Asked by: Brian Mathew (Liberal Democrat - Melksham and Devizes)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, who has been appointed as Special Representatives for Nature and Climate; what their qualifications for these posts were; what their budget is; what their (a) aims and (b) objectives are; and whether any of these have been achieved.
Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Rachel Kyte CMG and Ruth Davis OBE were appointed as the UK's Special Representatives for Climate and for Nature, respectively, on 21 October and 15 November.
Their biographies and objectives are set out at https://www.gov.uk/government/people/rachel-kyte and https://www.gov.uk/government/people/ruth-davis.
These roles are covered by wider Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) and Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) budgets. The Special Representatives have agreed priorities with departments, which are being implemented.
Asked by: Brian Mathew (Liberal Democrat - Melksham and Devizes)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will supply Ukraine with additional Challenger 2 tanks.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
At present there are no plans to supply additional Challenger 2 tanks to Ukraine.
The UK's decision to send a squadron of 14 Challenger 2 Main Battle Tanks to Ukraine in 2023 delivered a coherent and combat effective capability and spearheaded the provision of dozens of additional Western Main Battle Tanks from international partners.
We recently announced we will be providing Ukraine with more than 50 armoured and protected vehicles, including modernised T-72 tanks, by the end of spring, building on over 1,000 armoured, protected and logistics vehicles the UK has previously delivered to Ukraine.
We continue to work closely with the Ukrainian Government to ensure the capabilities we provide meet the priorities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Asked by: Brian Mathew (Liberal Democrat - Melksham and Devizes)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to increase funding for the building of social housing in rural areas.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 25804 on 10 February 2025.
Asked by: Brian Mathew (Liberal Democrat - Melksham and Devizes)
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 (a) improve child and adolescent mental health services and (b) increase the speed of diagnosis for (i) ADHD and (ii) autism.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Too many children and young people are not receiving the mental health care they need, and we know that waits for mental health services are far too long. We are determined to change that. We will recruit 8,500 additional mental health workers across children and adult services to reduce delays and provide faster treatment. We will also provide access to a specialist mental health professional in every school in England and introduce open access Young Futures hubs in every community.
It is the responsibility of integrated care boards (ICBs) to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) services, in line with relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.
In April 2023, NHS England published a national framework and operational guidance to help ICBs and the National Health Service to deliver improved outcomes for children, young people and adults referred to an autism assessment service. In 2024/25, £4.3 million is available nationally to improve services for autistic children and young people, including autism assessment services.
We are supporting a taskforce that NHS England has established to look at ADHD service provision and its impact on patient experience. The taskforce is bringing together expertise from across a broad range of sectors, including the NHS, education and justice, to better understand the challenges affecting people with ADHD including timely access to services and support.
In conjunction with the taskforce, NHS England is carrying out detailed work to develop a data improvement plan, understand the provider and commissioning landscape and capture examples from ICBs who are trialling innovative ways of delivering ADHD services.
Asked by: Brian Mathew (Liberal Democrat - Melksham and Devizes)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department plans to extend the right to acquire to tenants living in rural areas.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
In "designated rural areas" properties cannot be sold under the Right to Acquire so as to preserve social housing in perpetuity for local people. The government has no plans to change this.