Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many miles of the national cycle network are permissive routes.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

In England, approximately 2,720 miles of the National Cycling Network is on a permissive right of way. Of this, over 50% is on land owned by a Local Authority or other public body.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the cost to her Department of extreme weather related to climate change since 1 January 2020.

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

The government’s third UK Climate Change Risk Assessment (CCRA3), published in 2021 under the UK Climate Change Act 2008, includes a Monetary Valuation of Risks and Opportunities assessment of the current and future costs of climate change to the UK. A 2022 study from LSE’s Grantham Institute estimates that with current policies, the total UK cost of climate damage is equivalent to 1.1% of GDP currently.

For estimating future costs of extreme weather, decisions on key government spending are subject to clear requirements through the Green Book. This includes supplementary guidance which covers the impacts of climate change, i.e. accounting for the effects of climate change. This ensures that policies, programmes and projects are resilient to the effects and future costs of climate change, and that such effects are being taken fully into account when appraising policy options.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 17 September 2025 to Question 76124 on Planning: Empty Property, if his Department will make an assessment of the adequacy of existing national planning policy and guidance in relation to meanwhile use.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

My Department has no plans to make such an assessment.

The Town and Country Planning (Use Classes) Order 1987, as amended, groups common uses of land and buildings into classes. The uses within each class are, for planning purposes, considered to be broadly similar to one another, providing flexibility to change use within a use class.

There are also a range of nationally set permitted development rights which allow for the temporary change of use of buildings between different use classes. Guidance on these is set out at gov.uk.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate she has made of the costs to her Department of climate-related extreme weather since 1 January 2020.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The third UK Climate Change Risk Assessment (CCRA3), published in 2021 under the UK Climate Change Act 2008, includes a Monetary Valuation of Risks and Opportunities assessment of the current and future costs of climate change to the UK.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the Office for Budget Responsibility's report entitled Fiscal risks and sustainability – July 2025, published on 8 July 2025, whether she has asked the OBR to include in its next publication updated estimates of the potential impact of extreme weather related to climate change on trends in the level of economic growth over the next 10 years.

Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) is the Government's official independent forecaster responsible for assessing the UK economic and fiscal outlook.

The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) is required to prepare an analysis of the sustainability of the public finances annually, known as a Fiscal Risks and Sustainability Report (FRS), as set out in the Budget Responsibility and National Audit Act (BRNAA) 2011. The content of the FRS is determined independently by the OBR.

In its July 2025 FRS included an assessment of the fiscal risks linked to climate change.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 27 May 2025 to Question 53316 on HGV Parking and Driver Welfare Grant Scheme, what recent progress she has made on the review of the scheme; and when she will publish interim findings.

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

The HGV Parking Matched Funding Grant Scheme (MFGS) was launched in 2022 to fund investment in: HGV driver welfare facilities, lorry parking provision, site security, and decarbonisation. These priorities were identified through the National Survey of Lorry Parking (2022) and aim to improve the working conditions of HGV drivers.

The scheme has been extended until March 2026 to allow more time for projects to be completed.

My department has commissioned an independent evaluation of the scheme, to consider the application and delivery process, the role of the scheme in improving lorry driver facilities in England and the impact of the site improvements for drivers.

The report is due to be finalised and published by spring 2026.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the costs to her Department of climate-related extreme weather since 1 January 2020.

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

Climate change projections suggest the UK will experience more frequent and severe weather events which have the potential to disrupt transport. The Department reports on the risks and opportunities from climate change through the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD). This was included in DfT’s 2024-25 annual reports and accounts, in which the Department highlighted flooding and sea-level rise as a high-impact, high-cost climate risk.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many applications for felling licences were refused by Forestry Commission England in the last five years due to the potential impact of felling on ancient woodland remnants within plantations on ancient woodland sites.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The Forestry Commission has not refused any felling licence applications in the past 5 years. However, in 2019 one application was refused as the felling would lead to a loss of woodland containing veteran and future veteran oaks. The felling of these would be against the ‘interests of good forestry… and the amenities of the district’ which meant that it was not compliant with the UK Forestry Standard.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many felling licences granted by Forestry Commission England in 2024 permitted the felling of ancient trees.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

This Government does not collect data on the number or classification of trees felled. However, when considering a felling licence application the Forestry Commission would expect the application to comply with good forestry practice.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many applications for felling licences were refused by Forestry Commission England in 2024.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Forestry is a devolved matter and so this answer is for England only. The Forestry Commission granted 3,437 felling licences in 2024. No felling licence applications were refused.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what criteria are applied by Forestry Commission England when determining whether to refuse an application for a felling licence.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

When considering a felling licence application the Forestry Commission will judge the proposals against the UK Forestry Standard, the government’s technical guide to sustainable forest management, available at The UK Forestry Standard - GOV.UK. There is no requirement for the applicant to prove why they should be allowed to fell trees, it is for the Forestry Commission to provide reasons why it should not grant a licence.

