Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what guidance his Department issues to (a) university staff and (b) student support services on the rights of Irish citizens under the Common Travel Area.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office

Information for Irish Students accessing higher education in the UK is available at https://www.ucas.com/international/international-students/support-for-international-students/students-from-ireland.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much funding her Department plans to provide to schools that are not eligible for funding under the Connect the classroom programme for upgrading essential IT infrastructure.

Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The department is committed to supporting all schools to harness the transformative potential of technology. By setting digital and technology standards, developing support services, including our plan technology for your school service, and investing in connectivity, we aim to help all schools to have essential digital infrastructure in place.

Funding under the Connect the Classroom programme is targeted at schools in greatest need, ensuring public investment delivers the most impact.

The department is currently finalising internal budgeting processes and will announce any updates on future funding via GOV.UK.

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 cancer patients in Oxfordshire have timely access to radiotherapy services.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department remains committed to ensuring that all patients have access to timely diagnosis and treatments, including those in Oxfordshire.

We have invested £70 million of central funding into new radiotherapy treatment machines to replace older, less efficient machines. These new machines are currently being rolled out to trusts throughout the country. These newer machines will reduce treatment times, boost productivity, and allow more patients to be seen over the same period.

The National Cancer Plan, which we will publish in the new year, will include further details on how we will improve outcomes for cancer patients, as well as speeding up diagnosis and treatment. It will ensure patients, including those in Oxfordshire, have timely access to the latest treatments and technology.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking to encourage bereavement leave uptake among (a) shift workers and (b) carers.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The Employment Rights Bill will introduce a new right to Bereavement Leave for those grieving the loss of a loved one or a pregnancy.

A consultation was launched on 23^rd October, and was widely shared. We will invite a range of groups, including business, charities, trade unions and others who represent caregivers and shift workers to roundtables to discuss the questions raised by the consultation and how the entitlement can best be constructed to meet the needs of those they represent.

This approach will ensure the entitlement is constructed with the needs of employees and employers at the forefront.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of raising the VAT registration threshold from £90,000; and whether she plans to conduct a review of the impact of current thresholds on SMEs.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

With a VAT registration threshold of £90,000, the UK’s threshold is higher than any EU country and the joint highest in the OECD. This means the majority of UK businesses are kept out of the VAT system.

The Government’s approach to the VAT threshold aims to balance potential impacts on small businesses, including their growth and financial sustainability, the economy as a whole, and tax revenues. Tax breaks reduce the revenue available for public services and must represent value for money for the taxpayer.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 17 October 2025 to Question 77387 on Hormone Replacement Therapy, what steps he is taking to support women receiving treatment with Testo-100 HRT implants following (a) the recent recall of current stock by the distributor and (b) the current lack of alternative supplies of HRT implants.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department continues to work closely with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and can confirm that we have engaged with specialist importers to understand if they can source this product, but unfortunately, they have not been able to. We have also approached a supplier which has a product that is licensed in the United States but are yet to receive a response.

In the longer term, the MHRA is working with the importer Smartway, in an expedited fashion, to encourage full United Kingdom Marketing Authorisations for these products in 2026, which if successful, should bring about a safer and more stable supply.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Curriculum and Assessment Review interim report, published in March 2025, what steps her Department is taking to ensure (a) climate and (b) nature education is embedded across the curriculum.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

It is important that pupils learn about climate and nature education. Therefore, these topics are already included within the geography, science, and citizenship national curricula, and schools can also choose to teach these matters where they feel relevant in other subjects.

In addition, the Natural History GCSE will enable more young people to benefit from the opportunity to learn about the natural world in more depth at key stage 4. It will equip them to understand, and respect, the natural world and contribute to the protection and conservation of the environment locally, nationally and internationally.

The independent Curriculum and Assessment Review’s interim report set out that rapid social, environmental and technological change necessitates that the curriculum keep pace, including a greater focus on sustainability and climate science.

