Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans her Department has to increase the provision and accessibility of post-16 technical education pathways.

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

Our post 16 reforms aim to widen participation through clearer pathways, including new V Levels, the expansion of T Levels, clearer Level 2 routes through Occupational and Foundation Certificates, and new level 1 16-19 English and maths qualifications. We also announced £87 million in exceptional in-year growth payments, to help support the level of demographic growth we have seen in the 2025/26 academic year.

T Levels continue to deliver strong outcomes for learners. In 2026, the overall pass rate was 92.6%, with 68.9% of students achieving a merit or above. We are making changes to T Levels content and assessment to support manageability and scale up and new rules for industry placements give providers and employers more scope to design innovative placements.

When designing these new pathways, we are placing a strong emphasis on inclusion. We are considering the needs of learners with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), those at risk of becoming NEET, and others who face barriers to participation, to ensure they are inclusive and accessible by design.

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has discussions with the Secretary of State for Education on increasing the availability of university undergraduate level qualifications in youth work.

Answered by Vicky Foxcroft - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)

Investing in youth services and youth work has a strong social benefit leading to decreased crime, improved health and increased employment for young people.

In the Youth Matters: Your National Youth Strategy we set out our commitment to developing and growing a skilled and sustainable paid and volunteer youth sector workforce. To achieve this, we are investing £15 million over the next 3 years in youth workers, volunteers, and other trusted adults to upskill the existing youth sector workforce and increase the number of trusted adults providing safe support to young people.

DCMS funds the National Youth Agency (NYA) to oversee professional standards, qualifications and workforce development for the sector. To ensure a sufficiently qualified and supported youth sector workforce, DCMS funding enables the NYA to maintain youth work qualifications, national standards and curriculum; conduct a youth work organisation census; and maintain a register of qualified youth workers.

The NYA is also leading reforms to youth work qualifications through the development of a new Standard Qualification Framework for Youth Work, due for launch in the autumn. These reforms will create more flexible and accessible routes into youth work, strengthen progression and access from Levels 1 to 6, including enhanced Level 3 more flexible entry pathways and routes into higher-level and degree-level qualifications.

To help remove financial barriers for individuals, particularly those from underrepresented groups, to gain accredited qualifications, DCMS is also continuing to fund the Youth Worker Bursary Fund during this financial year. Since 2019, DCMS has funded 4071 individuals to undertake a Level 2, 3 or 4 qualifications in youth work with 850 enrolled in courses due to complete by 2027.

DCMS does not hold empirical data to provide assured information on where those leaving youth work end up. The NYA collects limited workforce intelligence through its Youth Workforce Census and stakeholder engagement activities, although this does not provide comprehensive data on destinations for those leaving the profession.

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the levels of social benefit obtained from investing in youth work provision.

Answered by Vicky Foxcroft - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)

Investing in youth services and youth work has a strong social benefit leading to decreased crime, improved health and increased employment for young people.

In the Youth Matters: Your National Youth Strategy we set out our commitment to developing and growing a skilled and sustainable paid and volunteer youth sector workforce. To achieve this, we are investing £15 million over the next 3 years in youth workers, volunteers, and other trusted adults to upskill the existing youth sector workforce and increase the number of trusted adults providing safe support to young people.

DCMS funds the National Youth Agency (NYA) to oversee professional standards, qualifications and workforce development for the sector. To ensure a sufficiently qualified and supported youth sector workforce, DCMS funding enables the NYA to maintain youth work qualifications, national standards and curriculum; conduct a youth work organisation census; and maintain a register of qualified youth workers.

The NYA is also leading reforms to youth work qualifications through the development of a new Standard Qualification Framework for Youth Work, due for launch in the autumn. These reforms will create more flexible and accessible routes into youth work, strengthen progression and access from Levels 1 to 6, including enhanced Level 3 more flexible entry pathways and routes into higher-level and degree-level qualifications.