The grounds for refusing a felling licence are based on the statutory criteria set out in section 10(2) of the Forestry Act 1967 which states: “Subject to the provisions of this Act (and, in particular, to their duty to take advice under section 37(3), the Forestry Commission may on any such application grant the licence, or grant it subject to conditions, or refuse it, but shall grant it unconditionally except in a case where it appears to them to be expedient to do otherwise:

(a) in the interests of good forestry or agriculture or of the amenities of the district;

(b) for the purpose of complying with their duty of promoting the establishment and maintenance of adequate reserves of growing trees.”

The Forestry Commission’s approach is to work constructively with applicants to resolve issues and facilitate responsible woodland management. Refusal is therefore considered a measure of last resort.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help tackle reductions in biodiversity in existing woodlands; and what steps she plans to take through the Environmental Improvement Plan to monitor this.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Expanding our trees, woodlands and forests is an important tool at our disposal for reversing reductions in our woodland biodiversity.

Establishing native woodland has made the greatest contribution to the increase in priority habitats in recent years, and we will continue to improve the condition and increase the extent of our most precious woodland habitats, such as irreplaceable ancient woodlands. We have pledged £816 million for tree planting and woodland creation up to 2030, benefiting biodiversity and setting us on a path to contributing 100,000 hectares of wildlife-rich woodland to the statutory habitats target by 2042.

The England Woodland Creation Grant provides additional payments for the creation of native woodland and to buffer and connect existing ancient and native woodland. New payments have been introduced to Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier to support the improvement of woodland and the management and restoration of ancient woodland. Over 2000ha of ancient woodland habitat has been brought into this ancient woodland option since its introduction.

We are already taking a range of actions to support woodland biodiversity and will set out further details in the upcoming Environment Improvement Plan.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the ecological condition of UK woodlands; and what steps his Department is taking to mitigate the decline in (a) plant, (b) bird, (c) mammal, (d) butterfly and (e) other woodland biodiversity.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The National Forestry Inventory shows only 9% of England’s native woodlands are in favourable ecological condition, with the majority of the remaining 90% in intermediate condition. In England, we have four legally binding targets for biodiversity: to halt the decline in species abundance by 2030; to reverse declines by at least 10% by 2042, when compared with 2030; to reduce the risk of national species extinction by 2042; and to restore or create more than 500,000 hectares of wildlife-rich habitat, also by 2042.

To support these goals, grant schemes like the England Woodland Creation Offer incentivise high-biodiversity woodland creation and natural regeneration. Environmental Land Management Schemes, including Countryside Stewardship, fund woodland improvements such as invasive non-native species control, coppicing, deadwood habitat creation, and restoration of ancient woodland sites. We are also investing in research by Forest Research on how woodland creation can reconnect fragmented habitats to benefit diverse species.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many felling licences were granted by Forestry Commission England in 2024.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Forestry is a devolved matter and so this answer is for England only. The Forestry Commission granted 3,437 felling licences in 2024. No felling licence applications were refused.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the (a) workforce capacity and (b) resources available to deliver large-scale community tree planting programmes.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

In 2024, Defra published independent research by the ICF - UK Forestry Workforce & Skills Research - KT0201. It showed that the forestry workforce had grown steadily over the past decade, with around 24,000 people employed in the core forestry sector as of 2023 and that continued investment in forestry apprenticeships and workforce development tools were required.

The Forestry-Sector-Skills-Plan-2025.pdf, published in early 2025, identifies specific actions such as the Level 6 Professional Foresters apprenticeship to address the gap in skills in the sector. Defra and Forestry Commission are now working with key stakeholders to deliver the specific actions it sets out.

