Connor Naismith

HMG officials and Ministers, including myself, regularly engage EU and EU Member State counterparts on a range of issues affecting UK nationals. The UK and the EU allow for visa-free, short-term travel in line with their respective arrangements for third country nationals. UK nationals can travel visa-free in the Schengen Area for up to 90 days in any rolling 180-day period. UK nationals planning to stay longer will need permission from the relevant Member State. In France, a long-stay visa is available. The UK Government will continue to listen to and advocate for UK nationals.

The Department for Business and Trade is currently engaging with stakeholders on proposed changes in filing requirements at Companies House, to ensure they strike the right balance between tackling economic crime and avoiding undue burden on business. As part of this we are considering stakeholder views on the requirement for small and micro entities to file profit and loss accounts. We will set out next steps in due course.

The Government recognises that the supply chain is crucial for the day-to-day running, maintenance, and development of the railway.

Under the strategic leadership of Great British Railways, there will be more coordination between track and train, a centralised point of contact and more certainty for rail suppliers, but equally the Government requires a resilient and productive rail supply chain that invests in skills, technology, and innovation to reduce costs and increase competitiveness.

The Industrial Strategy Green Paper, Invest 2035, identified eight growth-driving sectors. All sectors will benefit from wider policy reform, including rail, through the Industrial Strategy’s cross-cutting policies alongside the broader Growth Mission. This will create the pro-business environment for all businesses to invest and employ, with growth that supports high-quality jobs and ensures that the benefits are shared across people, places, and generations.

The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act updates existing prohibitions on unfair trading in the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations (2008) and introduces new consumer protections for subscription contracts.

The impact assessment for the DMCCA can be found here: Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill - Impact Assessment Summary.docx. We will continue to monitor the impact of the measures on consumers.

The Government is committed to tackling serious labour abuse and exploitation. Workers on sponsored visas have the same protections and rights under employment law as British and settled workers. All employers are expected to comply with UK employment law.

The Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA), Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate and HM Revenue and Custom’s National Minimum Wage enforcement team work together to ensure that workers are aware of their rights. If anyone thinks they are not getting their employment rights, they should contact Acas on 0300 123 1100 for advice on next steps.

Through the Employment Rights Bill and the Fair Work Agency we are delivering a much-needed upgrade to employment rights enforcement, including for workers on sponsored visas.

The Government knows that, for many consumers, too much of the burden of the bill is placed on standing charges. We are committed to lowering the cost of standing charges and have worked constructively with the regulator, Ofgem, on this issue. Ofgem has conducted a broad public consultation to understand the views of consumers on this issue, receiving over 5,000 responses on their 2024 discussion paper. Since then, Ofgem has been continuing work in two areas.

Firstly, Ofgem has been working to ensure that domestic consumers can choose tariffs with low or no standing charges. Ofgem took a further step towards this goal on 24 July, announcing proposals to require suppliers to offer their customers low or no standing charge tariffs from early 2026.

Secondly, Ofgem has been reviewing how ‘fixed’ costs, which tend to be funded through standing charges, should be recovered in the future energy system. This includes whether those fixed costs could be recovered in more progressive ways, and we are working closely with the regulator on this. Ofgem published its Cost Allocation and Recovery Review on 30 July.

The Government knows that, for many consumers, too much of the burden of the bill is placed on standing charges. We are committed to lowering the cost of standing charges and have worked constructively with the regulator, Ofgem, on this issue.

Firstly, Ofgem have been working to ensure that domestic consumers can choose tariffs with low or no standing charges Ofgem took a further step towards this goal this week, announcing proposals to require suppliers to offer their customers low or no standing charge tariffs from early 2026.

Secondly, Ofgem have been reviewing how ‘fixed’ costs, which tend to be funded through standing charges, should be recovered in the future energy system. This includes whether those fixed costs could be recovered in more progressive ways, and we are working closely with the regulator on this.

