Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to enhance drone manufacturing capacity in the UK.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Ministry of Defence is committed to enhancing the UK’s drone manufacturing capacity by investing in research and development, fostering partnerships with industry, and supporting innovation through initiatives. These efforts aim to strengthen the domestic defence industrial base, promote growth and ensure the UK remains at the forefront of cutting-edge drone technology.
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
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 is taking to regulate service charges for leaseholders to ensure that they are transparent and value for money; and what support is available for leaseholders who see service charges increase because ground rent is capped.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
On 4 July 2025, the government published a consultation, jointly with the Welsh Government, on strengthening leaseholder protections over charges and services. The consultation included proposals to reform the section 20 ‘major works’ procedure, increase transparency over service charges and enhance access to redress through the relevant provisions in the Act. The consultation can be found on gov.uk here. It closed on 26 September 2025, and we are analysing responses with a view to bringing the relevant measures into force as quickly as possible.
Ground rent is a payment set out in a lease with no clear service provided in return. It is legally distinct from service charges.
Service charges are financial contributions made by leaseholders towards the costs of the management and maintenance of their buildings.
The government recognises the considerable financial strain that rising services charges place on leaseholders and tenants. The level of service charge that leaseholders pay depends on many factors, including the terms of a lease and the age and condition of a building. By law, variable service charges must be reasonable. Overcharging through service charges is completely unacceptable. Should leaseholders wish to contest the reasonableness of their service charges they may make an application to the appropriate tribunal.
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans her department has to provide additional funding under the Neighbourhood Policing Grant for 2026/27 to help meet the neighbourhood policing recruitment target given to Devon and Cornwall Police Force.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
As part of the Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee, the Government has committed to delivering 13,000 additional neighbourhood policing personnel by the end of this Parliament.
Funding available to Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) will be up to £18.4 billion in 2026-27, an increase of up to £796 million. In 2026-27 Devon and Cornwall Police will receive up to £483.5 million of funding, an increase of up to £19.4 million compared to 2025-26, which equates to a 4.2% cash increase, or a 1.9% real terms increase
For Year 2 of the Neighbourhood Policing Grant, forces will be given their share of a £363 million ringfence. This funding is subject to forces delivering their share of growth in 2026-27, contributing to a total increase of 4,750 FTE from the March 2025 baseline. Devon and Cornwall Police have been allocated £8,590,680 of the Year 2 ringfence.
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department are taking to improve teacher retention; and whether her Department plans to publish a teacher retention strategy.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Better retention of teachers and leaders keeps the skills and expertise they have developed in classrooms, underpinning high quality education for every child.
In our ’6,500 additional teachers’ delivery plan, the department set out it’s focus for delivery across three key themes: attracting, retaining and developing teachers.
The department is increasing access and awareness of flexible working, promoting best practice in workload and wellbeing management, and supporting teachers and leaders to harness the benefits of technology.
We are offering targeted retention incentives worth up to £6,000 after tax for teachers in the first five years of their career, who teach key science, technology, engineering and maths subjects in the most disadvantaged schools. We have also made above inflation pay increases of almost 10% for teachers and leaders over the last two pay rounds, accepting the School Teachers' Review Body recommendations in full.
Our interventions are starting to deliver. The last school workforce census reported 1,700 fewer leavers than the previous year and a leaver rate of 9%, one of the lowest since 2010.
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his department is taking to support rural and other off-grid households with the cost of heating oil.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government understands that many households, particularly in rural and off-gas-grid areas, rely on heating oil as their primary source of heat. Unlike gas and electricity, heating oil is bought on the spot market, making it more exposed to short-term volatility in global oil prices, which we recognise is a significant concern for those reliant on it.
The Chancellor has announced £53m for low income families, who heat their homes with oil to help tackle surging prices.
This funding is allocated as part of the Crisis Resilience fund, and will be distributed by Local Authorities.
In addition, the measures taken in the Autumn Budget reduce the cost of electricity and therefore benefit all households with a domestic electricity meter, including those not on the gas grid. On 30 January, we also announced the continuation of the Warm Home Discount scheme until 2030/31, providing around 6 million eligible households with the £150 rebate on their energy bills each winter.
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment his department has made of the potential merits of introducing a consumer price cap for heating oil, as is used for on-grid gas and electricity consumers.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Introducing a price cap on heating oil risks significant unintended consequences. If wholesale costs rose above the cap, it could drive distributors out of the market and possibly result in supply shortages.
Unlike gas and electricity, heating oil customers can shop around for the best prices delivery‑by‑delivery. There are commercial price comparison websites to help consumers find the best deal.
We continue support the transition away from fossil fuels to strengthen long-term resilience, while we keep under review whether any further action may be needed to protect consumers.
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how many responses were received to the consultation on trade union right of access; and whether he plans to publish analysis of those responses.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Consultation on trade union right of access received a total of 1612 responses. Policy officials are in the process of reviewing the responses to the consultation, and the government will publish a formal response in due course detailing our analysis.
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
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 the phased rollout of tirzepatide weight management injections, prescribed by GPs to Cohort 1 of those with the highest clinical need since 2025, for initial trial under NHS England's Prevention Programme (Obesity).
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are legally required to fund National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE)-recommended medicines within three months of final approval. NICE granted a phased rollout of tirzepatide for obesity to manage National Health Service resources and establish new care pathways. Tirzepatide became subject to a legal requirement for ICBs to fund its use in specialist weight management services from March 2025, and in primary care from 23 June 2025. Access is being prioritised for those with the highest clinical need.
Publicly available prescribing data shows that prescribing of tirzepatide has increased between April and December 2025, reflecting the early stages of phased implementation in primary care. As these medicines are licensed for multiple indications, national prescribing data cannot distinguish between use for obesity and diabetes.
NHS England continues to work with clinical experts and ICBs to monitor early implementation and support local pathway development. It will update its interim commissioning guidance as planned, and NICE will review progress after three years, including whether rollout can be accelerated if system capacity allows.
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if his Department will reassess the (a) combat readiness and (b) repair schedule of the Royal Navy's Type 45 Destroyers.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The MOD keeps Type 45 Destroyer readiness under continual review to meet operational tasking. Repair and maintenance schedules are managed through established programmes that ensure availability is maintained while delivering long‑term upgrades and improvements
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his department is taking to effectively deliver Ministry of Defence procurement programmes designated with a Red rating for its Delivery Confidence Assessment during financial year 2024/5.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Performance of defence major programmes is subject to regular review. This enables the timely application of appropriate interventions to support a return to increased delivery confidence. An assessment of Red does not mean that the programme is undeliverable, but that there are management interventions required as a priority in order to increase the likelihood of being able to deliver to approved time, performance and cost.
Under our Defence Reforms the National Armaments Director holds all the levers of procurement, enabling the necessary interventions to be applied in support of programmes assessed as Red. In addition, implementation of the Defence Industrial Strategy will continue to remove many of the drivers for reduced levels in delivery confidence.
We inherited an equipment programme where the vast majority of programmes were over-budget and delayed. Through the work we are doing as set out in the Defence Industrial Strategy and Defence Investment Plan, we are seeking to get on top of this backlog and we are making progress.