Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department are taking to ensure the effectiveness of cancer screening programmes in Buckingham and Bletchley constituency.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England Screening and Immunisation Teams, including a dedicated team covering Thames Valley, work closely with providers and local partners to ensure cancer screening programmes are delivered in line with national standards for quality, safety and effectiveness.
At a local level, the NHS Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West Integrated Care Board (ICB) works in partnership with NHS England, primary care, providers and the Thames Valley Cancer Alliance to support the delivery and uptake of cancer screening programmes across Buckingham and Bletchley. This includes ongoing monitoring of screening coverage and performance at place and practice level, identifying variation, and supporting action where uptake or performance falls below national standards.
At a national level, we recently announced that the NHS Bowel Cancer Screening Programme in England is lowering the faecal immunochemical test threshold from 120 micrograms of blood per gram of faeces to 80 micrograms of blood per gram of faeces. It is estimated that this change will detect approximately 600 additional bowel cancers early each year in England, approximately an 11% increase, and find 2,000 more people with high-risk polyps in their bowel, allowing doctors to remove them before they ever turn into cancers.
Additionally, in early 2026, the NHS Cervical Screening Programme will be offering a self-testing kit to under-screened women, starting with those who are the most overdue for screening. This will help tackle deeply entrenched barriers that keep some away from screening.
These national-level changes will benefit people across England, including those living in the Buckingham and Bletchley constituency.
Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how much funding his Department plans to provide to (i) Milton Keynes City Council and (ii) Buckinghamshire Council to implement the Government's energy-efficiency programmes.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The government recognises the essential role that local places will play in delivering the Warm Homes Plan. Low-income grant funding will continue to be delivered through the Warm Homes: Local Grant (WH:LG) and Warm Homes Social Housing Fund (WH:SHF), honouring existing funding agreements. From 2027/28 onwards, we intend to integrate the WH:LG and WH:SHF into a single low-income capital scheme which will shift towards area-based delivery. We will say more about the future of these schemes by Spring 2026.
The government will further support local government through:
Integrated settlements for some Mayoral Combined Authorities, including retrofit funding, by 2028.
Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the offshore wind commitments signed on 26 January 2026 on UK electricity prices over the next decade.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Energy Secretary signed a non-binding clean energy security agreement, the Hamburg Declaration, with European leaders at the North Sea Summit to progress build out of renewable energy in the North Sea. and incentivise further investment. Agreements in the Declaration are fully aligned with existing government policy.
Working with our European neighbours to develop joint offshore wind will enable us to maximise the clean energy potential for the North Sea, drive investment and job creation, and ensure energy security and resilience. By moving away from volatile fossil fuels we will protect consumers across the UK.
Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what plans his Department has to monitor changes in energy efficiency in homes in Buckingham and Bletchley constituency over the next five years.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Through delivery of the Warm Homes Plan we will reach 5 million homes by 2030, through direct support for those on low incomes and in fuel poverty, and innovative low-interest finance available to all.
We will publish monitoring statistics and evaluation of policies announced in the Warm Homes Plan. DESNZ currently publishes statistics covering the uptake and impacts of energy efficiency measures on GOV.UK.
The Warm Homes Plan will help lift up to one million households out of fuel poverty by 2030 through public investment and new minimum energy efficiency standards for private landlords.
DESNZ’s annual sub-regional fuel poverty statistics estimate the rates of fuel poverty in constituencies within England, so will reflect the impacts of the Warm Homes Plan in time.
Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what proportion of the joint offshore wind capacity agreed under the Hamburg Declaration will connect directly to the UK transmission network by 2035.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Hamburg Declaration sets a collective European ambition of 100 GW of offshore wind cooperation projects by 2050.
In 2024, Ofgem gave Initial Regulatory Approval to two such joint wind and interconnector projects, Lion Link and Nautilus. These projects are in development.
Future GB co-ordinated projects will be consistent with our own domestic processes, including the Strategic Energy planning conducted by our National Energy System Operator (NESO) which is due to be consulted on in Q1 2027.
Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
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 low-income households in Buckingham and Bletchley constituency can access grants for energy-efficient improvements.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Through the Warm Homes Plan, we are offering direct support for low-income families backed by £5 billion of public investment.