The Government supports renewable energy innovation through a range of measures including the Net Zero Innovation Portfolio which aims to accelerate the commercialisation of low-carbon technologies in power, buildings and industry. Over 2021-25, approximately £91 million has been invested in the Northwest of England through this programme. For example, in East Cheshire, funding has been provided to innovators like Aerofoil Energy to improve energy and temperature performance in retail refrigeration.

The Government believes that our mission to deliver clean power by 2030 is the best way to break our dependence on global fossil fuel markets and protect billpayers permanently.

The creation of Great British Energy will help us to harness clean energy and reduce our reliance on volatile international energy markets as part of our commitment to make Britain a clean energy superpower by 2030. Our Warm Homes Plan will transform homes across the country by making them cleaner and cheaper to run.

We know that too much of the burden of the bill is placed on standing charges. We are committed to lowering the cost of standing charges and have worked constructively with the regulator, Ofgem, on this issue.

In February, Ofgem launched a consultation ‘Introducing a zero standing charge energy price cap variant’ - https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/consultation/introducing-zero-standing-charge-energy-price-cap-variant. Under these proposals, consumers would have the option of tariffs with a zero standing charge within the price cap.

The consultation closed on 20 March and we stand ready to continue work with Ofgem on this matter.

The sale of energy generation equipment is governed by consumer protection law.

There are opt-in consumer codes such as the Renewable Energy Consumer Code and standards such as the Microgeneration Certification Scheme. These are adopted by many companies selling generation equipment.

The Government is also undertaking a review of Ofgem’s role, to ensure that it has the appropriate powers to protect consumers. A recent call for evidence sought views on Ofgem’s remit in enforcing consumer protection law in respect of low carbon technologies.

The Government has not had discussions with the British Paralympic Association on the selection process for Paralympians.

ParalympicsGB selections are made by the British Paralympic Association, working in collaboration with the relevant National Governing Bodies (NGBs) who know their athletes best. These processes remain fully independent from the Government.

Generally, to be eligible for student support a student must be ordinarily resident in England and have ‘settled’ status or a recognised connection with the UK on the first day of the first academic year of the course. They must also have been ordinarily resident in the UK and Islands (Channel Islands and the Isle of Man) for the three years prior to that date.

It is important that the limited public funds available for student support are targeted on those categories of persons with a lawful and substantial residential connection to the UK and who are likely to remain indefinitely.

Higher education providers (HEPs) are autonomous from government and are responsible for their own admissions decisions. The department has no legal remit to become involved in disputes between prospective students and their university.

Responsibility for handling applicant complaints and/or appeals, in the first instance, is a matter for the relevant HEP and each university has formal complaints and appeal processes.

If a complainant has exhausted the official process and the matter has not been resolved to their satisfaction, they are free to consider bringing a claim for judicial review or for discrimination under the Equality Act.

Another route available to dissatisfied applicants is through the higher education regulator, the Office for Students (OfS). While the OfS cannot become involved in individual complaints, applicants can notify the OfS if they think that a university has broken its conditions of registration.

This government has a driving mission to break down barriers to opportunity.

From January 2026 the government will no longer fund level 7 apprenticeships except for young apprentices under the age of 22. This will enable apprenticeships opportunities to be rebalanced towards young people and create more opportunities for those entering the labour market, who need skills and training to get on in their careers.

Level 6 apprenticeships will continue to be funded for all ages (16+) by the government.

This £80 million partnership programme between the department and Great British Energy is targeting 200 schools and colleges in the 2025/26 academic year.

There will be a cluster of around 45 schools in each of the North West, North East and West Midlands, selected based on deprivation levels and other factors such as roof capacity. Each cluster will also include a further education college which will work with the contractors appointed to promote careers in renewables to support growth in the construction and renewables workforce. There will also be a minimum of ten schools in each of the government office regions to ensure some regional spread.

This is just one element of the department’s strategy to ensure that the school estate is sustainable. We are providing support for all schools and colleges to get started on their journey towards net zero via our new online ‘Sustainability Support for Education’ platform and our climate ambassador programme.

Apprenticeships deliver great outcomes for young people and adults, and apprentice and employer satisfaction is high.