Sapling availability has also been addressed through this project. Forestry Commission publish the Tree Supply Report and Tree Nursery Directories annually to bring visibility to the market. Defra and Forestry Commission work closely with the nurseries to assess trends in the market. In the 24/25 planting season, 161 million saplings were produced which is around 1 million more than the previous year. The Nature for Climate Fund funded grants this year of up to: £2 million capital investment in tree production through the Tree Production Capital Grant; £1.5 million supporting innovation in tree production through the Tree Production Innovation Fund and £0.6 million supporting tree seed sourcing through the Seed Sourcing Grant.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of trends in the level of expenditure on special educational needs transport provision in England.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

I refer my hon. Friend, the Member for Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard to the answer of 2 July 2025 to Question 62591.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has considered implementing the recommendations made in the Tree Council’s report entitled Protecting trees of high social, cultural and environmental value, published in April 2025.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Defra has reviewed the report’s recommendations and considered the feasibility of actions to take forward while ensuring balance between existing priorities and our statutory obligations. As the criminal case for the Sycamore Gap tree has shown, our judicial system takes illegal tree felling seriously: those that cause illegal damage will be held to account. In addition, our most important trees, those of ancient and veteran status, are considered irreplaceable habitats and protected in planning policy. Local authorities may also grant specific protections on individual trees of high value through Tree Preservation Orders. We are continuing to focus on improving the implementation of planning protections to ensure that our most important trees of ancient and veteran status are protected in both practice and policy.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what proportion of the £816 million set aside for tree planting over the Spending Review period he plans to spend on the management of existing woodlands.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The £816 million of funding announced in the spending review is funding dedicated to supporting delivery of the statutory tree canopy and woodland cover target and increasing tree planting rates across England.

Recognising the importance of woodland management we have recently opened the Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier scheme for new applications. It includes an expanded woodland management offer, with funding for a variety of management actions and woodland types. Woodland managers can apply for funding to produce a woodland management plan and will then receive advice from Forestry Commission to agree the management of their woodland in the scheme.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment her Department has made of (a) the prevalence of illegally modified number plates and (b) the adequacy of current enforcement and detection mechanisms; and whether she plans to review the associated penalties.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) is working with the National Police Chiefs’ Council and other government departments to improve the identification and enforcement of number plate crime and to quantify the number of illegal plates that may be in circulation.

The law requires that anyone who supplies number plates for road use in the UK must be registered with the DVLA. It is a legal requirement for number plate suppliers to carry out checks to ensure that number plates are only sold to those who can prove they are entitled to the registration number. Number plate suppliers must also keep records of the plates they have supplied. Selling a number plate without carrying out these checks carries a maximum penalty of a fine of £1,000 and the potential removal from the Register of Number Plate Suppliers (RNPS).

The safety of all road users is a top priority for the Government. As part of the development of our Road Safety Strategy, the Government is considering a range of policies relating to motoring offences, and we will set out next steps for the strategy in due course. Officials are also considering options to ensure a more robust, auditable RNPS process which would enable tighter checks on number plate suppliers. On-road enforcement for offences relating to the display of number plates is a matter for the police.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will update the delivery plan for Highways England 2020-2025.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

National Highways published its Delivery Plan for the Interim Period, April 2025 to March 2026, on its website on Thursday 17th July 2025.

https://nationalhighways.co.uk/media/2k0f3ya4/interim-period-delivery-plan-2025-26.pdf

The Department will publish the third Road Investment Strategy (RIS3) by the end of March 2026. Following this, National Highways will produce its next Delivery Plan covering 2026-2031.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department plans to issue guidance to local transport authorities on the minimum standards for (a) format, (b) legibility and (c) frequency of updates for printed passenger information at bus stops.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Government knows how important it is that passengers have access to high quality and reliable information about their local bus services, including at bus stops. Local authorities are responsible for the bus stops in their area. The Department for Transport’s guidance to local transport authorities and bus operators on developing Bus Service Improvement Plans (BSIPs) makes clear that bus stops should show up-to-date and accurate information about the services stopping there, and that BSIPs should set out the action that will be taken to provide good quality bus information to passengers.

At the Autumn 2024 Budget, the Government confirmed over £1 billion to support and improve bus services, including £712 million allocated to local authorities in England outside London in 2025/26. Central Bedfordshire Council have been allocated £3 million of this funding. Funding allocated to local authorities to deliver better bus services can be used in whichever way they wish to improve services for passengers, including improving the information available to passengers about local bus services.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to improve childhood vaccination coverage rates in (a) Bedfordshire, (b) the East of England and (c) the UK.

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

Together with the National Health Service and UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), we are taking action to improve uptake of childhood immunisation rates in Bedfordshire, the East of England and across England.

