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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of requiring developers to use sustainable urban drainage systems in new developments.

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

The government is committed to securing the delivery of high-quality sustainable drainage systems to help manage flood risk and adapt to the effects of climate change.

The revised National Planning Policy Framework we published on 12 December 2024 amended an existing paragraph regarding incorporating sustainable drainage systems in new development to make clear that developments of all sizes are expected to make use of sustainable drainage techniques where the development could have drainage impacts. These systems should be appropriate to the nature and scale of the proposed development.

We will consider whether further changes are required to manage sustainable drainage systems provision through the planning system when we consult on further reform.

National Planning Guidance is clear that local authorities should be satisfied that all Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems have clear maintenance and adoption arrangements in place for the lifetime of a development.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of (a) using (i) sustainable urban drainage systems and (ii) similar mechanisms to manage rainwater on site of new developments and (b) allowing rainwater to flow into sewers on (A) storm outflows, (B) treatment processes and (C) the environment.

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

Comparative and impact assessments of the type requested are not currently available. This is primarily because the design of Sustainable drainage systems (SuDS) for any given development site will depend on a range of factors, including topography of the site, development size, development type, and rainfall rates.

SuDS provide a range of benefits. They mimic natural water flow and are designed to reduce the impact of rainfall by using features such as soakaways, grassed areas, permeable surfaces and wetlands. This reduces the pressure on our drainage infrastructure by reducing the quantity of water that ends up in the sewers and storm overflow discharges, mitigating flood risk and preventing pollution from untreated sewage ending up in our waterways.

SuDS also improve the quality of water entering our drainage infrastructure as they offer a natural filtration process, thereby removing pollutants. SuDS provide additional benefits, such as boosting biodiversity, improving local amenities, harvesting rainwater for reuse, heat island mitigation, improve air quality and even providing food growing opportunities.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what comparative assessment his Department has made of the cost of (a) using sustainable urban drainage systems to manage rainwater on site of new developments and (b) allowing this rainwater to flow into sewers.

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

Comparative and impact assessments of the type requested are not currently available. This is primarily because the design of Sustainable drainage systems (SuDS) for any given development site will depend on a range of factors, including topography of the site, development size, development type, and rainfall rates.

SuDS provide a range of benefits. They mimic natural water flow and are designed to reduce the impact of rainfall by using features such as soakaways, grassed areas, permeable surfaces and wetlands. This reduces the pressure on our drainage infrastructure by reducing the quantity of water that ends up in the sewers and storm overflow discharges, mitigating flood risk and preventing pollution from untreated sewage ending up in our waterways.

SuDS also improve the quality of water entering our drainage infrastructure as they offer a natural filtration process, thereby removing pollutants. SuDS provide additional benefits, such as boosting biodiversity, improving local amenities, harvesting rainwater for reuse, heat island mitigation, improve air quality and even providing food growing opportunities.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of formally extending the scope of the Holiday Activities and Food Programme to include all children in households with below-average resources.

Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The holiday activities and food (HAF) programme supports disadvantaged children and their families with enriching activities, providing them with healthy food, helping them to learn new things, improving socialisation and benefiting their health and wellbeing during school holidays.

The HAF programme, although aimed at those children in receipt of benefits related free school meals (FSM) is not exclusively for them. As set out in the HAF guidance, while the majority of funding that local authorities receive should be used for holiday club places for children in receipt of FSM, local authorities have discretion to use up to 15% of their funding to provide free or subsidised holiday club places for children who are not in receipt of benefits-related FSM, but who the local authority believe could benefit from HAF provision.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of index-linking all future funding with the Holiday Activities and Food Programme to ensure it (a) keeps pace with inflation and (b) continues to effectively support children experiencing holiday hunger.

Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The government is committed to the holiday activities and food (HAF) programme and the impact it has on children, young people and families. The department is very pleased that the overall funding for the HAF programme in 2025/26 will again be more than £200 million, with delivery across England taking place at Easter, summer and Christmas.

