Asked by: Joshua Reynolds (Liberal Democrat - Maidenhead)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the minimum service expectation for newly appointed magistrates on trends in the level of applications from people aged over 70.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Department has not made a specific assessment of the impact of the minimum service expectation on applications from people aged over 70. The expectation that newly appointed magistrates are able to serve for at least five years reflects the significant investment in recruitment, training and mentoring, and supports effective workforce planning. Candidates are encouraged to apply before their 70th birthday so that they can serve until the mandatory retirement age of 75, which was increased from 70 in 2022.
Asked by: Joshua Reynolds (Liberal Democrat - Maidenhead)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department has assessed the potential merits of allowing magistrates to serve beyond the mandatory retirement age, subject to an assessment of their fitness and suitability to serve.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The mandatory retirement age applies to judicial office holders, including magistrates, and was increased from 70 to 75 in March 2022. The Government has no current plans to allow magistrates to serve beyond the mandatory retirement age. A consistent retirement age across the judiciary supports judicial independence and public confidence by avoiding the need for individual assessments of the health, fitness or suitability of judicial office holders.
Asked by: Joshua Reynolds (Liberal Democrat - Maidenhead)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of reviewing the mandatory retirement age for magistrates.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The mandatory retirement age for judicial office holders, including magistrates, was increased from 70 to 75 in March 2022. 797 magistrates aged 70 or over were reinstated as a result of the policy change, and as of 1 April 2026 1,933 magistrates in post were aged 70 or over. Some internal analysis of the impacts of raising the retirement age has been carried out and found that the policy had met its main aim of retaining experienced judicial office holders and supporting court capacity in the short term. The Government has no current plans to review the mandatory retirement age for magistrates. A fixed retirement age supports judicial independence and public confidence in the judiciary by avoiding the need for individual assessments of the health or competency of judicial office holders.
Asked by: Joshua Reynolds (Liberal Democrat - Maidenhead)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many schools in Maidenhead constituency were surveyed under the most recent Condition Data Collection programme; and how many were assessed as having building elements in condition grade C or D.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Of the 44 schools in Maidenhead surveyed in the Condition Data Collection 2 programme, 37 (84%) were assessed as having some building elements at least partially in condition grade C or D. The average proportion of construction types rated at least partially C or D in these schools was 4%.
Surveyors and engineers grade a wide variety of buildings elements and the presence of a small number rated either C or D does not necessarily imply that there is a risk to the successful operation of the school or to the safety of staff and pupils.
Asked by: Joshua Reynolds (Liberal Democrat - Maidenhead)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether she is taking steps to ensure that people can access government services through direct contact with a person, rather than solely through digital channels.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
Point 5 of the Government Service Standard makes clear that all services delivered by central government must be accessible and designed so that everyone can use them.
Departments are expected to ensure that well-supported offline routes, such as telephone, paper and face-to-face support is available to those who need it. This is known as assisted digital support - guidance for designing assisted digital support is set out in the Government Service Manual.
Asked by: Joshua Reynolds (Liberal Democrat - Maidenhead)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate her Department has made of the potential financial impact of giving dentists access to the single patient register.
Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Hon. Member to the answer provided on 22 September 2026 in response to Question 25184.
Asked by: Joshua Reynolds (Liberal Democrat - Maidenhead)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate the Cabinet Office has made of the average cost to businesses of preparing social value responses when bidding for central government contracts under the Social Value Model set out in Procurement Policy Note 002.
Answered by Mark Ferguson - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Cabinet Office regularly engages with suppliers and industry bodies to seek their feedback on potential burdens when developing procurement policy.
Asked by: Joshua Reynolds (Liberal Democrat - Maidenhead)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what his policy is on the VAT treatment of electricity resupplied by park home site owners to residents in the context of the removal of VAT from household electricity on 1 October 2026.
Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General
To support households with the cost of living, the Government is removing VAT from electricity bills this winter. Around 29 million households across the UK are expected to benefit from this change.
The new zero VAT rate for domestic electricity will replace the existing reduced VAT rate (5%). Anyone currently benefiting from the reduced rate will benefit from the new zero rate.
Some park home residents purchase their electricity from the park home site owner rather than directly from a licensed energy supplier. Where electricity is not individually metered and charged based on actual consumption, the electricity supply may be treated as part of the pitch fee and can therefore be subject to the same VAT treatment as that charge.
However, park home residents are protected from excessive charges by Ofgem's Maximum Resale Price provisions. These provisions prevent site owners from reselling energy at a higher price than they paid to the licensed supplier. Consumers are also entitled to request a breakdown of the site owner's costs, including electricity and/or gas charges, standing charges and VAT paid.
Consumers who consider they have been overcharged can claim against the reseller through the courts or tribunal services if their dispute cannot be resolved through negotiation. Such consumers can seek advice through this process from consumer protection bodies such as Citizens Advice.
Asked by: Joshua Reynolds (Liberal Democrat - Maidenhead)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recourse is available to a park home resident whose site owner does not reduce electricity charges following the removal of VAT from 1 October 2026; and what role Ofgem has in enforcing the maximum resale price in such cases.
Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General
To support households with the cost of living, the Government is removing VAT from electricity bills this winter. Around 29 million households across the UK are expected to benefit from this change.
The new zero VAT rate for domestic electricity will replace the existing reduced VAT rate (5%). Anyone currently benefiting from the reduced rate will benefit from the new zero rate.
Some park home residents purchase their electricity from the park home site owner rather than directly from a licensed energy supplier. Where electricity is not individually metered and charged based on actual consumption, the electricity supply may be treated as part of the pitch fee and can therefore be subject to the same VAT treatment as that charge.
However, park home residents are protected from excessive charges by Ofgem's Maximum Resale Price provisions. These provisions prevent site owners from reselling energy at a higher price than they paid to the licensed supplier. Consumers are also entitled to request a breakdown of the site owner's costs, including electricity and/or gas charges, standing charges and VAT paid.
Consumers who consider they have been overcharged can claim against the reseller through the courts or tribunal services if their dispute cannot be resolved through negotiation. Such consumers can seek advice through this process from consumer protection bodies such as Citizens Advice.
Asked by: Joshua Reynolds (Liberal Democrat - Maidenhead)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that park home residents who purchase electricity from a site owner rather than directly from a licensed supplier receive the full benefit of the removal of VAT from household electricity from 1 October 2026.
Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General
To support households with the cost of living, the Government is removing VAT from electricity bills this winter. Around 29 million households across the UK are expected to benefit from this change.
The new zero VAT rate for domestic electricity will replace the existing reduced VAT rate (5%). Anyone currently benefiting from the reduced rate will benefit from the new zero rate.
Some park home residents purchase their electricity from the park home site owner rather than directly from a licensed energy supplier. Where electricity is not individually metered and charged based on actual consumption, the electricity supply may be treated as part of the pitch fee and can therefore be subject to the same VAT treatment as that charge.
However, park home residents are protected from excessive charges by Ofgem's Maximum Resale Price provisions. These provisions prevent site owners from reselling energy at a higher price than they paid to the licensed supplier. Consumers are also entitled to request a breakdown of the site owner's costs, including electricity and/or gas charges, standing charges and VAT paid.
Consumers who consider they have been overcharged can claim against the reseller through the courts or tribunal services if their dispute cannot be resolved through negotiation. Such consumers can seek advice through this process from consumer protection bodies such as Citizens Advice.