Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps are the government taking to help ensure that homes and small businesses can buy power directly from local renewable energy schemes.

Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Government is ambitious for community energy and the role that it can play in delivering net zero and is working with Ofgem to address regulatory barriers, including routes to market. Through delivering on commitments in the Local Power Plan, we are working with Great British Energy to explore measures to make it easier for community energy groups to participate in local energy markets.

The department, Ofgem and wider energy industry has also been working to make changes to industry rules to support the local trade of energy. This includes work on rule P441, standardising the classification of local energy sites to provide a regulatory footing that will clarify the rules of setting them up. Further updates and outcomes from this work will be provided in due course.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of support available to employers recruiting and retaining blind and visually impaired employees.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Disabled people and people with health conditions, including blind and visually impaired people, are a diverse group so access to the right work and health support, in the right place, at the right time, is key.

We have a range of specialist initiatives to support individuals to stay in work and get back into work. These include support from Work Coaches and Disability Employment Advisers in Jobcentres and Access to Work grants, as well as initiatives joining up health and employment support around the individual through Employment Advisors in NHS Talking Therapies, and WorkWell.

In our Pathways to Work Green Paper we set out our Pathways to Work offer, backed by £1 billion a year of new funding by the end of the decade. We are building towards a guaranteed offer of personalised work, health and skills support for all disabled people and people with health conditions on out of work benefits, building on existing initiatives.

Additionally, we have developed a digital information service for employers and continue to oversee the Disability Confident Scheme.

In November 2025, Sir Charlie Mayfield published the Keep Britain Working Report, setting out recommendations to reshape how government works with employers to improve work and health outcomes through creating healthier, more inclusive workplaces. We are now working with volunteer employers, providers and regions through a Vanguard Phase to test and refine approaches to help disabled workers and workers with long-term health conditions, including blind and visually impaired workers, receive the support they need to remain and thrive in employment. These include developing effective stay in work and return to work practices, strengthening prevention, and building the evidence needed to spread good practice.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to improve employment rates among blind and visually impaired people.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Disabled people and people with health conditions, including blind and visually impaired people, are a diverse group so access to the right work and health support, in the right place, at the right time, is key.

We have a range of specialist initiatives to support individuals to stay in work and get back into work. These include support from Work Coaches and Disability Employment Advisers in Jobcentres and Access to Work grants, as well as initiatives joining up health and employment support around the individual through Employment Advisors in NHS Talking Therapies, and WorkWell.

In our Pathways to Work Green Paper we set out our Pathways to Work offer, backed by £1 billion a year of new funding by the end of the decade. We are building towards a guaranteed offer of personalised work, health and skills support for all disabled people and people with health conditions on out of work benefits, building on existing initiatives.

Additionally, we have developed a digital information service for employers and continue to oversee the Disability Confident Scheme.

In November 2025, Sir Charlie Mayfield published the Keep Britain Working Report, setting out recommendations to reshape how government works with employers to improve work and health outcomes through creating healthier, more inclusive workplaces. We are now working with volunteer employers, providers and regions through a Vanguard Phase to test and refine approaches to help disabled workers and workers with long-term health conditions, including blind and visually impaired workers, receive the support they need to remain and thrive in employment. These include developing effective stay in work and return to work practices, strengthening prevention, and building the evidence needed to spread good practice.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he plans to review the Access to Work scheme to ensure that blind and visually impaired people can access workplace adjustments and specialist support in a timely manner.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Reforms are essential to ensure a better service for customers, to help disabled people start and stay in work, including blind and visually impaired people. We are reviewing all aspects of the Access to Work scheme, utilising the outcomes of the Green Paper consultation, the Collaboration Committees, and engagement with key internal and external stakeholders to inform its future direction.

We have committed to recruiting and training an additional 480 case staff to process the higher volume of applications, to join the 658 staff already working on Access to Work. Recruitment has already begun, and new case managers will receive extensive training to handle complex applications with confidence. This is to ensure disabled people, and people with health conditions, including those that are blind and visually impaired, can receive timely support to secure and remain in employment.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of trends in the level of inequities in inflammatory bowel disease care and outcomes; and what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the online hospital pathway for IBD on areas with worse outcomes.

Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department recognises the importance of consistent, high-quality care for people living with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). While the National Health Service in England operates within a locally commissioned system, the Government expects integrated care boards (ICBs) to take account of existing national guidance when planning and delivering services.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence provides evidence-based guidance on the diagnosis and management of IBD, which provides a framework for high-quality care across the NHS and supports timely access to appropriate treatment and ongoing monitoring. Additionally, the IBD Standards, developed by IBD UK, are used across the NHS to guide service design, identify gaps, and drive improvement.

NHS England is also working to reduce unwarranted variation and improve outcomes through programmes such as Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) and NHS RightCare. These initiatives support local systems to identify best practice, address unwarranted variation in pathways and outcomes, and strengthen access to specialist services where needed.

