Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the workforce modelling used as the basis for the 10 Year Workforce Plan will be independent; and whether the results of that modelling will be independently assessed and tested.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of amending The Public Service Vehicles (Accessible Information) Regulations 2023 to apply to vehicles which have 16 or more seats, rather than carry 16 or more passengers.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Accessible Information Regulations (AIR) 2023 were introduced to support disabled people in particular to make the journeys important to them, but accessible information is valued by a wide range of passengers.
The Department considered the scope of the Regulations carefully during their development, including through a public consultation, seeking to balance the benefits of improved accessibility with the practical and financial implications for operators—particularly those using smaller vehicles. The wording selected, including the focus on total vehicle capacity was chosen for consistency with the well-established Public Service Vehicles Accessibility Regulations 2000, albeit with a lower threshold in order to allow more passengers to benefit from audible and visible information.
I recognise the costs involved in achieving AIR compliance and the impact on smaller operators in particular and that is why the Department has made a £4.65 million grant available to operators with fleets of 20 vehicles or fewer to help cover the cost of installing the necessary equipment.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to (a) help reduce exam stress and (b) support pupils with exam stress.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department recognises that it is normal for young people to experience some stress around exams. It is important that this stress is identified early and the right support is in place to help young people manage it in a healthy and constructive way. Schools play a key role in supporting students through this, and mental health charities such as YoungMinds have published guidance on staying well during revision and exams. Their guidance is available at:
https://www.youngminds.org.uk/media/mqljrydj/staying-well-during-revision-and-exams.pdf.
The department is providing access to specialist mental health professionals in every school by expanding Mental Health Support Teams (MHST), so every child and young person has access to early support to address problems before they escalate. By April 2026, we estimate that 60% of pupils in schools and learners in further education in England will be covered by an MHST, up from 52% in April 2025.
The independent Curriculum and Assessment Review carefully considered evidence on wellbeing and found that many factors can impact student mental health. The Review recommended reducing exam volume to help improve the overall student experience. We will work closely with Ofqual and exam boards to reduce GCSE exam time by 2.5 to 3 hours for the average student, while maintaining high standards and protecting the integrity and validity of the qualifications system.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when they will set out a timescale for their review of agricultural permitted development rights.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Under existing nationally set permitted development rights, farmers are already able to undertake specific development on their farms. Guidance on the rights in question is available on gov.uk here.
The government continues to keep permitted development rights under review.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of the cost incurred by children and young people from North Norfolk for attending their cancer treatment in the nearest specialist treatment centre in Cambridge; how many of them are not receiving support for their travel costs; and whether he will introduce a Young Cancer Patient Travel Fund to support with these costs.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the current statutory thresholds at which a local authority is required to declare an Air Quality Management Area.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Air Quality Objectives set under the Air Quality (England) Regulations 2000 set out the statutory thresholds that determine the need to declare an Air Quality Management Area. These continue to drive local authority action on NO2 and other pollutants. We remain committed to continuous improvement and will keep air quality objectives under review.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has attended meetings with the Secretary of State for Education on the allocation of new dental school places since 1 January 2025.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Ministers regularly engage with ministerial colleagues on a range of issues.
The independent Office for Students (OfS) has statutory responsibility for allocating funding for medical and dental school places. Allocation outcomes are based on guidance issued by the Government, alongside an OfS assessment of provider capability.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of rural exception site policy in securing affordable rented housing in perpetuity for local people in rural and coastal towns.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 57293 on 16 June 2025.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 11 November 2025 to Question 88046 on Economic Crime: British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies, if she will make it her policy to collect data on the use of Exchange of Notes Arrangements in investigations.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
While we do not collect specific data on the use of Exchange of Notes Arrangements in investigations, we regularly review the effectiveness and usefulness of these arrangements as part of our ongoing policy considerations, including with law enforcement partners.
We are also mindful of the need to strike the appropriate balance when introducing any new reporting requirements on law enforcement agencies, ensuring that such measures support operational effectiveness without creating unnecessary burdens.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of registers of beneficial ownership in the Overseas Territories on the effective prosecution of fraud and economic crime.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
This Government regards registers of beneficial ownership as key tools for tackling illicit finance, including investigating fraud and economic crime by law enforcement both in the UK and the Overseas Territories (OTs). The UK expects OTs to implement legitimate interest access registers at a minimum, and as soon as possible, in line with the commitments made at the Joint Ministerial Council in 2024. Our ultimate expectation is that the OTs implement fully public registers. I refer the Hon Member to my Written Ministerial Statements of 3 July and 22 July on this subject, and my contribution to the Westminster Hall debate on 5 November. I will provide a further update following the Joint Ministerial Council this month.