Asked by: Olly Glover (Liberal Democrat - Didcot and Wantage)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the Renters Rights Act 2025, whether he is taking steps to extend the right to request permission to keep a pet to people living in social housing.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government recognises that pets can bring joy and comfort to their owners, as well as supporting their mental and physical wellbeing.
On 12 February 2026, Baroness Taylor wrote to all social housing landlords setting out my Department’s position on fair consideration of requests to have a pet in social housing. Her letter can be found on gov.uk here.
The government is committed to working with the sector to encourage best practice. This includes continuing to promote clear and accessible pet policies and encouraging social landlords to consider requests fairly and reasonably.
Asked by: Olly Glover (Liberal Democrat - Didcot and Wantage)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many prosecutions have been made for piglet thumping in each of the last five years.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Piglet thumping (a manual percussive blow to the head) it is not a permitted method for stunning or killing piglets due to serious concerns about the welfare consequences. The Department is engaging with the industry to encourage use of alternative humane methods.
Allegations of animal welfare abuses are investigated by the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA). The local authority, as the appropriate enforcement agency, may initiate prosecution action for animal welfare offences where there is sufficient evidence.
The Department does not hold centrally recorded information on the number of farms where a manual percussive blow to the head was used for killing piglets, nor is data on prosecutions recorded in a way that would enable cases to be identified.
Asked by: Olly Glover (Liberal Democrat - Didcot and Wantage)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what information her Department holds on the number of farms involved in piglet thumping.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Piglet thumping (a manual percussive blow to the head) it is not a permitted method for stunning or killing piglets due to serious concerns about the welfare consequences. The Department is engaging with the industry to encourage use of alternative humane methods.
Allegations of animal welfare abuses are investigated by the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA). The local authority, as the appropriate enforcement agency, may initiate prosecution action for animal welfare offences where there is sufficient evidence.
The Department does not hold centrally recorded information on the number of farms where a manual percussive blow to the head was used for killing piglets, nor is data on prosecutions recorded in a way that would enable cases to be identified.
Asked by: Olly Glover (Liberal Democrat - Didcot and Wantage)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to help tackle piglet thumping.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Piglet thumping (a manual percussive blow to the head) it is not a permitted method for stunning or killing piglets due to serious concerns about the welfare consequences. The Department is engaging with the industry to encourage use of alternative humane methods.
Allegations of animal welfare abuses are investigated by the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA). The local authority, as the appropriate enforcement agency, may initiate prosecution action for animal welfare offences where there is sufficient evidence.
The Department does not hold centrally recorded information on the number of farms where a manual percussive blow to the head was used for killing piglets, nor is data on prosecutions recorded in a way that would enable cases to be identified.
Asked by: Olly Glover (Liberal Democrat - Didcot and Wantage)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she is considering further measures to strengthen the enforcement of the ban on illegal piglet thumping beyond The Welfare of Animals at the Time of Killing (England) Regulations 2015.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Animal Welfare Committee published, in 2021, their advice on humane piglet culling and recommended the use of non-penetrative captive bolts as an alternative to manual blunt force trauma. The regulations on The Welfare of Animals at the Time of Killing (England) Regulations 2015 were amended to permit the use of a non-penetrative captive bolt device as a killing method for neonate piglets within certain parameters. This has provided a method of killing on farm for these species that is practical and humane.
Defra officials continue to engage with the pig sector on this issue.
Asked by: Olly Glover (Liberal Democrat - Didcot and Wantage)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department are taking to help ensure that epilepsy patients and their families have access to readily-available information of SUDEP risk and prevention.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is taking steps to support a more proactive and preventative approach to epilepsy care through earlier recognition and improved management. Guidance published by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) sets clear expectations for timely diagnosis, regular review and assessment of seizure control and associated risks, and referral to specialist services where needed.
NHS England supports this approach through national programmes such as Getting It Right First Time and NHS RightCare, which promote consistent use of guidelines, strengthen multidisciplinary care, and help improve early identification and ongoing management of epilepsy across the National Health Service.
The Government is also taking steps to ensure people with epilepsy and their families have access to clear information on sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP) risk and prevention. NICE guidance recommends that clinicians discuss SUDEP risk from diagnosis and revisit this regularly, including providing personalised advice on reducing risk. NHS England supports this through training programmes developed with SUDEP Action, which improve clinician awareness and communication of risk.
Asked by: Olly Glover (Liberal Democrat - Didcot and Wantage)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps are being taken to ensure that key risk factors for epilepsy patients are proactively assessed, and what is being done to increase awareness of these risk factors.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is taking steps to support a more proactive and preventative approach to epilepsy care through earlier recognition and improved management. Guidance published by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) sets clear expectations for timely diagnosis, regular review and assessment of seizure control and associated risks, and referral to specialist services where needed.
NHS England supports this approach through national programmes such as Getting It Right First Time and NHS RightCare, which promote consistent use of guidelines, strengthen multidisciplinary care, and help improve early identification and ongoing management of epilepsy across the National Health Service.
The Government is also taking steps to ensure people with epilepsy and their families have access to clear information on sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP) risk and prevention. NICE guidance recommends that clinicians discuss SUDEP risk from diagnosis and revisit this regularly, including providing personalised advice on reducing risk. NHS England supports this through training programmes developed with SUDEP Action, which improve clinician awareness and communication of risk.
Asked by: Olly Glover (Liberal Democrat - Didcot and Wantage)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps are being taken to shift epilepsy care from a reactive approach to a proactive preventative model, such as increased early identification of symptoms.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is taking steps to support a more proactive and preventative approach to epilepsy care through earlier recognition and improved management. Guidance published by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) sets clear expectations for timely diagnosis, regular review and assessment of seizure control and associated risks, and referral to specialist services where needed.
NHS England supports this approach through national programmes such as Getting It Right First Time and NHS RightCare, which promote consistent use of guidelines, strengthen multidisciplinary care, and help improve early identification and ongoing management of epilepsy across the National Health Service.
The Government is also taking steps to ensure people with epilepsy and their families have access to clear information on sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP) risk and prevention. NICE guidance recommends that clinicians discuss SUDEP risk from diagnosis and revisit this regularly, including providing personalised advice on reducing risk. NHS England supports this through training programmes developed with SUDEP Action, which improve clinician awareness and communication of risk.
Asked by: Olly Glover (Liberal Democrat - Didcot and Wantage)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to provide adequate bus services to allow people to access early years education.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government knows how important affordable bus services are in enabling young people to access education, work and vital services. Local authorities are responsible for assessing and meeting the transport needs of their communities, including ensuring that people can access education and other essential services such as early years provision.
The Government has confirmed over £3 billion from 2026/27 to support local leaders and bus operators across England to improve bus services over the spending review period. This includes multi-year allocations for local authorities under the Local Authority Bus Grant (LABG) totalling nearly £700 million per year. Oxfordshire County Council will be allocated £25.3 million under the LABG from 2026/27 to 2028/29, in addition to the £10.1 million they are already receiving this year.
Funding allocated to local authorities can be used to improve services for passengers, including by expanding services and improving reliability to better help access to facilities such as early years education. The Department expects local authorities to consider access to early years education when planning and supporting local bus services.
Asked by: Olly Glover (Liberal Democrat - Didcot and Wantage)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when he plans to respond to the emails of 19 January and 17 March 2026 on the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority, case reference OG894, from the hon. Member for Didcot and Wantage.
Answered by Catherine Atkinson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
A response to the correspondence was sent on 26 May 2026.
The Department apologises for the delay in responding on this occasion and we regret that this fell short of expected standards.