We have set out actions to improve uptake across England in our 10-Year Health Plan as well as our strategy for Giving Every Child the Best Start in Life. Putting these plans into action, we have recently launched a campaign to promote awareness and confidence in vaccination. This will run throughout the year. We are also exploring new ways of delivering vaccinations including health visits and community pharmacy, with pilots for administering vaccinations as part of health visits starting from January 2026. We are also working with families and schools to improve the consent process to help children get vaccines at school and, during 2026-27, we will give parents access to their child’s vaccination health record via the My Vaccines hub on the NHS App.

Regions and local areas are taking tailored and targeted action to improve immunisation rates and ensure that vaccination services best meet the diverse needs of their local populations.

In the East of England, further measures include a trailblazing community and school age immunisation service in which the school vaccination provider also delivers catch-up in community clinics for all childhood vaccines; a dedicated call / recall telephone call centre focussed on measles, mumps and rubella vaccines; and regular training sessions for primary care nurses as well as a local enquiries inbox.

In Bedford and Central Bedfordshire, more local activity includes a new community vaccinations hub at Bury Park, Luton; a new initiative at Bedfordshire Hospitals Foundation Trusts to invite children attending hospital appointments for vaccination if needed; work with specialist health inclusion health visitor teams to improve uptake in the Gypsy Roma Traveller community; home visits for some families who require vaccines delivered at home; work with SEND schools where pupils may have missed childhood vaccinations; and monthly monitoring of individual GP practice uptake rate with targeted support to practices with lower uptake.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the performance of guided busways as a type of rapid transit on (a) journey time reliability, (b) passenger growth and (c) modal shift from private vehicles.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Government welcomes steps to improve the reliability and frequency of local bus services, including reducing journey times, for example through bus priority and busway schemes. Local transport is devolved, and local transport authorities are responsible for the design and delivery of the optimal mass transit solution for their particular local challenges.

At the Autumn 2024 Budget, the Government confirmed over £1 billion to support and improve bus services, including £712 million allocated to local authorities in England outside London in 2025/26. Central Bedfordshire Council have been allocated £3 million of this funding. Funding allocated to local authorities to deliver better bus services can be used in whichever way they wish to improve services for passengers, including expanding services and improving reliability, or implementing bus priority measures.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to reduce the incidence of assaults on bus drivers; and what recent discussions she has had with (a) operators, (b) trade unions and (c) local transport authorities on this matter.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Government is committed to ensuring the safety of bus drivers and is taking steps to reduce the incidence of assaults.

The Bus Services (No.2) Bill includes measures setting requirements for mandatory training for staff including drivers and those who deal directly with the travelling public or with issues related to the travelling public. This training will be on preventing and/or responding to incidents of violence against women and girls as well as anti-social behaviour incidents that potentially affect the personal safety of any passenger, member of the public, or staff. This measure will also extend requirements for relevant bus staff to undertake training relating to disabled passengers. The Department engages regularly with bus operators, trade unions and Local Transport Authorities across the full range of measures contained in the Bill. This will continue as the guidance around this training is developed.

The Bill also provides Local Transport Authorities with the power to create byelaws and deploy officers who can deal with low level anti-social behaviour and fare evasion on the bus network. Officers will have the power to issue fines, ask people to leave the vehicle, bus station or shelter and, if necessary, to remove them if they refuse to do so.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what estimate his Department has made of the costs to his Department of extreme weather events related to climate change on the level of economic growth since 1 January 2020; and what steps he is taking to help reduce those costs through (a) adaptation and (b) resilience measures.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has not made an assessment of the financial cost to the Department (either in terms of physical damage, disruption to operations or employee productivity) of extreme weather events during the period in question. Officials are working with GIAA and their ongoing cross government review of compliance with Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) and we will consider their recommendations when these are published. The Government Property Agency manages the department's estate and has responsibility for relevant climate change risk assessments and adaptation plans.

Since October 2023, the Department has supported eligible SME businesses to deal with the impacts of extreme weather events on their premises via the Business Recovery Grants scheme. This formed part of the Government’s wider support package to communities under the Flooding Recovery Framework. Prior to the creation of DBT in April 2023, the scheme was operated by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS). DBT does not hold data on the schemes managed by BEIS prior to October 2023.

More broadly, DBT is working to deliver on its commitments under the Third National Adaptation Plan - supporting businesses to adapt to the risks of climate change and take advantage of future opportunities for economic growth. This has informed our priorities under the Industrial Strategy, Trade Strategy and Plan for Small Business.

DBT will also be working closely with Defra as they develop the Government's approach to the Fourth National Adaptation Programme, which will apply from 2028, following recent advice from the CCC that the government should prepare for 2°C of warming by 2050).