High quality training is crucial and apprentices' success hinges on the commitment and collaboration of an employer, apprentice, and training provider.

The department has published a range of guidance on GOV.UK to help employers support their apprentices to make the most of their apprenticeship. This includes tips on how to support apprentices with mentoring, networking opportunities and wellbeing. On behalf of the department, the Learning and Work Institute has also produced a number of guides to support apprentices’ on-programme experience, including a Line Manger Guide to apprenticeships.

The Apprenticeship Service gives employers and learners the opportunity to provide feedback on their experiences which we use to improve the apprenticeship experience. To support effective partnerships between employers and providers, employers can also see online reviews of training providers from other employers and apprentices before they choose a training provider to deliver their training.

In addition, the department’s Apprenticeship Ambassador Network of 1,700 volunteer employers and providers enables sharing of best practice from apprenticeship experts. Our ambassadors are supporting 3,000 small employers taking their first steps on their own apprenticeship journey.

Apprentices who complete see the best outcomes from their experiences. The department’s focus on driving up quality is resulting in year on year increases in achievement rates and will continue to drive up standards to ensure every learner gets the greatest benefit from their apprenticeship.

Work has begun on a comprehensive new bovine TB strategy to reduce disease rates and end the badger cull by the end of this Parliament.

The ban on XL Bullies is vital to protect the public and we expect all XL Bully owners to comply with the conditions. Up to date guidance for owners of XL Bullies is available on GOV.UK.

The Government has worked closely with industry, including the food sector, throughout development of Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging. Feedback from stakeholders has been factored into finalising the regulations, including consulting stakeholders on a draft of the pEPR regulations in 2023.

Government recognises the importance of protecting small producers from direct cost obligations. This is why the regulations include a de-minimis threshold of £2 million turnover and 50 tonnes which exempts approximately 70% of the UK's smaller producers from paying scheme fees.

The Government strongly encourages cyclists to wear helmets, and this is reflected in The Highway Code, but there are no plans to mandate this.

A previous review of this matter concluded that the safety benefits of mandating helmets would be likely to be outweighed by the fact that it would put some people off cycling, thereby reducing the wider health and environmental benefits.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA) main priority is upholding road safety standards while it works hard to reduce car practical driving test waiting times.

On the 23 April, the Secretary of State for Transport appeared before the Transport Select Committee and announced that DVSA will take further actions to reduce waiting times for all customers across Great Britain.

Further information on these actions and progress of DVSA’s plan to reduce driving test waiting times, which was announced in December 2024, can be found on GOV.UK.

Cheshire East is served by a cluster of test centres including, Macclesfield, Buxton, Newcastle Cobridge and Crewe. DVSA also has a remote site at Northwich, which is resourced with driving examiners (DE) from Chester.

From recent recruitment campaigns, for the Macclesfield and Buxton cluster of test centres, two potential DEs are undertaking training with a further two awaiting confirmation of availability for a training course.

For the Crewe and Cobridge cluster of test centres, two potential DEs are ready to start training, with one starting on 14 July. DVSA has also made offers to two more potential DEs who will start their training at the earliest opportunity.

This government expects electrification to play an important role to achieve our Net Zero 2050 target and, as such, we will continue to invest in electrification projects which will deliver value for money for the taxpayer. Electrification can also have wider benefits for the railway including increased reliability, cheaper operating costs and quicker journeys compared to diesel vehicles. Our strategy will be to focus on being more efficient with where we deliver electrification by leveraging the recent progress in battery technology. This will help to reduce the amount of electrification infrastructure that needs to be delivered to achieve our Net Zero target.

The Government wants to bring decision making as close as possible to the communities those decisions impact. That is why we will give mayors a statutory role in governing, managing, planning and developing the Great British Railways (GBR) network.

This will ensure they will be appropriately consulted on GBR’s activity (including the development of railway plans, strategies and services), are able to scrutinise GBR’s performance. GBR will also be required to have due regard to devolved transport strategies.

