Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with Integrated Care Boards on policies on liothyronine, including requiring Exceptional/Individual Funding Requests and applying bans on new patients; and if he will issue guidance to prevent restrictions where NHS England guidance supports its use in some patients.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed

The Department has not held any discussions with integrated care boards regarding their policies on liothyronine. NHS England regional teams have distributed the Items that should not be prescribed in primary care policy guidance to local healthcare systems. These systems are responsible for ensuring that prescribing practices follow the guidance provided.

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 ensure that Integrated Care Boards follow NHS England guidance on liothyronine.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed

The Department has not held any discussions with integrated care boards regarding their policies on liothyronine. NHS England regional teams have distributed the Items that should not be prescribed in primary care policy guidance to local healthcare systems. These systems are responsible for ensuring that prescribing practices follow the guidance provided.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the BBC's report entitled A BBC For All: Our response to the government’s Green Paper, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the £500 million savings over two years on economic growth generated by the creative industries.

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

The BBC is a vital national institution and an engine of the nations and regions. In that context, this news is concerning for the BBC workforce who are facing significant uncertainty, and for the sector as a whole. The BBC is delivering significant savings, which requires difficult decisions to be made independent of the Government. The BBC have stated that there will be more information on their plans later this year. Looking ahead, the Charter Review aims to deliver a BBC that is sustainably funded in a way that sets the BBC on a path to thrive until well into the latter half of this century.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of reductions in the BBC's budget on the provision of media literacy resources.

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

The BBC is a vital national institution and an engine of the nations and regions. In that context, this news is concerning for the BBC workforce who are facing significant uncertainty, and for the sector as a whole. The BBC is delivering significant savings, which requires difficult decisions to be made independent of the Government. The BBC have stated that there will be more information on their plans later this year. Looking ahead, the Charter Review aims to deliver a BBC that is sustainably funded in a way that sets the BBC on a path to thrive until well into the latter half of this century.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the BBC's report entitled A BBC For All: Our response to the government’s Green Paper, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the £500 million savings over two years on the classical music industry and the provision of music education.

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

The BBC is a vital national institution and an engine of the nations and regions. In that context, this news is concerning for the BBC workforce who are facing significant uncertainty, and for the sector as a whole. The BBC is delivering significant savings, which requires difficult decisions to be made independent of the Government. The BBC have stated that there will be more information on their plans later this year. Looking ahead, the Charter Review aims to deliver a BBC that is sustainably funded in a way that sets the BBC on a path to thrive until well into the latter half of this century.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the BBC's report entitled A BBC For All: Our response to the government’s Green Paper, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the £500 million savings over two years on the proliferation of mis- and disinformation in the UK.

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

The BBC is a vital national institution and an engine of the nations and regions. In that context, this news is concerning for the BBC workforce who are facing significant uncertainty, and for the sector as a whole. The BBC is delivering significant savings, which requires difficult decisions to be made independent of the Government. The BBC have stated that there will be more information on their plans later this year. Looking ahead, the Charter Review aims to deliver a BBC that is sustainably funded in a way that sets the BBC on a path to thrive until well into the latter half of this century.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of delivering a long-term sustainable funding settlement for the BBC.

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

The BBC is a vital national institution and an engine of the nations and regions. In that context, this news is concerning for the BBC workforce who are facing significant uncertainty, and for the sector as a whole. The BBC is delivering significant savings, which requires difficult decisions to be made independent of the Government. The BBC have stated that there will be more information on their plans later this year. Looking ahead, the Charter Review aims to deliver a BBC that is sustainably funded in a way that sets the BBC on a path to thrive until well into the latter half of this century.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what key performance indicators and service standards apply to Capita’s administration of the Civil Service Pension Scheme; how frequently performance is reviewed by the Department; and whether the Department will publish regular statistics on (a) backlog volumes, (b) average processing times, and (c) the number of cases involving delayed pension payments.

Answered by Satvir Kaur - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The Cabinet Office awarded the contract to administer the Civil Service Pension Scheme to Capita in November 2023 under the previous government.

The issues and delays facing a number of civil servants and pension scheme members in receiving their pension quotes are unacceptable. I want to reassure you that this Government has taken firm action to help put things right as soon as possible. We have agreed a clear recovery plan with Capita, which includes specific milestones and accountability targets for delivery. For priority cases, we have deployed additional resources and improved communication with affected colleagues, so that staff, both former and serving, receive the quality of service and support they deserve.

Existing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) have been enhanced and strengthened to deliver improved performance and higher penalties for failure, including financial penalties. These have already been applied in respect to Capita's performance with recent issues and delays in administering the Civil Service Pension Scheme. We have implemented regular technical stand-ups between Cabinet Office experts and Capita administrators to monitor recovery velocity. Ministers are also regularly updated on the situation.

Capita prioritised the most urgent cases and by the end of February, all death in service cases were either settled or progressed to the final stage or awaiting a member response. The same position was reached for ill health retirement applications by mid-March.

Capita has made lump sum payments to 8,979 members, the majority of whom have retired but are not yet receiving their pension, and are on track to bring these members into regular pension payments by the end of April.

To provide immediate financial support to those who may need it, including those who have been dismissed with compensation, arrangements are in place for interest-free bridging loans typically up to £5,000 or £10,000 in exceptional cases to most recent retirees facing payment delays. This is alongside interim lump sum payments being made to provide immediate funds to retiring members. The pension scheme continues to make monthly pension payments to approximately 730,000 existing pensioner members on time.

The latest position of the Civil Service Pension Recovery Plan Update is available at this weblink: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-pension-recovery-plan-updates, although this is only for the recovery period, and can be discontinued at any time. There are currently no other plans to publish regular statistics on Capita’s performance.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate his Department has made of the number of Civil Service Pension Scheme members experiencing hardship due to delayed payments since Capita took over administration; what steps his Department is taking to help ensure hardship cases are prioritised; and whether bridging payments are available where full payment cannot be made immediately.

Answered by Satvir Kaur - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The administration of the Civil Service Pension Scheme is the responsibility of the Cabinet Office.

The Cabinet Office awarded the contract to administer the Civil Service Pension Scheme to Capita in November 2023 under the previous government.

The issues and delays facing a number of civil servants and pension scheme members in receiving their pension quotes are unacceptable. I want to reassure you that this Government has taken firm action to help put things right as soon as possible. We have agreed a clear recovery plan with Capita, which includes specific milestones and accountability targets for delivery. For priority cases, we have deployed additional resources and improved communication with affected colleagues, so that staff, both former and serving, receive the quality of service and support they deserve.

Existing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) have been enhanced and strengthened to deliver improved performance and higher penalties for failure, including financial penalties. These have already applied in respect to Capita's performance with recent issues and delays in administering the Civil Service Pension Scheme.

Capita prioritised the most urgent cases and by the end of February, all death in service cases were either settled or progressed to the final stage or awaiting a member response. The same position was reached for ill health retirement applications by mid-March.

While hardship estimates are not held, Capita has made lump sum payments to 10,147members, the majority of whom have retired but are not yet receiving their pension, and are on track to bring these members into regular pension payments by the end of April.

To provide immediate financial support to those who may need it, including those who have been dismissed with compensation, arrangements are in place for interest-free bridging loans typically up to £5,000 or £10,000 in exceptional cases to most recent retirees facing payment delays. This is alongside interim lump sum payments being made to provide immediate funds to retiring members. The pension scheme continues to make monthly pension payments to approximately 730,000 existing pensioner members on time.

The Cabinet Office has mandated Capita that they must restore service levels by the end of June 2026. We are using every commercial lever at our disposal, including withholding payments for deliverables that have not been met. We also reserve the right to take further formal action to ensure the service returns to the required standards.

The latest position of the Civil Service Pension Recovery Plan Update is available at this weblink: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-pension-recovery-plan-updates

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has considered revising student finance regulations so that only the income of a student’s biological or legally responsible parents is taken into account when determining maintenance loan entitlement.

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

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the fairness of including the income of a non-biological step-parent in household income calculations for student finance eligibility.

