Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will include primary progressive aphasia in the list of conditions requiring nationally commissioned services.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
There are no current plans to introduce nationally commissioned services for the treatment of Primary Progressive Aphasia. We are committed to delivering high quality care and support for every person with dementia, and central to this is the provision of personalised care and support planning for post diagnostic support.
Provision of dementia health care services is the responsibility of local integrated care boards (ICBs). It is the expectation that ICBs commission services based on local population needs, taking account of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines. It is the responsibility of ICBs to work within their geographical area to offer services that meet the needs of their population.
Local authorities are required to provide or arrange services that meet the social care needs of the local population under the Care Act 2014.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of Pharmacy First funding had been spent as of 26 November 2024.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Verified data to the end of November 2024 shows that £82 million has been spent in the 2024/25 financial year on the seven common clinical pathways and associated incentive payments, and on expanding blood pressure and contraception services. A comprehensive view of all spending against the Pharmacy First budget will be available after the end of the financial year.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the Renters' Rights Bill will place penalties on landlords who have been unable to sell their properties and want to re-rent.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Renters’ Rights Bill will introduce a new ground for possession for landlords who wish to sell their property. To prevent abuse of this ground, landlords will not be able to market or re-let their property for twelve months after using the selling ground. This will remove the financial incentive to landlords from misusing the grounds and evicting a tenant with the intention to re-let at a higher rent.
Once the legislation is in place, landlords could be given a fine of up to £40,000 by local councils if they market or re-let their properties within twelve months of using the moving and selling grounds. Tenants will also be able to seek Rent Repayment Orders for this offence. Tenants will be able toc challenge evictions in court if they believe the landlord is misusing the grounds. If this happens, the landlord will need demonstrate that their intention to sell or move in is genuine.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the threshold level for eligibility for (a) 30 hours of free childcare and (b) tax-free childcare on working parents who earn between £100,000 and £125,000.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government is committed to delivering the expansion of the 30 hours free childcare offer so that from September 2025 eligible working parents in England will be able to access 30 hours of free childcare per week, over 38 weeks of the year, from the term after their child turns 9 months old to when they start school. Accessible and high-quality early education and childcare is a crucial part of giving every child the best start in life, boosting children’s life chances and giving parents work choices.
To be eligible for the working parent entitlement, parents will each need to earn the equivalent of 16 hours a week at National Minimum Wage (£9,518 per year) and less than £100,000 adjusted net income per year. This offer aims to support parents to return to work or to work more hours, if they wish. The income eligibility criteria are the same for Tax-Free Childcare.
The £100,000 level was chosen to correspond with Income Tax thresholds and be easily understandable for parents, and only a very small proportion of parents (3.8% of parents of 3 and 4-year-olds in 2023/24) earn over the £100,000 adjusted net income maximum threshold. There are no current plans to change the income threshold for the working parent entitlement or Tax-Free Childcare.
The government is committed to managing public finances in a responsible way by targeting support with childcare towards those who need it the most in order to work. These are the parents for whom childcare support makes a bigger difference to their ability to work, given that childcare costs make up a bigger proportion of their earnings.
However, the universal 15 hours of free childcare offer remains in place for all parents of 3 and 4-year-olds, regardless of parental circumstances, including those who earn over £100,000.
Parents can find out about the government-funded support they are eligible for via the Childcare Choices website: https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, when he plans to publish information on the remaining issues set out in paragraph 46 of the policy paper entitled The fire safety of domestic upholstered furniture, published on 22 January 2025.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Government is committed to upholding the highest standards of fire safety for domestic upholstered furniture and ensuring only safe products are placed on the UK market. Officials in the Department for Business and Trade have begun extensive, targeted stakeholder engagement to inform decision making on the issues outlined in the policy paper. Following this engagement process, the Government will publish an update on the remaining issues.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she has had discussions with Cabinet colleagues on steps to improve public engagement with politics.
Answered by Rushanara Ali - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the Question UIN 901650 on 5 December 2024.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what target she has set for the total number of dispersal accommodation centres available to victims of domestic abuse.
Answered by Rushanara Ali - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
This government is committed to tackling violence against women and girls and supporting victims of domestic abuse.
Since 2021, local authorities in England have a duty to ensure domestic abuse victims and their children who need to flee their homes have access to support within safe accommodation when they need it. MHCLG has defined in regulations the types of safe accommodation that support to victims can be delivered in, including dispersed accommodation.
MHCLG has allocated £160 million to local authorities in 2025/26 to help them deliver their duty, a £30 million uplift from the previous year.
This revenue funding is for local authorities to fund provision of lifesaving support for victims and their children within safe accommodation, including dispersed accommodation. It is for local authorities to determine how best to allocate the funding MHCLG has provided to meet local needs, in line with a local needs assessment and strategy.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions has she had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the potential impact of living under a flight path on people's (a) health and (b) wellbeing.
Answered by Mike Kane - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
My Department seeks to minimise the impact of aviation on people’s health and wellbeing, in the context of other government priorities. My officials are in regular contact on this issue with other government departments and their agencies, including the Department of Health and Social Care sponsored UK Health Security Agency.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for the Home Department on the potential impact of proposed cuts to the Parks Police on ensuring the protection of the (a) nature and (b) environment of Royal Parks.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Royal Parks are Crown Land managed on behalf of the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport by The Royal Parks Charity. The policing of the parks is an operational matter for the Metropolitan Police Service, who are in regular contact with The Royal Parks Charity. No discussions have been held between the Home Secretary and Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport regarding this matter.
As the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is not responsible for the Royal Parks, it is also assumed that no discussions have been held between that Secretary of State and the Home Secretary.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of First Generation Sustainable Aviation Fuels on the environment.
Answered by Mike Kane - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) is one of the key measures required to decarbonise aviation. The SAF Mandate could deliver up to 6.3 million tonnes of carbon savings per year by 2040.
The SAF Mandate encourages a diverse range of feedstocks and technologies. It also has strict sustainability criteria that SAF must meet to be eligible. SAF must be made from sustainable wastes or residues (such as used cooking oil or forestry residues), recycled carbon fuels (such as unrecyclable plastics), or power to liquid fuels made using low carbon (renewable or nuclear) electricity. This prevents negative environmental consequences such as the loss of biodiversity, deforestation and the clearance of land with high carbon stock (e.g. peatland) that could be associated with the cultivation of raw materials used in SAF production.