Asked by: Sonia Kumar (Labour - Dudley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what diplomatic steps she is taking to help protect children in Iran from actions taken by the Iranian authorities.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The killing and brutal repression of peaceful protesters in Iran is horrific. Iranians must be able to exercise their right to peaceful protest without fear of reprisal.
The Iranian government must immediately end the violence, uphold fundamental rights and freedoms, and ensure British nationals are safe. The Foreign Secretary made this very clear when she spoke with the Iranian Foreign Minister on 12 January, and I did likewise when we summoned the Iranian Ambassador the following day.
We are working closely with our partners to ensure the Iranian regime is held accountable for its violent repression and systematic human rights abuses against its own people.
Asked by: Daniel Zeichner (Labour - Cambridge)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure that English language immigration requirements are strengthened in the context of proposals to move English language testing for immigration purposes to a remotely proctored system.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The proposals contained within the Immigration White Paper 2025 will be delivered over the course of this Parliament, including new English Language Requirements.
The Home Office is committed to maintaining the highest standards of security and integrity in our immigration system whilst modernising services for legitimate applicants. The new service will enhance existing arrangements via robust and consistent identity management, increased monitoring of test takers and activity that is underpinned by stringent security and cyber security requirements. Detecting and combatting existing and emerging threats is at the centre of this service.
Asked by: Charlie Dewhirst (Conservative - Bridlington and The Wolds)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, further to Table A.7 of the OBR, Economic and Fiscal Outlook, November 2025, CP1439, 26 November 2025, what is HM Treasury’s estimate of the cost of the EU financial settlement in each year from 2024-25 to 2030-31; and whether this includes any fiscal consequences of recent changes to the EU-UK relationship.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Please refer to The European Union Finances Statement 2024 (EUFS) for the most complete analysis of the Financial Settlement. The EUFS figures are prepared on a different basis to those published by the OBR. These differences are explained in Annexes A.4 and A.5 of the EUFS.
Asked by: Bobby Dean (Liberal Democrat - Carshalton and Wallington)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions his Department has had with UKRI and the National Institute for Health and Care Research on supporting new and emerging treatments for low‑grade gliomas.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department invests over £1.6 billion per year in research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).
Government responsibility for delivering cancer research is shared between Department for Health and Social Care, with research delivered by the NIHR, and Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, with research delivered via UK Research and Innovation.
Department of Health and Social Care and Department of Science, Innovation and Technology officials meet regularly to discuss a range of research investments to drive the maximum collective research impact on policy, practice, and individual lives.
The NIHR is continuing to invest in brain tumour research. In December 2025, the NIHR announced the pioneering Brain Tumour Research Consortium to accelerate research into new brain tumour treatments. NIHR is investing an initial £13.7 million in the consortium, with significant further funding due to be awarded early in 2026. The world-leading consortium aims to transform outcomes for adults and children and their families who are living with brain tumours, ultimately reducing lives lost to cancer.
The NIHR continues to welcome high quality funding applications for research into any aspect of human health and care, including low-grade glioma.
Asked by: Chris Coghlan (Liberal Democrat - Dorking and Horley)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she plans to support low-income earners with transport to and from London following (a) the introduction of pay as you go ticketing in Dorking and Horley constituency and (b) price increases of between 3% and 24%.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department has commissioned independent evaluation on the trial, this research has not yet concluded. The current evidence is provided by LNER and is available at
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the political situation in Georgia.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Democracy in Georgia is under threat, and we are working closely with our European allies to respond to that concern.
Last October, I reiterated my concerns to Georgian Foreign Minister Botchorishvili over democratic backsliding, opposition arrests and attacks on allied Ambassadors.
We urge Georgia’s leadership to reverse repressive legislation, release political prisoners, and return the country to a democratic path.
Asked by: Nick Timothy (Conservative - West Suffolk)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if her Department will adopt a call for evidence process on changes to the taxation and cost of electric cars.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
At Budget 2025, the Government announced a number of changes to the taxation of electric vehicles (EVs). The eVED consultation provides further detail on how eVED will work and seeks views on its implementation. The consultation is available at GOV.UK: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/consultation-on-the-introduction-of-electric-vehicle-excise-duty-eved.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate she has made of the potential impact of the ineligibility of further education colleges to reclaim VAT on purchases linked to education and training on costs to those colleges.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Further Education (FE) funding is vital to ensure people are being trained in the skills they need to thrive in the modern labour market. The 2025 Spending Review provided an additional £1.2 billion per year by 2028-29 for skills and £1.7 billion of capital funding to help colleges maintain the condition of their estate. In addition, the Government is providing £375 million of capital investment to support the FE system to accommodate increasing student numbers.
For their non-business activity, FE colleges are unable to reclaim VAT incurred. We operate several VAT refund schemes for schools and academies which are designed variously to ensure that VAT is not a burden on local taxation, and that academies are not disincentivised to leave LA control. FE colleges do not meet the criteria for either scheme.
In relation to business activity, FE colleges enjoy an exemption from VAT which means that they do not have to charge VAT to students, but cannot recover it either.
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 9 December 2025 to Question 95894 on Housing: council tax, whether the Valuation Office Agency holds council tax dwelling data by band based on those geographies.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) publishes Council Tax statistics on GOV.UK. The Council Tax stock of properties publication provides the number of properties by Council Tax band, administrative area and Westminster Parliamentary Constituency in England and Wales.
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the answer of 9 December 2025, to Question 95885, on Council tax, what estimate she has made of the potential impact of the council tax surcharge on other tax receipts.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
As set out in response to Question 95885 on 9th December 2025, the forecast impact on other tax receipts is set out in the published costings document here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/692872fd2a37784b16ecf676/Budget_2025-Policy_Costings.pdf