Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reason her Department has not published service standards for the time taken for applications for Family visas made on the basis of a person’s private life to be considered.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The Home Office keeps all aspects of the immigration system under regular review, including service standards for processing visa applications.
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 steps he is taking to improve the quality of information provided on (a) choice over pregnancy, (b) menopause care and (c) the availability of free contraceptive pills at pharmacies.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
It is important that women are provided with accurate information that enables them to make informed choices about their care, including contraceptive choices and menopause.
Pharmacies are well placed to advise patients on the options available to them when accessing oral contraception on the National Health Service. Contraceptive pills are available from pharmacies on prescription or when issued as part of the NHS Pharmacy Contraception Service. The service launched in April 2023 and enables pharmacists to initiate and continue ongoing supplies of contraception initiated in general practice surgeries and sexual health services. Later in 2025, the service will expand to include emergency hormonal contraception (EHC), which means women will have access to the ‘morning-after pill’ free of charge at pharmacies on the NHS, thereby ending the current situation where free EHC is only available in some areas. NHS England has launched an online tool to help educate individuals wishing to access the service and to signpost where they can find a participating pharmacy.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence published their updated menopause guideline in November 2024 and recommended more treatment choices for menopause symptoms. The updated guideline aims to support healthcare professionals by providing them with the information they need to support evidence-based decisions about treatment choices, as well as information and support about menopause. There are also a range of resources and support that pharmacies can signpost patients to, for example the NHS website and the NHS menopause factsheet, which was created to help women understand and manage symptoms and know how to seek help.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, which organisations received funding through the Industry Initiative component of the Warm Home Discount scheme in the last 12 months; and how much each organisation received.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department sets the overall policy and spending targets for the scheme but the financial responsibility for delivering these initiatives lies with energy suppliers.
For more detailed information on the latest assessment of WHD delivery (2023/24), including data on industry initiatives, please visit https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications/warm-home-discount-annual-report-scheme-year-13 . The data for Scheme Year 14 (2024/25) will be published in due course.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to increase volunteering opportunities for disabled people.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Pathways to Work Green Paper, published in March, highlights the value of volunteering in the transition from inactivity to employment.
The Department’s Strategic Relationship Team (SRT) has worked closely with the Shaping the Future with Volunteering Group to demonstrate the benefits volunteering can bring for Jobcentre Plus customers, in particular those that are furthest away from the labour market.
SRT has developed a toolkit and delivered a campaign to raise the awareness of volunteering opportunities, dispel myths, share good news stories and demonstrate how this may be a stepping stone into employment.
Whilst the focus is not specifically on volunteering for disabled customers volunteering is proven to support people with health conditions, building confidence and helping to improve mental and physical health and wellbeing and is an ideal solution for those further away from the labour market to help remove barriers, build skills and confidence, and therefore acts as an employment enabler without any risk to benefit claims.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what was the evidential basis of her Department's decision to reduce the level of VAT relief available through the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme was previously funded to March 2025. In January this government announced that we would extend the Scheme for one year with an overall budget of £23 million in recognition of the importance of listed places of worship both in terms of heritage and to their local communities. This has enabled religious organisations to continue to claim grants in respect of eligible VAT costs paid towards repairs and renovations. To ensure this budget remains affordable, claims are now capped at £25,000 per place of worship. These changes to the scheme were necessary given the level of fiscal challenges we inherited, a number of unfunded commitments made by the previous government and the pressures on other parts of the heritage and cultural sectors. In terms of the evidential basis for decisions, the Department was able to look at average spend since 2017 and, without the cap, spending was c£29m out of a maximum envelope of £42m. To ensure this budget was affordable, a cap was introduced. Based on the Department’s analysis of this data, 94% of applications will be unaffected by the change, and most claims are under £5,000.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, why her Department introduced a cap of £25,000 on claims through the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme was previously funded to March 2025. In January this government announced that we would extend the Scheme for one year with an overall budget of £23 million in recognition of the importance of listed places of worship both in terms of heritage and to their local communities. This has enabled religious organisations to continue to claim grants in respect of eligible VAT costs paid towards repairs and renovations. To ensure this budget remains affordable, claims are now capped at £25,000 per place of worship. These changes to the scheme were necessary given the level of fiscal challenges we inherited, a number of unfunded commitments made by the previous government and the pressures on other parts of the heritage and cultural sectors. In terms of the evidential basis for decisions, the Department was able to look at average spend since 2017 and, without the cap, spending was c£29m out of a maximum envelope of £42m. To ensure this budget was affordable, a cap was introduced. Based on the Department’s analysis of this data, 94% of applications will be unaffected by the change, and most claims are under £5,000.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to support (a) foster carers, (b) kinship carers and (c) adoptive parents.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The Transformation Fund, announced in the spring, builds on the £15 million investment for foster care in the Budget. The department will provide an additional £25 million over two years, beginning in the 2026/27 financial year.