The Review’s final report has been published on 5 November with the government response to the recommendations published on the same day.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of keeping the personal allowance at £12,570 on pensioners’ tax liability.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Government is committed to making sure older people can live with the dignity and respect they deserve in retirement. The State Pension is the foundation of the support available to them. Over the course of this Parliament, the yearly amount of the full new State Pension is currently projected to go up by around £1,900 based on the Office for Budget Responsibility's latest forecast.

The Personal Allowance - the amount an individual can earn before paying tax - will continue to exceed the basic and full new State Pension in 2025/26. This means pensioners whose sole income is the full new State Pension or basic State Pension without any increments will not pay any income tax.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of (a) digital identity systems and (b) online application platforms on access to public services by Irish citizens living in the UK.

Answered by Josh Simons - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The government will launch a public consultation on the design of the new digital ID, and has already started to engage with a range of expert organisations. Stakeholder and public views, including those in response to the future consultation, will inform ongoing policy development and assessments of impacts.

We have been in touch with our counterparts in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland and will continue to engage with them to ensure systems work for people on both sides of the border, as committed to in the Good Friday Agreement and the Common Travel Area.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he has taken to help ensure that new housing developments do not increase sewage network pressures through (a) incorrect and (b) inadequate wastewater connections; and what steps he is taking to help ensure that housing developers are held accountable for improper wastewater connections discovered after property completion.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government recognises the importance of water and wastewater provision on new developments.

As set out in Paragraph 7 of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), the purpose of the planning system is to contribute to the achievement of sustainable development, including the provision of homes, commercial development and supporting infrastructure in a sustainable manner.

Sustainable development should be pursued both through the preparation and implementation of local development plans, and the application of policies in the framework.

The government is clear that housing must come with appropriate infrastructure, including appropriate water infrastructure. We believe that strategic issues such as water capacity are best dealt with at a strategic level through the plan-making process, rather than through individual planning applications.

A key function of local development plans is to guide development to the most suitable and sustainable locations and to ensure that the associated infrastructure requirements are addressed. Effective co-operation early in the plan-making process is essential to ensuring not only that housing and infrastructure need is appropriately planned for, but that they are aligned with each other. The NPPF makes it clear that local planning authorities should collaborate with each other and with other public bodies, including infrastructure providers, to identify relevant strategic matters to be addressed, including providing for sustainable water supplies.

Water companies are under a statutory duty to provide new water and sewerage connections to residential properties, as well as planning to meet the needs of growth as part of water resource management plans, and drainage and wastewater management plans. The water resources planning guideline published by the Environment Agency and Ofwat, sets out how those companies should forecast demand for water based on existing customers and planned levels of household and non-household growth, with the number of planned developments being based on published local plans.

Relevant planning practice guidance sets out that good design and mitigation measures should be secured during development, both through site-specific and non-site-specific policies on water infrastructure. The revised NPPF published on 12 December 2024 makes clear that developments of all sizes should use sustainable drainage techniques when the development could have drainage impacts and should have appropriate maintenance arrangements in place. We continue to explore whether more needs to be done to ensure sustainable drainage technologies are taken up more widely in new development, either through planning policy or by commencing schedule 3 to the Flood and Water Management Act 2010, and a decision on the best way forward will be made in the coming months.

Ensuring that we take a strategic spatial planning approach to the management of water, including tackling pollution and managing pressures on the water environment at a catchment, regional and national scale, was a core objective of the independent review into the regulatory system of the water sector. The government’s full response to the Independent Water Commission’s recommendations will be published through a White Paper published for consultation this Autumn. This will include responses to recommendations which intend to unlock growth by ensuring water infrastructure investment is aligned with regional and national economic priorities and remove long-standing barriers to development.

There are various routes for property owners to seek compensation predominantly through their new build warranty scheme or where the developer has failed to comply with the Water Industry Act 1991, they can be approached directly for compensation with the property owner having grounds for legal action.