An enhanced role for mayors will be balanced with GBR's role as the directing mind for the national network. The establishment of GBR will bring together responsibility for managing allocation of capacity and management of the infrastructure. GBR will therefore be able to make the best use of the rail network and provide a seamless service for passengers and freight users.

The Integrated National Transport Strategy will be published this year and set the long-term vision for transport in England, recognising the key role transport must play in driving growth and opportunities. The exact scope of the Strategy is being developed through a series of engagement activities that include a Call for Ideas and Regional Roadshows, but we will look at all modes to understand how transport should be designed, built and operated to better serve its users.

Improving road safety is one of my highest priorities. Too many people are killed and seriously injured in road traffic collisions, and this Government will work hard to prevent these tragedies for all road users. The Department is developing a road safety strategy and will set out more details in due course.

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) stands ready to support anyone affected with our Rapid Response Service (RRS) offer. This is a service designed to give support and advice to employers and their employees when faced with redundancy.

This service is co-ordinated nationally by the Strategic Relationship Team (SRT) and is managed by Jobcentre Plus. Delivery partners include The National Careers Service, local training providers, Money Helper and the skills bodies in England.

These services are offered by equivalents in the devolved administrations. In Scotland this is delivered by PACE on behalf of the Scottish Government and in Wales by ReACT. Redundancy support in Northern Ireland is devolved with separate funding and delivery arrangements.

The range of support available from Jobcentre Plus and partners may include:

• Connecting people to jobs in the labour market.
• Help with job search including CV writing, interview skills, where to find jobs and how to apply for them.
• Help to identify transferable skills and skills gaps (linked to the local labour market).
• What benefits they may get and how to claim.

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) stands ready to support anyone affected with our Rapid Response Service (RRS) offer. This is a service designed to give support and advice to employers and their employees when faced with redundancy.

This service is co-ordinated nationally by the Strategic Relationship Team (SRT) and is managed by Jobcentre Plus. Delivery partners include The National Careers Service, local training providers, Money Helper and the skills bodies in England.

These services are offered by equivalents in the devolved administrations. In Scotland this is delivered by PACE on behalf of the Scottish Government and in Wales by ReACT. Redundancy support in Northern Ireland is devolved with separate funding and delivery arrangements.

The range of support available from Jobcentre Plus and partners may include:

• Connecting people to jobs in the labour market.
• Help with job search including CV writing, interview skills, where to find jobs and how to apply for them.
• Help to identify transferable skills and skills gaps (linked to the local labour market).
• What benefits they may get and how to claim.

The Department for Business and Trade is responsible for the enforcement of the National Minimum Wage. The Department of Health and Social Care has an interest in the terms and conditions of those working in the paid care sector in England.

DWP provides support for unpaid carers on low incomes, including through Universal Credit, Pension Credit and housing benefits. These are income-related benefits and are paid at higher rates for full-time carers than for those without full-time caring responsibilities. In England and Wales, DWP also provides support for unpaid carers through Carer’s Allowance, which can be paid alongside the income-related benefits.

We have committed to introduce a new requirement that, in addition to the existing eligibility criteria, claimants must score a minimum of four points in at least one daily living activity to be eligible for the daily living component of Personal Independence Payment. Our intention is that – subject to parliamentary approval – the changes will apply to new claims and award reviews from November 2026, only if they score fewer than 4 points in one category in their reassessment by a trained assessor or healthcare professional.

In keeping with existing policy, people over state pension age are not routinely fully reviewed and will not be affected by these changes.

I refer the honourable member to the answer I gave on 14 October 2024 to question UIN 6904

As explained in UIN 6904 these rules are based on the circumstances of the carer, not those of the disabled person.

Scientific risk assessment and United Kingdom dietary recommendations are based on robust independent risk assessments by the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN).

SACN has considered the evidence on the impact of processing on health in a position statement in 2023 and rapid evidence update in April 2025 which considered evidence published since the 2023 position statement. SACN has concluded that the observed associations between higher consumption of ultra processed foods and adverse health outcomes are concerning.

SACN recommended that on balance, most people are likely to benefit from reducing their consumption of processed foods high in energy, saturated fat, salt and free sugars and low in fibre. This is based on the nutrient content of many ultra processed foods and concerns raised in relation to health.

