Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress he has made on reviewing the documentation held by his Department on the medical records of nuclear test veterans.
Answered by Calvin Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans and People)
First let me say how deeply grateful we are to all those who participated in the UK nuclear testing programme. We recognise their service and the huge contribution they have made to the UK’s security.
Since taking office, we have worked hard to listen, collaborate and work more closely with the nuclear test veteran community and to operate to a principle of maximum transparency.
I can confirm that Records exercise is nearing completion and I will update the House in due course.
Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, on how many occasions Ministers or officials from his Department have met representatives of the WASPI Campaign since September 2024.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
During this time, the previous Minister for Pensions met with representatives, the first Minister to do so in eight years.
Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether the Department has considered participating in Alternative Dispute Resolution or mediation in relation to the ongoing legal proceedings brought by WASPI.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Women Against State Pension Inequality Ltd (WASPI) are seeking permission from the High Court to bring a Judicial Review on our response to the Ombudsman’s report. We are not able to comment on live litigation, but full details of our decision in this case are available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/government-response-to-parliamentary-and-health-service-o29mbudsmans-investigation-into-womens-state-pension-age-communications-and-associated-issues.
Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the comparative cost to the public purse of (a) compensating women affected by maladministration in State Pension Age communications and (b) losses to the Department arising from fraud and error.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Women Against State Pension Inequality Ltd (WASPI) are seeking permission from the High Court to bring a Judicial Review on our response to the Ombudsman’s report. We are not able to comment on live litigation, but full details of our decision in this case are available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/government-response-to-parliamentary-and-health-service-o29mbudsmans-investigation-into-womens-state-pension-age-communications-and-associated-issues
Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the further legal costs that may be incurred by the Department in relation to ongoing litigation concerning compensation for women affected by maladministration in State Pension Age communications.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Women Against State Pension Inequality Ltd (WASPI) are seeking permission from the High Court to bring a Judicial Review on our response to the Ombudsman’s report. We do not comment on live litigation.
Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of (a) the prevalence of respiratory disease and (b) the number of emergency hospital admissions for respiratory conditions in Salford; and what steps he is taking to ensure respiratory health is prioritised through the introduction of a Modern Service Framework for respiratory care.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Data is available for emergency Finished Admission Episodes (FAEs) where there was a primary diagnosis of 'respiratory conditions’. The following table shows the number of FAEs where there was a primary diagnosis of 'respiratory conditions’ for Harpenden and Salford, for activity in English National Health Service hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector, for 2024/25 and provisionally for 2025/26:
Westminster Parliamentary Constituency of Residence | 2024/25 (August 2024 to March 2025) | 2025/26 (April 2025 to December 2025) |
Salford | 1300 | 1060 |
England | 612,855 | 511,558 |
Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), NHS England.
Available data on trends in respiratory conditions can be found on the Department’s Fingertips dataset. Data is not available by parliamentary constituency. Data is available at regional, county, unitary authority, and integrated care board level. Information for Salford can be found at the following link:
The Government has committed to delivering three big shifts that our NHS needs to be fit for the future: from hospital to community; from analogue to digital; and from sickness to prevention. All of these are relevant to improving respiratory health in all parts of the country.
The Government will consider other long-term conditions for future waves of Modern Service Frameworks, including respiratory conditions. The criteria for determining other conditions for future Modern Service Frameworks will be based on where there is potential for rapid and significant improvements in quality of care and productivity.
Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has made an assessment of the adequacy of safeguarding measures for in-person work experience placements at i) outlets centrally owned by and ii) franchisee-owned stores operated by McDonald's UK in relation to the risk of sexual harassment of young people in the workplace.
Answered by Andrew Western - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department is pleased to work with employers such as McDonald’s UK to provide work experience opportunities.
All employers hosting placements are required to comply with relevant legislation and are expected to provide a safe working environment including safeguards relating to health and safety, welfare, equality and protection from harassment. Participants undertaking work experience placements are covered by the same workplace protections as other workers.
The Department undertakes due diligence when establishing and maintaining partnerships with employers. This includes requiring employers to sign an employer agreement confirming their compliance with relevant workplace safety and safeguarding legislation and maintaining ongoing engagement through Jobcentre Employer and Partnership teams. Where concerns are raised, placements can be reviewed and appropriate action can be taken.
Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that (a) installers and (b) other businesses within the ECO supply chain are paid (i) appropriately and (ii) promptly for completed works.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
As the administrator for the Energy Company Obligation (ECO), Ofgem is responsible for overseeing obligated supplier compliance through monitoring, audits and counter-fraud processes across the supply chain.
Payment terms, retentions and wider commercial practices are primarily governed by private contracts between suppliers and contractors. The government does not intervene in such arrangements.
The recently published Small Business Protections Bill (formally known as the Commercial Payments Bill) will also put a clear duty on large firms to pay smaller suppliers on time and giving small businesses the certainty they need to keep investing, supporting jobs and growing their communities.
Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what oversight mechanisms are in place in relation to (a) payment delays, (b) retentions and (c) wider commercial practices by obligated suppliers within the ECO scheme supply chain.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Energy Company Obligation (ECO) is administered by Ofgem, which oversees obligated supplier compliance, including monitoring, audits and counter-fraud processes across the supply chain. Payment terms, retentions and wider commercial practices are primarily governed by private contracts between suppliers and contractors. Government does not intervene in such arrangements.
Disputes can be escalated through TrustMark’s complaints process and, where unresolved, to the Dispute Resolution Ombudsman. Separately, the Government is legislating to strengthen oversight of late payments through enhanced powers for the Small Business Commissioner, including dispute resolution and enforcement against poor payment practices.
Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, when HMRC last reviewed the overseas subsistence scale rates; what assessment she has made of the potential impact of those rates on employees working abroad, in the context of increases in the cost of food; and whether she plans to bring forward an updated schedule.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with HM Treasury)
Where employers reimburse allowable travel expenses, tax relief is available provided the expenses are wholly, exclusively and necessarily incurred for work purposes.
Ordinarily, employers must hold evidence of the employee’s actual expenditure. However, to reduce administrative burdens on employers, HMRC allows expenses for travel outside the UK to be reimbursed without evidence up to the levels contained within the Overseas Scale Rates.
Where the Overseas Scale rates do not cover the expense incurred by employees, employers can still reimburse and provide tax relief provided they have appropriate evidence.
The Government keeps all taxes under review as part of the policy‑making process. Any decisions on future changes in this area will be taken in the context of the wider public finances.