Asked by: Caroline Voaden (Liberal Democrat - South Devon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the guidance entitled Reliefs from VAT for disabled and older people (VAT Notice 701/7), published on 18 December 2014, for people with permanent disabilities who are reliant on care provided by organisations which fall outside the exemption regime.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
HMRC supports its customers by providing accessible digital services, tailored help for those with additional needs, and clear guidance to manage their tax affairs confidently.
VAT Notice 701/7 - Reliefs from VAT for disabled and older people explains which goods and services for disabled people are zero-rated for VAT, and which mobility aids for people aged 60 or over are reduced-rated (subject to VAT at a rate of 5%).
HMRC guidance in VAT Notice 701/2 - Welfare services and goods explains the reliefs available for individuals with permanent disabilities. The VAT exemption applies to care provided to disabled individuals by organisations that are public bodies, charities, or state-regulated institutions.
HMRC keeps its guidance under review for accuracy and usability, providing updates in relation to changes in policy and processes.
Asked by: Caroline Voaden (Liberal Democrat - South Devon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 10 June 2025 to Question 56493 on Teachers' Pensions, what progress she has made on resolving outstanding Cash Equivalent Transfer Value cases.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
As at 4 September 2025, the number of unresolved Cash Equivalent Transfer Value (CETV) cases has been reduced to 433 from 3,062 at the end of October 2024. This includes recent CETV applications and as such there will always be a number of outstanding CETV cases at any given time.
The scheme administrator is now working through the most complex cases for members who have retired. These cases can currently only be processed clerically and the estimated calculation times are between 20 and 65 hours per case. The department is funding IT changes for the scheme administrator that are expected to significantly reduce calculation times.
This issue remains a top priority for the department and the scheme administrator, and the above actions are currently expected to result in the delayed CETVs being fully cleared by spring 2026.
Asked by: Caroline Voaden (Liberal Democrat - South Devon)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when she plans to publish further information on the Crisis and Resilience Fund.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
We are working closely with local authorities and stakeholders on the detailed design of the fund, and we plan to issue guidance as soon as possible ahead of the new scheme starting on 1 April 2026.
Asked by: Caroline Voaden (Liberal Democrat - South Devon)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent progress his Department has made on implementing the UK-EU summit agreements.
Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
At the first UK-EU Summit, the Government agreed a substantial package to take forward our new Strategic Partnership with the EU. We are proceeding swiftly with technical negotiations to implement these commitments. We will keep Parliament updated on significant developments.
Asked by: Caroline Voaden (Liberal Democrat - South Devon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of changing the postgraduate loan repayment threshold to be in line with the National Minimum Wage.
Answered by Janet Daby
The government keeps the student finance system under continuous review to ensure it remains fair, sustainable and delivers value for students, universities and the wider economy.
The postgraduate loans schemes were introduced to help remove the financial barrier faced by those wishing to step up to achieve a postgraduate level qualification. They are part of the long-term commitment to make the UK more globally competitive by increasing the number of those with high level skills and knowledge. As part of our ongoing work, we always consider a range of factors which can affect repayment thresholds and recognise the importance of ensuring that the system remains fair for borrowers, as well as being financially sustainable.
Asked by: Caroline Voaden (Liberal Democrat - South Devon)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to support the viability of public swimming pools.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government recognises that sports clubs and facilities, including swimming pools, are important to communities up and down the country. Everyone, no matter who they are or where they live, should have access to them and opportunities to participate in sport and physical activity. That is why we have committed another £400 million to transform facilities across the whole of the nation following the Spending Review. We will now work closely with sporting bodies and local leaders to establish what each community needs and then set out further plans.
The ongoing responsibility of providing access to public leisure swimming facilities lies at local authority level. We are committed to supporting Local Government and ensuring that funding goes to the places that need it most through the Local Government Finance Settlement.
The Government encourages local authorities and local leaders to make investments which offer the right opportunities and facilities (including swimming pools) for the communities they serve, investing in sport and physical activity with a place-based approach, to meet the needs of individual communities. This is complemented by the support and guidance available through the Government’s Arm’s Length Body, Sport England. We will continue to engage with a full range of stakeholders to explore how we can work towards securing a vibrant future for swimming pools, enabling them to continue delivering their full potential for public health, economic growth, and the wellbeing of our communities.
Asked by: Caroline Voaden (Liberal Democrat - South Devon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she is taking to ensure buy-to-let mortgage products are available for landlords renting to vulnerable tenants.
Answered by Emma Reynolds - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Government welcomes innovation in the mortgage market and continues to work with the sector to improve housing provisions and the safeguards in place for the vulnerable.
The availability and design of buy-to-let mortgages is a commercial decision for lenders in which the Government does not intervene.
Asked by: Caroline Voaden (Liberal Democrat - South Devon)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to improve transport services in rural areas.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
This Government knows that integrated public transport is vital to keeping communities connected. We also know that in rural and semi-rural areas, bus services can be a lifeline for many and can be the only means of accessing services, including other modes of transportation such as rail links.
The Government introduced the Bus Services (No.2) Bill on 17 December to put the power over local bus services back into the hands of local leaders. In addition, we are investing £1 billion this year to support and improve bus services and keep fares affordable.
The Government confirmed a £2.3 billion investment in local transport through the Local Transport Grant (LTG) at the Spending Review. This funding is for smaller cities, towns and rural areas, and will enable local authorities to deliver more ambitious transport projects.
Asked by: Caroline Voaden (Liberal Democrat - South Devon)
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 had recent discussions with Ofwat on the standardisation of social tariff schemes for water bills.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
All water companies have a range of measures in place for people who struggle to pay for their water and wastewater services, including social tariffs, WaterSure, payment breaks and holidays, and debt management support.
The Government is working with industry to keep the current support schemes under review to ensure that vulnerable customers across the country are supported.
Asked by: Caroline Voaden (Liberal Democrat - South Devon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that care home fee rates set by local authorities include (a) the economic situation, (b) workforce and (c) inflation.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We recognise the importance of local authority fee rates to adult social care providers, which meet the costs of delivering care and enable providers to recruit and retain staff. We have therefore provided the Market Sustainability and Improvement Fund to local authorities since 2023/24, with one of the three target areas that local authorities can spend their allocations on being to improve fee rates to providers.
A letter sent out to council leaders in January set out the expectation that in 2025/26, when commissioning services, local authorities should ensure fee levels for care and support services take account of the actual costs of care in their area, including inflationary and all other pressures, such as the rise in National Living Wage and the changes to employers National Insurance contributions.
As part of our monitoring of the Market Sustainability and Improvement Fund grant conditions, and to understand fee rates more generally, local authorities are required to provide an annual return to the Department, including data on the fee rates they pay care providers. The Government publishes this data annually, with the latest data being available to view at the following link: