Asked by: Anna Gelderd (Labour - South East Cornwall)
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 require Food Business Operators to provide written information on allergens for non-pre-packed food at the point of ordering, in line with the Food Standards Agency guidance of 5 March 2025.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) published best practice guidance on 5 March 2025 to help food businesses provide written allergen information at the point of ordering. This includes information on menus, printed materials or digital platforms, supported where appropriate by a verbal conversation. The guidance is intended to support clearer, more consistent communication of allergen information to consumers.
At present, this guidance is non‑statutory, and no mandatory requirement for written allergen information has been introduced. The FSA is however, monitoring how the guidance is being adopted by food businesses and providing the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs with regular updates.
A robust evaluation has begun this year which will assess uptake and effectiveness. This evidence will help determine whether further measures, including legislation to require written allergen information at the point of ordering, are needed once the guidance has had time to embed.
Asked by: Anna Gelderd (Labour - South East Cornwall)
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 (a) trends in the levels of respiratory disease and (b) the number of emergency hospital admissions for respiratory conditions in South East Cornwall, compared with national averages.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Data is available for emergency Finished Admission Episodes (FAEs) where there was a primary diagnosis of 'respiratory conditions’. The following table shows the number of FAEs where there was a primary diagnosis of 'respiratory conditions’ for South East Cornwall and England, for activity in English National Health Service hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector, for 2024/25 and provisionally for 2025/26:
Westminster Parliamentary Constituency of Residence | 2024/25 (August 2024 to March 2025) | 2025/26 (April 2025 to November 2025) |
South East Cornwall | 725 | 530 |
England | 608,449 | 423,588 |
Source: Hospital Episode Statistics, NHS England.
Available data on trends in respiratory conditions can be found on the Department’s fingertips dataset. Data is not available by parliamentary constituency. Data is available at regional, county, unitary authority, and integrated care board level. Information for Cornwall can be found at the following link:
Asked by: Anna Gelderd (Labour - South East Cornwall)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what his department’s timeline is for deciding on the second wave of Modern Service Frameworks; and whether respiratory conditions will be considered.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for North East Hertfordshire on 20 February 2026 to Question 112322.
Asked by: Anna Gelderd (Labour - South East Cornwall)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she will assess the potential merits of establishing a Marine Environmental Enhancement Fund for England, drawing on the model of the Scottish Marine Environmental Enhancement Fund.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra continues to keep different approaches to supporting marine nature recovery under review, including relevant models used elsewhere in the UK.
Asked by: Anna Gelderd (Labour - South East Cornwall)
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 achieve the Environmental Improvement Plan 2025 commitment to increase seagrass cover by 15% by 2043.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The revised Environmental Improvement Plan includes prioritised actions to deliver our goals and the ambitious Environment Act targets. Achieving our environmental ambitions requires collective action from individuals, communities, and organisations across all sectors.
The Environment Agency with partners is working to restore 15% of saltmarsh, seagrass and native oyster reef in England by 2043 through the Restoring Meadow, Marsh and Reef (ReMeMaRe) programme. Defra have boosted the capacity of ReMeMaRe by funding a programme office, which is supporting a pipeline of practical restoration projects for those habitats.
70% of seagrass habitats are within UK marine protected areas. Our Environment Act MPA target sets ambitious targets for all MPA features, including seagrass, to be in favourable or recovering condition by 2042.
Defra also established the cross-administration UK Blue Carbon Evidence Partnership to identify priority evidence needs for these important habitats. The Partnership is formed of Defra, the devolved governments and DESNZ.
Asked by: Anna Gelderd (Labour - South East Cornwall)
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 strengthen the rights of residential park home residents in England to request the installation of individual water meters.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Residents are protected through existing regulatory frameworks overseen by Ofwat, which sets clear rules for water charging, service standards, and the rights of customers, including those living in park homes.
All water companies must comply with Ofwat’s Guaranteed Standards Scheme (GSS), which sets minimum service standards and requires compensation where companies fail to meet them. These standards apply to all customers, including those living in park homes.
Asked by: Anna Gelderd (Labour - South East Cornwall)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of processing times for medical driving licence applications at the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency; and if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of giving priority to applicants who (a) rely on their licence for work and (b) live in areas with limited access to public transport.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) aims to process all applications as quickly as possible. In the interests of road safety, the DVLA must be satisfied that the required medical standards are met before a licence is issued.