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

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of uncertainty around future sport funding on schools’ ability to plan provision for the 2026–27 academic year.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans her Department has for the continuation of the Primary PE and Sport Premium for the 2026–27 academic year.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she plans to retain ring-fenced funding for physical education and physical activity in primary schools.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the distribution of student loan maintenance support calculations, in the context of households where a step-parent’s income is included but a non-resident biological parent’s income is not.

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

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of extending Orchestra Tax Relief to include amateur and professional choirs that produce live, acoustic concerts on a non‑commercial basis.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

Orchestra Tax Relief (OTR) provides tax relief on production costs and provided around £50 million of support in 2023-24. There is currently no other country in the world which offers similar relief to orchestras, and the aim is to recognise the artistic importance and cultural value of the sector.

To qualify for OTR, a concert must be performed by a group of at least 12 instrumentalists. The voice is not considered to be an instrument for the purposes of the relief. However, orchestra concerts with a vocal element are not excluded. Concerts featuring a choir may be eligible provided that the instrumentalists remain the primary focus. These rules help ensure OTR fulfils its objective of supporting and incentivising orchestra concerts specifically. The Government is not currently considering extending the relief to choirs.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, for what reason performers are required to be instrumentalists to qualify for Orchestra Tax Relief.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

Orchestra Tax Relief (OTR) provides tax relief on production costs and provided around £50 million of support in 2023-24. There is currently no other country in the world which offers similar relief to orchestras, and the aim is to recognise the artistic importance and cultural value of the sector.

To qualify for OTR, a concert must be performed by a group of at least 12 instrumentalists. The voice is not considered to be an instrument for the purposes of the relief. However, orchestra concerts with a vocal element are not excluded. Concerts featuring a choir may be eligible provided that the instrumentalists remain the primary focus. These rules help ensure OTR fulfils its objective of supporting and incentivising orchestra concerts specifically. The Government is not currently considering extending the relief to choirs.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, for what reason local authorities are able to recover VAT under Section 33 of the VAT Act 1994 when equivalent social care services are delivered in‑house but not when those services are commissioned from charitable and not‑for‑profit providers.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

Supplies of care services are exempt from VAT if they are supplied by eligible bodies, such as public bodies or charities. No VAT is charged to the consumer of the service, nor can the supplier recover VAT incurred in the course of providing the service.

Community interest companies (CICs) are not charities in law and must meet the criteria of being state-regulated in order to provide VAT-exempt care services. If CICs do not qualify for the VAT exemption, they charge VAT on the services they provide at the 20% standard rate.

Under Section 33 of the VAT Act 1994, certain bodies, including local authorities are able to recover VAT incurred in the course of their non-business activities. Non-business activities are broadly activities which are not undertaken to generate income, such as the provision of statutory health and social care services. Further information can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/revenue-and-customs-brief-10-2022-vat-business-and-non-business-activities/vat-business-and-non-business-activities

The objective of the Section 33 refund scheme for local authorities is to prevent these bodies from needing to use local taxation to fund their VAT costs. Extending the scheme to include charities and community interest companies would not meet this objective.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of irrecoverable VAT on charities, Community Interest Companies and other not‑for‑profit providers delivering statutory social care services under contract to local authorities.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

Supplies of care services are exempt from VAT if they are supplied by eligible bodies, such as public bodies or charities. No VAT is charged to the consumer of the service, nor can the supplier recover VAT incurred in the course of providing the service.

Community interest companies (CICs) are not charities in law and must meet the criteria of being state-regulated in order to provide VAT-exempt care services. If CICs do not qualify for the VAT exemption, they charge VAT on the services they provide at the 20% standard rate.

Under Section 33 of the VAT Act 1994, certain bodies, including local authorities are able to recover VAT incurred in the course of their non-business activities. Non-business activities are broadly activities which are not undertaken to generate income, such as the provision of statutory health and social care services. Further information can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/revenue-and-customs-brief-10-2022-vat-business-and-non-business-activities/vat-business-and-non-business-activities

The objective of the Section 33 refund scheme for local authorities is to prevent these bodies from needing to use local taxation to fund their VAT costs. Extending the scheme to include charities and community interest companies would not meet this objective.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate she has made of public funding allocated to adult social care not spent on frontline social care services annually through irrecoverable VAT when services are delivered by charities and not‑for‑profit providers.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

Supplies of care services are exempt from VAT if they are supplied by eligible bodies, such as public bodies or charities. No VAT is charged to the consumer of the service, nor can the supplier recover VAT incurred in the course of providing the service.

