Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
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.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
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.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
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.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
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.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
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.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
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.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
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.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
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.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
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.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
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.