Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to ensure consumers are protected when travel is disrupted by geopolitical events.

Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

There is existing legislation in place to ensure consumers are protected when air travel is disrupted

Where UK law applies, Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 (“Regulation 261”) sets out the rights of air passengers in the event of flight disruptions, such as cancellations, long delays and denied boarding, including circumstances where travel is disrupted by wider events beyond the airline’s control.

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), the UK’s independent aviation regulator, is responsible for monitoring industry compliance with this legislation.

It is important that passengers are aware of their rights during any disruption and that is why the Government provides guidance through its Air Passenger Travel Guide. In addition to this general guidance, the Government and the Civil Aviation Authority have published targeted information, including the “Jet fuel and travel plans: what you need to know” page and the CAA’s summer travel advice.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to support undergraduate and graduate students in Filton and Bradley Stoke constituency with the cost of living.

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

To help students from the most disadvantaged backgrounds progress and excel in higher education, we will future proof our loan offer for undergraduate students by increasing loans for living costs in line with forecast inflation every academic year.

This will ensure that students from the lowest income families receive the largest year-on-year increases in support and provide students with long-term financial certainty on the support they will receive while studying.

Maximum loans for living costs for undergraduate students will increase by forecast inflation, 2.71%, for the 2026/27 academic year.

In addition, all eligible care leavers, regardless of age or personal circumstances, who are attending undergraduate courses in 2026/27, will be eligible for the maximum loan for living costs, removing key barriers to accessing education.

Loans to help with course fees and living costs for students starting postgraduate master’s degree and doctoral degree courses in 2026/27 will also increase by 2.71%.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, What assessment she has made of the impact of the classification of students on weekend-only courses as distance learners on their eligibility for student loans.

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

The department understands the anxiety caused by students affected by the misclassification of weekend-only courses by providers, which has resulted in students receiving maintenance support they are not entitled to. We have been clear that providers should put in place appropriate hardship support so that students receive the help they need during this period. To provide clarity for students, we have instructed the Student Loans Company to recover loan payments through the student loan system in line with existing loan terms, and to pause any action on recovery of targeted grant funding until at least September while we review the position.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of overseas scale rates for flight crews.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

Where employers reimburse allowable travel expenses, tax relief is available provided the expenses are wholly, exclusively and necessarily incurred for work purposes.

Ordinarily, employers must hold evidence of the employee’s actual expenditure. However, to reduce administrative burdens on employers, HMRC allows expenses for travel outside the UK to be reimbursed without evidence up to the levels contained within the overseas scale rates.

Where the overseas scale rates do not cover the expense incurred by employees, employers can still reimburse and provide tax relief provided they have appropriate evidence.

The Government keeps all taxes under review as part of the policy‑making process. Any decisions on future changes in this area will be taken in the context of the wider public finances.