Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of mechanisms of accountability of Local Resilience Forum Chairs to Members of Parliament.

Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004, statutory duties for emergency planning rest with individual Category 1 responders, who fulfil these duties collaboratively through Local Resilience Forums (LRFs). LRFs are not statutory bodies and therefore hold no independent legal responsibilities.

Each Category 1 responder remains accountable through its own governance arrangements—for example, local authority leadership or Police and Crime Commissioners.

LRF Chairs are drawn from Category 1 organisations and serve in a coordinating and facilitative role, bringing partners together to plan for emergencies.

Guidance encourages LRF Chairs to maintain constructive relationships with elected members and MPs to support awareness, communication, and public confidence. This government recognises the valuable role MPs play in emergencies, strengthening community preparedness and supporting local response efforts.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, the steps he is taking to help protect a) park home residents and b) heating oil users from spikes in energy prices.

Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Government recognises that families and businesses across the country will see the recent global events and once again be concerned about the impact on their energy bills. The Government will continue to monitor the situation closely over coming days and weeks. In an uncertain world, we will keep driving for energy sovereignty and abundance with clean homegrown power. We have shown a determination to act to help families, and businesses, and will continue to do so.

The Government also recognises and takes into consideration the more complex energy arrangements used in park homes. We are looking at this issue and recognise its importance. It is also worth noting that customers who pay non-domestic intermediaries do not pay costs related to ECO.

The Government understands that many households, particularly in rural and off‑gas‑grid areas, rely on heating oil as their primary source of heat. We continue to monitor heating‑oil supply chains ensuring households can access fuel when needed. We are frequently engaging with industry to ensure supply and pricing remains resilient to demand. Fuel markets are governed by competition and consumer protection law, overseen by the Competition Market Authority.

Households using heating oil benefit from wider cost‑of‑living support, including electricity bill reductions announced in the Autumn Budget, and the Warm Home Discount, which provides eligible households with £150 off energy bills until 2030/31.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment has she made of a) the cybersecurity vulnerabilities and b) risk of data manipulation, of the Government Consultation, Growing up in the online world: a national consultation.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

This consultation is being run in line with Government standard practice. The surveys ask for some non-identifying personal information, such the types of individuals and groups participating, for analytical purposes. We will process any personal data in accordance with all applicable data protection laws and in accordance with the departmental Privacy Policy.