Low-income grant funding will continue to be delivered through the government’s Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund (WH:SHF) and Warm Homes: Local Grant (WH:LG) as planned, honouring existing funding agreements.
The WH:LG has been allocated £500m to provide energy performance measures and low carbon heating to low-income households across England through participating local authorities, including Buckinghamshire.
DESNZ, and its delivery partners, will continue to work with local authorities to ensure as many eligible households as possible receive support during the scheme.
Additionally, alongside the Warm Homes Plan we published a new fuel poverty strategy for England, to help lift up to 1 million households out of fuel poverty by 2030.
Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what mechanisms have been established to measure the contribution of joint offshore wind projects under the Hamburg Declaration to UK (i) grid stability and (ii) energy security metrics.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Hamburg Declaration is a crucial step towards coordinated energy infrastructure. Coordinating with our neighbours can cut costs, strengthen energy security and help build a more flexible system.
Any GB coordinated projects will be consistent with domestic processes, including strategic energy planning conducted by the National Energy System Operator (NESO).
NESO will take a whole systems approach which considers a variety of metrics, including grid stability and security of supply, to optimise generation, storage and network design. The plans due to be consulted on in Q1 2027 will provide recommendations on future interconnection and joint offshore projects in 2028.
Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
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 with social housing providers in Buckingham and Bletchley constituency to help reduce energy costs for tenants.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Warm Homes Plan will deliver £15bn of public investment and help lift up to a million families out of fuel poverty by 2030. This includes support for those on low-incomes and the introduction of minimum energy efficiency standards for the social rented sector, which will slash the cost of heating for families, making homes warmer and more comfortable. Previously, Milton Keynes City Council had received £3 million under SHDF Wave 1, £22.7 million under SHDF Wave 2.1, and now £2.5 million as part of the just under £1.15bn Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund. The funding will support energy efficiency and low‑carbon heating upgrades, helping raise properties below EPC Band C up to that standard.
Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what measures are in place to monitor repayments among businesses in Buckingham and Bletchley constituency receiving government-backed loans.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The package is a commitment from the UK’s top high-street banks to lend more to small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) using UK Export Finance’s (UKEF’s) guarantee, to boost UK exports and economic growth. It signals to SMEs that want to export that there is a dedicated pool of capital available for them from lenders whom they trust.
Repayment of the loans will be managed by the respective banks, applying their regular criteria and processes. UKEF has robust legal agreements in place which set requirements regarding monitoring of potential defaults and making relevant recoveries.
While we have not made formal assessments of the economic impact of the SME Exporter Fund, last year UK Export Finance (UKEF) provided £14.5 billion of support to UK exporters, in turn supporting up to 70,000 jobs and contributing £5.4 billion to the economy.
Each bank has agreed to make the funds available across the whole of the UK. UKEF also has a network of export finance managers (EFMs) around the whole country who are valuable points of contact for local businesses and can provide information on the range of support available. Contact details for the EFM covering Buckingham and Bletchley, and others, can be found at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/find-an-export-finance-manager
Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what evaluation criteria will be used to assess the economic impact of the £11 billion lending support on businesses in Buckingham and Bletchley constituency.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The package is a commitment from the UK’s top high-street banks to lend more to small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) using UK Export Finance’s (UKEF’s) guarantee, to boost UK exports and economic growth. It signals to SMEs that want to export that there is a dedicated pool of capital available for them from lenders whom they trust.
Repayment of the loans will be managed by the respective banks, applying their regular criteria and processes. UKEF has robust legal agreements in place which set requirements regarding monitoring of potential defaults and making relevant recoveries.
While we have not made formal assessments of the economic impact of the SME Exporter Fund, last year UK Export Finance (UKEF) provided £14.5 billion of support to UK exporters, in turn supporting up to 70,000 jobs and contributing £5.4 billion to the economy.
Each bank has agreed to make the funds available across the whole of the UK. UKEF also has a network of export finance managers (EFMs) around the whole country who are valuable points of contact for local businesses and can provide information on the range of support available. Contact details for the EFM covering Buckingham and Bletchley, and others, can be found at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/find-an-export-finance-manager