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 developer-led wastewater misconnections on sewage treatment works capacity; and what plans she has to strengthen enforcement powers for (a) water companies and (b) local authorities on developer wastewater misconnections.

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

Most modern homes will have sewerage systems that separate wastewater from surface water, and discharge each into separate drains. Property owners are legally responsible for resolving misconnected pipework on their property; public misconnections are the responsibility of water companies.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 1 July 2025 to Question 63264 on Reforms to Bathing Water Regulations 2013 and with reference to the Written Statement Reform of 28 October 2025 on The Bathing Water Regulations 2013, what her planned timetable is for the implementation of the wider reforms.

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

In November and December 2024, the Government, jointly with Welsh Government, consulted on Reforms to The Bathing Water Regulations 2013, in the first shake-up to the Bathing Water Regulations since they were introduced. On 28 October 2025 the Department laid before Parliament a statutory instrument which incorporated the three core reforms and several technical amendments consulted on.

The consultation also sought views on two wider possible reforms. We have begun policy development and research, including immersion studies to determine how best to implement these reforms in future and take into account any potential environmental, societal and access impacts. We will share information regarding timetables for potential implementation of these wider reforms following the conclusion of the studies and after further policy development.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the efficacy of the implementation by Local Authorities of the Food Standards Agency's Food Hygiene Rating Scheme process from investigation to action.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Food Hygiene Rating Scheme is operated by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) in partnership with local authorities across England, Wales, and Northern Ireland.

The FSA monitors the operation of the Food Hygiene Ratings Scheme by local authorities to provide assurance as far as practical that it is operated consistently within and between authorities. Any issues identified are addressed with the relevant local authorities to ensure the scheme is delivered in line with the required standards. The FSA coordinates a regular national consistency exercise with local authorities to assess the consistent application of scoring at food hygiene inspections as required by the Food Law Code of Practice.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of the 23 October 2025 to Question 83549 on utilities: repairs and maintenance, what steps her Department is taking to improve regulations governing emergency repairs by utilities that disrupt use of the highway.

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

In response to the Honourable Member’s question on 23 October 2025, the data, sourced from Street Manager, the Government’s digital platform for managing highway works, shows no evidence of widespread misuse of immediate permits. The Department for Transport will work with the Highway Authorities and Utilities Committee to revise the Co-ordination Code of Practice, aiming to provide clearer guidance on the appropriate use of immediate permits.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer received on 23 October 2025 to Question 83549 on utilities: repairs and maintenance, what the evidential basis is to suggest potential misuse of emergency repair provisions by utilities is low.

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

In response to the Honourable Member’s question on 23 October 2025, the data, sourced from Street Manager, the Government’s digital platform for managing highway works, shows no evidence of widespread misuse of immediate permits. The Department for Transport will work with the Highway Authorities and Utilities Committee to revise the Co-ordination Code of Practice, aiming to provide clearer guidance on the appropriate use of immediate permits.

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 reduce reliance on (a) voluntary and (b) charitable organisations to deliver core mental health services for older people; and what steps his Department plans to take to provide sustainable statutory funding to fill service gaps covered by the voluntary sector.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government values the huge contribution that voluntary and charitable organisations play in supporting older people with their mental health.

The 10-Year Health Plan sets out ambitious plans to transform mental health services to improve access and treatment, and to promote good mental health and wellbeing for the nation. This includes improving assertive outreach, investing in mental health emergency departments and neighbourhood mental health centres, and increasing access to talking therapies and evidence-based digital interventions.

Spending on mental health support is forecast to increase by £688 million in cash terms this financial year. Details of future funding arrangements, including integrated care board allocations over the next three years, will be set out across revenue finance and contracting guidance, capital guidance, and published allocations in due course.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 9 June 2025 to Question 57535 on Active Travel: Construction, when he plans to publish guidance to support local authorities in the design and delivery of active travel routes.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

Following extensive consultation with stakeholders, Active Travel England’s Rural Design Guidance is currently in its final development stages and is expected to be published by the end of the year.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make an assessment of (a) the potential merits of establishing a regulatory framework for the registration and road use of three- and four-wheeled electric bicycles, (b) the adequacy of road safety standards to ensure that these vehicles can operate safely alongside other road users and (c) the potential impact of the wider adoption of properly regulated three- and four-wheeled e-bikes on the environment, accessibility and congestion.