SACN’s recommendations align with existing policies for supporting healthier diets and advice to consumers. SACN will keep the topic of food processing and health under annual review and consider it again in 2026.

SACN has also previously advised on consumption of fruit and vegetables, supporting the WHO recommendations (2003), red and processed meat as part of its assessment on iron and health (2010), and on consumption of whole grain foods, as part of its recommendations on Carbohydrates and Health (2015). The UK’s national food model the Eatwell Guide, which is based on SACN’s recommendations, already advises that people should eat more fruit and vegetables and wholegrain or higher-fibre foods, as well as less processed meat and food and drink that is high in sugar, calories, saturated fat, and salt.

The Government’s Eatwell Guide advises that people should eat more fruit and vegetables and wholegrain or higher-fibre foods, as well as less processed meat and food and drink that is high in sugar, calories, saturated fat, and salt.

The Eatwell Guide principles are communicated through a variety of channels, including the NHS.UK website and Government social marketing campaigns.  Examples include the Better Health Healthier Families website and the Healthy Steps email programme which aims to help families with primary aged children in England to eat well and move more.

A range of actions that have already been taken to create a healthier environment to help children eat a healthy, balanced diet including:

- the Healthy Start scheme which supported over 355,000 people in August 2025;

- the Nursery Milk Scheme which provides a reimbursement to childcare providers (in England and Wales) for a daily one-third pint portion of milk to children and babies; and

- the School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme which provides around 2.2 million children in Key Stage 1 with a portion of fresh fruit or vegetables per day at school.

In relation to processed foods and drinks high in calories, saturated fat, salt and free sugars, work on manifesto commitments is progressing through:

- implementing the TV and online advertising restrictions for less healthy food or drink;

- consulting on plans to ban the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks to children under 16 years old; and

- giving local authorities stronger, clearer powers to block new fast-food outlets near schools and where young people congregate.

Earlier this year, the Government committed to reviewing the School Food Standards to reflect the most recent government dietary recommendations. In particular, this will reduce levels of sugar and increase fibre in school food.

In August 2025, voluntary industry guidelines for commercial baby food and drink were published by government. The guidelines challenge businesses to reduce the sugar and salt content and improve marketing and labelling of foods and drinks aimed at children aged up to 36 months.

The Department of Health and Social Care has made up to £12.5 million available this financial year for 15 regional partnerships to continue to support displaced international care workers. The international recruitment regional fund aims to prevent and respond to exploitative employment practices of internationally recruited care staff. This includes support for individuals impacted by their sponsor’s license being revoked to find alternative, ethical employment.

As of July 2025, over 1,600 people have been directly supported into new sponsored employment by the regional partnerships. This data has not been independently verified by the Department or UK Visas and Immigration, and these figures do not provide a complete picture as workers are under no obligation to report their employment outcomes back to their regional partnership. Regional partnerships are also currently supporting thousands more displaced workers, including support with CV writing and interview techniques, introducing workers to ethical providers with appropriate vacancies, and offering pastoral support to workers who have experienced unethical or exploitative practices.

We have commissioned the National Institute for Health and Care Research’s Policy Research Unit in Health and Social Care Workforce to undertake an independent evaluation of the 2024/25 international recruitment regional fund. We expect the final report of this evaluation to be published by King's College London in 2026.

The Government reviews and updates the NHS Bursary rules annually and keeps the funding arrangements for all medical students under close review to ensure they meet the needs of students and the National Health Service.

As set out in our 10-Year Health Plan, we will explore options to improve financial support for students from the lowest socioeconomic background so that they are able to thrive at medical school.

The 10-Year Health Plan will deliver the three big shifts our National Health Service needs to be fit for the future: from hospital to community; from analogue to digital; and from sickness to prevention. All of these are relevant to managing conditions such as aphasia in all parts of the country.

More tests and scans delivered in the community, better joint working between services, and greater use of apps and wearable technology will all support people to manage their long-term conditions, including aphasia, closer to home.