Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government how they intend to maximise the uptake of Meningitis B vaccinations among university students living in rural areas ahead of the start of the academic year.

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

Getting two doses of the meningitis B vaccine before the autumn term is one of the most important things young people can do to protect themselves from meningitis B disease.

The UK Health Security Agency has produced a wide range of materials to inform young people of the offer and to support informed consent. We are working closely with cross-Government colleagues and partners, including those in the university and further education sectors, and with stakeholders to ensure that information on eligibility and access to vaccination in each of the four nations is available to all eligible young people, including those living in rural areas, ahead of the autumn term. Information will be shared via direct communications, social media platforms, and other routes.

NHS England will continually monitor community pharmacy sign up and will work with regional teams to consider supplementary offers where geographical gaps are identified.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they conducted a health impact equality assessment before awarding the Meningitis B vaccination programme to community pharmacies.

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

In developing vaccination policy, the Department has due regard to its duties under the Public Sector Equality Duty. Consideration of equality and health inequalities impacts are undertaken as part of the development, implementation, and review of vaccination programmes. In developing the policy on this urgent meningococcal B (MenB) vaccination programme, the Department had due regard to its duties under the Public Sector Equality Duty.

The operational delivery of vaccinations is led by NHS England, including the providers commissioned to deliver the vaccination programme. An Equality Health Impact Assessment is being developed by NHS England to support in the identification and mitigation of inequalities in access and outcomes as relates to the rollout of this MenB programme.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government who they intend to administer Meningitis B vaccines in rural areas where no community pharmacies exist.

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

Vaccinations will primarily be offered in community pharmacies, providing flexibility for the mobile student population who may move to a new area between doses.

To support access in all areas, NHS England regional teams will also be supported to commission appropriate supplementary providers in their area where needed to ensure that everyone who is eligible can get vaccinated.

The first dose will be available until 31 December 2026 and the second dose until 31 March 2027. The appointment window remains open beyond summer to allow for as many of those eligible as possible to get vaccinated, but the strong recommendation is to have the vaccine in July and August.

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

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the insurability of homes built on floodplains since 2009.

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

The availability of insurance is determined on a case-by-case basis by insurers, but the Government engages with the industry on a regular basis through the Flood Resilience Taskforce.

Between 16 December 2025 and 10 March 2026, we consulted on a new NPPF, including proposals in a new standalone chapter dedicated to managing flood risk and coastal change. We are currently analysing the feedback received and will publish our response in due course.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the compatibility of their clean energy plans with protection of nature and the environment, in light of their reported (1) environmental impacts, and (2) flammability and combustibility risks.

Answered by Baroness Curran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Government believes that the accelerated rollout of clean energy generation is compatible with protection of the natural environment.

All energy proposals are subject to a rigorous planning process, in which the views and interests of local communities are considered. This includes any impact on biodiversity, the environment, and fire risk.

Project developers typically must complete an Environmental Statement (ES) as part of any application. The ES requires developers to consider all potential impacts throughout a project’s life from pre-development to construction, operation, and decommissioning.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the cost of deaths and injuries caused by e-bikes and e-scooters in each of the last three years; and what steps they intend to take to reduce these costs and make riders of e-bikes and e-scooters more responsible for their actions.

Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

While no assessment of the cost of injuries or deaths caused by in e-bikes and e-scooters has been made, riders of such vehicles should, like all road users, comply with the Highway Code and ride in a safe and responsible manner.

The Crime and Policing Act 2026 introduced new offences for cyclists, including e-bikes riders, who cause the death or serious injury of another person, with penalties for those offences brought into line with those for motorists.

The Government has committed to pursuing legislative reform for micromobility vehicles, including e-scooters, when parliamentary time allows.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what urgent steps they intend to take to reduce the incidence of injuries and deaths caused by e-bikes and e-scooters.

Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

While no assessment of the cost of injuries or deaths caused by in e-bikes and e-scooters has been made, riders of such vehicles should, like all road users, comply with the Highway Code and ride in a safe and responsible manner.

The Crime and Policing Act 2026 introduced new offences for cyclists, including e-bikes riders, who cause the death or serious injury of another person, with penalties for those offences brought into line with those for motorists.

The Government has committed to pursuing legislative reform for micromobility vehicles, including e-scooters, when parliamentary time allows.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government what is the status of the new Treasury offices being built in Darlington; and whether Treasury officials planned to be based there will be relocated to Manchester.

Answered by Lord Pitt-Watson - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

The new hub building in Darlington is being delivered by the Government Property Agency and is currently under construction. Once complete in early 2028, it will be the home of more than 1600 civil servants from across multiple departments, including HM Treasury.

HM Treasury’s commitment to at least 335 staff being based in Darlington remains in place, as does the commitment to Darlington being HMT’s second headquarters.

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

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the resilience of reservoirs during recent heatwaves.

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

The Government is committed improving water resilience. With increasing demand and the climate changing, the need for investment in resilient water supply infrastructure is necessary to meet our future needs.

Water companies have the statutory duty to provide a secure supply of water and set out how they plan to continue to do this through statutory Water Resources Management Plans (WRMPs). WRMPs set out how each company will maintain resilient water supplies for at least the next 25 years. Within their WRMPs, companies consider all options, including improved demand management and a mix of new water resources infrastructure, such as reservoirs, large scale water transfers, desalination and water recycling. The EA has published a summary of new water infrastructure planned by the water companies: Appendix C: Revised draft water resources management plans supply options - GOV.UK (see attached).

Found: Present: Lord Ashcombe Baroness Coffey Lord Jay of Ewelme Lord Krebs Lord Lennie Baroness McIntosh of Pickering

Found: Present: Lord Ashcombe Baroness Coffey Lord Jay of Ewelme Lord Krebs (acting Chair) Baroness McIntosh of Pickering