Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what consultations are underway with North Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust and local community members regarding the possible closure of Goole and District Hospital.

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

The planning and commissioning of local healthcare services is a matter for local integrated care boards (ICBs). The Humber and North Yorkshire NHS ICB has no plans to close the Goole and District Hospital. The ICB is committed to developing sustainable services for the future that meet the healthcare needs of people living in and around Goole.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the availability and accessibility of high-quality healthcare services at Goole and District Hospital.

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

The planning and commissioning of local healthcare services is a matter for local integrated care boards (ICBs). The Humber and North Yorkshire NHS ICB has no plans to close the Goole and District Hospital. The ICB is committed to developing sustainable services for the future that meet the healthcare needs of people living in and around Goole.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Smith of Malvern on 16 September 2025 (UIN HL10064), which higher education providers have been or will be consulted about the introduction of a levy on income from international students.

Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The department is engaging with the higher education sector to shape the design of the International Student Levy to make delivery of the levy as easy as possible for providers. The technical consultation document builds on the details which were set out at the Autumn Budget 2025, initially announced in the Immigration White Paper, and can be found here: https://consult.education.gov.uk/international-student-levy-unit/international-student-levy/supporting_documents/isl-technical-consultationpdf.

As part of this, the government will be consulting a wide range of stakeholders, including those affected by the proposals and representative bodies from across the sector.

The technical consultation is due to close on 18 February 2026.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Smith of Malvern on 16 September 2025 (UIN HL10060), what plans they have to amend the International Education Strategy; and what the anticipated timeline for the publication of a revised strategy is.

Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The government’s International Education Strategy (IES) was launched on 20 January 2026.

The strategy backs UK providers at all levels to expand overseas, strengthening global partnerships and giving millions more students access to a world-class UK education on their doorstep, all whilst boosting growth at home. It sets a clear ambition to grow the value of education exports to £40 billion a year by 2030.

We want to increase the UK’s international standing through education and make the UK the global partner of choice at every stage of learning. The IES is now co-owned between the Department for Education, the Department for Business and Trade and the Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office.

Found: In my response to the Lord Bishop of Sheffield, I incorrectly stated that the levy would take effect