Foster carers receive the national minimum allowance to cover the costs of looking after children in their care, uplifted each year in line with inflation and earnings. Our investment includes the rollout of the Mockingbird Family model, which offers peer support to foster carers and children. We also continue to fund Fosterline, a free helpline for current and prospective foster carers.
To support kinship carers, the government announced £40 million to pilot the Kinship Allowance in some local authorities, supporting eligible kinship carers with the additional costs of taking parental responsibility for a kinship child. The pilot will launch in late autumn and support approximately 5,000 kinship children until March 2029. In addition, the department funds training and peer support groups for kinship carers.
In April, the department announced £8.8 million for Adoption England to improve adoption services and support regional adoption agencies to respond more effectively to adoptive families in crisis. The £50 million adoption and special guardianship support fund will continue to enable families to access a significant package of therapeutic support.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, which services accessed funding through the Industry Initiative component of the Warm Home Discount scheme in the most recent year where data is available; how much funding was received by each supplier; and what the value was of support accessed by consumers through each service.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Ofgem administer the Warm Home Discount Scheme Industry Initiatives of behalf of the Department. Their most recent assessment was for winter 2023/24 where Industry Initiatives delivered £76.4 million in support (£65.5 million in England & Wales and £10.9 million in Scotland) – an increase of £44.3 million compared with winter 2022/23. These initiatives supported over 2.8 million consumers across Great Britain by providing a range of services, including energy efficiency measures, energy and smart meter advice, debt assistance, benefit checks, and financial assistance payments.
The Department sets the overall policy and spending targets for the scheme, but the financial responsibility for Industry Initiatives lies with the suppliers. In 2023/24, 47 Industry Initiatives were funded in England & Wales and 25 in Scotland. The services and their associated consumer support values included:
For more detailed information on this latest assessment, please visit https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications/warm-home-discount-annual-report-scheme-year-13
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate he has made of the value of support accessed through the Industry Initiative component of the Warm Home Discount scheme in the most recent year where data is available.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Ofgem administer the Warm Home Discount Scheme Industry Initiatives of behalf of the Department. Their most recent assessment was for winter 2023/24 where Industry Initiatives delivered £76.4 million in support (£65.5 million in England & Wales and £10.9 million in Scotland) – an increase of £44.3 million compared with winter 2022/23. These initiatives supported over 2.8 million consumers across Great Britain by providing a range of services, including energy efficiency measures, energy and smart meter advice, debt assistance, benefit checks, and financial assistance payments.
The Department sets the overall policy and spending targets for the scheme, but the financial responsibility for Industry Initiatives lies with the suppliers. In 2023/24, 47 Industry Initiatives were funded in England & Wales and 25 in Scotland. The services and their associated consumer support values included:
For more detailed information on this latest assessment, please visit https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications/warm-home-discount-annual-report-scheme-year-13
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Industry Initiative component of the Warm Home Discount scheme.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Ofgem administer the Warm Home Discount Scheme Industry Initiatives of behalf of the Department. Their most recent assessment was for winter 2023/24 where Industry Initiatives delivered £76.4 million in support (£65.5 million in England & Wales and £10.9 million in Scotland) – an increase of £44.3 million compared with winter 2022/23. These initiatives supported over 2.8 million consumers across Great Britain by providing a range of services, including energy efficiency measures, energy and smart meter advice, debt assistance, benefit checks, and financial assistance payments.
The Department sets the overall policy and spending targets for the scheme, but the financial responsibility for Industry Initiatives lies with the suppliers. In 2023/24, 47 Industry Initiatives were funded in England & Wales and 25 in Scotland. The services and their associated consumer support values included:
For more detailed information on this latest assessment, please visit https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications/warm-home-discount-annual-report-scheme-year-13