Asked by: Kevin McKenna (Labour - Sittingbourne and Sheppey)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to reduce the number of (a) reduce the vehicles that are blocking pavements and (b) unroadworthy vehicles parked for long periods of time in public areas.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Through measures in the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill we will implement the necessary primary legislation to allow local transport authorities to prohibit pavement parking across their areas, putting power in the hands of local leaders. Even in locations where a pavement parking prohibition does not exist, virtually all local authorities (those with designated civil parking enforcement powers) will be granted the power to tackle the worst instances of pavement parking (unnecessary obstruction), through secondary legislation introduced later this year.
The Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005 gives local authorities the power to remove certain abandoned vehicles without notice. The legislation on abandoned vehicles falls within the remit of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
Asked by: Kevin McKenna (Labour - Sittingbourne and Sheppey)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking with (a) the World Health Organization, (b) Gavi and (c) the Global Polio Eradication Initiative to help eradicate polio.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon. Member to the answer provided to question 76022 on 17 September 2025.
Asked by: Kevin McKenna (Labour - Sittingbourne and Sheppey)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of including the names of a child's parents or legal guardians within the body of their passport.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Home Office keeps all aspects of the immigration and asylum system under regular review.
Asked by: Kevin McKenna (Labour - Sittingbourne and Sheppey)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department plans to introduce a (a) formal and (b) accessible complaints system for veterans when public bodies fail to meet their obligations under the Armed Forces Covenant.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) remains committed to supporting the Armed Forces Community under the Armed Forces Covenant. Work is currently underway to put the Covenant fully into law, meaning that the Legal Duty will apply across a broad range of policy areas and to Central Government, Devolved Governments and at a local level.
The MOD is considering its plans for implementation of the extended Duty, and this could include how the bodies subject to it are informed about their responsibilities and encouraged to comply.
Enquiries or complaints about Covenant signatories can be directed to the MOD via afcovenant@rfca.mod.uk, and organisations failing to meet their pledge may have their Covenant status reviewed. The MOD will continue to work with stakeholders to ensure these processes remain accessible and effective in holding public bodies accountable.
Asked by: Kevin McKenna (Labour - Sittingbourne and Sheppey)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to reduce the time taken to reach a decision on the immigration status application of children born in the UK whose biometric enrolment has been completed; and what measures are in place to ensure that these children have access to (a) healthcare, (b) child benefits and (c) other essential services.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
There are a range of immigration routes through which children who are born in the UK may apply for and obtain Leave to Remain. Information about our service standards for specific immigration routes can be found at:
Customer service standards - GOV.UK.
An application only becomes valid, and the service standard period will only apply, once the application has been submitted, biometric enrolment (facial photograph and fingerprints) has been completed and all required information has been provided.
Access to healthcare, child benefits and other essential services are all matters for other Government Departments. However, the Home Office does facilitate access by departments to our digital immigration records to support their decision-making.
Asked by: Kevin McKenna (Labour - Sittingbourne and Sheppey)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what safeguards his Department has put in place to protect patients being transported to hospital by private patient transport companies on behalf of local NHS integrated care boards.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Health and social care service providers that carry out a regulated activity in England must be registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC). Providers of ambulance and other transport services usually need to register for the regulated activity ‘Transport services, triage and medical advice provided remotely’.
CQC registration for providers of ambulance and other transport services requires a stringent assessment of suitability to deliver safe and high quality care, and registered organisations have ongoing monitoring and assessments. The CQC can take enforcement action against providers that are carrying out regulated activity without registration.
Asked by: Kevin McKenna (Labour - Sittingbourne and Sheppey)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure the timely approval of high-tariff drugs for use in (a) specialised commissioning and (b) repurposed treatments.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
To market a medicine in the United Kingdom, a company must secure a marketing authorisation or ‘licence’ from the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency. Newly-licensed medicines, including licence extensions for existing medicines, are appraised by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) which is the independent body responsible for developing evidence-based guidance for the National Health Service in England on whether new medicines represent a clinically and cost-effective use of resources. NICE aims wherever possible to issue guidance on new medicines close to the time of licensing. The NHS in England is legally required to fund drugs recommended by NICE, usually within three months of final guidance.
NHS England may also develop a national clinical commissioning policy to confirm whether a specific treatment which has not been appraised by NICE should be routinely available to eligible patients in the NHS in England. A policy can only be developed if the medicine is used within prescribed specialised services, namely services for which NHS England is the accountable commissioner. NHS England develops clinical commissioning policies in line with published methods and eligibility criteria. National clinical policies are based on the available research evidence and may be subject to a process of funding prioritisation, depending on the cost of the treatment concerned. More information is available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/methods-national-clinical-policies/
Asked by: Kevin McKenna (Labour - Sittingbourne and Sheppey)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the the approval process of (a) high tariff drugs (b) the use of Obinutuzumab in patients with lupus who have experienced severe infusion reactions with rituximab.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body that makes recommendations on whether new licensed medicines, including high cost medicines, should be routinely funded by the National Health Service in England, based on the evidence of their costs and benefits. The NICE aims, wherever possible, to publish guidance close to the time of licensing, and the NHS in England is required to fund NICE recommended medicines, normally within three months of final guidance.
The NICE is in the early stages of evaluating obinutuzumab with immunosuppressive therapies for treating lupus nephritis. Its independent committee will meet to consider the evidence on 10 December 2025, and the NICE currently expects to publish final guidance in March 2026. The evaluation is currently on track to be published within 90 days of marketing authorisation.
Asked by: Kevin McKenna (Labour - Sittingbourne and Sheppey)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Transport on the Integrated National Transport Strategy.
Answered by Ashley Dalton
Ministers and senior officials from the Department of Health and Social Care and Department for Transport have a range of discussions about policy issues of interest to both Departments. We expect to work closely together to ensure that health can be appropriately considered within the Integrated National Transport Strategy as it develops.
Asked by: Kevin McKenna (Labour - Sittingbourne and Sheppey)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of including improving health as a key theme in the Integrated National Transport Strategy.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Integrated National Transport Strategy will set the long-term vision for transport in England, focusing on how transport should be designed, built and operated to better serve the people who use it. The strategy’s scope is still being determined, but the Government is aware that there are further opportunities to encourage and facilitate active travel which could deliver wider societal benefits for public health and the environment.
The Strategy is being developed through open engagement with the transport sector and the general public, including an 11-stop Regional Roadshow, where one of the key themes attendees were asked to discuss was health and wellbeing. We will consider everything we hear through our engagement activities as the Strategy develops over the coming months.