Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to help tackle the sources of littering in (a) Lincolnshire and (b) other rural areas.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Local councils are responsible for keeping public land clear of litter and refuse and are best placed to respond to littering problems, in a way that is tailored to the community in which they occur. They have a range of enforcement tools at their disposal, including fixed penalty notices of up to £500 and prosecution action which can lead to a criminal record and a fine of up to £2500.
The Pride in Place Strategy sets out how Government will support local action by bringing forward statutory enforcement guidance on both littering and fly-tipping, modernising the code of practice that outlines the cleaning standards expected of local authorities, and refreshing best practice guidance on the powers available to local authorities to force land and building owners to clean up their premises.
The Countryside Code makes clear visitors’ responsibilities in protecting the environment when accessing the outdoors. It includes the important headline message “Take your litter home – leave no trace of your visit”. The team at Natural England continue to work with partners to help amplify the messaging, including Keep Britain Tidy and National Highways.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of his proposed licensing reforms on levels of alcohol-related (a) deaths and (b) harm.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Government is inviting views and evidence to inform the development of a modern, proportionate and enabling licensing system.
A Call for Evidence is currently open until 6 November in order to gather views and evidence to inform proposals for reforms to licensing. This is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/calls-for-evidence/reforming-the-licensing-system. No assessment has yet been made of the impact of any reforms on alcohol-related deaths or harm. Any legislative changes will be subject to an impact assessment, consultation and parliamentary scrutiny.
Asked by: Alberto Costa (Conservative - South Leicestershire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with CrossCountry on increasing capacity on (a) peak services between Leicester and Narborough and (b) the 17:18 weekday service from Leicester to Birmingham.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
In December 2024, CrossCountry removed First Class accommodation from the trains used on the Birmingham to Stansted Airport route, increasing the number of seats available to all ticket holders. All operators are expected to plan capacity on individual services to best match the expected level of demand, whilst making efficient use of the train fleet and train crew resources available to them. Officials are working with CrossCountry to develop a business case to further expand their Inter-City train fleet.
Asked by: Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will set out a full timetable for the implementation of the recommendations of the Independent Pornography Review, published on 27 February.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
We welcome the findings of the Independent Pornography Review and the valuable insights it has provided into the online pornography landscape. The government continues to consider the findings of the Review and its thirty-two recommendations. Due to the cross departmental nature of the Review’s recommendations, we are not yet able to provide a timeline for the Government’s response. We will provide a further update in due course.
Asked by: Sammy Wilson (Democratic Unionist Party - East Antrim)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of applying a weight-based approach to the Extended Producer Responsibility Scheme on the glass bottle industry.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
In autumn last year my department published an assessment of the impacts of implementing extended producer responsibility for packaging (pEPR), including on inflation, when the regulations were laid in parliament. However, this impact assessment does not include an assessment of the impact on specific materials or sectors.
The aim of pEPR is to ensure businesses - rather than taxpayers - are responsible for the cost of dealing with packaging when it becomes waste. These regulations will encourage manufacturers to reduce the amount of packaging they use and increase recyclable and reusable alternatives. It is up to individual producers to decide whether and how much of these costs are passed on to consumers. While pricing decisions by producers will differ by product, the impact of pEPR on overall inflation is estimated to be small, increasing consumer costs by less than £1 a week per household, or 0.1%.
From year 2 of pEPR, fee modulation will be introduced and this will benefit the most recyclable materials by providing a fee discount. In contrast, less recyclable alternatives will incur an increased fee.
Since January 2025 the Recyclability Assessment Methodology has allocated packaging to fee modulation sub-categories, ensuring less-recyclable materials attract higher fees and drive investment in recyclability and innovation.
Asked by: Ayoub Khan (Independent - Birmingham Perry Barr)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has offered additional resource to West Midlands Police for the UEFA Europa League match between Aston Villa and Maccabi Tel Aviv.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
West Midlands Police did not notify the department of it’s risk assessment findings. Planning for football matches is considered and decided locally by Safety Advisory Groups which are operationally independent of Government and assess the risks and safety for the public. Home Office Officials were notified on 2 October 2025 by the UK Football Policing Unit of the options under consideration to allow the upcoming UEFA Europa League match between Aston Villa and Maccabi Tel Aviv to proceed safely.
The department was not informed of the final decision until it was in the public domain.
The Government has been working with West Midlands Police and Birmingham City Council to support them in considering all the options available for the match, including what resources are needed to manage the risks. Although the ultimate decision regarding the admittance of away fans is for the Local Authority to make, Government was clear that resources should not be the determining factor in whether Maccabi Tel Aviv fans would be admitted.
Asked by: Ayoub Khan (Independent - Birmingham Perry Barr)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when West Midlands Police notified her Department of its risk assessment for the UEFA Europa League match between Aston Villa and Maccabi Tel Aviv.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
West Midlands Police did not notify the department of it’s risk assessment findings. Planning for football matches is considered and decided locally by Safety Advisory Groups which are operationally independent of Government and assess the risks and safety for the public. Home Office Officials were notified on 2 October 2025 by the UK Football Policing Unit of the options under consideration to allow the upcoming UEFA Europa League match between Aston Villa and Maccabi Tel Aviv to proceed safely.
The department was not informed of the final decision until it was in the public domain.
The Government has been working with West Midlands Police and Birmingham City Council to support them in considering all the options available for the match, including what resources are needed to manage the risks. Although the ultimate decision regarding the admittance of away fans is for the Local Authority to make, Government was clear that resources should not be the determining factor in whether Maccabi Tel Aviv fans would be admitted.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what process her Department follows after an asylum seekers’ claim has been rejected.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
Asylum claims can be refused with a right of appeal to the First-tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber) or refused without a right of appeal (certified). Those who do not exercise, or do not have, a right of appeal are expected to leave the United Kingdom voluntarily or can be subject to enforced removal. If a claim is certified without a right of appeal, there is an avenue to apply for a Judicial Review.
A claimant may introduce fresh evidence during the appeal process. Even if they exhaust the appeal process there is still an opportunity to present fresh evidence as “further submissions” to which the Home Office must give due consideration.
Once all legal barriers have been removed the claimant can be subject to enforced removal.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress her Department has made on resolving clearance issues at Marle Pit on the Midland Main Line.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Following the decision to pause further electrification of the Midland Main Line, the department has been in discussion with Network Rail regarding their plans to conclude their current activities in a safe and controlled way. This has included a review of planned route clearance works in Sutton Bonington, Nottinghamshire. As part of this review, the works at Marle Pit bridge will be replanned when funding becomes available and electrification of the route can be re-started. While this is not expected to be within the next four years, the programme is being kept under active review as part of our longer-term pipeline of schemes.
Asked by: Baroness Sheehan (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Israel about its compliance with international law, including the UN Convention on Rights of a Child, regarding prompt access to legal representation for detained Palestinian children.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
Throughout the conflict, the UK regularly raised our concerns about Palestinian children in detention with the Israeli authorities. We continue to call on Israel to immediately facilitate urgent, unhindered access to all child detainees from the West Bank and Gaza to persons providing legal assistance, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and appropriate experts for the purposes of monitoring and reporting.