Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment they have made of the adequacy of government funding for Private Finance Initiative schools in the constituency of Slough.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department supports Private Finance Initiative (PFI) contracts through the funding arrangements agreed when contracts were signed. This includes revenue support grant funding (RSG) paid to local authorities over the contract term. RSG funding forms part of the overall affordability package for these projects, alongside contributions from local authorities and schools.
Further support is provided through the schools national funding formula PFI factor, and Slough will receive £1.1 million in the 2026/27 financial year through the PFI factor.
The department works with local authorities to assess affordability, determine appropriate levels of support and review PFI factor funding.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to protect the UK consulate in Jerusalem from unlawful obstruction by Israel.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Israeli authority decision to close the British Consulate-General in Jerusalem is deeply regrettable. The focus now is on ensuring we can continue our diplomatic work and supporting efforts towards a two-state solution. The UK stands by the announcements made by the Foreign Secretary on 8 September.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, what recent steps he has taken to increase trade with Canada.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade) (Jointly with the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The UK and Canada share a strong trading relationship, underpinned by our existing free trade agreement and worth £34 billion in 2025[1]. It was bolstered on September 1st by Canadian ratification of the UK’s accession to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership. This will provide further opportunities for businesses.
In addition, the UK-Canada Economic and Trade Working Group was set up to strengthen bilateral trade ties as joint trusted and reliable partners. It has a number of priority workstreams to further grow trade and drive cooperation, including a review of the UK-Canada Trade Continuity Agreement’s Rules of Origin chapter. This work is currently underway, and we aim to conclude it over the coming months.
[1] Canada trade and investment factsheet
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of calls to HMP Dovegate were answered in each of the last three months.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
All calls to the establishment's main public telephone number are recorded as answered by the automated call-handling system.
No further call-answering data are collected.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to attract Canadian tourists to the UK and increase the annual number of Canadians who visit the UK for tourism.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
DCMS works with VisitBritain to promote visits to Britain worldwide, including from Canada, with a focus on ensuring the benefits of tourism are felt across all regions and nations.
VisitBritain works with the Canadian travel trade through campaigns, trade events and familiarisation trips to promote Britain’s nations and regions. Over the past two years, this has resulted in approximately 45 new bookable itineraries with 15 Canadian partners, increasing the range of regional tourism products available to Canadian visitors.
In September 2025, VisitBritain promoted its ‘Starring GREAT Britain’ campaign at the Toronto International Film Festival, using film and TV locations to inspire visits to Britain. VisitBritain found that 87% of Canadian visitors considering a UK trip were interested in visiting a film or TV location.
In 2026, VisitBritain is building on this work through initiatives connecting Canadian buyers with regional suppliers, including a Manchester Spotlight in November and a familiarisation trip covering Liverpool, Chester, Wrexham, Conwy and Manchester.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the level of funding available for research into (a) Alzheimer's disease and (b) other forms of dementia.
Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
No assessment has been made. I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 2 June 2026 to Question 3358. Information on dementia research funding broken down by dementia sub-type is not centrally held.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the progress of research on treatments for (a) Alzheimer's and (b) dementia.
Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
No assessment has been made. I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 2 June 2026 to Question 3358. Information on dementia research funding broken down by dementia sub-type is not centrally held.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions she has had with water companies on the timely repair of water infrastructure.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Ministers and officials regularly engage with water companies and regulators on operational and customer service matters. Companies are responsible for keeping customers informed about planned and emergency repairs.
Customers are protected through the Guaranteed Standards Scheme which requires water companies to provide information about planned interruptions or emergency supply losses which may occur because of repairs. Customers may be entitled to compensation where required standards may not be met.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions she has had with water companies to ensure customers are adequately informed on (a) planned and (b) unplanned water infrastructure repairs.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Ministers and officials regularly engage with water companies and regulators on operational and customer service matters. Companies are responsible for keeping customers informed about planned and emergency repairs.
Customers are protected through the Guaranteed Standards Scheme which requires water companies to provide information about planned interruptions or emergency supply losses which may occur because of repairs. Customers may be entitled to compensation where required standards may not be met.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, what recent steps have been taken alongside (a) local authorities and (b) police forces to prevent the illegal use of fireworks in public spaces.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Minister of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade)
The Government continues to work with local authorities, Trading Standards, police forces and other enforcement partners to tackle the illegal use of fireworks. Local authorities and the police already have powers under the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014, including Community Protection Notices and Public Spaces Protection Orders, which can be used to address fireworks misuse in public spaces. We have also supported public awareness campaigns promoting the safe and considerate use of fireworks, published guidance for community display organisers.