Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of extending the validity period of theory test pass certificates for learner drivers who are unable to book a practical driving test within the current two-year period due to delays in test availability.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
It is important road safety knowledge and hazard perception skills are up to date at the critical point a person drives unsupervised for the first time.
The maximum duration of two years between passing the theory test and a subsequent practical test is in place to ensure a customer’s road safety knowledge and ability to identify developing hazards is current. This validity period is set in legislation, and the Government has no current plans to lay further legislation to extend it.
Ensuring learner drivers have current relevant knowledge and skills is a vital part of the learning to drive process as new drivers are disproportionately casualties on our roads. Learners therefore need to pass another theory test if their two-year theory test certificate expires.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the proposed extension of the standard qualifying period for settlement to ten years will apply to British National Overseas (BNO) visa holders.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The Government is committed to supporting members of the Hong Kong community who have relocated to the UK and those who may come here in future.
Further details of all measures announced in the Immigration White Paper will be set out in the normal way in due course, and where necessary, will be subject to consultation.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to increase protections for Hong Kongers facing transnational oppression in the UK.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Home Office)
While we do not comment on specific threats or targets, I can assure the Hon Member that the safety and security of Hong Kongers in the UK remains of the upmost importance.
The UK will always stand up for the rights of the people of Hong Kong. On Christmas Eve, the Foreign Secretary strongly condemned the Hong Kong police’s targeting of individuals for exercising their right to freedom of expression. FCDO officials have raised concerns directly with the Chinese and Hong Kong authorities. This year, the Foreign Secretary and Minister West met with individuals affected by the latest round of arrest warrants and bounties placed on them by the Hong Kong Police Force.
The UK Government has developed a range of support and security assistance mechanisms to protect individuals and communities that are at risk of transnational repression. This assistance is based on threat and varied in its scope and approach, but can include tailored protective advice, cybersecurity measures, and access to broader public resources. In addition, I announced in March that training and guidance on state threats activity is now being offered by Counter Terrorism Policing to all 45 territorial police forces across the UK. This will enhance the ability of front-line police officers and staff in the identification of state-directed crimes and the actions that can be taken to escalate and mitigate this activity.
Guidance can be found on GOV.UK providing those who believe themselves to be at risk of TNR with practical advice for their safety both physically and online. If individuals think they are a victim of state directed activity, they should report this to police via the established mechanisms - 101, 999, or at a local police station.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the practical driving test backlog on the (a) availability and (b) scheduling of theory test appointments.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Theory test availability is monitored by both the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency and the external service providers. Candidates wait on average no more than 28 calendar days from booking to their theory test appointment date, as per the contractual performance measures.
Capacity in the theory test centre network is managed using demand forecasting, and ongoing monitoring of tests booked into the 210 test centres in the network across Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the public’s awareness of electrical goods recycling options; and what steps he plans to take to improve public awareness of those options.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Waste Electronics and Electrical Equipment regulations make producers responsible for the electrical products they place on the market when they become waste. Within that framework producers fund a not-for-profit industry body Material Focus through the WEEE Compliance Fee. Part of the funds are used for consumer awareness campaigns highlighting the importance of properly disposing of their electrical waste.
A Material Focus communications campaign has helped lead to 30 million more small electrical items being recycled in 2024 compared to 2022.
We are considering further measures to deliver a Circular Economy, including across electricals, as part of the circular economy strategy.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
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 with the Secretary of State for Business and Trade to incentivise manufacturers to design electrical products with longer lifespans to support (a) sustainability and (b) the circular economy.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This Government is committed to transitioning towards a circular economy. We have convened the Circular Economy Taskforce, composed of experts from industry, academia, and civil society, to help develop a Circular Economy Strategy for England. The Strategy will be accompanied by a series of roadmaps detailing the interventions that the Government and others will make on a sector-by-sector basis, including a roadmap for electricals and electronic equipment.
While led by Defra, development of the strategy is a cross-government effort based on close collaboration between departments, including the Department for Business and Trade. Therefore, the strategy will reflect the needs and insights of industry leaders, trade associations, and other key stakeholders within the sector while improving lives up and down the country, growing our economy, and protecting our environment for generations to come.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment the Department has made of the effectiveness of the household waste electrical and electronic equipment collection scheme.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The January 2025 Post Implementation Review (PIR) of the WEEE regulations assess a range of measures aimed to drive up the levels of separately collected WEEE for re-use and recycling.
We are considering further measures to deliver a Circular Economy, including across electricals, as part of the circular economy strategy.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether she has made a comparative assessment of the potential benefits of outsourcing services and providing services in-house.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Government is committed to ensuring professional Facility Management services across its prison and probation estate. A 2023 assessment conducted in partnership with the Cabinet Office determined that an insourced solution was not the preferred option for future prison and probation maintenance services. Financial analysis determined that an outsourced option would be more cost effective and deliver the best value for money. A programme of work has been initiated that will put in place new contracts for the provision of maintenance services for prisons and probation. These are being competitively tendered. However, this approach is kept under constant review to ensure we get the best value for taxpayers’ money.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the accuracy of financial viability assessments used in the planning process.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government is committed to strengthening the system of developer contributions to ensure new developments provide necessary affordable homes and infrastructure. As part of this commitment, we are reviewing Planning Practice Guidance (PPG) on viability, and expect to provide a further update by the end of spring.
It is already the case, as set out in the viability PPG, that any viability assessment should be prepared with professional integrity by a suitably qualified practitioner and be presented in accordance with the guidance. The inputs and findings of any viability assessment should be set out in a way that aids clear interpretation and interrogation by decision makers.
Reports and findings should clearly state what assumptions have been made about costs and values (including gross development value, benchmark land value including the landowner premium, developer’s return and costs).
Any viability assessment should be prepared on the basis that it will be made publicly available other than in exceptional circumstances.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
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 make an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of the report by the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee entitled The Government’s vision for farming, HC 906, published on 16 May 2025.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Secretary of State and Minister Zeichner met the Committee recently and had the chance to discuss this Government’s approach to farming policy at that time. The Secretary of State’s oral evidence sessions sets out the Ministerial his assessment.