Asked by: Max Wilkinson (Liberal Democrat - Cheltenham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the performance of the Housing Regulator in meeting its KPIs on i) Driving improvement, ii) Maintaining confidence, iii) Working with others and iv) building the organisation.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) is an executive non-departmental public body sponsored by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.
My Department has not itself assessed the adequacy of the RSH’s performance in meeting its KPIs.
The RSH publishes its performance framework and reports annually on key performance indicators through its Corporate Plan and Annual Report and Accounts.
My Department monitors the RSH’s performance through regular Accounting Officer meetings.
Asked by: Max Wilkinson (Liberal Democrat - Cheltenham)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps her department plans to take to support small and medium-sized enterprises who no longer qualify for business rates relief due to the VOAs reclassification of flexible office spaces as single properties.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) is responsible for valuing non-domestic property for business rates purposes. They are required to maintain accurate rating lists in England impartially and independently of central Government, and must consider developments in relevant caselaw.
As a result of case law developments, the VOA have concluded that, rather than each room within a serviced office being assessed separately, most serviced offices will need to be assessed as a single property, unless clear evidence demonstrates a need to have separate assessments. Each serviced office is looked at on a case-by-case basis, and the VOA are addressing properties where they have received legal advice, or where unit of assessment issues are brought to its attention. Reviewing a small number of cases will help clarify the application of legislation on serviced offices. At this time, there is no sector-wide review of serviced office assessments underway. The VOA will continue to monitor legal developments and update its approach as needed.
A single rating assessment would mean occupying businesses will face no business rates bill at all. Instead, the serviced office provider will be liable for business rates on the entire assessment. It is for serviced office providers to decide if they will pass the cost on to their tenants, depending on contractual agreements.
Asked by: Max Wilkinson (Liberal Democrat - Cheltenham)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment her department has made of the potential impact of the Valuation Office Agency's reclassification of flexible office spaces as single properties on (a) the level of business rates and (b) small and medium-sized enterprises.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) is responsible for valuing non-domestic property for business rates purposes. They are required to maintain accurate rating lists in England impartially and independently of central Government, and must consider developments in relevant caselaw.
As a result of case law developments, the VOA have concluded that, rather than each room within a serviced office being assessed separately, most serviced offices will need to be assessed as a single property, unless clear evidence demonstrates a need to have separate assessments. Each serviced office is looked at on a case-by-case basis, and the VOA are addressing properties where they have received legal advice, or where unit of assessment issues are brought to its attention. Reviewing a small number of cases will help clarify the application of legislation on serviced offices. At this time, there is no sector-wide review of serviced office assessments underway. The VOA will continue to monitor legal developments and update its approach as needed.
A single rating assessment would mean occupying businesses will face no business rates bill at all. Instead, the serviced office provider will be liable for business rates on the entire assessment. It is for serviced office providers to decide if they will pass the cost on to their tenants, depending on contractual agreements.
Asked by: Max Wilkinson (Liberal Democrat - Cheltenham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the building safety regulator is (a) fully staffed and (b) working at full capacity.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) on 27 January 2026 officially moved to become an arm’s length body of MHCLG. BSR increased their regulatory capacity throughout 2025 and now have a headcount across all functions approaching 500, an increase of over 40% since June 2025. BSR will continue to recruit throughout 2026 and has plans in place to drive greater efficiencies whilst ensuring resources are matched to the demand for its regulatory services.
Asked by: Max Wilkinson (Liberal Democrat - Cheltenham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department holds information on the proportion of cases to the building safety regulator that (i) currently and (ii) historically require an extension before being assessed.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Building Safety Regulator officials have provided the below data:
Asked by: Max Wilkinson (Liberal Democrat - Cheltenham)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of outlawing the use of (a) Bixlozone, (b) Cinmethylin, (c) Isoflucypram and (d) Pydiflumetofen on farmers.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We are aware of concerns about the potential impact of the UK-EU SPS Agreement under negotiation on the availability of certain pesticides, including those containing the four active substances Bixlozone, (b) Cinmethylin, (c) Isoflucypram and (d) Pydiflumetofen which are currently approved in GB but not the EU.
Information from stakeholders, alongside expertise in HSE and Defra, is feeding into our analysis. Negotiations, which began at the end of 2025, are still underway.