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of asking the National Screening Committee’s to review the evidence on risk-stratified screening.

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

The UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) already consider risk stratification in screening programmes.

Last year the National Health Service moved from annual diabetic retinopathy testing for all people over 12 years of age with diabetes, to every two years for lower risk individuals. This followed a UK NSC recommendation.

This year, the NHS adopted the UK NSC’s recommendation to move from age-based screening intervals in the cervical screening programme to risk-based intervals. Women with a positive HPV test (high-risk) are screened annually while the general population of women ages 25 – 64 will be screened every five years. The UK NSC are also working with Australian researchers to determine whether HPV vaccination status should be a risk stratification screening consideration.

The UK NSC is considering risk stratification in breast screening. Work is underway with researchers to look at whether women with denser breasts should have a different screening approach, and consideration is being given to whether certain genetic mutations may require further stratification in the breast screening programme.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make an estimate of the potential renewable power generation capacity of Network Rail’s estate.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

In May 2020 Network Rail carried out a survey and analysis of its land estate to assess the potential suitability for renewable energy generation. It was determined that there is potential capacity of 188 MWp across 34 potential sites.

Network Rail purchases electricity for the railway and is committed to transitioning to renewable energy for both the electricity it uses for its own operations, and the electricity to power trains. Network Rail already generates some of this electricity on the rail estate and is continuing the roll out of new renewable energy generation assets on the estate.

The government is committed to establishing Great British Energy and significantly increasing the amount of renewable energy generation in the UK by 2030.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 15 September to Question 73453 on Tourist Attractions: Animals, whether his Department has made an assessment of the adequacy of existing regulatory frameworks governing travel companies that market or sell tickets to animal-based tourist attractions.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018 may apply. Goods or services sold in the UK must adhere to consumer regulations, like the Consumer Rights Act 2015 and the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024.

Defra is engaging with tourism industry and animal welfare groups on the delivery of the Animals (Low Welfare Activities Abroad) Act 2023 and will set out next steps.

Reputable tour operators should not offer activities that support poor animal welfare. The Association of British Travel Agents, a government approved body, has published guidelines and a list of activities which they classify as unacceptable.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate her Department has made of the potential economic impact of extreme weather events related to climate change on the level of economic growth since 1 January 2020; and what steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help reduce those costs through (a) adaptation and (b) resilience measures.

Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Government recognises that preparing for the future means adapting to the effects of climate change. Without action, extreme weather, flooding, coastal erosion and other climate hazards will pose greater risks to lives, livelihoods and people’s wellbeing.

The Office for Budget Responsibility’s latest Fiscal Risks and Sustainability report estimates the potential fiscal costs to the UK from climate damage across a range of warming scenarios. Their analysis includes both direct costs in response to physical damages and indirect costs arising from additional demands on public services. Estimates show that without action, physical damages from climate change could lower GDP by around 5% by the early 2070s under a below 3°C scenario. The UK’s Third Climate Change Risk Assessment also provides an evaluation of the climate risks facing the UK, with impacts across infrastructure, health and the economy.

As set out at Phase 2 of the Spending Review, the Government is investing in climate adaptation to protect the economy from the impacts of climate change, confirming investment of £4.2 billion over three years (2026-27 to 2028-29) to improve flood resilience.

The Government is committed to strengthening the nation’s resilience. A 10 Year Strategy, published on 19 June 2025, set out its plan to review existing resilience standards across critical national infrastructure sectors by the end of 2026, and then to update these standards where existing standards do not provide the coverage necessary to ensure resilience and underpin growth. The Government is also exploring how stronger adaptation objectives can be set to improve preparedness for the impacts of climate change. This will inform the fourth National Adaptation Programme, due in 2028.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the cost to his Department of extreme weather related to climate change since 1 January 2020.

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

The UK Health Security Agency’s (UKHSA) Health Effects of Climate Change report estimated that heat-related mortality from climate change and related socio-economic change in England could cost approximately £6.8 billion per year in the 2020s, rising to £14.7 billion per year in the 2050s.

The Department is supporting the improvement of National Health Service sites in order to reduce these impacts by investing £30 billion over the next five years in maintenance and repair, alongside £5 billion which has been allocated specifically to address the most critical building issues.

For estimating future costs of extreme weather, decisions on key Government spending are subject to clear requirements through the Green Book. This includes supplementary guidance which covers the impacts of climate change, and which is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/green-book-supplementary-guidance-environment

This ensures that policies, programmes, and projects are resilient to the effects and future costs of climate change, and that such effects are being taken fully into account when appraising policy options.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the cost to his Department of extreme weather related to climate change since 1 January 2020.