Funding beyond March 2026 is subject to the multi-year spending review and any decisions will be made as part of the spending review taking place later this year.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Transport & Environment, publication entitled Palm Oil?, published on 9 April 2025, what assessment his Department has made of the potential disruption to the transport fuel supply.

Answered by Mike Kane - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

We take the concerns raised in Transport & Environment’s publication relating to the biofuel feedstock Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME) seriously.

Fuel supplied in the UK under the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) is subject to robust checks as required by legislation. If evidence of fraud or non-compliance is found we have powers to withhold or revoke certificates, issue civil penalties and, where appropriate, refer the matter to the relevant authorities.

The Department does not expect the concerns raised to result in disruption to the overall supply of transport fuel.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of (a) prolonged waiting times and (b) lack of clarity regarding the application process on people with disabilities who are attempting to make use of the Access to Work scheme.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Access to Work has a significant backlog of applications, with 62,000 outstanding applications in February 2025. This has resulted in significant delays and we are considering changes within the existing policy framework to reduce this.

To support customers with the application process, we have streamlined our delivery process and made all core parts of the Scheme, such as applying and requesting payment, fully digital. We recognise that significant delays can have adverse effects on customers, our Case Managers receive training in how to identify and support vulnerable customers during their application process and can provide advanced support to those whose wellbeing is affected during the application process.

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 ensure that carers in the adult social care sector (a) are adequately trained for the range of tasks they undertake, (b) spend the requisite amount of time with each client and (c) adhere to guidance relating to time sensitive medicines.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government is committed to a well-supported adult social care workforce who are recognised as the professionals they are. We have expanded the Care Workforce Pathway and are continuing to fund the Learning Development Support Scheme to help care workers build their skills and careers in care. The scheme is backed by up to £12 million this financial year. Medication handling and administration are among the topics covered by the list of over 200 training courses and qualifications eligible for funding.

In addition, the sector is being supported to move from analogue to digital, through our digital skills offer. With the necessary skills, capability, and confidence, carers can adopt technologies such as Digital Social Care Records, which have been shown to release at least 20 minutes per care worker, per shift, to give staff more time interacting with people.

The Care Quality Commission monitors, inspects, and regulates adult social care services to make sure they meet fundamental standards of quality and safety. As per Regulation 18 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014, providers must deploy “sufficient numbers of suitably qualified, competent, skilled and experienced staff to enable them to meet the needs of the people using the service at all times”.

British Coal Staff Superannuation Scheme

Found: and Pensions Committee members: • Debbie Abrahams, MP • Steve Darling, MP • Damien Egan, MP • Amanda Hack

Found: Liberal Democrat; Torbay) Damien Egan (Labour; Bristol North East) Gill German (Labour; Clwyd North) Amanda Hack

Found: meeting Members present: Debbie Abrahams (Chair); Johanna Baxter; Steve Darling; Gill German; Amanda Hack

Found: Watch the meeting Members present: Debbie Abrahams (Chair); Johanna Baxter; Damien Egan; Amanda Hack

Found: NC40 Andrew Cooper Anna Dixon Connor Naismith Leigh Ingham Mrs Sarah Russell Daniel Francis Amanda Hack

Found: NC40 Andrew Cooper Anna Dixon Connor Naismith Leigh Ingham Mrs Sarah Russell Daniel Francis Amanda Hack

Found: NC40 Andrew Cooper Anna Dixon Connor Naismith Leigh Ingham Mrs Sarah Russell Daniel Francis Amanda Hack

Found: NC40 Andrew Cooper Anna Dixon Connor Naismith Leigh Ingham Mrs Sarah Russell Daniel Francis Amanda Hack

Found: NC40 Andrew Cooper Anna Dixon Connor Naismith Leigh Ingham Mrs Sarah Russell Daniel Francis Amanda Hack

Found: NC40 Andrew Cooper Anna Dixon Connor Naismith Leigh Ingham Mrs Sarah Russell Daniel Francis Amanda Hack

Found: NC40 Andrew Cooper Anna Dixon Connor Naismith Leigh Ingham Mrs Sarah Russell Daniel Francis Amanda Hack