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

The existing regulatory framework for electric cycles is comprised of the Electrically Assisted Pedal Cycle Regulations 1983 and the Pedal Cycle (Construction and Use) Regulations 1983. These regulations apply to cycles with two or more wheels and are therefore applicable to three and four-wheeled electric cycles.

These cycles must be constructed to meet the standards in the Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations 2008. European Standard EN15194 is the industry standard which can contribute to meeting these regulations.

No assessment concerning the environment, accessibility or congestion is planned in respect of these cycles.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to respond to the letter from the hon. Member for Henley and Thames of 10 October 2025 on the importance of police referrals to suicide bereavement support services.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Minister for Police and Crime Prevention will reply in due course.

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 the goals for to older people's mental health services in the 10-Year Plan for the NHS are met in relation to (a) prevention, (b) early intervention, (c) access to community-based support and (d) in general.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The 10-Year Health Plan sets out ambitious plans to transform mental health services, including for older people, to improve access and treatment, and to promote good mental health and wellbeing for the nation. This includes improving early intervention and assertive outreach, investing in mental health emergency departments and neighbourhood mental health centres, and increasing access to talking therapies and evidence-based digital interventions.

The recently published Medium Term Planning Framework sets targets for integrated care boards to expand coverage of mental health support teams in schools and colleges, expand NHS Talking Therapies and Individual Placement Support schemes, and eliminate inappropriate out-of-area placements by 2029.

We are also committed to working beyond the health system to create an environment that promotes good mental health, prevents people from developing mental health problems, and improves the lives of people living with a mental health problem.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 23 October 2025 to Question 88113 on Utilities: Repairs and Maintenance, if he will publish statistics from Street Manager on the misuse of immediate permits.

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

As previously communicated to the Honourable Member, analysis of data from Street Manager has not indicated any widespread misuse of immediate permits. Since 2021, the proportion of immediate permits issued for emergency and urgent works has remained consistently within the range of 35% to 40%:

2021–22: 36.9%,

2022–23: 35.2%,

2023–24: 37.6%,

2024–25: 38.2%.

This year-on-year consistency suggests that immediate permits are being used appropriately and for legitimate operational needs. This conclusion is supported by engagement with both industry representatives and local authorities. The primary users of immediate permits across the periods were water companies, undertaking urgent repairs to leaks and restoring customer connections in accordance with regulatory requirements, and Highway Authorities, addressing hazardous potholes to ensure public safety. Details of Street Manager’s Open Data Overview is publicly accessible online.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of reducing the Housing Benefit taper rate to 55 per cent for people living in supported accommodation in work.

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

The Department recognises the challenge arising from the interaction between Universal Credit and Housing Benefit for residents in supported and temporary accommodation.

A wide range of customers currently receive rent support through Housing Benefit, including pensioners, residents in supported or temporary accommodation, and those who have not yet migrated to Universal Credit. Any amendment to the Housing Benefit taper would therefore apply across these groups.

The Housing Benefit income taper ensures that people in work are better off than those wholly reliant on benefits, and it only applies to those with earnings. However, the treatment of earnings in Housing Benefit is less generous than under Universal Credit. Consequently, while customers in supported accommodation are better off working than not working, some may face disincentives to increase their hours to maintain Universal Credit entitlement.

The Department is considering options to improve work incentives for residents of supported and temporary accommodation, taking account of stakeholder views. Any future decisions on housing support will be made in the round, prioritising measures that best meet Government objectives within the current fiscal environment.

