Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 22 December 2025 to Question 99799, whether NHS England has adopted a net zero target date for the National Health Service that differs from the United Kingdom’s statutory target of net zero by 2050.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Hon. Member to the answer provided to him on 27 November 2025 to Question 92091 which set out the National Health Service’s Net Zero ambitions. Additionally, the answer provided to Queston 99799 on 22 December 2025 is clear that NHS England’s intent was to set ambitious but achievable aims that align with different sectoral pathways and expectations. This aims to support the United Kingdom’s overall approach to the statutory Net Zero target of 2050, which applies to the whole UK economy.
As per the 10-Year Health Plan, the Department is committed to supporting these ambitions, and we will do so in a way that delivers better value for money for the taxpayer and better care for patients, and which remains aligned to the Government's approach to carbon budgets and the overall Net Zero statutory target.
Asked by: Andrew Griffith (Conservative - Arundel and South Downs)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if his Department will hold an African Investment Summit.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
As set out in the Trade and Industrial strategies, this Government remains committed to strengthening UK-African trade and investment ties. According to the latest UNCTAD data, the UK had the second highest level of FDI stock in Africa at the end of 2023, after the Netherlands, and this strong position reflects our determination to deepen partnerships that deliver sustainable growth and create opportunities for UK and African businesses.
We have no such specific plans, but will continue to work closely with business leaders to unlock investment potential and will announce details of future engagements once decisions have been finalised.
Asked by: Layla Moran (Liberal Democrat - Oxford West and Abingdon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will consider specific funding for mesothelioma nursing posts.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Decisions about recruitment are a matter for individual National Health Service employers, who manage this at a local level to ensure they have the staff they need to deliver safe and effective care.
Funding provided to NHS trusts is not ringfenced for specific items such as staffing levels. Hospitals receive funding allocations which they can use at their discretion, based on local priorities.
The 10 Year Workforce Plan will ensure that the NHS has the right people in the right places, with the right skills to care for patients, when they need it.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the answer of 11 December 2025 to Question 96736, how many HMRC National Minimum Wage inspections were conducted in Scotland in 2024/25; and how many of these were carried out in social care settings.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Our data represents all closed inspections (‘investigations’). There were 220 closed inspections in Scotland in 2024/25. This data was published in the Supplementary data for the 2024/2025 National Minimum Wage Enforcement and Compliance Report (Table 6).
Of the 220 closed inspections, 6 were social care cases.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much was spent on her visit to Wales and Scotland in early December 2025, including staffing, accommodation, expenses and security.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
As has been the case under successive administrations, the Government does not publish granular detail on Ministers’ domestic travel. As a police protected minister, we do not comment on the specific arrangements in place for the Chancellor for security reasons.
Asked by: Gareth Thomas (Labour (Co-op) - Harrow West)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she will discuss access to finance for businesses based in areas of deprivation with the Chair of the Independent Commission on Neighbourhoods.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
HMT has engaged the Independent Commission on Neighbourhoods and the Department continues to work with the Commission, including engaging with their recent report. I would welcome a discussion with the Chair on access to finance, should she think it helpful.
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 assessment he has made of the potential impact of skills funding announced in the Autumn Budget 2025 on the adequacy of engineering, advanced manufacturing, logistics, construction and health and social care skills in Aldridge-Brownhills constituency, Walsall and the West Midlands; and whether his Department plans to publish regional allocations for those programmes.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The budget announced over £1.5 billion of investment in employment and skills sup-port to fund the Youth Guarantee and reform the Growth and Skills Levy over the Spending Review period.
The Youth Guarantee means every young person can access support to earn or learn.
The Growth and Skills offer will provide greater flexibility to employers and learners and support the industrial strategy. As part of the offer, new foundation apprentice-ships for young people were introduced in August 2025 alongside the ability to under-take shorter duration apprenticeships. These flexibilities will help more people learn new high-quality skills at work and fuel innovation in businesses across the country, including in Aldridge-Brownhills constituency, Walsall and the West Midlands.
Further, providers nationwide are already funded to develop training aligned with local needs. In 2025/26, 67% of the £1.44 billion Adult Skills Fund was devolved to 13 Strategic Authorities for locally tailored provision, for example to support the delivery of Sector-Based Work Academies to meet the skilled workforce requirements of a wide range of sectors.
As set out in the Skills White Paper we are investing over £1 billion to support tens of thousands of jobs, in construction, defence, digital, engineering through skills pack-ages in key areas identified in the Industrial Strategy. This will help equip the work-force with the skills needed to drive innovation, fill industry shortages, and strengthen the UK’s economic and national resilience.
These measures will help to support provision in areas such as engineering, advanced manufacturing, logistics, construction and health and social care skills across the country.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the long-term economic contribution of student-loan recipients who do not remain in the UK workforce after graduation; and how this affects repayment forecasts for the loan book.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The information requested is not held centrally.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of borrowers who leave the UK after receiving student finance maintain full repayment compliance; and what mechanisms exist to enforce repayments from those living overseas.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
As of April 2025, 6.1 million borrowers (English and EU nationals with loans from Student Finance England) are in Repayment. Of the 6.1 million, 286,000 (4.6%) reside overseas, of which 85,000 (29.7%) are EU nationals and 201,000 (70.3%) are English UK nationals. Full details can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/student-loans-in-england-2024-to-2025.
In November 2025, 60.3% of borrowers residing overseas (EU and UK nationals) were compliant, and 39.7% non-compliant. The compliance rate for UK borrowers was 62.3%, and for EU borrowers 55.4%.
The Student Loans Company (SLC) recovers approximately £10 million per month from customers residing overseas (both UK and EU nationals) at cost of approximately £339,000 per month. This is a return on investment of approximately 30:1.
In the 2024/25 financial year, SLC’s repayments evasion unit recovered £7.7 million from non-compliant overseas borrowers. If the SLC is unable to recover outstanding debt directly from borrowers overseas, the account will be referred to a Debt Collection Agency (DCA). On average, DCAs deliver a return on investment of £5 for every £1 spent. From April 2024 to March 2025, recoveries from overseas borrowers stand at £3.74 million.
A full equality impact assessment of how the student loan reforms may affect graduates, including detail on changes to average lifetime repayments under Plan 5, was produced and published in February 2022 and can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/higher-education-reform-equality-impact-assessment.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the planned imposition of customs duties on low value imports from March 2029 on the logistics industry.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Following an estimated tripling of low value import volumes between 2021 and 2024, with the rapid rise in cross-border e-commerce, the Chancellor has reviewed the existing customs arrangements for low value imports to determine whether they are fit for purpose. The rapid growth in low value imports is hurting our high streets and retailers. The government is taking action to address the difference in treatment between low value imports and goods shipped by high street retailers, and ensure these goods are adequately controlled.
At Budget 2025, the government announced that it is removing the customs duty relief on goods imported into the UK worth up to £135, making them subject to customs duty, and consulting on a new set of customs arrangements for these goods. The consultation covers the design and implementation of the new low value import customs arrangements, including what data could be collected, how customs duty should be applied, and whether to apply an additional fee to fund administration activity.
The government recognises that these proposals will require changes and is inviting stakeholders, including the logistics industry, to provide input on how the new arrangements can be implemented to ensure changes are delivered as smoothly as possible, ensure goods are appropriately controlled, and address the tariff treatment between online retailers who ship directly to the UK and high street retailers who import goods in bulk.