To help remove financial barriers for individuals, particularly those from underrepresented groups, to gain accredited qualifications, DCMS is also continuing to fund the Youth Worker Bursary Fund during this financial year. Since 2019, DCMS has funded 4071 individuals to undertake a Level 2, 3 or 4 qualifications in youth work with 850 enrolled in courses due to complete by 2027.

DCMS does not hold empirical data to provide assured information on where those leaving youth work end up. The NYA collects limited workforce intelligence through its Youth Workforce Census and stakeholder engagement activities, although this does not provide comprehensive data on destinations for those leaving the profession.

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how rurality is taken into account when allocating funding for youth work.

Answered by Vicky Foxcroft - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)

Investing in youth services and youth work has a strong social benefit leading to decreased crime, improved health and increased employment for young people.

In the Youth Matters: Your National Youth Strategy we set out our commitment to developing and growing a skilled and sustainable paid and volunteer youth sector workforce. To achieve this, we are investing £15 million over the next 3 years in youth workers, volunteers, and other trusted adults to upskill the existing youth sector workforce and increase the number of trusted adults providing safe support to young people.

DCMS funds the National Youth Agency (NYA) to oversee professional standards, qualifications and workforce development for the sector. To ensure a sufficiently qualified and supported youth sector workforce, DCMS funding enables the NYA to maintain youth work qualifications, national standards and curriculum; conduct a youth work organisation census; and maintain a register of qualified youth workers.

The NYA is also leading reforms to youth work qualifications through the development of a new Standard Qualification Framework for Youth Work, due for launch in the autumn. These reforms will create more flexible and accessible routes into youth work, strengthen progression and access from Levels 1 to 6, including enhanced Level 3 more flexible entry pathways and routes into higher-level and degree-level qualifications.

To help remove financial barriers for individuals, particularly those from underrepresented groups, to gain accredited qualifications, DCMS is also continuing to fund the Youth Worker Bursary Fund during this financial year. Since 2019, DCMS has funded 4071 individuals to undertake a Level 2, 3 or 4 qualifications in youth work with 850 enrolled in courses due to complete by 2027.

DCMS does not hold empirical data to provide assured information on where those leaving youth work end up. The NYA collects limited workforce intelligence through its Youth Workforce Census and stakeholder engagement activities, although this does not provide comprehensive data on destinations for those leaving the profession.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will publish the analysis of costs and benefits that informed her Department's conclusion that the solar canopies on car parks policy would not be taken forward at this point.

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

The government currently has no plans to publish this analysis. Given high upfront costs coupled with the uncertainty about future electricity prices and self-consumption of electricity generated, there is a significant risk that businesses would be unable to recover installation costs over the assumed 30-year lifetime of solar panels. Mandating on new car parks also overlaps with the Future Buildings Standard which includes generation within the curtilage of the building.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether her Department considered the potential merits of mandating partial installation of solar canopies on existing outdoor car parks above a specified number of spaces.

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

The government did not consider the potential merits of mandating partial installation of solar canopies on existing outdoor car parks above a specified number of spaces. The installation of solar canopies on existing car parks is associated with increased costs and disruption. Existing car parks may not have accounted for this capital expenditure in their business plans, so the additional upfront costs may impact business viability.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether sums have been paid to the contractor for the M49 junction 1 at Severnside in addition to the original contract value in respect of variations, compensation events or claims.

Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department for Transport has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Barbering and hairdressing

Independent cafes and coffee shops

Second Reading of the Mental Capacity (Duty to Assess) Bill

Road fuel prices

Water sector reform

World Suicide Prevention Day 2026

Support for hospices

Found: Christopher Chope; Lizzi Collinge; Torcuil Crichton; Graeme Downie; Melanie Onn; Mike Reader; Claire Young

Found: Christopher Chope; Lizzi Collinge; Torcuil Crichton; Graeme Downie; Melanie Onn; Mike Reader; Claire Young

Found: Christopher Chope; Lizzi Collinge; Torcuil Crichton; Graeme Downie; Melanie Onn; Mike Reader; Claire Young

Found: Billington Sir Christopher Chope Lizzi Collinge Torcuil Crichton Graeme Downie Bradley Thomas Claire Young