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

The government’s third UK Climate Change Risk Assessment (CCRA3),published in 2021 under the UK Climate Change Act 2008, includes a Monetary Valuation of Risks and Opportunities assessment of the current and future costs of climate change to the UK. A 2022 study from the London School of Economics’ Grantham Institute estimates that with current policies, the total UK cost of climate damage is equivalent to 1.1% of GDP currently.

For estimating future costs of extreme weather, decisions on key government spending are subject to clear requirements through the Green Book. This includes supplementary guidance which covers the impacts of climate change, i.e. accounting for the effects of climate change. This ensures policies, programmes and projects are resilient to the effects and future costs of climate change, and that such effects are being taken fully into account when appraising policy options.

The Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has not estimated the costs of extreme weather related to climate change in our policy remit. MHCLG’s emergency response and recovery planning considers a suite of risks covered by the National Security Risk Assessment. Risks of which those associated with climate change form a part.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate he has made of the costs to his Department of climate-related extreme weather since 1 January 2020.

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

The third UK Climate Change Risk Assessment published in 2021 included an analysis of the current and future costs of climate change to the UK and highlighted the climate-change related risks to our energy infrastructure.

Government works closely with the energy industry to put plans in place to mitigate, and respond to all crises, including incidents resulting from climate-related extreme weather. The costs of responding to the network impacts of severe weather events are primarily managed by network operators.

We are taking steps to future-proof the energy system including funding research to understand emerging climate risks to energy assets and infrastructure, and how best to enhance system resilience.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the National Infrastructure Service and Transformation Authority's document entitled NISTA Annual Report 2024-2025, published on 11 August 2025, what estimate she has made of the forecast underspend on (a) the TransPennine Route Upgrade and (b) the East-West Rail project in (i) 2025–26, (ii) 2026–27 and (iii) 2027–28.

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

The Spending Review, announced on 11 June 2025, saw an average annual funding increase for improvements to the railway over the next four years, with £10.2bn provided for rail enhancements in the period. This included funding to continue to deliver at pace on East West Rail and the TransPennine Route Upgrade, for which the capital budgets are held and managed at portfolio level. There is no forecast underspend against budget for these projects at this time and information on the projects within the portfolio will continue to be reported to NISTA to support the

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the costs to her Department of climate-related extreme weather since 1 January 2020.

Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The department does not hold data on the historical costs of climate-related extreme weather. Education settings are not required to report such incidents, and responsible bodies are responsible for the repair and maintenance of their estates through the normal funding channels provided by the department, such as the Schools Condition Allocation and Condition Improvement Fund.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to his Department's Pride in Place Programme phase 2 methodology note, published on 25 September 2025, if he will publish the scores of the ranked list of neighbourhoods in England.

Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

On 25 September the Government announced its flagship Pride in Place Programme, supporting up to 244 of Great Britain’s most in need neighbourhoods with up to £20 million each over the next decade. This will serve as the cornerstone of this Government’s support for communities, incorporating the existing 25 trailblazer areas announced at Spending Review and the 75 Plan for Neighbourhoods programme areas that were announced in March.

New areas across England were selected using a robust, metrics-based methodology based on deprivation (the Index of Multiple Deprivation) and community need (the Community Needs Index) to identify areas with the poorest social and economic outcomes. We’re working closely with devolved governments to make sure funding supports local priorities everywhere. Further details on our approach in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will follow.

In the place selection methodology note, we list areas by the number of neighbourhoods they have that will receive funding as part of this programme – as per column 2. This gives an indication of the neighbourhoods/areas that have gained the most as part of this programme.

The full list of areas and place selection methodology is in the methodology note: Pride in Place Programme Phase 2: Methodology note.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of adopting single/double summer time on road safety.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

The department has not made a recent assessment of the potential of adopting single/double summertime on road safety.

The Government believes that the current daylight-saving arrangements represent the best possible use of the available daylight.

Found: Q25 Alex Mayer: Do you feel that they will be practically enforceable?

Found: present: Ruth Cadbury (Chair); Steff Aquarone; Dr Scott Arthur; Mrs Elsie Blundell; Olly Glover; Alex Mayer

Submit Evidence (by 26 Nov 2025)

The Government has introduced the Railways Bill to Parliament to legislate for its commitment to unify network operations with infrastructure management under a single organisation – Great British Railways.