answer to Question UIN 53184 on 27 May 2025, the government will shortly set out its policies on accessible new build housing, reinforcing our commitment to ensuring everyone has access to a safe, suitable home.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Stamford)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when she expects councils to receive feedback on their local government reorganisation plans.
Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
On 3 June I updated the House to confirm that my Department had provided individual written feedback to each area on the interim plans for local government reorganisation that they submitted by 21 March 2025. Areas have been encouraged to share that feedback with MPs and I also published a summary of the feedback to support all areas in progressing their proposals and in the interests of transparency.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Stamford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has concluded investigations into how British doctors working with Medical Aid for Palestine were bombed by Israel in January 2024.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We expect Israel to investigate all attacks against humanitarians and medical staff fully and transparently. We also expect that those responsible are meaningfully held to account.
Attacks on hospitals and medical facilities are deeply distressing. We remain gravely concerned by the lack of adequate medical care in Gaza; nearly all Gaza's hospitals are damaged or partly destroyed according to the World Health Organisation. We have made clear that this is unacceptable.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Stamford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of allowing British students who obtain a medical degree abroad to be treated the same as domestic students when applying for jobs in the NHS.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Subject to their registration status, British students who have obtained a medical degree abroad are able to apply for jobs in the National Health Service on the same basis as United Kingdom medical graduates.
Following completion of a medical degree, in order to be eligible for full registration with the General Medical Council (GMC), UK medical graduates must undertake and complete the first year of the UK Foundation Programme, a work-based training programme that will be their first job as a doctor in the NHS.
Some individuals who have obtained a medical degree abroad, which may include British citizens, will already hold or expect to hold full registration with the GMC due to the level of experience working in clinical settings that they have obtained. These individuals would not need to, and would not be eligible to, apply to the UK Foundation Programme, and instead can consider applying for jobs as a fully registered doctor. In these instances, they should liaise with the GMC to confirm which jobs they are eligible to apply for.