Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the number of schools which do not meet their statutory duty to teach swimming and water safety during (a) Key Stage 1 and (b) Key Stage 2.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
Swimming and water safety lessons are compulsory at key stage 1 and 2 in the physical education (PE) national curriculum. Swimming and water safety are vital life skills, and every child should have the opportunity to learn to swim and know how to keep themselves safe around water by the time they leave primary school.
Sport England’s Active Lives Children and Young People Survey 2023/24 reports that 95.2% of state primary schools surveyed confirmed they do provide swimming lessons. The report also states that 70.2% of pupils in year 7 say they can swim 25 metres unaided. Ofsted inspections may include a deep dive into PE, in which case the inspector will consider how the PE curriculum has been designed, and whether the various requirements are met.
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of UK-manufactured electric vehicles exported to foreign countries on UK environmental targets.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Industry data shows nearly 80% of vehicles made in the UK are exported. We do not expect this to impact the Government’s ability to meet the targets set out through the Zero Emission Vehicle Mandate. A thriving zero emission vehicle export market is crucial to supporting a domestic automotive industry that will drive growth, deliver jobs, and support the UK’s environmental goals.
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which private companies were given advance sight of the Strategic Defence Review before 5.04pm on 2 June 2025.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
For the launch of the Strategic Defence Review, the Government offered embargoed briefings to our people and senior defence leaders, plus certain Parliamentarians, trade unions, businesses, allies and media. This was broadly consistent with the approach for previous defence reviews.
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the Spending Review will fund all of the recommendations of the 2025 Strategic Defence Review.
Answered by Darren Jones - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Strategic Defence Review (SDR) was published on 2 June 2025, and the recommendations within it have been accepted by the government. Full details of the departmental budgets for the spending review period will be published on 11 June 2025.
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 impact of immigration controls on staffing levels in (a) primary and (b) secondary care.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We hugely value our health and social care workers from overseas, who work tirelessly to provide the best possible care and enhance our health and care workforce with their valuable skills, experience, and expertise. At the same time, we are also committed to growing homegrown talent and giving opportunities to more people across the country to join the National Health Service. Following publication of our 10-Year Health Plan, we will produce a refreshed workforce plan, setting out how we will train and provide the staff that the NHS needs to care for patients across our communities and treat them on time again.
The immigration White Paper, Restoring Control over the Immigration System, will reshape our immigration system towards those who contribute the most to economic growth, with higher skills standards for graduates and workers. Every area of the immigration system, including work, family, and study, will be tightened up, to reduce record-high levels of net migration and restore control and order to the immigration system. The White Paper is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/restoring-control-over-the-immigration-system-white-paper
Health and Social Care Worker visa data is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/immigration-system-statistics-data-tables
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the processes put in place for the spouses of armed forces personnel to apply for (a) statutory maternity pay and (b) maternity allowance.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
Defence continues to recognise the important role that the families of UK Armed Forces personnel play in supporting their Serving person; life in the Armed Forces can be highly rewarding, but it can also make high demands of our service people. These demands can place a strain on the service family as they juggle the requirements of the service, the wants of the service person and the needs of the service family; but the support of a strong family unit can be the counterweight that every service person needs if they are to achieve a balance.
This is why we are developing increasingly family friendly policies to ensure that the Armed Forces in an environment that is an attractive proposition to existing as well as new and diverse families.
In 2025, Defence launched the Families Hub to help families navigate Service life. More information can be found at the following link: https://discovermybenefits.mod.gov.uk/families/
For Servicewomen, the Armed Forces’ policy and process for maternity leave and pay, known as the Armed Forces’ Occupational Maternity Scheme (AFOMS), is set out in JSP 760, Tri-Service Regulations for Leave and Other Types of Absence. Chapter 24 of JSP 760 sets out entitlement to pay, options on length of leave, and the actions required by pregnant Servicewomen and their commanding officers following confirmation of pregnancy. JSP 760, along with all related electronic application forms, is reviewed and updated frequently, with the latest version always internally accessible to all Service personnel on DefNet, the Ministry of Defence intranet, or from Unit HR staff.
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what meetings his Department has had with animal rights organisations on guidance on animal testing since 1 January 2025.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Labour Manifesto commits to “partner with scientists, industry, and civil society as we work towards the phasing out of animal testing”. The Government will publish a strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods later this year. To support this Minister Vallance hosted a roundtable on 14.05.25 with representatives from animal welfare organisations. He also met with the Chair of All-Party Parliamentary Group on phasing out animal experiments in medical research and representatives from Animal Free Research on 01.04.25, and with representatives from Lush UK on 15.05.25. There have been additional meetings before 01.01.25.
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, which bodies are responsible for (a) monitoring (i) shortages and (ii) unavailability of NHS prescription medicines, (b) overseeing the manufacturing locations of brands licensed for use in the UK and (c) assessing potential supply risks where multiple brands are produced by the same third-party manufacturer.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department has overall policy, strategic, and operational responsibility for ensuring the continuity of the supply of medicines to the National Health Service in England. The Department works closely with NHS England, which has delegated responsibility for managing the continuity of supply for medicines procured on Medicines Procurement and Supply Chain Team frameworks. Manufacturers have a legal requirement to inform the Department of any supply issues. We work closely with industry, the NHS, manufacturers, and other partners across the supply chain to make sure patients across the United Kingdom can access the medicines they need.
The supply of medicines, including procurement, storage, allocation, and distribution is a devolved matter. However, we regularly engage with the devolved administrations to discuss potential supply issues.
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency regulates medicines, medical devices, and blood components for transfusion in the UK. The Home Office issues controlled drug licences for companies that possess, manufacture, produce, or supply controlled drugs in England, Wales, or Scotland, and Department of Health (Northern Ireland) for Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of funding for the National Park Authorities.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The government is providing £45.2 million of core funding to the 10 National Park Authorities, with a capital uplift of up to £15 million to support their contribution to protecting 30% of land by 2030. In challenging financial circumstances, this uplift in capital investment is recognition of the vital importance of national parks to government priorities. We have also extended programmes such as Farming In Protected Landscapes, providing £30 million to support projects in our National Parks and Protected Landscapes, until March 2026.
In addition to investing in these important landscapes we are also working with Protected Landscapes organisations to identify additional sources of funding and foster innovation to ensure their future for generations to come.
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what notifications of changes to revenue grants for financial year 2025-6 have been sent to National Park Authorities (a) on and (b) since 2 April 2025.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Letters were issued to all National Park Authorities (including the Broads Authority) in early April confirming Defra’s intent to continue grant funding for the financial year 2025/26. The letters also set out the provisional revenue and capital grant allocation for each authority.