Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to ensure that planning decisions on large-scale solar developments consider their potential effects on (a) Green Belt land, (b) Sites of Special Scientific Interest, (c) heritage assets and (d) landscape amenity.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero’s National Policy Statements for Energy (EN-1) and Renewable Energy Infrastructure (EN-3) provide the policy framework for decisions on Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects above 100MW, including consideration of their potential impacts on Green Belt land, Sites of Special Scientific Interest, heritage assets and landscape amenity.
Planning applications for solar projects below 100MW are determined by local planning authorities under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 in accordance with the development plan unless material considerations indicate otherwise. The National Planning Policy Framework, which is the starting point for the preparation of development plans and a material consideration in planning decisions, sets out relevant policies for assessing such impacts.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, whether the Government plans to introduce binding requirements for developers of the most powerful AI models, in the context of reports concerning the availability of Anthropic’s Claude Mythos 5.1 model for UK pre-release testing and statements by frontier AI developers over the weekend of 12 and 13 September 2026.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Technology)
The UK is a world leader in AI security, and the AI Security Institute continues to work closely with the US government, international partners and leading AI companies, including Anthropic.
We are taking a context-based approach to AI regulation, meaning that most AI systems are regulated at the point of use by our existing expert regulators. However, we should not assume that this regulatory framework will always be sufficient as AI capabilities continue to develop. Any future measures we may take will be evidence-based and focused on the risks we need to address.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much funding has been allocated to Walsall Council for brownfield housing development in each financial year from 2024-25 to 2028-29; and how many homes that funding is expected to support.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has not directly allocated funding to Walsall Council for brownfield housing development.
Grant funding has been provided to West Midlands Combined Authority as part of the housing pillar of its Integrated Settlement. Further detail in respect of funding for 2025/26 is available on gov.uk here and in respect of funding for 2026/27 to 2028/29 on gov.uk here. Walsall Council is eligible to bid for this funding.
Outcomes are agreed and published through the Integrated Settlement Outcomes Framework, which can be found on gov.uk here.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions the Department has held with Walsall Council and the West Midlands Combined Authority about the brownfield-with-intervention option identified in paragraph 4.22 of the Council’s Cabinet report of 26 August 2026; what funding or other assistance has been requested to unlock that additional capacity; and whether the Government has considered the potential merits of providing support to reduce the amount of Green Belt land required for housing.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has not directly allocated funding to Walsall Council for brownfield housing development.
Grant funding has been provided to West Midlands Combined Authority as part of the housing pillar of its Integrated Settlement. Further detail in respect of funding for 2025/26 is available on gov.uk here and in respect of funding for 2026/27 to 2028/29 on gov.uk here. Walsall Council is eligible to bid for this funding.
Outcomes are agreed and published through the Integrated Settlement Outcomes Framework, which can be found on gov.uk here.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether assurance is required at local plan examination that infrastructure relied upon to justify Green Belt allocations is costed, funded and capable of being delivered when needed; whether an intention to investigate a Community Infrastructure Levy is adequate evidence of deliverability; and what safeguards apply where school places, healthcare facilities, transport improvements or drainage works depend on funding that has not been secured.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the Rt Hon. Member to policies PM2(1)(c), PM12, PM15(1), GB8(2) and HC1 of the new National Planning Policy Framework published on 17 August.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many residents of (a) Aldridge-Brownhills constituency and (b) Walsall local authority area have (i) started and (ii) completed an apprenticeship connected with HS2; and how many of those completing an apprenticeship were in sustained employment six months later.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Between February 2017 and June 2026, 40 residents of the Walsall local authority area started an apprenticeship on the HS2 programme.
As at March 2026, more than 2,000 apprenticeships overall have been created, which exceeds the target for HS2.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department will collect and publish data on school-meal take-up and food waste before and after the revised standards are enforced in September 2027; and how it will assess whether pupils are eating healthier meals.
Answered by Paul Waugh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government is taking forward the development of a national monitoring system on school food. The monitoring system will draw on the Food Standards Agency's expertise in food regulation and assurance and will form part of a wider package of resources, training and guidance accessible to all schools, governing bodies and caterers, to improve the healthiness of what is served.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate his Department has made of the number of people aged 18 to 24 in (a) Aldridge-Brownhills constituency and (b) Walsall local authority area who will be eligible for the Jobs Guarantee in each financial year from 2026-27 to 2028-29.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Jobs Guarantee will provide over 90,000 jobs to eligible young people over the 2026/2027 to 2028/2029 financial years.
The scheme is due to roll out across GB from November 2026, DWP will award multi-year grants to selected delivery organisations, who will deliver the Jobs Guarantee in local areas. Aldridge-Brownhills and Walsall is part of the Black Country delivery area, where DWP expects 22,00 young people will be supported into jobs by May 2028.
The Department has published heat maps illustrating how demand for the Jobs Guarantee is distributed within the 25 delivery areas, with linked breakdowns for each area included. These can be viewed here.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when she expects to publish the school-food monitoring framework being developed with the Food Standards Agency; whether compliance checks will be independent and findings published for individual schools; and what guidance school governors will receive on monitoring compliance and reporting concerns.
Answered by Paul Waugh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department is working closely with the Food Standards Agency to put in place an efficient and proportionate monitoring system. The government will also expect schools to nominate a lead governor for school food as part of the new national compliance framework being introduced from September 2027. Together, these measures will strengthen governance and transparency around school food, and help parents, pupils and communities understand the food on offer.
To support schools and trusts in meeting these expectations in a way that reflects their individual governance structures, the department is working closely with stakeholders to ensure that clear, detailed and practical guidance is provided ahead of implementation.
The department will also provide guidance for schools, local authorities and caterers to apply the revised standards.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he plans to publish data on the number of Jobs Guarantee participants who (a) start a placement, (b) complete a placement and (c) enter sustained employment six and 12 months after completing a placement, broken down by local authority.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Jobs Guarantee is a central element of the Youth Guarantee. The Jobs Guarantee will provide every eligible 18–24-year-old who has been claiming Universal Credit and looking for work for 18 months a guaranteed, fully subsidised six-month paid job. The Government will fund 100% of an eligible young person’s wages for the six months, up to 25hrs/week, at the relevant minimum wage, as well as the additional employment costs.
Young people will also receive a range of tailored support to help them succeed and transition into sustained employment.
National rollout of the scheme will be delivered in 25 areas across Great Britain, with delivery starting from November 2026. Once fully rolled out, the scheme is expected to support more than 90,000 young people over the 2026/2027 to 2028/2029 financial years.
The Department is currently collecting data and will run an evaluation of the scheme, and findings will be published when ready.
The Department will assess employment outcomes of the Jobs Guarantee scheme including number of Jobs Guarantee participants who start a job, complete a job and how many days a young person spends in unsubsidised employment after the job finishes.