Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the sunset clause for the Energy Saving Materials VAT relief on 31 March 2027, whether her Department has conducted an impact assessment on the potential effect on Net Zero targets if the relief reverts to 5% in 2027; and if she will consider extending the zero-rate period to help provide long-term certainty for the low-carbon heating industry.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

This Government is committed to improving the quality and sustainability of our housing stock, through improvements such as low carbon heating, insulation, solar panels and batteries. This will be vital to making the UK more energy resilient and meeting our 2050 Net Zero commitment.

Installations of qualifying energy-saving materials (ESMs) in residential accommodation and buildings used solely for a charitable purpose benefit from a temporary VAT zero rate until March 2027, after which they will revert to the reduced rate of VAT at five per cent.

The Chancellor makes decisions on tax policy at fiscal events in the context of the overall public finances

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of recent trends in levels of regional disparity in Dental Delivery Rates between the South West and London; and what steps he will take to increase delivery in the South West.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Dental Statistics - England 2024/25, published by NHS Business Services Authority on 28 August 2025, is available at the following link:

https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/statistical-collections/dental-england/dental-statistics-england-202425

This shows that 31% of adults were seen by a National Health Service dentist in the South West, in the previous 24 months up to June 2025, and that 52% of children were seen by an NHS dentist in the previous 12 months up to June 2025. By comparison, in London 39% of adults were seen by an NHS dentist in the previous 24 months up to June 2025, and 53% children were seen by an NHS dentist in the previous 12 months up to June 2025.

In 2024/25, there were 40.5 NHS dentists per 100,000 population in the South West, compared to 52.7 NHS dentists per 100,000 population in London.

We are aware of the challenges faced in accessing a dentist, particularly in more rural areas such as the South West.

We have asked ICBs to commission extra urgent dental appointments to make sure that patients with urgent dental needs can get the treatment they require. ICBs have been making extra appointments available since April 2025.

ICBs are recruiting dentists through the Golden Hello scheme. This recruitment incentive will see dentists receiving payments of £20,000 to work in those areas that need them most for three years.

We are committed to delivering fundamental reform of the dental contract before the end of this Parliament. As a first step, on 16 December we published the Government’s response to the public consultation on the quality and payment reforms to the NHS dental contract. The changes will be introduced from April 2026. These reforms will put patients with the greatest need first, incentivising urgent care and complex treatments. Further information is available from the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/nhs-dentistry-contract-quality-and-payment-reforms/outcome/government-response-to-consultation-on-nhs-dentistry-contract-quality-and-payment-reforms

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many dentists have been successfully recruited and retained in the Thornbury and Yate constituency under the 'golden hello' scheme since its inception.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Integrated care boards are continuing to recruit dentists through the Golden Hello scheme. The scheme offers a £20,000 recruitment incentive payment to dentists to work in those areas that need them most. The scheme remains a national priority.

Golden Hello data will be published this year and will consist of data showing the regional distribution of the original allocation of posts and the number of posts recruited at both a national and regional level.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many residential fires caused by lithium-ion battery failure were recorded by Fire and Rescue Services in 2025.

Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government collects data on incidents attended by Fire and Rescue Services (FRSs), including the cause of the fire and the source of the ignition. This data is published in a variety of publications, available on gov.uk here. This does not yet include data on whether fire incidents attended were caused by lithium-ion failures specifically.

We will keep the contents of these publications under review as part of the development of our recently rolled out Fire and Rescue Analysis Platform (FaRDaP).

The Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) conduct research into product safety risks associated with lithium-ion batteries and are working closely with MHCLG and other Government Departments to develop this knowledge base. A report from January 2025 by the OPSS that covers the root causes of fire incidents often associated with lithium-ion battery failures is available here.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of UK Conformity Assessed marking requirements for lithium-ion batteries used in e-bikes and e-scooters; and what steps he is taking to ensure that battery packs that do not meet British safety standards are prevented from entering the domestic market.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

While UKCA marking is required for certain products, it is not required for all consumer products. The UK’s product safety laws require that businesses must only place safe lithium-ion batteries on the market, including those used in e-bikes or e-scooters. In 2024 the Government introduced new statutory guidelines for lithium-ion e-bike batteries to clarify the safety requirements they must meet. Regulators have powers to remove unsafe products from the market, and since 2022 the Office for Product Safety and Standards has published 24 product recalls and 65 product safety reports for non-compliant e-bikes, e-scooters and associated products.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether (a) he and (b) his Ministers have had discussions with the Foreign Secretary on the comments made by the US Ambassador on the suitability of the Wylfa site for gigawatt-scale nuclear production.

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

My Rt Hon friend has regular discussions with cabinet colleagues on a number of issues.

The government has selected Wylfa as the site to host Britain’s first small modular reactors. Meanwhile, to pursue the option of further large-scale nuclear, Great British Energy - Nuclear has been tasked with identifying suitable sites that could potentially host such a project.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of maintaining thresholds for Plan 2 student loan repayments on trends in the level of repayments made by graduates; and what discussions she has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the potential impact of maintaining this threshold on the marginal effective tax rate for graduates earning above that threshold.

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

The department produced the following analysis regarding the impact of maintaining the repayment and interest thresholds for Plan 2 student loans on the lifetime repayments made by borrowers:

The department will release an equalities impact assessment, including the impact on lifetime repayments, alongside other borrower impacts for the Plan 2 repayment threshold and interest threshold freeze announced at the Autumn Budget. Published results may differ from those provided due to model and data updates.

The rate of repayment for undergraduate student loans remains at 9% on all income above the relevant threshold. Other factors, including any reliefs, pension contributions, or receipt of certain means-tested welfare benefits could adjust an individual’s effective tax rate.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent estimate her Department has made of the (a) proportion of Plan 2 student loans that will be fully repaid within the 30-year term and (b) average total interest accrued by a Plan 2 borrower over the lifetime of their loan.

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

Based on current modelling, 32% of the 2022/23 cohort of England-domiciled Plan 2 student loan borrowers are expected to fully repay their loans within the 30 year loan term. Student loan forecasts can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/methodology/student-loan-forecasts-for-england.

The department does not hold information on the average total interest accrued by a Plan 2 borrower over the lifetime of their loan. However, interest rates only affect the total amount repaid by high-earning borrowers and those with small balances, who will pay back all, or very nearly all, their student loans.

90th anniversary of the Spitfire

Horse and rider road safety

Community spaces

Review of the student loan system

Child protection from illicit vapes

International Day of Women and Girls in Science 2026

Right to object to data being used in online direct marketing

Grey belt policy and the impact on villages and rural communities

Radiotherapy in the National Cancer Plan

Found: ; Lizzi Collinge; Torcuil Crichton; Wera Hobhouse; Melanie Onn; Mike Reader; Bradley Thomas; Claire Young