Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has considered including water-only policies in updated school food standards.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department is engaging with stakeholders on revising the school food standards, to ensure they support our work to create the healthiest generation of children in history. Schedule 1 of the school food standards outlines the permitted drinks. These include a variety of drinks such as plain water, milk and plain soya, rice or oat drinks. Beyond the school food standards, headteachers, governors and their caterers are best placed to make decisions about their school food policies, including drinks policies. As with all aspects of the school food standards review, we will consider our approaches to drinks.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure the provision of (a) clear and (b) consistent statutory guidance on educational guardianship.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
All independent and state boarding schools must have regard to the ‘Keeping children safe in education’ guidance and must meet the national minimum standards for boarding schools. Section 22 of those standards sets out the requirements of schools in relation to educational guardians appointed by a school.
Parents of international child students who make private educational guardianship arrangements for their children should ensure that they apply due diligence to any arrangements.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to help support (a) veterans and (b) their families who have experienced ill health as a result of exposure to radiation while on active service.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
This Government is deeply grateful 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.
Nuclear test veterans who believe they have suffered ill health due to service have the existing and long standing right to apply for no-fault compensation under the War Pensions Scheme.
I continue to meet regularly with nuclear test veterans and their families, as well as Parliamentarians and organisations that represent them, to discuss a range of topics relating to their experiences and issues.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of establishing a compensation scheme for veterans who have experienced ill health as a result of exposure to radiation while on active service.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
Veterans, including those who may have been exposed to radiation while on active service, who believe they have suffered ill health due to Service already have the right to apply for no-fault compensation under the War Pensions Scheme or the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme. There are, therefore, no plans to introduce a discreet compensation scheme for such individuals.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 16 October 2024 to Question 8506 on Asylum: Employment, whether she plans to reduce the waiting time from 12 to six months for asylum seekers to apply for permission to work.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office’s priority remains to ensure that employers and employees who play by the rules are not undercut by people working illegally, or by unscrupulous employers exploiting their labour.
We have repeatedly resisted calls to relax our policy position on asylum seeker permission to work. Allowing asylum seekers the right to work sooner than under the current rules could enable migrants to bypass established work visa routes, and may act as an incentive for people to travel here illegally via dangerous routes. Asylum seekers do not need to make dangerous journeys to seek employment in the UK. There are various legal routes for those seeking to work in the UK under the Points Based System.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to reduce environmental pollution caused by the spreading of sewage sludge on agricultural land.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government recognises that wastewater treatment practices have changed in recent years and new risks may be emerging from the spread of treated sewage sludge to agricultural land.
The Government has been working with water companies on the Chemical Investigations Programme (CIP) to improve the evidence base contaminants in wastewater treatment. Phase 4 of CIP will investigate the impact of sludge application on soil, surface and groundwater. The results will help inform future policy.
The Government is continuing to work with the Environment Agency to assess the regulatory framework for spreading sludge. We recognise that effective and proportionate regulations are an essential tool to improve the water environment. However, further work is required before any proposal for change may be progressed.
The Government has also launched an Independent Commission into the water sector regulatory system, which is the largest review of the industry since privatisation.
The Independent Commission’s Call for Evidence, published in February 2025, highlighted the Environment Agency’s recommendation to strengthen the regulatory framework for sludge application on land by incorporating the Sludge Use in Agriculture Regulations 1989 into the Environmental Permitting Regulations 2016.
A set of recommendations will be delivered by Q2 of this year. The UK government and Welsh Government will then respond and consult on proposals we intend to take forward.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterpart in Nigeria on support for Christians that country.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government regularly advocates for the protections of all vulnerable communities, including religious minorities, through our position at the UN, G7 and other multilateral fora as well as raising Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) bilaterally with the Government of Nigeria and other influential parties. In his meeting with the Deputy Speaker of the Nigerian House of Representatives on 22 January, the Minister for Africa raised the importance of FoRB and resolving intercommunal conflict and tensions. The UK Government is committed to upholding the right to FoRB and our dialogue on human rights, including FoRB, remains an important part of our partnership with Nigeria.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
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 the potential impact of self-care on demand on NHS services; and whether this will be reflected in the 10-Year Health Plan.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Support for self-care is an essential service that all pharmacies must provide, and can include provision of advice, information, and where appropriate, the sale of over-the counter-medicines to patients, carers, and the general public, to support their self-care for minor ailments. This gives patients easy access to advice from highly trained and skilled healthcare professionals in the community and relieves pressure on other areas of the National Health Service.
Under Pharmacy First, NHS 111, general practitioners, and accident and emergency departments can refer patients to see a pharmacist for advice on a minor illness, which may include the sale of over-the-counter medicines. They can also refer patients to one of the Pharmacy First seven clinical pathways, as part of which pharmacies can supply prescription-only medicines to patients. Patients can also walk into a pharmacy for treatment as part of the seven clinical pathways.
The 10-Year Health Plan will describe a shared vision for the health and care system in 2035, drawing directly from the extensive engagement that has been undertaken with the public, patients, and staff. The plan will include how care models and pathways will need to change or evolve to better meet their needs, and the cultural and behavioural changes we want to see.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
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 take steps to implement a national soil health monitoring programme.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Yes, national soil monitoring began in October 2023 under the Natural Capital and Ecosystem Assessment programme. This 5-year survey will deliver a baseline of soil health in England, with Analysis Ready Data from earlier years of the sample being released from December 2025. This data will enable us to understand how well our soils are functioning and inform efforts to improve soil health.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of amending Section 172 of the Companies Act 2006 to ensure company directors’ align the interests of (a) people and (b) planet with profit.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Section 172(1) of the Companies Act 2006 requires company directors to have regard to the interests of the company’s employees and the impact of the company’s operations on the community and the environment. Since 2019, directors of large companies have been required to report annually on how they have met this duty.