Asked by: Brian Leishman (Labour - Alloa and Grangemouth)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of changes to UK steel safeguarding measures and import quotas on small and medium‑sized enterprises that rely on a stable supply of imported steel; and what steps his Department is taking to ensure that businesses such as Central Rebar in Alloa are not adversely affected by disruption to their supply chains.
Answered by Chris McDonald - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The UK steel industry faces challenging global conditions due to overcapacity and trade deflection, which threatens the long‑term viability of domestic production. That is why last year the government amended the steel safeguard to ensure the overall effectiveness of the measure.
The safeguard is due to expire in June 2025, and we are developing a new, robust trade measure to support resilient and secure supply chains. Officials are working closely with stakeholders across the sector, including trade associations representing SMEs, and we are assessing a full range of supply chain interests in designing the measure.
Asked by: Brian Leishman (Labour - Alloa and Grangemouth)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of utilising the undistributed surplus in the Mineworkers’ Pension Scheme to fund a pension bonus to members in 2026-2027 financial year.
Answered by Chris McDonald - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
I recently met the Mineworkers’ Pension Scheme Trustees and discussed the proposed changes that Trustees have put forward. Work is underway to assess the benefits and risks of the Trustees’ proposals. We are aiming to implement changes as swiftly as possible.
Asked by: Brian Leishman (Labour - Alloa and Grangemouth)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will take steps to ensure that all of the future surpluses accrued by the Mineworkers’ Pension Scheme can be used to increase the pensions of members of that Scheme.
Answered by Chris McDonald - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
I recently met the Mineworkers’ Pension Scheme Trustees and discussed the proposed changes that Trustees have put forward. Work is underway to assess the benefits and risks of the Trustees’ proposals. We are aiming to implement changes as swiftly as possible.
Asked by: Brian Leishman (Labour - Alloa and Grangemouth)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of removing the standstill feature from the Mineworkers’ Pension Scheme.
Answered by Chris McDonald - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
I recently met the Mineworkers’ Pension Scheme Trustees and discussed the proposed changes that Trustees have put forward. Work is underway to assess the benefits and risks of the Trustees’ proposals. We are aiming to implement changes as swiftly as possible.
Asked by: Brian Leishman (Labour - Alloa and Grangemouth)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has had recent discussions with her Moroccan counterpart on access to Western Sahara for the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK remains firmly committed to the promotion and protection of human rights globally, including in Morocco and Western Sahara, as we regularly make clear to all relevant parties. Officials, including up to ambassador level, regularly engage on these issues with the Moroccan Government and authorities. At the most recent UK-Morocco Human Rights Dialogue in November 2025, officials discussed areas of mutual interest, including freedom of expression, rights of minorities, women's rights, media freedom, and judicial reforms.
Asked by: Brian Leishman (Labour - Alloa and Grangemouth)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she plans to take steps to help ensure that the labelling of food originating in Western Sahara is not (a) mislabelled and (b) misleading.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government is committed to ensuring that UK consumers are not misled about the origin of the food they purchase. In accordance with assimilated EU Regulation 1169/2011 on the provision of food information to consumers, food labelling must not be misleading, including in relation to the origin or provenance of food.
It is the UK position that where origin information is given for food products made or grown in the Western Sahara, it must give accurate origin information and cannot be labelled as Moroccan.
Produce originating in Western Sahara that has been mislabelled as produce of Morocco would be considered misleading under food labelling regulations.
Defra officials and the Food Standards Agency work closely with Local Authority Trading Standards Officers who enforce food labelling rules in the UK, including addressing labels that may be misleading or non-compliant.
Asked by: Brian Leishman (Labour - Alloa and Grangemouth)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions she has had with (a) the Scottish Government and (b) ferry operators on the crewing model that will be used on the vessels used to provide Roll-on Roll-off passenger and freight ferry services between Scotland and continental Europe; and whether conditions of maritime employment on those services will be covered by the Mandatory Seafarers Charter.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Maritime policy is devolved to Scotland and so it is for the Scottish Government to engage with ferry operators about any services from Scottish ports to mainland Europe. My officials regularly engage with the Scottish Government about maritime matters but Scotland have not raised any specific issues about crewing on services from Scotland to mainland Europe.
We will be consulting on the regulations bringing into force the Mandatory Seafarers’ Charter in Spring 2026. This consultation will set out the proposed scope of the requirements.
Asked by: Brian Leishman (Labour - Alloa and Grangemouth)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will outline the differences between the Border Control Post requirements in place for (a) exports and (b) imports at (i) Grangemouth, (ii) Rosyth, (iii) Burntisland and (iv) Methil ports.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Standards set out for Border Control Post (BCPs) are contained within a legislative framework and are dependent on what the BCP is approved to handle in relation to SPS goods, such as plants and plant products, or products or animal origin. A list of what a BCP is approved to handle can be found on GOV.UK
Asked by: Brian Leishman (Labour - Alloa and Grangemouth)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to promote modal shift of freight from road to sea; and when she last discussed this matter with counterparts in the Scottish Government.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The GB-wide Waterborne Freight Grant encourages new coastal or short sea shipping services and assists a company with the operating costs associated with running waterborne freight transport instead of road, where transport by water is more expensive. The grant can assist a company for up to three years. The application window for funding in the 2026/27 financial year is open until 15 February.
Officials across the UK and Scottish Governments remain engaged on the ongoing administration and future of the scheme.
Asked by: Brian Leishman (Labour - Alloa and Grangemouth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an estimate of the average (a) distance travelled and (b) cost incurred by (i) children and (ii) young people from Scotland when attending cancer treatment in England; and what financial support is available to support people travelling cross-border.
Answered by Ashley Dalton
The Department is responsible for healthcare in England. In Scotland, health is a devolved matter. The Department has not made an assessment of the average distance travelled or the cost of travel for young cancer patients from Scotland when attending cancer treatment in England, as patient-level data on patient travel is not collected at a national level.
However, the Department recognises that the cost of travel is an important issue for many young cancer patients and their families.
In England, NHS England and the integrated care boards are responsible for commissioning and ensuring that the healthcare needs of local communities are met, including providing support for travel. The National Health Service in England runs the Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme (HTCS) to provide financial assistance for travel to a hospital or other NHS premises for specialist NHS treatment or diagnostics tests when referred by a doctor or other primary healthcare professional.
Patients who do not qualify for the HTCS and who are on a low income may be able to claim the costs from the Department for Work and Pensions through Universal Credit or Personal Independence Payment. There are also a number of United Kingdom charities who provide support, including financial support, for patients with cancer.
NHS England does not collect national patient-level data on uptake of the HTCS, therefore it is not possible to provide an estimate of how much financial support is provided annually to specific patient groups, such as children and young people with cancer and their families.