It remains our priority to ensure that those who can work are supported to enter and sustain employment.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to respond to the letter from the hon. Member for Henley and Thames of 10 October 2025 on Suicide Bereavement Support Services.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

We replied to the Hon. Member’s correspondence on 13 November 2025.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to ensure Henley and Thame constituency has 99% gigabit coverage by 2032.

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

As part of Project Gigabit, Gigaclear is delivering a contract across South Oxfordshire to deliver gigabit-capable broadband to premises not included in suppliers’ commercial rollout plans. Approximately 3,300 premises in Henley and Thame constituency are currently included in this contract, which is expected to complete by 2026.

Additionally, approximately 250 premises within the constituency are included in a Project Gigabit contract being delivered by CityFibre covering Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and East Berkshire. This contract is currently expected to complete by 2029.

We will aim to cover the remaining premises that are not currently included in Project Gigabit or suppliers’ commercial delivery plans as far as possible as funding becomes available, in line with the objective of achieving nationwide gigabit coverage by 2032.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on reforms to the tax and benefits system for young people in supported accommodation.

Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury

The Chancellor regularly engages with Cabinet colleagues across a wide range of policy issues including tax and welfare.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 11 November 2025 to Question 88109 on Bathing Water Regulations 2013, what her planned timetable is for that policy development and research.

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

DEFRA is engaged in a programme of work to ensure the Bathing Water (Amendment) (England and Wales) Regulations 2025 can be implemented effectively, including feasibility studies to support Core Reform 2 and a pre-implementation research project on Core Reform 3. In addition, the Department is exploring how any evidence to support the delivery of wider reforms, including expanding the definition of bathers to include other water users and introducing multiple monitoring points at sites, might be developed. The timeline for detailed policy development and research will depend on the outcome of initial scoping work. DEFRA will engage with local and national stakeholders as this work progresses.

President Trump’s 20-point peace plan

Crohn’s and Colitis Awareness Week 2025

Conduct of Samir Zitouni and Stephen Crean on the 18.25 Doncaster to Kings Cross train on 1 November 2025

Conduct of Sir Robbie Gibb and the independence of the BBC Board

Release of Alaa Abd El-Fattah and the plight of British nationals arbitrarily detained abroad

Schools (Residential Outdoor Education) (Scotland) Bill

Global Lobular Breast Cancer Awareness Day 2025

Recognition of Steve McBain’s contribution to the London Road underpass campaign

Protection of the Climate Change Act

25th anniversary of the UN Women, Peace and Security agenda

Access to school and college transport for disabled young people

Renewable energy and coal

Protect our hospices

Fruit and Vegetable Aid Scheme

35 years of Macmillan Cancer Support’s Coffee Morning

40th anniversary of Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Future of BBC Radio 4 Longwave

Menopause Awareness Month

Medical Defence Union 140th anniversary

Contribution of legal immigrants

Warm Homes Plan

National Cancer Plan

Water bills

Conduct of the hon. Member for Runcorn and Helsby

Transparency and accountability in social media account closures

Government proposals for mandatory digital ID

Equitable national prostate cancer screening

Government review into Volumetric Concrete Mobile plants

Found: Members present: Dame Chi Onwurah (Chair); Emily Darlington; Dr Allison Gardner; Kit Malthouse; Freddie van Mierlo

Found: ; Dr Allison Gardner; Kit Malthouse; Samantha Niblett; Dr Lauren Sullivan; Adam Thompson; Freddie van Mierlo

Hair and beauty products (chemicals applied to the hair or body for cosmetic purposes) and treatments (cosmetic procedures typically performed by specialists) can cause harm to consumers if they contain unregulated ingredients or if they are improperly administered.  The inquiry will respond to recent research which has led to concerns about the current scientific evidence base and regulation for these products, as well as the required training and qualifications of specialists performing treatments.  The inquiry will also investigate the growing concern that certain products that are commonly used by marginalised groups, such as creams to ‘relax’ afro-type hair and synthetic hair, can contain harmful chemicals.