Driving licence applications where a medical condition must be investigated before a licence can be issued can take longer to process as the DVLA is often reliant on receiving information from third parties, including medical professionals, before a licence can be issued. Where the DVLA is made aware that an applicant needs their licence for employment or for other reasons that are causing hardship, the application will be prioritised where possible.
The DVLA is currently experiencing an increase in both the volume and complexity of driving licence applications from people with one or more medical conditions. This reflects an ageing population keen to maintain independence and mobility. Unfortunately, this has led to longer waiting times for some customers. In 2024/25 the DVLA made more than 830,000 medical licensing decisions with forecasts showing that more than 925,000 medical applications and notifications will be received in 2025/26.
To keep up with growing customer demand and to offer a better service, the DVLA is updating its online service and is launching a new casework system which will deliver significant improvements to drivers with medical conditions.
The DVLA will also be launching a new digital medical services portal in April. These enhancements, alongside the recruitment of additional staff to deal with medical applications and answer telephone calls, will deliver real improvements in services and turnaround times for customers.
Applicants renewing an existing licence may be able to continue driving while their application is being processed, providing they can meet specific criteria. More information on this can be found at https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1180997/inf1886-can-i-drive-while-my-application-is-with-dvla.pdf
Asked by: Anna Gelderd (Labour - South East Cornwall)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she is taking to improve access to everyday banking services for residents and small businesses in rural and coastal communities in the context of high street bank branch closures.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
Banking is changing, with many customers benefitting from the convenience and flexibility of managing their finances remotely. However, Government understands the importance of face-to-face banking to communities and is committed to supporting sufficient access for customers in rural areas, coastal communities and across the country.
Through the Financial Services and Markets Act 2023, the Government gave the Financial Conduct Authority regulatory responsibility for access to cash. Its rules ensure cash continues to be a viable method of payment for the millions of people who depend on it by providing reasonable access to cash withdrawal and deposit facilities for individuals and businesses, including free services for personal accounts.
In addition to traditional bank branches, the financial services industry is committed to rolling out 350 banking hubs across the UK by the end of this Parliament. Over 270 hubs have been announced so far, and more than 210 are already open. Government is working closely with industry on this commitment, including through regular ministerial engagement. For example, on 8 January, I chaired a roundtable with banks, Cash Access UK and UK Finance to discuss banking hubs.
Banking hubs are allocated based on independent assessments by LINK, which consider factors such as branch closures, cash reliance and community vulnerability. The criteria also differentiate between rural and urban areas. For example, LINK applies a wider three-mile catchment area in rural locations to recognise that villages often rely on nearby market towns.
Customers can also access everyday banking services at a nearby Post Office. The Post Office Banking Framework allows personal and business customers of participating banks to withdraw and deposit cash, check their balance, pay bills and cash cheques at over 10,000 Post Office branches across the UK. The Government protects the Post Office network by setting minimum access criteria. These include ensuring that 99% of the UK population lives within three miles of a Post Office and 90% of the population within one mile.
Beyond bank branches, banking hubs and Post Office banking services, some banks also provide points of access through initiatives such as pop-up services in libraries and community centres, or mobile banking vans serving remote areas. The Government supports initiatives which give customers access to in-person banking, as well as digital access.
Asked by: Anna Gelderd (Labour - South East Cornwall)
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 introduce fair food labelling to provide clear information on sourcing and production.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The UK maintains high standards on the information that is provided on food labels so that consumers can have confidence in the food that they buy. All food sold on the UK market must comply with food labelling rules, which include the requirement for specific information to be presented in a specific way.
Food origin information is mandatory for some, but not all foods. In all cases where origin is provided, it must not be misleading. We continue to review origin labelling using comprehensive evidence to ensure clear and transparent labelling for consumers.
As set out in the Government’s animal welfare strategy, we are committed to ensuring that consumers have access to clear information on how their food was produced. To support this, we will work with stakeholders to explore how improved animal welfare food labelling could provide greater consumer transparency, support farmers and promote better animal welfare.
Asked by: Anna Gelderd (Labour - South East Cornwall)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure that social care professionals working with adoptive families receive trauma-informed training.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
I refer my hon. Friend, the Member for South East Cornwall to the answer of 13 January 2026 to Question 102909.