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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions her Department has had with the BBC Board on the editing of a speech by the President of the United States on 6 January 2021 in an edition of Panorama broadcast in October 2024; and what recent discussions she has had with the BBC Board on its adherence to its editorial guidelines on (a) impartiality and (b) accuracy in political reporting.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Secretary of State has been speaking regularly to the Chair of the Board in relation to the points raised in a letter written by Michael Prescott, a former independent adviser to the BBC’s Editorial Guidelines and Standards Committee (EGSC). Dr Samir Shah, Chair of the BBC, has rightly apologised for editorial failings, and has committed to a number of steps including undertaking a review of each item set out in Michael Prescott’s letter and reviewing how the EGSC works and propose changes.

The public expects and deserves the highest editorial standards from the BBC. The Secretary of State has been consistently clear that where these standards are not met, firm and transparent action must follow. The Government therefore welcomes the steps set out by the Chair, and the Secretary of State will continue to seek updates on their progress.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help improve access to (a) specialist healthcare, (b) information at diagnosis and (c) financial support for people living with Parkinson’s disease.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning services that meet the needs of their population, including for Parkinson’s. In doing so, the Government expects ICBs to take account of the relevant guidelines and best practice in designing their local services. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s guideline on Parkinson’s disease, code NG71, states that people with Parkinson’s should have an accessible point of contact with specialist services, which can be provided by a Parkinson’s nurse specialist, and that all individuals should be offered access to the services provided by these specialist nurses to support ongoing care and advice

NHS England has established a Neurology Transformation Programme, a multi-year, clinically led programme, which has developed a new model of integrated care to support ICBs to deliver the right service, at the right time for all neurology patients, including for those with Parkinson’s. This focuses on providing access equitably across the country, care as close to home as possible, and early intervention to prevent illness and deterioration in patients with long-term neurological conditions. A toolkit is being developed to support ICBs to understand and implement this new model, which will include components on delivering acute neurology services, improving health equity in neurology, and improving community neurology services.

NHS England’s Getting It Right First Time Programme for Neurology and RightCare Toolkit for Progressive Neurological Conditions aim to improve care for patients with Parkinson’s disease.

Parkinson’s Connect allows healthcare professionals to refer patients at the point of diagnosis directly to support that Parkinson’s UK offers, such as local support groups, a confidential helpline, and online learning resources.

The Diagnosis Connect service will directly refer patients to specialist charities at the point of diagnosis for personalised advice, information, guidance, and support.

The Department for Work and Pensions offers Personal Independence Payments (PIP) to individuals with health conditions or disabilities. However, there is currently no automatic entitlement to PIP in relation to a specific health condition, except in cases of people nearing the end of life.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of changes to (a) Agricultural Property Relief and (b) Business Property Relief on the (i) financial viability of family-run farms, (ii) long-term sustainability of British agriculture and (iii) mental wellbeing of people working within the sector; and if she will review that policy before the Autumn Budget 2025.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Government believes its reforms to agricultural property relief and business property relief from 6 April 2026 get the balance right between supporting farms and businesses, and fixing the public finances. The reforms reduce the inheritance tax advantages available to owners of agricultural and business assets, but still mean those assets will be taxed at a much lower effective rate than most other assets. Despite a tough fiscal context, the Government will maintain very significant levels of relief from inheritance tax beyond what is available to others and compared to the position before 1992. Where inheritance tax is due, those liable for a charge can pay any liability on the relevant assets over 10 annual instalments, interest-free.

The Government has set out that the reforms are expected to result in up to 520 estates across the UK claiming agricultural property relief, including those also claiming business property relief, paying more inheritance tax in 2026-27. Almost three-quarters of estates claiming agricultural property relief, including those that also claim for business property relief, will not pay any more tax as a result of the changes in 2026-27, based on the latest available data.

The Government published a tax information and impact note on 21 July 2025 and this is available at www.gov.uk/government/publications/reforms-to-agricultural-property-relief-and-business-property-relief/agricultural-property-relief-and-business-property-relief-reforms.

More generally, I also refer the Honourable Member to the responses to UIN 66576, UIN 83976, and UIN 86576, which all demonstrate the mental health support provided to farmers by the Government.

The Government will also invest more than £2.7 billion a year in sustainable farming and nature recovery from 2026-27 until 2028-29. This includes the largest financial investment into nature-friendly farming ever.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of training given to firefighters attending people in mental health crisis.

Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Fire and rescue authorities (FRA) as employer are responsible for ensuring that firefighters receive the training they need to safely respond to the wide range of incidents that they attend.

The National Fire Chiefs Council maintains national operational guidance for fire and rescue services to draw upon when developing operational policies, procedures and training.

The fire and rescue national framework requires all fire and rescue authorities to work collaboratively with partner agencies such as NHS, mental health services, and the police and integrate training reflecting current societal risks such as mental health crises. Each FRA must align its training and response strategies to meet these national policy expectations.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, What steps her Department is taking to support investment in port infrastructure to (a) strengthen the UK’s supply chains and (b) boost regional economic growth.

Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The UK’s ports sector is largely privately owned and operated, with the Government’s role primarily to ensure that the policy and regulatory environment supports investment. Ports policy is devolved, with the Department for Transport responsible for ports in England and Milford Haven in Wales. My Department is streamlining planning and regulatory processes for these ports, including by updating the National Policy Statement for Ports.

The Government provides targeted support where there are clear public benefits, such as on decarbonisation. In September the Department announced a £448 million extension to the UK SHORE programme, the biggest ever Government investment in commercial maritime across the UK. In addition, my Department is working with the National Wealth Fund, which has committed at least £5.8 billion of its capital to five sectors, including UK ports. The Government is also establishing a new Supply Chain Centre which will be used to review priorities for our Public Financial Institutions and sector grant funds, ensuring that economic resilience is embedded into future investment and financial support.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the loss of Chinook ZD576 on the Mull of Kintyre in 1994, for what reason the Full Authority Digital Engine Control system of the RAF Chinook fleet at that time was (a) accepted off-contract without verification of the Safety Critical Software and (b) without a Certificate of Design and Performance; and whether the his Department's Independent Safety Assurance Authority raised any concerns regarding its implementation.

Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)

Our deepest sympathies remain with the bereaved families of this tragic accident. I refer the hon. Member to The Mull of Kintyre Review published in 2011, specifically pages 17-18, which covers this aspect of the detailed inquiries into the tragic loss of Chinook ZD 576.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions she has had with the BBC Board on compliance with statutory obligations on impartiality; and whether her Department plans to bring the BBC's editorial standards under Government control.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

As set out in my response to WPQ 89121, the Secretary of State has been speaking regularly to the Chair of the Board in relation to the points raised in a letter written by Michael Prescott. The public expects and deserves the highest editorial standards from the BBC. The Secretary of State has been consistently clear that where these standards are not met, firm and transparent action must follow.

The BBC is editorially and operationally independent from the Government and this is a crucial component of why people trust it. As such, the BBC Board is responsible for setting and overseeing the BBC’s editorial guidelines and standards.

It is then for Ofcom, as the independent regulator, to ensure the BBC is fulfilling its obligations to audiences, including on impartiality and accuracy, as outlined in the Charter.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of training given to police officers attending people in mental health crisis.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

The College of Policing set the professional standards for police in England and Wales. The College’s core guidance includes the initial training for officers under the Policing Education Qualifications Framework which incorporates autism, learning disabilities, mental health including their powers under section 135 and 136 of the Mental Health Act 1983, and vulnerabilities. Through this, officers are taught to assess vulnerability and amend their approaches as required.

The College further promotes the need for frameworks to assess vulnerability, to aid in consistent identification, support decision making, and to trigger appropriate safeguarding action. Such principles and practices are set out in a number of college products, including the Detention and Custody Authorised Professional Practice.

Police officers are not mental health experts, neither are they expected to be. However, the training available to police officers in respect of mental ill health or other vulnerabilities is aimed at equipping them to identify potential issues and to know when interventions from partner agencies and health professionals may be needed.

Policing is operationally independent, and it is a matter for the chief constables of each force to decide which additional training their officers should undertake and to set and enforce standards, giving them the flexibility to address their own local challenges, needs and priorities. They are inspected biannually by His Majesties Inspectorate of Constabulary, Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) whose role is to independently report on the efficiency and effectiveness of police forces, including inspecting how forces protect vulnerable people.

The College of Policing’s Approved Professional Practice for mental health is currently undergoing a full review, which will be going out for public consultation in the coming months.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the early flu season on (a) corridor care, (b) hospital capacity and (c) patient outcomes.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

We continue to monitor the impact of flu and the performance of hospitals over the winter months.

The Department is continuing to take key steps to ensure the health service is prepared for the colder months. This includes taking actions to try and reduce demand pressure on accident and emergency, increasing vaccination rates, and offering health checks to the most vulnerable, as well as stress-testing integrated care boards and trust winter plans to ensure that they are able to meet demand and ensure patient flow.

Flu is a recurring pressure that the National Health Service faces every winter. There is particular risk of severe illness for older people, the very young, pregnant people, and those with certain underlying health conditions. The flu vaccine remains the best form of defense against influenza, particularly for the most vulnerable, and continues to be highly effective at preventing severe disease and hospitalisation.

Phenylketonuria awareness and access to treatment (No. 2)

Welfare benefits for foreign nationals

Crohn’s and Colitis Awareness Week 2025

68 Is Too Late report by the Prison Officers' Association

Irish Sea herring quotas

Supreme Court judgment on religious education in Northern Ireland

Collection and publication of nationality data by Government Departments

Houses of Parliament Shop deliveries to Northern Ireland

Belfast City Council's Irish language policy

Buying community energy locally

Found: The debate will be led by Alex Easton MP.