Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many people are waiting to receive all or part of the compensation awarded under the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Captain of the King's Bodyguard of the Yeomen of the Guard (HM Household) (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Lords)

The delivery of compensation is a matter for the Infected Blood Compensation Authority (IBCA). The Infected Blood Compensation Authority Framework Document, published in March 2025, sets out the timelines agreed between IBCA and Cabinet Office; namely for the bulk of infected people to be paid no later than the end of next year and the bulk of affected people to be paid no later than the end of 2029.

In evidence to the Public Accounts Committee, the Chief Executive Officer of IBCA set out a commitment to ensure that all registered claims of the infected cohorts are brought into the system and the vast majority are paid by the end of the 2026-27 financial year. IBCA's recently published business plan confirms this commitment for all infected claims registered as of 7 July 2026.

As of 30 June, 19,565 people have registered their intent with IBCA to make a compensation claim. A total of 3,335 people have had their compensation paid. It is important to note that not everyone who has registered their intent with IBCA will be eligible for compensation.

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

To ask His Majesty's Government how many houses granted planning permission in England since the financial year 2012–13 have (1) commenced construction, and (2) been completed.

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

The Department publishes an annual release entitled ‘Housing supply: net additional dwellings, England’, which is the primary and most comprehensive measure of housing supply. This includes estimates of new homes built in each local authority, in each financial year, to 2024-25 and can be found in Live Table 123 on gov.uk here.

The Department also publishes a quarterly release entitled ‘Housing supply: Indicators of New Supply, England’, which includes more timely estimates of new build starts and completions in England, and in each local authority district. Statistics to the quarter ending March 2026 can be found in Live Table 253a on gov.uk here. This dataset cover new build dwellings only and should be regarded as a leading indicator of overall housing supply.

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

To ask His Majesty's Government whether the number of people on waiting lists for social housing in (1) rural, and (2) urban, areas in the last 10 years have increased or declined.

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

The number of households on local authority housing registers (commonly known as social housing waiting lists) in England, including breakdowns by regions, is available each year since 1987 in live table 600 on gov.uk here.

Using the Office for National Statistics’ 2021 rural-urban classification for the 2024 geography in England, which can be found here, it is possible to present sub-national trends in rural and urban areas.

On 31 March 2025, there were 1,340,527 households on local authorities housing registers in England, a 7% increase compared to 31 March 2015. Of these, 230,200 households were classified as rural and 1,110,327 were classified as urban. These figures represent a 1% and 8% increase compared to 31 March 2025.

The number of households on housing registers (waiting lists) is not the same as the number of households waiting.

Local authorities periodically review their registers to remove households who no longer require housing, so the total number of households on housing registers may overstate the number of households who still require social housing at any one time. Housing register size may also be affected by other factors. For example, there is the potential for some households to be on the housing register of more than one local authority.

The frequency of reviews varies between local authorities.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they intend to electrify the mainline railway between Salisbury and Exeter; and if so, when.

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

The Government has not yet taken a decision on electrifying the railway between Salisbury and Exeter, and no timescale has been set for this.

We are developing a long-term rolling stock and infrastructure strategy, for the first time in over 30 years, which we expect to publish later this summer. As part of this strategy, we will set out our approach to rail decarbonisation. This will consider where electrification is the most appropriate solution, alongside alternatives such as battery and other emerging technologies, to reduce reliance on diesel across the network.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they intend to upgrade the air conditioning on the diesel Class 158 trains between Waterloo and Exeter; and if so, when.

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

The Class 158 and 159 fleet heavy maintenance overhaul and internal refurbishment programme started in December 2025. The refreshed units will start being rolled out progressively later this year.

The Class 158 and 159 fleet refurbishment programme includes air conditioning and heating fan overhauls, door overhauls, toilet overhauls, refreshed interior paintwork and updated seat finishes throughout.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what proportion of traffic on the mainline railway between Salisbury and Exeter is (1) passenger trains, and (2) freight trains.

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

There are no scheduled commercial freight services on the section of the West of England Main Line between Salisbury and Exeter. As such, the traffic on this route is almost entirely passenger services.

Non-passenger movements on the line are limited to occasional engineering, test and charter trains, as well as seasonal railhead treatment trains operated by Network Rail, and do not constitute regular freight services.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they intend to replace the diesel Class 158 passenger trains used on the mainline railway from Waterloo to Exeter; and if so, when.

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

The Class 158 and Class 159 diesel trains used on services between London Waterloo and Exeter are expected to be replaced as part of longer-term plans to modernise the rail fleet. South Western Railway, working with the Department for Transport, is developing proposals for their replacement; however, no specific timetable for replacement has yet been confirmed. In the meantime, these fleets are undergoing a phased refurbishment programme to improve reliability and passenger experience, including upgraded interiors, improved passenger information systems and the introduction of at-seat power. This ensures the trains remain fit for service while longer-term decisions are taken.

The Government is also developing a long-term rolling stock and infrastructure strategy, to be published later this year, which will set out Great British Railways’ future rolling stock requirements, including the approach to replacing older diesel trains.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government how much of the length of the mainline railway between Salisbury and Exeter is single track.

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

The West of England main line between Salisbury and Exeter St Davids is predominantly single track between Wilton (west of Salisbury) and Pinhoe (east of Exeter). There are short double track sections at either end of the route and in a 10-mile section between Templecombe and Yeovil Junction, as well as at a number of short passing places. Approximately 66 miles (106km) of the 88 miles (142km) between Salisbury and Exeter Central stations is single track.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many passing loops are available for trains on those parts of the railway between Salisbury and Exeter which are single track.

