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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps the Department is taking to prevent dog attacks resulting in the death of other dogs; and what assessment the Department has made of the adequacy of existing laws and enforcement measures in protecting dogs from fatal attacks.

Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

This Government reconvened the Responsible Dog Ownership taskforce in 2025 to explore measures to promote responsible dog ownership across all breeds of dog. The taskforce focused on four key areas: improving public education on staying safe around dogs, training for both dogs and their owners, enforcement of existing legislation, and improving data on dog attacks. Ministers have recently received its recommendations and will consider these carefully in due course.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she has reviewed the recommendation of the Health and Social Care Committee for the establishment of an independent Mental Health Commissioner; and what alternative mechanisms are in place to ensure independent oversight, accountability and implementation of lessons arising from serious failures in mental health care services.

Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

I refer the Hon Member to the Government’s response to the Health and Select Committee’s fourth report of session 2024 to 2026: community mental health services, published 11 March 2026, specifically regarding recommendation 22, which is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/community-mental-health-services-governments-response-to-the-health-and-social-care-committees-report/government-response-to-the-health-and-social-care-committees-fourth-report-of-session-2024-to-2026-community-mental-health-services

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of increases in household water charges on water company performance in reducing (a) sewage discharges, (b) leakage rates and (c) pollution incidents; and whether she plans to review the effectiveness of Ofwat's regulatory framework.

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

Ofwat’s 2024 Price Review provided companies with a record £104 billion of investment, from investors, efficiency savings and bills, funding nearly 3,000 storm overflow improvements, upgrades to more than 1,700 wastewater treatment works and protecting 15,000km of rivers.

Companies failing to meet commitments will face consequences, including returning money to customers so they do not pay for poor performance.

The Government has set out plans to reform the sector and establish a single water regulator which will deliver enhanced accountability for improvement of the water system and take a ‘whole firm’ view of water company performance.

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 support emergency community food providers and tackle food insecurity in the Heywood and Middleton North constituency.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government) (Equalities)

The Government has committed to ending mass dependence on emergency food parcels.

This includes funding of £1 billion per year through the Crisis and Resilience Fund (CRF) until March 2029. The CRF enables local authorities to provide funding directly to emergency community food providers in areas such as the Heywood and Middleton North constituency. This funding includes preventative, wraparound support as well as assistance for people facing a financial crisis. Further, this Government is strengthening our partnership with the voluntary, community and social enterprise sector (VCSE) through our Civil Society Covenant.

We have also taken substantive action to support low-income households and tackle food insecurity, by increasing the National Living Wage and increasing the rates of Universal Credit. The Child Poverty Strategy, particularly the removal of the two-child limit and increasing access to Free School Meals, should also help address demand for food related support.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps are being taken to ensure the EA system protects women in abusive relationships.

Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security) (Jointly with the Cabinet Office)

Protecting women in abusive relationships is front of mind when it comes to the Emergency Alerts system. In order to protect those who may have hidden phones, both national tests of the Emergency Alerting capability have been accompanied by a proactive public communications campaign. This raised awareness of the system and recommended that women with hidden phones opt out of receiving Alerts. Once this change has been made in a handset’s settings, it should remain in place meaning no future alerts will be received.

The decision on 14 August was made against a backdrop of unprecedented hot and dry conditions, with 43 active fires and 11 major incidents simultaneously impacting emergency services across the UK. We carefully considered whether an alert was appropriate, weighing the significant disruption it would cause against the potential to mitigate the mounting pressure on our fire and rescue services and the risk to people’s lives.

The government is committed to learning from this experience and we are currently reviewing the thresholds and operational protocols for future alerts to ensure they remain a proportionate and effective tool for preserving life.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps her Department is taking to expand targeted home insulation schemes and protect vulnerable prepayment meter customers from winter energy disconnection risks in Heywood and Middleton North constituency.

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

Tackling affordability is this Government's number one priority and we’ve made significant interventions to provide direct support with household energy bills.

At last year's Budget the Government removed policy costs from them worth an average £150 a year, with those reductions now factored into future bills for years to come.

In July, one of the new Prime Minister’s first actions was to remove VAT from domestic electricity bills for six months from 1 October, reducing the annual Ofgem price cap by around £45 and benefiting all households automatically, including those on fixed tariffs and prepayment meters.

These actions followed a significant expansion of the £150 Warm Homes Discount to six million households last winter, and confirming that level of support over the rest of the decade.

In terms of longer term support, the Government is expanding support for home energy upgrades including insulation through the £15 billion Warm Homes Plan, the biggest public investment in home upgrades in British history. Low-income households can access fully-funded grants through the Warm Homes: Local Grant and the Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of extending the additional business rates support available to eligible pubs and live music venues to independent gyms and other leisure businesses, including on the viability of independent gyms and levels of physical activity.

Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General

The Government recognises the important contribution that independent gyms and other leisure businesses make to local communities and to supporting physical activity. They benefit from the Government's business rates reforms, including permanently lower multipliers for qualifying retail, hospitality and leisure properties and the £4.3 billion support package introduced to support those ratepayers facing large increases in bills following the 2026 revaluation.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a tram network within Heywood and Middleton North constituency.

Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

Between 2022-23 and 2026-27, the government is providing £1.07bn of City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement (CRSTS) funding to Greater Manchester to deliver transformational change to Greater Manchester’s transport infrastructure. Beyond that, we have confirmed a £2.5bn Transport for City Regions settlement for Greater Manchester from 2027-28 to 2031-32. It is for the Mayor of Greater Manchester to prioritise transport projects within that funding. As light rail is devolved in England, this includes considering the potential merits of any future tram proposals in the Heywood and Middleton North constituency.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of funding allocated for Discretionary Housing Payments to support low-income private renters facing debt, credit reliance, and eviction pressures in Heywood and Middleton North constituency.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government) (Equalities)

Since April 2026, Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs) have become Crisis and Resilience Fund (CRF) Housing Payments in England. They continue to be available to those entitled to a qualifying benefit who require further financial assistance with their housing costs. The allocation of awards is at the discretion of the local authority.

Funding for discretionary housing support for local authorities in England and Wales remains at £100 million for 2026/27. In addition to the central government contribution, local authorities can top up their CRF Housing Payment funding from other funding streams.

Local authorities are required to provide details of their Housing Payment expenditure, which enables officials to closely monitor spend to ensure funding is targeted effectively. Information on the use of DHPs in England up to financial year 2025 to 2026 can be found using this link: Discretionary Housing Payments statistics - GOV.UK.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps the Department is taking to tackle (a) illegal dog breeding and (b) dog fighting; and what assessment the Department has made of the effectiveness of current enforcement measures in addressing these activities.

Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018 require anyone in the business of breeding and selling dogs and/or who breeds three or more litters in a twelve-month period to have a valid licence from their local authority. It is for local authorities to use the powers of inspection and licensing to implement the regime.

As part of the Animal Welfare Strategy, this Government has committed to consult on dog breeding reforms to improve the health and welfare of breeding dogs and their puppies.

Dog fighting is illegal under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 (the 2006 Act) which also applies to those who are present at a fight. The Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Act 2021 amended the 2006 Act to increase the maximum penalty for the most serious offences from six months to five years’ imprisonment. This strengthened penalty enables courts to take a firmer approach to cases such as dog fighting.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of discretionary local welfare funding to tackle child deprivation and shortages of household essentials in the Heywood and Middleton North constituency.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

Through the new Crisis and Resilience Fund, the Government is providing long-term funding for locally delivered crisis support in England until March 2029. The Fund provides a safety net for people on low incomes who are in crisis and need immediate financial help with essential costs, while also supporting longer-term financial resilience. Local authorities have been given the funding and flexibility to design support that works for their communities, as in line with the scheme’s guidance.

No assessment has been made of the adequacy of the Crisis and Resilience Fund to tackle child deprivation and shortages of household essentials in the Heywood and Middleton North constituency.

Question

To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what steps her Department are taking to help ensure members of the LGBTQ community in Heywood and Middleton North constituency feel represented.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

It is crucial that LGBT+ people in all areas of Britain are safe, included and protected from discrimination. To achieve this we must end the recent politics of division. Work is continuing to progress the commitments set out in the Government’s manifesto, advancing the rights and protections afforded to LGBT+ people.

These include:

• delivering a full trans-inclusive ban on conversion practices, and having published our draft Bill for pre-legislative scrutiny. The Government will ensure its approach provides protection from these abusive practices while preserving the freedom for people to explore their sexual orientation and gender identity, and also respecting the important roles of those supporting them.
• Continuing to work with the Home Office to deliver our commitment to equalise all existing strands of hate crime to make them aggravated offences.
• working with the Department of Health and Social Care to improve services for LGBT+ people. This includes implementing the recommendations of the Cass Review and reviewing adult gender identity services to ensure that all trans people receive appropriate and high-quality care.
• continuing our work with our international and European allies to advance LGBT+ rights and reinforce our position as a global leader on Human Rights once again.

We work alongside a range of stakeholders, including those based in the North West such as the LGBT Foundation and the Proud Trust. It is very important to this Government that local voices are heard and included in national policy development.

Submit Evidence (by 13 Nov 2026)

The Transport Committee is exploring Government interventions in public transport fares, pricing and ticketing.