Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that physician associates do not act as prescribers.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The law does not currently allow physician assistants (PAs), still legally known as physician associates, to prescribe.

The General Medical Council, which regulates PAs, states on its website that PAs cannot prescribe, even if they hold prescribing rights from a previous profession and have previously been authorised to prescribe in that role by their employer.

Employers and system regulators, alongside professionals, are responsible for ensuring that individuals do not work outside of their scope of practise.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government what funding they intend to allocate to upland peat restoration; and what plans they have to ensure such restoration occurs.

Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

This Government is committed to peatland restoration, and we have recently extended the Nature for Climate Peatland Grant Scheme for a further year, until March 2027.

This scheme has already restored around 28,000 hectares of peatland and this extension will support the restoration of thousands more hectares, including in the uplands.

As a condition of funding, delivery partners provide regular reports on restoration progress.

Upland peatland restoration is also being delivered through Environmental Land Management schemes, including Landscape Recovery, which supports restoration through 20-year agreements.

We have also launched the £1.15 million Peatland Restoration Sector Capacity Grant Scheme to boost peatland skills, training, apprenticeships and equipment across the sector.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans, if any, they have to set up an independent structural research organisation, in the model of the Building Research Establishment.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Government considers that public sector testing and research capacity is an essential part of an effective building safety regime. In December 2025, the Government confirmed that it would take forward work to establish new public sector testing capacity to enable both enforcement testing and research testing to be performed. This will provide regulators and the Government with increased capacity and an authoritative voice on building safety.

The Government sought views on models for delivering this new capacity in the Construction Products Reform White Paper, published in February 2026.

We intend to publish the Government response to the White Paper consultation later this year.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure regular, independent assessment of the safety of high-risk complex buildings similar to that required for bridges and tunnels.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Building Safety Act 2022 introduced a new regime to improve the safety of higher-risk residential buildings, overseen by the Building Safety Regulator (BSR). Dutyholders must report safety issues, maintain a golden thread of information, produce a safety case report, and engage residents.

Through the building assessment certificate process, the BSR assesses whether dutyholders are meeting their legal duties and taking reasonable steps to manage building safety risks. These measures provide independent oversight and support the ongoing management of building safety risks.