Asked by: John McDonnell (Labour - Hayes and Harlington)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he is taking steps to ensure that Local Government Pension Scheme investments are compliant with the UK’s duty (a) not to aid and (b) assist serious breaches of international law.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Local Government Pension Scheme administering authorities set the investment strategies for their funds, and must include how social, environmental and corporate governance and responsible investment considerations are taken into account. Authorities must have regard to their fiduciary duty to scheme members and employers when setting their investment strategy and must follow relevant legislation and guidance.
Administering authorities are legally required to comply with UK sanctions, including restrictions on dealings with designated individuals, entities, and countries.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 13 October 2025 to Question 77689 on Local Government: Investment, if he will take steps to stop divestment decisions in local government pension schemes relating to (a) Trident renewal and (b) investment in the defence industry.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Investment strategies for Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) funds are set by local administering authorities, and include how social, environmental and corporate governance and responsible investment considerations are taken into account. Administering authorities must have regard to their fiduciary duty to scheme members and employers when setting their investment strategy and must follow relevant legislation and guidance.
Asked by: Max Wilkinson (Liberal Democrat - Cheltenham)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he plans to take legislative steps to place a statutory duty on leaders in the (a) public and (b) private sectors to embed (i) inclusive governance and (ii) protective leadership practices.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Companies Act 2006 requires directors to have regard to employee interests and to the impact of the company’s operations on the community and the environment. The UK Corporate Governance Code includes provisions that support inclusive governance, including mechanisms to enable the workforce to engage with directors and for workers to raise concerns in confidence. The Public Sector Equality Duty in the Equality Act 2010 requires public authorities, and those carrying out public functions, to have due regard to the need to eliminate discrimination, advance equality of opportunity, and foster good relations between different people.
Asked by: Lizzi Collinge (Labour - Morecambe and Lunesdale)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what his planned implementation date is for the Audit, Reporting and Governance Authority.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
This Government is delivering several important reforms in the field of employment rights, and in other areas to support the mission of growing the UK's economy.
This means that the volume of legislation before Parliament is very high and, subsequently, the Government no longer intends to bring the draft Audit Reform and Corporate Governance Bill forward for Pre-Legislative Scrutiny in this session of Parliament.
It will bring forward its planned legislation when Parliamentary time allows.
Asked by: Olivia Blake (Labour - Sheffield Hallam)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will (a) make an assessment of the extent of and (b) take steps to help tackle barriers to local authorities practicing ethical divestment.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Local authorities are responsible for their own investments and accountable to their electorate. When making investment decisions, authorities must, however, ensure they comply with legislation and guidance intended to ensure that decisions are prudent, affordable and sustainable.
Investment strategies for Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) funds are set by local pension committees, and include how social, environmental and corporate governance and responsible investment considerations are taken into account. Pension committees must have regard to their fiduciary duty to scheme members and employers when setting their investment strategy and must follow relevant legislation and guidance.
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with NHS England on the effectiveness of its procedures for ensuring that (a) formal governance processes and (b) approved plans and programmes cannot be undermined by NHS senior leaders.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, has regular meetings with NHS England to discuss the effectiveness of procedures to hold healthcare leaders accountable for delivering on the Government’s priorities.
There are clear expectations for National Health Service senior leaders, aligned with the NHS Leadership Compact, the Fit and Proper Person Test Framework, and the Nolan Principles. NHS England addresses concerns about poor behaviours through established human resources and governance channels.
On 21 July 2025, we set out plans to regulate NHS managers via a statutory barring system. We will take forward legislative changes so that the Health and Care Professions Council can operate a barring mechanism for NHS board-level managers and their direct reports within this Parliament.
Asked by: Bradley Thomas (Conservative - Bromsgrove)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what additional monitoring of HM Land Registry her Department has undertaken since July 2024.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
As its sponsor department, MHCLG undertakes a range of activities to hold HM Land Registry (HMLR) to account for its organisational, corporate and governance performance.
A departmental representative sits on the Land Registry Board (LRB) and its subcommittees to review and scrutinise HMLR’s performance against its annual business plans and key performance indicators.
The Minister or Senior Sponsor issues an annual letter to the chair of the board, setting out the department’s priorities for HMLR over the coming year. The latest letter was issued in February 2025 and can be found on gov.uk here. The department holds regular meetings with HMLR executives and the LRB chair, including a quarterly sponsorship governance and performance meeting.
Asked by: Peter Bedford (Conservative - Mid Leicestershire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Business and Trade on the actuarial regulation elements of the Government’s planned Audit Reform and Corporate Governance Bill.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The government will bring forward Audit Reform and Corporate Governance legislation when Parliamentary time allows. The government will set out further details in the autumn.
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with (a) NHS England and (b) ICBs to help prevent NHS Trusts from operating outside (i) best practice guidelines, (ii) Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service Codes, (iii) internal HR policies and (iv) not protecting their staff's (A) rights and (B) well-being.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
All National Health Service trusts are independent employers who are required to comply with employment legislation and any relevant Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service codes. Human resource policies and procedures are developed locally and should follow best practice guidance which may include model HR policies developed by NHS England and the national Social Partnership Forum’s Workforce Issues Group.
The handbook to the NHS Constitution for England summarises some important legal rights for all employees and includes a range of best practice pledges which, although not legally binding, represent a commitment by the NHS to provide high-quality working environments for staff.
As part of the 10 Year Health Plan, we will also work with the Social Partnership Forum to introduce a new set of staff standards for modern employment, covering issues such as access to healthy meals, support to work healthily and flexibly, and tackling violence, racism and sexual harassment in the workplace.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether he plans to present the Audit Reform and Corporate Governance Bill during this parliamentary session.
Answered by Justin Madders
Due to the current volume of legislation before Parliament, the Government will not publish a draft Audit Reform and Corporate Governance Bill this session. We will improve our proposals further through consultation on the details with stakeholders in the Autumn.