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Written Question
Public Expenditure: Wales
Thursday 26th March 2026

Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the actions under the Agenda for Change uplift and a fairer deal for nurses statement for NHS England published on on 12 February 2026 will lead to additional funding for the Welsh Government through the Barnett Formula.

Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury

The Department for Health and Social Care received funding to deliver the actions under the Agenda for Change uplift and a fairer deal for nurses statement at Spending Review 2025, with the Barnett formula applying in the usual way, as set out in the Statement of Funding Policy.


Written Question
Dogs: Animal Breeding
Thursday 26th March 2026

Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she intends to incorporate the Innate Health Assessment of dog breeds in future statutory licensing conditions for dog breeders.

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

The Innate Health Assessment tool has been created by the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Animal Welfare to tackle suffering caused by extreme physical body shapes in dogs. This voluntary tool can be used by breeders, dog owners or prospective dog owners to check any dog’s innate health characteristics and their suitability to breed and/or acquire, regardless of breed or type.

The Government published its Animal Welfare Strategy on 22 December 2025, outlining plans to take coordinated action to improve the welfare of pets. This includes the commitment to end the low welfare breeding of dogs and to launch a consultation on dog breeding reform.

Defra recognises the importance of genetic health in dogs and supports education of owners and breeders to promote responsible breeding.


Speech in Commons Chamber - Wed 25 Mar 2026
Foreign Financial Influence and Interference: UK Politics

"I, too, welcome Sir Philip Rycroft’s work and the Secretary of State’s announcement today. I strongly support the idea of applying the donations cap and the moratorium on cryptocurrency donations to the devolved elections. Will the Secretary of State just clarify, to reassure me, that for those changes to take …..."
Ben Lake - View Speech

View all Ben Lake (PC - Ceredigion Preseli) contributions to the debate on: Foreign Financial Influence and Interference: UK Politics

Division Vote (Commons)
25 Mar 2026 - Victims and Courts Bill - View Vote Context
Ben Lake (PC) voted No - in line with the party majority and against the House
One of 3 Plaid Cymru No votes vs 0 Plaid Cymru Aye votes
Vote Tally: Ayes - 295 Noes - 162
Division Vote (Commons)
25 Mar 2026 - Victims and Courts Bill - View Vote Context
Ben Lake (PC) voted No - in line with the party majority and against the House
One of 3 Plaid Cymru No votes vs 0 Plaid Cymru Aye votes
Vote Tally: Ayes - 292 Noes - 162
Division Vote (Commons)
25 Mar 2026 - Victims and Courts Bill - View Vote Context
Ben Lake (PC) voted No - in line with the party majority and against the House
One of 3 Plaid Cymru No votes vs 0 Plaid Cymru Aye votes
Vote Tally: Ayes - 290 Noes - 163
Division Vote (Commons)
25 Mar 2026 - Victims and Courts Bill - View Vote Context
Ben Lake (PC) voted No - in line with the party majority and against the House
One of 3 Plaid Cymru No votes vs 0 Plaid Cymru Aye votes
Vote Tally: Ayes - 291 Noes - 158
Division Vote (Commons)
25 Mar 2026 - Victims and Courts Bill - View Vote Context
Ben Lake (PC) voted No - in line with the party majority and against the House
One of 3 Plaid Cymru No votes vs 0 Plaid Cymru Aye votes
Vote Tally: Ayes - 286 Noes - 163
Division Vote (Commons)
25 Mar 2026 - Victims and Courts Bill - View Vote Context
Ben Lake (PC) voted Aye - in line with the party majority and in line with the House
One of 3 Plaid Cymru Aye votes vs 0 Plaid Cymru No votes
Vote Tally: Ayes - 300 Noes - 149
Written Question
Television: Digital Broadcasting
Wednesday 25th March 2026

Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment has been made of the role of the UK’s digital terrestrial television network in supporting national resilience and emergency communications.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government understands the importance of everyone being able to access information in times of national emergency. Both television and radio play a vital role in providing such access for a range of different emergency scenarios, including scenarios where other communications may be disrupted.

The BBC has specific requirements under its Framework Agreement in relation to broadcast security and resilience, and works closely with DCMS in ensuring its networks are able to support emergency communications in a range of scenarios.

The Government’s project looking into the future of TV distribution is considering a range of relevant factors, including the future resilience requirements for broadcast networks. It is important that audiences continue to receive consistent levels of service regardless of how they receive their television, and ensuring that this can happen will be a priority for the project.