Community interest companies (CICs) are not charities in law and must meet the criteria of being state-regulated in order to provide VAT-exempt care services. If CICs do not qualify for the VAT exemption, they charge VAT on the services they provide at the 20% standard rate.

Under Section 33 of the VAT Act 1994, certain bodies, including local authorities are able to recover VAT incurred in the course of their non-business activities. Non-business activities are broadly activities which are not undertaken to generate income, such as the provision of statutory health and social care services. Further information can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/revenue-and-customs-brief-10-2022-vat-business-and-non-business-activities/vat-business-and-non-business-activities

The objective of the Section 33 refund scheme for local authorities is to prevent these bodies from needing to use local taxation to fund their VAT costs. Extending the scheme to include charities and community interest companies would not meet this objective.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has considered extending Section 33 VAT recovery for charities and Community Interest Companies delivering statutory social care services on behalf of local authorities.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

Supplies of care services are exempt from VAT if they are supplied by eligible bodies, such as public bodies or charities. No VAT is charged to the consumer of the service, nor can the supplier recover VAT incurred in the course of providing the service.

Community interest companies (CICs) are not charities in law and must meet the criteria of being state-regulated in order to provide VAT-exempt care services. If CICs do not qualify for the VAT exemption, they charge VAT on the services they provide at the 20% standard rate.

Under Section 33 of the VAT Act 1994, certain bodies, including local authorities are able to recover VAT incurred in the course of their non-business activities. Non-business activities are broadly activities which are not undertaken to generate income, such as the provision of statutory health and social care services. Further information can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/revenue-and-customs-brief-10-2022-vat-business-and-non-business-activities/vat-business-and-non-business-activities

The objective of the Section 33 refund scheme for local authorities is to prevent these bodies from needing to use local taxation to fund their VAT costs. Extending the scheme to include charities and community interest companies would not meet this objective.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the (a) contribution of choirs to public health, wellbeing and social prescribing and (b) potential role of an extended Orchestra tax relief in supporting the sustainability of choir activity in local communities.

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

DCMS officials have had discussions with DHSC on the value of arts and culture to public health and wellbeing. DCMS also routinely meets with its arms-length body, Arts Council England (ACE), on their work to support people’s health, happiness and wellbeing via access to high-quality cultural and creative activities.

Research commissioned by DCMS' Culture and Heritage Capital Programme found that general engagement with culture and heritage positively impacts physical health, mental health, and productivity, which for adults, is valued at £18.6bn per year. For adults aged 65 years and over who attend a choir weekly, there is an estimated benefit on a society-wide level of £170m.

Adults over 50 years old who engage with cultural venues have delayed dementia onset, resulting in social care and NHS savings of £0.38bn.

The government supports the arts sector, including choirs and singing through ACE. For the 2024/25 financial year, ACE allocated £1.83 million in National Lottery Project Grants to projects classified under 'Choral’.

Within ACE’s National Portfolio Investment Programme, 334 organisations provide “creative health” programming. To support this work, the Arts Council provides an annual investment of £145 million to National Portfolio Organisations whose activities incorporate creative health.

ACE has also co-funded the National Academy of Social Proscribing (NASP) to deliver the Power of Music programme, which aims to transform how music supports dementia care within NHS systems.

Regarding the potential role of an extended Orchestra Tax Relief, fiscal policy and the design of tax reliefs are the remit of His Majesty’s Treasury.

England men's football team

Climate Change Committee's seventh Carbon Budget

Touring artists mobility arrangements

Emergency Medicine Day 2026

Draft Code of Practice on Services, public functions and associations

Somerset Day

Free-to-air coverage of European finals

Heating oil prices

Water sector reform

Implications for rural communities of the Autumn Budget 2024

Fruit and vegetable aid scheme

Care for people with depression and bipolar disorder

Funding for rural Britain

National Emergency Briefing

Social media for under-16s

Meta and YouTube and legal liability for addictive design and online harms

Palantir Technologies, Peter Thiel and the NHS (No. 2)