Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when she plans to respond to the report by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman entitled Women’s State Pension age: our findings on injustice and associated issues, published on 21 March 2024.

Answered by Emma Reynolds - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

As a newly formed Government we will need time to review and consider the Ombudsman’s report along with the evidence provided during the investigation.

This Government respects the work of the Ombudsman. Now the election has concluded we need to consider the views that have been expressed on all sides.

The issues outlined in the report are significant and complex, as such they require serious deliberation. Once this work has been undertaken, the Government/we will be in a position to outline its approach.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department plans to take steps to support democratic forces in Belarus.

Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

Since the flawed elections of 2020, the UK has consistently supported the efforts of the democratic opposition in its peaceful struggle to realise the democratic aspirations of the people of Belarus. On 11 July, the UK, alongside other partners, invoked the OSCE Vienna Mechanism to hold the Belarusian authorities to account over the treatment of political prisoners in Belarus. Most recently, the UK invited Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, to meet with European leaders, including with the Foreign Secretary and myself [Minister Doughty], in the margins of the European Political Community summit at Blenheim palace on 18 July.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what progress she has made on establishing an (a) independent and (b) wide-ranging review into the loan charge.

Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Chancellor and I know the loan charge is a very important one for many members and their constituents. We have been considering this matter since taking office and will provide an update in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to help increase the manufacture of artillery shells to be supplied to the Ukrainian government.

Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has supported Ukraine by the granting in kind of both artillery munitions and systems. As a result of lessons from Ukraine, the MOD has significantly increased its order of artillery munitions through the multi-billion pound Next Generation Munitions Solution contract with BAE Systems. Through our Task Force Hirst and the signing of the Framework Arrangement on defence and industrial cooperation we have also created a mechanism for Defence Equipment and Support to place contracts on behalf of Ukraine with UK, and international, manufacturers. The MOD continues to work closely with the Department of Business and Trade to expedite export licencing decisions for Ukraine, and has provided additional resource to the Export Control Joint Unit to support this.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of amending paragraph 1(b) of Schedule 29 to the Finance Act 2004 to ensure that people with enhanced protection are not limited in the amount of pension commencement lump sum they can obtain.

Answered by Tulip Siddiq - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)

Paragraph 1(b) of Schedule 29 to the Finance Act 2004 provides for a pension commencement lump sum where all or part of a member’s lump sum allowance, and all or part of their lump sum and death benefit allowance, is available.

Those with enhanced protection against pension tax charges are entitled to the same amount of pension commencement lump sum they would have expected to receive prior to 6 April 2023. This enables them to receive up to £375,000 if they have sufficient available lump sum allowance.

The government has no plans to enable those with enhanced protection, or any other protection, to access additional tax-free lump sums where they have already taken the maximum amount. This maintains members’ expectations in respect of their tax-free lump sums.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that solar panels installed in the UK do not contain polysilicon manufactured through the slave labour of Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslims in China.

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

No company in the UK should have forced labour in its supply chain. We will be working with colleagues across Government to tackle the issue of Uyghur forced labour in supply chains.

We are also relaunching the Solar Taskforce, which will focus on identifying and taking forward the actions needed to develop supply chains that are resilient, sustainable and free from forced labour. This will support the significant increases in deployment of solar panels needed to meet our ambition of tripling the UKs solar power capacity by 2030.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he plans to take legislative steps to protect consumers of (a) petrol and (b) diesel from uncompetitive practices by retailers.

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

The government welcomes the CMA’s work to investigate fuel prices and we will continue to monitor the situation closely.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made recent representations to his counterpart in Georgia on the passing of the law on the transparency of foreign influence in that country.

Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK is committed to supporting a vibrant civil society in Georgia as an essential attribute of a healthy democracy. The Foreign Secretary met Georgian Foreign Minister Darchiashvili on 18 July at the European Political Community summit at Blenheim Palace. He urged the Georgian Government to return to its path of progressive democracy, in line with the Euro-Atlantic aspirations of over 80 per cent of the Georgian people.

We continue to closely monitor developments.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment f the potential merits of negotiating a reciprocal agreement with the Government of Spain that will allow British citizens with holiday properties in Spain to spend six months in that country.

Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

Both the UK and the EU allow for visa-free short-term travel in line with their arrangements for Third Country Nationals. The UK allows EU citizens short-term visa-free travel for up to six months. Meanwhile, the Schengen Borders Code allows for Third Country Nationals to travel within the Schengen Area for up to 90 days in any 180-day period; this is standard for third countries travelling to the EU. While we recognise that extending the 90-180 day period is a matter for Member States and the EU, the Government will continue to listen to and advocate for UK nationals abroad.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment he has made of trends in the level of antisemitism; and what steps he plans to take to help protect Jewish communities from hatred directed towards them.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Antisemitism has absolutely no place in our society, and tackling antisemitism is a top priority for this Government. This Government continues to fund the Community Security Trust, supporting their vital work in protecting Jewish communities. This includes providing additional security at Jewish schools, synagogues, and other sites. Making sure that British Jews are not only safe, but also that they feel safe, is one of our top priorities.

Antisemitism is a deplorable form of Hate Crime, and the Government are committed to ensuring that everyone is able to worship freely, wear religious clothing and go about their lives in safety and security – irrespective of their background, faith or other characteristic. Tackling Hate Crime will be a key part of this Government's work to tackle divisions and create connections between all communities.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make representations to his Chinese counterpart on (a) the use of residential boarding schools as a means of undermining Tibetan culture, (b) the release of the Panchen Lama from detention, (c) the right of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to choose his successor and (d) other issues relating to human rights in Tibet.

Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

This Government will take a consistent, long term and strategic approach to managing the UK's relations with China, rooted in UK and global interests. We will co-operate where we can, compete where we need to, and challenge where we must.

We will stand firm on human rights, including China's repression of the people of Tibet. We will champion freedom of religion or belief for all abroad, and work to uphold the right to freedom of religion or belief through our position at the UN, G7 and other multilateral fora, and through bilateral engagement.