Alongside this, wider work across the NHS to improve earlier diagnosis, expand capacity, and deliver more joined-up care, as set out in the 10-Year Health Plan, will help ensure that people with IBD receive more timely, effective, and coordinated care.

NHS England and its partners use a range of data sources, including clinical audit data and programme work such as GIRFT to identify unwarranted variation in services and outcomes. These insights help ICBs to understand and address local disparities in care.

For people with IBD, virtual hospital models can improve services by enabling more timely monitoring and specialist input, reducing the need for hospital visits, and supporting proactive management of flares, which can help improve patient outcomes while easing pressure on acute services. ICBs are responsible for assessing local need and determining how best to deploy such tools, taking account of population health inequalities and access to services.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what consideration his Department has given to the development of national standards for inflammatory bowel disease across ICBs in England.

Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department recognises the importance of consistent, high-quality care for people living with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). While the National Health Service in England operates within a locally commissioned system, the Government expects integrated care boards (ICBs) to take account of existing national guidance when planning and delivering services.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence provides evidence-based guidance on the diagnosis and management of IBD, which provides a framework for high-quality care across the NHS and supports timely access to appropriate treatment and ongoing monitoring. Additionally, the IBD Standards, developed by IBD UK, are used across the NHS to guide service design, identify gaps, and drive improvement.

NHS England is also working to reduce unwarranted variation and improve outcomes through programmes such as Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) and NHS RightCare. These initiatives support local systems to identify best practice, address unwarranted variation in pathways and outcomes, and strengthen access to specialist services where needed.

Alongside this, wider work across the NHS to improve earlier diagnosis, expand capacity, and deliver more joined-up care, as set out in the 10-Year Health Plan, will help ensure that people with IBD receive more timely, effective, and coordinated care.

NHS England and its partners use a range of data sources, including clinical audit data and programme work such as GIRFT to identify unwarranted variation in services and outcomes. These insights help ICBs to understand and address local disparities in care.

For people with IBD, virtual hospital models can improve services by enabling more timely monitoring and specialist input, reducing the need for hospital visits, and supporting proactive management of flares, which can help improve patient outcomes while easing pressure on acute services. ICBs are responsible for assessing local need and determining how best to deploy such tools, taking account of population health inequalities and access to services.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve treatment access and monitoring for patients with inflammatory bowel disease.

Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department recognises the importance of consistent, high-quality care for people living with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). While the National Health Service in England operates within a locally commissioned system, the Government expects integrated care boards (ICBs) to take account of existing national guidance when planning and delivering services.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence provides evidence-based guidance on the diagnosis and management of IBD, which provides a framework for high-quality care across the NHS and supports timely access to appropriate treatment and ongoing monitoring. Additionally, the IBD Standards, developed by IBD UK, are used across the NHS to guide service design, identify gaps, and drive improvement.

NHS England is also working to reduce unwarranted variation and improve outcomes through programmes such as Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) and NHS RightCare. These initiatives support local systems to identify best practice, address unwarranted variation in pathways and outcomes, and strengthen access to specialist services where needed.

Alongside this, wider work across the NHS to improve earlier diagnosis, expand capacity, and deliver more joined-up care, as set out in the 10-Year Health Plan, will help ensure that people with IBD receive more timely, effective, and coordinated care.

NHS England and its partners use a range of data sources, including clinical audit data and programme work such as GIRFT to identify unwarranted variation in services and outcomes. These insights help ICBs to understand and address local disparities in care.

For people with IBD, virtual hospital models can improve services by enabling more timely monitoring and specialist input, reducing the need for hospital visits, and supporting proactive management of flares, which can help improve patient outcomes while easing pressure on acute services. ICBs are responsible for assessing local need and determining how best to deploy such tools, taking account of population health inequalities and access to services.

Toxicity testing on animals

NARPO Love or Money Campaign

Ownership and regulation of water

Arrest of Dr Mazen Al-Rantisi and Israeli action against Palestinian civil society

Air conditioning in hospitals, care homes, schools and nurseries

Five-year indefinite leave to remain pathway for Skilled Worker visa holders (No. 2)

Working in high temperatures

South Yemen

National Emergency Briefing

Pollok United UEFA Grassroots Award 2025-26

Public ownership of Thames Water

Bank holiday for celebrations if England win the 2026 FIFA World Cup

Rosebank oil field

England men's football team

Government response to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman report on communication of changes to women’s state pension age

Trade union support for Durham Pride

Liushenyu mining disaster and workers’ safety

Public health campaign on the dangers of swimming in open water

Parliament Education and Engagement Outreach Service

Communications blackout and human rights in Azad Jammu and Kashmir

Retirement of Tracy Thirlwall

Prosecution of parents of children with SEND for school absence