Asked by: Max Wilkinson (Liberal Democrat - Cheltenham)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment has his department made of the role of flexible office spaces in facilitating the activities and growth of small and medium-sized enterprises.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Department for Business and Trade recognises that flexible office spaces can support small and medium sized enterprises by reducing fixed costs, enabling collaboration and allowing businesses to scale as they grow.
While the Department has not made a specific assessment of flexible office spaces, it considers access to a range of workspace options an important part of a strong business environment for SMEs.
Asked by: Max Wilkinson (Liberal Democrat - Cheltenham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment has been made on the relationship between ADHD and Substance Use Disorders.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Studies have shown that people with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are at increased risk of alcohol use disorder. One study found that impulsive decision making was causal, and that ADHD was present in up to 20% of people seeking treatment for alcohol use disorder. The recently published Clinical Guidelines for Alcohol Treatment set out several steps that treatment providers should take to assist those with ADHD to access alcohol treatment and tailor treatment interventions, including discussing and making reasonable adjustments based on each person's individual needs, offering flexibility, providing information in the most appropriate way, and collaborative personalised care plans.
It is the responsibility of integrated care boards in England to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including providing access to ADHD assessment and support, in line with relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.
NHS England established an ADHD Taskforce which brought together those with lived experience with experts from the National Health Service, education, charity, and justice sectors to get a better understanding of the challenges affecting those with ADHD, including in accessing services and support. The final report was published on 6 November 2025. The work of the independent ADHD Taskforce highlighted the need for coordinated action across health, education, and public services to reform ADHD services and support.
My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, announced on 4 December 2025 the launch of an Independent Review into Prevalence and Support for Mental Health Conditions, ADHD and Autism.
The independent review will build directly on the evidence and recommendations of the ADHD Taskforce. The taskforce’s report provides a strong, evidence‑based foundation, and the review will consider its findings in full to ensure conclusions are aligned and complementary. In the meantime, we are working with NHS England to deliver some of the taskforce’s recommendations such as on data improvement, enhancing Mental Health Support Teams in Schools, improved commissioning, and better collaboration between mental health and primary care services.
Asked by: Max Wilkinson (Liberal Democrat - Cheltenham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans his Department has made to address the health needs of those classified with severe ME/CFS while exploring the specialised very severe ME/CFS service.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The decision will be announced in due course. At this stage, officials from the Department and NHS England have been working carefully through the steps needed to make a decision on the prescription of a specialised service for very severe myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). My Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, is responsible for a decision on the prescribing of specialised services, which requires consultation with NHS England.
The Department is also developing a template service specification for mild and moderate ME/CFS, which also contains references to severe ME/CFS. Further work will need to be undertaken to strengthen support for people with severe ME/CFS, reflecting that people may move between moderate and severe. Future iterations of this document will build on these ongoing considerations and emerging insights.
To support healthcare professionals in the diagnosis and management of ME/CFS, the Department has worked with NHS England to develop an e-learning programme on ME/CFS for healthcare professionals, with the aim of supporting staff to be able to provide better care and improve patient outcomes. The final module of this e-learning programme is focussed on improving understanding of severe ME/CFS in particular. All three sessions of the e-learning programme are now available at the following link:
https://learninghub.nhs.uk/catalogue/mecfselearning?nodeId=7288
Asked by: Max Wilkinson (Liberal Democrat - Cheltenham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when his Department's proposed timeline is for announcing its decision on the prescription of a specialised service for Very Severe ME/CFS.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The decision will be announced in due course. At this stage, officials from the Department and NHS England have been working carefully through the steps needed to make a decision on the prescription of a specialised service for very severe myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). My Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, is responsible for a decision on the prescribing of specialised services, which requires consultation with NHS England.
The Department is also developing a template service specification for mild and moderate ME/CFS, which also contains references to severe ME/CFS. Further work will need to be undertaken to strengthen support for people with severe ME/CFS, reflecting that people may move between moderate and severe. Future iterations of this document will build on these ongoing considerations and emerging insights.
To support healthcare professionals in the diagnosis and management of ME/CFS, the Department has worked with NHS England to develop an e-learning programme on ME/CFS for healthcare professionals, with the aim of supporting staff to be able to provide better care and improve patient outcomes. The final module of this e-learning programme is focussed on improving understanding of severe ME/CFS in particular. All three sessions of the e-learning programme are now available at the following link:
https://learninghub.nhs.uk/catalogue/mecfselearning?nodeId=7288