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

Passing loops are situated on single line sections of the West of England main line at Tisbury, Gillingham, Chard, Axminster and Honiton, allowing trains travelling in opposite directions to pass each other. Additionally, there is a ten-mile (16km) section of double track immediately west of Templecombe station as far as Yeovil Junction.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number of people awarded compensation under the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme who died before receiving any money.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Captain of the King's Bodyguard of the Yeomen of the Guard (HM Household) (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Lords)

The delivery of compensation is a matter for the Infected Blood Compensation Authority (IBCA). IBCA has now opened its compensation service to all cohorts, including living infected people who have never been compensated, estates of deceased infected people, and affected people. While the Government and IBCA are aware that some people have sadly died before receiving their compensation under the scheme, IBCA are, in line with recommendations made by the Infected Blood Inquiry and feedback from community group sessions, prioritising claims starting with those who are sadly nearing end of life, those with advanced liver disease, and those who are over 75.

With each new cohort, IBCA are starting small, allowing them to learn what additions to the claim service are needed. This will allow them to open their service to more people as the service is built around specific needs. Whilst the roll out of the Scheme is an operational decision for IBCA as an independent body, the Government fully supports their commitment to moving forward as swiftly as possible.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government when they expect to appoint the new National Statistician; and why the post has been vacant since May 2025.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Captain of the King's Bodyguard of the Yeomen of the Guard (HM Household) (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Lords)

An announcement on the appointment of the National Statistician will be made in due course once the necessary recruitment processes have concluded.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of falling numbers of (1) state schools, and (2) private schools, offering History of Art A-level in England.

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

The department does not collect data on the qualifications that schools choose to offer.

The department publishes institution-level data on the number of pupils who finish 16 to 18 study by entries per qualification, which do not show substantial variation over the last 14 years:

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

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the percentage of people living in rural areas in England and working in the farming and agricultural sectors able to buy a home in those areas.

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

My Department has not made a specific assessment of the percentage of people living in rural areas in England and working in farming and the agricultural sectors able to buy a home in those areas.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs' Statistical Digest of Rural England provides a range of statistics covering rural England, including information on housing affordability in rural areas. This can be found on gov.uk, here.

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

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number of affordable homes made available in the last 10 years in (1) urban, and (2) rural, areas in England.

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

Published statistics on affordable housing supply in England can be found on gov.uk here.

Using the Office for National Statistics’ 2021 rural-urban classification for the 2024 geography in England, which can be found here, it is possible to present sub-national trends in rural and urban areas.

Between April 2015 and March 2025, there were 542,563 new affordable housing homes delivered in England. These include new build as well as acquisitions of existing stock previously not used for affordable housing.

Of the 542,563 new affordable housing homes, 152,304 were in local authorities classified as rural; 389,724 in local authorities classified as urban and 535 for which there was no local authority information.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the listing of established historic racecourses as areas of historic interest or value.

Answered by Baroness Twycross - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

While no specific assessment of racecourse buildings has been carried out, racecourses are well represented on the National Heritage List for England, with around 40 listed examples of associated grandstands, pavilions and racing stables. Many of these have been recognised for their historic associations and interest, among the oldest being the Grade II* listed Grandstand at York racecourse dating from 1755.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number of individuals holding Russian passports currently working in the UK in the financial services sector.

Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Office publishes data on sponsored work visas issued, broken down by occupation, industry, and nationality, in table Occ_D02 of the Sponsored work visas by occupation and industry dataset of the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release.

The published statistics refer to the number of visas granted, not the number of people in the country at a given point in time. They do not include the work status of all Russian passport holders – for example, dual nationals using their non-Russian passport, Russian nationals with indefinite leave, those on unsponsored visa routes, or dependents of other visa holders.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the availability of South Western Railways' passenger carriages to meet the publicised numbers for services on the mainline between Salisbury and Exeter.

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

The Department monitors South Western Railway’s (SWR) performance and fleet availability through its regular contractual and operational oversight arrangements, including services on the Salisbury to Exeter route. SWR plans its West of England services on the basis that some Class 158 and 159 trains will be unavailable for maintenance, overhaul or faults, with availability also affected by unplanned repairs and the availability of replacement parts. SWR seeks to mitigate any resulting impact on passengers through train formation changes where possible and continues to work with suppliers and maintenance teams to improve fleet availability and reliability.

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

To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the number of houses built or under construction since the financial year 2012–13 which had air conditioning.

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

The Government has not estimated the number of houses built which had air conditioning.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the performance of South Western Railways since it entered public ownership on 25 May 2025.

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

The Department is closely monitoring South Western Railway’s (SWR’s) performance following its transfer into public ownership on 25 May 2025 through a range of measures, including punctuality, cancellations, and passenger experience.

When SWR entered public ownership, eighty-four out of ninety of the new Arterio trains had not entered service. The new Arterio fleet is being rolled out and will support more reliable services over time, providing modern, higher capacity trains with improved performance and reduced maintenance requirements.

SWR also inherited a shortage of train drivers when it moved into public ownership, which contributed to high levels of driver-related cancellations.

South Western Railway is subject to bespoke and rigorous performance standards, and the Department continues to work with the operator to improve reliability, capacity, and service quality for passengers.

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

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage on 14 July (HL1444) what assessment they have made of the need, if any, to collect information about the number of houses being built with air conditioning in future years.

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

Part O of the Building Regulations requires that new residential buildings are built to mitigate the risk of overheating. Mechanical cooling, including air conditioning, may be used to meet the Part O requirements where all reasonably practicable steps have been taken to minimise overheating through passive means. Part O, like other Building Regulations, is set in performance terms rather than mandating or prohibiting particular technologies or design solutions.

The Government recognises the value of good quality evidence to support the effective operation of the Building Regulations and has committed to a full technical review of Part O to ensure it is effective and proportionate. As part of this review, we will consider what information may be useful to better understand how industry is complying with the overheating requirements.