Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether his Department taking steps to promote new technologies to help people save money on their energy bills.
Answered by Katie White - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The government is supporting the deployment of technologies that will reduce household bills through a variety of schemes including the Energy Company Obligation, the Great British Insulation Scheme, Warm Homes: Social Housing Decarbonisation, Warm Homes: Local Government and the continuation of the Boiler Upgrade Scheme.
The government invested up to £42 million in the Heat Pump Ready (HPR) innovation programme to overcome barriers to heat pump deployment and support innovation in product design.
To promote the benefits of heat pumps the government has also relaunched its ‘Warm and Fuzzy’ campaign.
The Warm Homes Plan will continue our support for low carbon technologies and other energy efficiency upgrades to help reduce bills.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
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 tackle the promotion of fraudulent energy saving products.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
We are tackling promotion of fraudulent energy saving products in homes retrofit through several steps.
Selection and installation of measures is overseen through expert certification processes and bodies. This is being enhanced though development of a robust model for future scheme delivery which will reduce fraud. This includes a simplified approach to scheme design and scoring of measures reducing opportunities for fraud and for gaming. We have ongoing investment in technology to prevent and detect fraud.
Retrofit delivered through local authorities and housing associations have support from delivery partners appointed to bring expertise in assurance and fraud prevention.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will increase funding for the recruitment of specialist SEND teachers.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
This government’s ambition is that all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life.
There is significant work underway to ensure there is an appropriate training offer in place to support teachers and school leaders to create an inclusive school environment. We have recently reviewed the Initial Teacher Training Core Content Framework and the Early Career Framework which includes significantly more content on adaptive teaching and supporting pupils with SEND.
A review of our National Professional Qualifications is also underway, which includes a key focus on including further best practice for teaching pupils with SEND.
This core offer is supplemented by further SEND-specific training that is easy to access at any point in your career through the Universal SEND Services contract. This programme aims to support the school and further education workforce, particularly in mainstream settings, to identify and meet the needs of children and young people with SEND, including those with autism, earlier and more effectively.
While school leaders have the autonomy and authority to make recruitment decisions, as they are best placed to understand their own context and pupils’ needs, the government is supporting them by increasing the core schools budget by £3.7 billion in 2025/26, meaning it will total £65.3 billion, compared to almost £61.6 billion in 2024/25.
This additional funding provides an above real-terms per pupil increase on the core schools budget, taking per-pupil funding to its highest ever level, enabling us to transform the SEND system.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
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 support financially disadvantaged people to access private dental services in areas where NHS service are not readily available.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government plans to tackle the challenges for patients trying to access National Health Service dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. To rebuild dentistry in the long term, we will reform the dental contract with the sector, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.
The responsibility for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to the integrated care boards across England.
NHS dentists can offer private treatments in addition to NHS services. Dentists must make clear which treatments can be provided on the NHS and which can only be provided on a private basis, and the costs associated for each. The Government does not control the cost of private dental or orthodontic treatment and patients cannot claim back the expense from the NHS.
Free NHS dental care is available for patients who qualify for certain exemptions. Support is also available through the NHS Low Income Scheme for those patients who are not eligible for exemption or full remission of dental patient charges. Further information is available at the following link:
https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/dentists/who-is-entitled-to-free-nhs-dental-treatment-in-england/
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to section 23 of the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, whether the proposed limit of three branded items refers to the (a) overall number of items or (b) the individual types of items.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell
The proposed limit of three branded items relates to the individual types of items. For example, a school can include a branded blazer, jumper and book bag within its policy.
Schools will only be able to require pupils to have up to three types of compulsory branded uniform items for use during the year. Secondary schools and middle schools will have the option of requiring an additional compulsory branded item if it is a branded tie.
The limit will apply to any compulsory branded items in the school’s uniform policy, including PE kit. This includes any bags, such as book bags or rucksacks, and any items only suitable for particular times of year, such as summer dresses. It will be for individual parents to decide how many of each type of branded item they may wish to buy, but the limit on branded items will allow parents to purchase more uniform items from various retailers, including high street stores, helping them manage uniform costs more effectively.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she plans to support school uniform providers in complying with the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell
The department knows that school uniform providers play an important role for parents and communities by providing year-round guaranteed supply, a diversity of sizes and specialist advice to schools and parents.
We intend for the limit to come into effect in September 2026. This grace period will give suppliers enough time to renegotiate their existing contracts with schools in order to align with the new legislative requirements and wind down stock levels as appropriate.
Parents should have choice over where they shop, rather than having to buy expensive branded uniform items. Departmental research shows that the average cost of uniform is significantly lower when parents are allowed to buy items from a range of outlets.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department plans to apply a grace period for school uniform suppliers before fully implementing the provisions of the proposed Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell
The department knows that school uniform providers play an important role for parents and communities by providing year-round guaranteed supply, a diversity of sizes and specialist advice to schools and parents.
We intend for the limit to come into effect in September 2026. This grace period will give suppliers enough time to renegotiate their existing contracts with schools in order to align with the new legislative requirements and wind down stock levels as appropriate.
Parents should have choice over where they shop, rather than having to buy expensive branded uniform items. Departmental research shows that the average cost of uniform is significantly lower when parents are allowed to buy items from a range of outlets.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what the average time taken is for the North Sea Transition Authority to grant gas and hydrogen storage licences.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The NSTA assesses each application on its own merits, and as a result, the time taken to reach a decision would be dependent on a project’s unique individual characteristics and complexity.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential effectiveness of the Regional Care Cooperative pathfinder programme; and whether he plans to expand the programme to the South West.
Answered by Janet Daby
The department is currently setting up two pathfinders in Greater Manchester (launched April 2025) and the South East (launching June 2025) to test the delivery of Regional Care Co-operatives. An evaluation is in place to support the delivery of the pathfinders. This will focus on assessing the implementation and delivery of the pathfinders, and the impact on improving the commissioning of placements for children in care. We will publish regular findings from this evaluation. We would make any announcement on funding to set up further Regional Care Co-operatives in the usual way. Local authorities may voluntarily choose to set up and fund Regional Care Co-operatives independently of the department.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps she is taking to support (a) prison officers and (b) probation service staff.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Vice Chamberlain (HM Household) (Whip, House of Commons)
The Government is committed to making sure that all prison and probation staff have a safe place in which to work, the time and capacity to do their job well, and the right support, training and equipment to help them.
It is important that we have enough people to enable this vital work to be undertaken effectively. We are committed to recruiting and training the prison and probation staff we need, particularly in areas with the most significant staffing challenges, and we are constantly monitoring staffing levels and retention. We have implemented measures to attract and retain staff, including pay increases, extra funding for probation staff, and mentorship programmes. We are also working to improve staff safety and to address wellbeing concerns arising from the pressurised nature of the work. In addition, we are actively seeking ways in which technological innovation can ease the burden on our hard-working staff.
Prison and probation staff play a vital role in protecting the public and reducing re-offending. To help them to cope with the challenges this work involves, we provide extensive mental health support, including a 24-hour helpline, confidential counselling, and online wellbeing services. A new wellbeing support model has been established across HM Prison & Probation Service, with staff support and wellbeing champions for both prison and probation.