Asked by: Bradley Thomas (Conservative - Bromsgrove)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of modular construction for the delivery of healthcare infrastructure within the NHS.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We recognise the merits of modular construction for delivering National Health Service health infrastructure, including faster construction times, cost savings, minimised disruption, higher quality and safety standards, and the use of sustainable materials and methods.
Modular construction is a modern method of construction (MMC). A toolkit has been developed to support MMC opportunities in healthcare, which is publicly available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/nhs-modern-methods-of-construction-assessment-tool-user-guide/
The toolkit is recommended for use on all healthcare infrastructure projects and is mandated for projects over £25 million to meet the business case requirements of 70% new build and 50% refurbishment using MMC.
The New Hospital Programme is already transforming the way that hospital infrastructure is constructed by using a national standardised approach, called Hospital 2.0. Hospital 2.0 uses a standardised ‘kit of parts’ for hospital components, ranging from doors to full bathroom pods, that can be assembled into different size hospitals in an optimised, consistent, and repeatable way and with off-site manufacturing and with modular construction, reducing costs and accelerating construction.
Asked by: Bradley Thomas (Conservative - Bromsgrove)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how her Department (a) disposes of small boats used for illegal channel crossings and (b) ensures that those boats are not (i) retained by and (ii) returned to smuggling gangs.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
Border Force do not return seized boats/dinghies/engines or lifejackets to France. All vessels that have been subject to seizure, are held by Border Force until the completion of criminal investigations and any resulting legal proceedings. The majority of boats/dinghies are not fit to ever go to sea again, as they arrive in very poor condition and may be damaged during the recovery process. The boats/dinghies/engines are disposed of by Border Force’s approved contractors and where appropriate, any suitable materials are recycled.
Asked by: Bradley Thomas (Conservative - Bromsgrove)
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 trends in the level of household water bills in 2025; and what discussions her Department plans to have with Ofwat on levels of water bills.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
It is Ofwat's responsibility to independently scrutinise water company business plans and ensure that the prices water companies charge their customers are fair and proportionate.
On October 9, the Competition and Markets Authority published its provisional decision that, for the five companies that appealed, bills should increase further. This decision remains subject to consultation and they will not publish their final decision until early next year. This is an independent, statutory process.
The Government has acted decisively by consulting on reforms to WaterSure - the statutory scheme which caps bills for low-income customers with necessary higher water usage and by introducing new and increased compensation for companies to pay customers in the event of unforeseen disruption to supply.
We expect water companies to ensure that their customers know what support schemes are available and how to use them if they need help.
Asked by: Bradley Thomas (Conservative - Bromsgrove)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to support the enforcement of the prohibition on the sale and possession of nitrous oxide cylinders in Bromsgrove constituency; and whether her Department plans to take steps to increase enforcement actions for offences involving the recreational use of nitrous oxide.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Nitrous oxide is controlled under Class C of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. This makes it an offence to supply and possess it for ‘wrongful inhalation’, namely the inhalation of the gas for its psychoactive effect.
There is a maximum sentence of 14 years’ imprisonment, an unlimited fine or both for supply, and a maximum sentence of two years’ imprisonment, an unlimited fine or both for possession.
Legitimate uses of nitrous oxide, such as for baking and cooking, are not prohibited by the Act.
The police are operationally independent, but we expect them to tackle crime, including drug-related crime. There were 2,564 seizures of nitrous oxide by police and Border Force in England and Wales in the year ending March 2024. This is an increase of 237% upon the previous year’s figure (761). Police forces accounted for almost all nitrous oxide seizures (2,552). The quantity of nitrous oxide seized by police forces increased by 170% over the same period.
Nitrous oxide sold online is subject to the provisions of the Online Safety Act. This requires that all technology companies take robust action against illegal content, such as the sale of nitrous oxide for wrongful inhalation
Asked by: Bradley Thomas (Conservative - Bromsgrove)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she has made an assessment with the Minister for Women and Equalities of the adequacy of access for disabled people on rail travel; and what steps she is taking to ensure that (a) all newly constructed railways and (b) upgrades to existing lines will sufficiently address the challenges disabled people currently face on rail travel.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department has standards in place requiring all new and upgraded rail infrastructure to be accessible. This is set out in the Accessibility National Technical Specification Notice and the Code of Practice: Design Standards for Accessible Railway Stations. Failure to meet these standards may result in enforcement action by the Office of Rail and Road, as compliance is a condition of operator’s licences.
Asked by: Bradley Thomas (Conservative - Bromsgrove)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what data his Department holds on the number of long-term vacant homes in Bromsgrove constituency.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Statistics are published annually on gov.uk which include a breakdown of vacant dwellings by local authority district. We do not hold records on vacant homes on a constituency basis.