Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
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 20 May 2025 to Question 52406 on Pharmacy, what proportion of people do not have access to a pharmacy within two miles in Newton Abbot constituency.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The estimated travel distance to a pharmacy referenced in the previous response was based on a published analysis, commissioned by the Department, and available at the following link:
https://postcode-pharmacy-dhsc-nhsgisscw.hub.arcgis.com/
The analysis presents estimates at the national, regional, integrated care board, and parliamentary constituency levels. The estimate that 7.4% of the residents of the Newton Abbot constituency live more than two miles from a pharmacy is similar to the national estimate of 7.2%. This estimate is based on the pharmacies included on the NHS Pharmaceutical list in June 2024, and no pharmacies have closed in the Newton Abbot constituency since then.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking to help tackle the presence of (a) pesticides and (b) other harmful chemicals in period products.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Most period products are regulated by the General Product Safety Regulations 2005, which requires all products to be safe and for consumers to be provided with information on the potential risks of a product.
Subject to Royal Assent of the Product Regulation and Metrology Bill, the Government has committed to consult on this matter to ensure that any changes to the safety provisions of these products are robust and consistent. As part of this, we are considering further research and testing in this area to complement the consultation.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent discussions he has had with the UK trade envoy to Israel.
Answered by Gareth Thomas - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Secretary of State regularly meets with all his Trade Envoys.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to improve broadband connectivity in rural areas of Newton Abbot constituency.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
According to the independent website Thinkbroadband.com, over 98% of homes and businesses in the Newton Abbot constituency can access superfast broadband speeds (>=30 Mbps) and over 83% have access to a gigabit-capable broadband connection (>1000 Mbps).
To improve coverage further, Openreach is delivering a Project Gigabit contract across parts of Devon and Somerset. Approximately 1,500 premises in the Newton Abbot constituency are currently in scope of this contract, the majority of which are in rural areas. The contract is targeted at bringing gigabit-capable broadband to homes and businesses that are unlikely to be otherwise reached by suppliers’ commercial rollout.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of compliance of local authorities with the Public Sector Equality Duty when entering into agreements to transfer public car parks to private operators.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The forthcoming Private Parking Code of Practice does not apply to local authorities because civil parking enforcement operates under a different legislative framework. Local authorities have autonomy to decide on appropriate parking arrangements, within the framework provided by the Traffic Management Act 2004 which requires Local Authorities to ensure local parking policies are proportionate, support town centre prosperity, and ensure traffic moves freely and quickly on their roads and the roads of nearby authorities.
The current Statutory Guidance for Local Authorities in England on Civil Enforcement of Parking Contraventions recommends that enforcement authorities consult locally on their parking policies, including seeking the views of people and businesses with a range of different parking needs.
The Secretary of State does not audit Local Authority compliance with the Public Sector Equality Duty. However, members of the public can challenge a Local Authority as to their compliance with the Public Sector Equality Duty if they believe a public authority has not complied with its obligations.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if her Department will include guidance issued to local authorities on public consultation when transferring council-owned car parks to private (a) ownership and (b) management within any new code of conduct.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The forthcoming Private Parking Code of Practice does not apply to local authorities because civil parking enforcement operates under a different legislative framework. Local authorities have autonomy to decide on appropriate parking arrangements, within the framework provided by the Traffic Management Act 2004 which requires Local Authorities to ensure local parking policies are proportionate, support town centre prosperity, and ensure traffic moves freely and quickly on their roads and the roads of nearby authorities.
The current Statutory Guidance for Local Authorities in England on Civil Enforcement of Parking Contraventions recommends that enforcement authorities consult locally on their parking policies, including seeking the views of people and businesses with a range of different parking needs.
The Secretary of State does not audit Local Authority compliance with the Public Sector Equality Duty. However, members of the public can challenge a Local Authority as to their compliance with the Public Sector Equality Duty if they believe a public authority has not complied with its obligations.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what monitoring her Department undertakes of local authority decisions to transfer control of car parks to private entities; and whether those decisions are subject to central (a) oversight and (b) audit.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Local authorities are empowered by law to decide on appropriate parking arrangements, within the legal framework provided by the Traffic Management Act 2004 which requires Local Authorities to ensure local parking policies are proportionate, support town centre prosperity, and ensure traffic moves freely and quickly on their roads and the roads of nearby authorities
The Secretary of State does not monitor or audit these decisions which are best made locally.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to ensure consistency in accessibility standards for disabled motorists across (a) privately and (b) publicly operated car parks.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Both local authorities and private parking operators who provide parking are required under legislation, such as the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 and the Equality Act 2010, to make reasonable adjustments for disabled people and to provide them equal opportunities to access services.
Further to this, the single industry code reminds operators of the obligations placed on them by the Equality Act 2010. This is irrespective of contractual changes.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether statutory protections exist to prevent indirect discrimination in parking provision.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Both local authorities and private parking operators who provide parking are required under legislation, such as the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 and the Equality Act 2010, to make reasonable adjustments for disabled people and to provide them equal opportunities to access services.
Further to this, the single industry code reminds operators of the obligations placed on them by the Equality Act 2010. This is irrespective of contractual changes.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will take steps to ensure care workers are excluded from reductions on work visas.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The Immigration White paper, published on 12 May 2025, announced new measures on a wide range of issues including ending overseas recruitment for social care visas, further details of which will be set out in due course.