Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether he has considered the potential merits of providing enhanced Shared Parental Pay relief to schools funded from the public purse to cover the cost to schools when Shared Parental Leave is taken exclusively during term time and not during pre-defined public holidays.

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

The Government recognises the specific challenges Shared Parental Leave can present for schools. The application of Shared Parental Leave in schools is covered by the Burgundy Book, which is negotiated between employers and teachers’ organisations. The Government has no authority over the Burgundy Book. The Department is currently undertaking a review of the parental leave and pay system, including Shared Parental Leave, to explore how the system can work best for families and employers.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 20 January 2026 to Question 105675 on NHS: Hearing Impairment and Visual Impairment, what steps his Department is taking to improve accessibility of NHS services for Deaf BSL-users following the recommendations of the BSL Advisory Board’s Locked Out report.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

We want disabled people’s access to, and experience of, healthcare services to be equitable, effective, and responsive to their needs. The 10-Year Health Plan specifically identifies disabled people as a priority group for the development of neighbourhood health care, offering more holistic ongoing support, noting the health inequalities they face.

NHS England is rolling out a Reasonable Adjustment Digital Flag which enables the recording of key information about a disabled patient or client, and the reasonable adjustments to care and treatment that they need, to ensure support can be tailored appropriately and equitably. Under a new information standard, published on 19 December 2025, all publicly funded health and social care service providers must be able to share, read, and write reasonable adjustment data by 30 September 2026. This would include anyone who is a Deaf British Sign Language user, and anyone with another disability.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 9 September 2025 to Question 71118 on Prescriptions: Occupational Therapy, what progress he has made on the wider programme of work relating to the medicines responsibilities of occupational therapists.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department supports expanding medicines responsibilities for non‑medical professionals where it is safe to do so. Appropriately trained occupational therapists can already supply and administer medicines under patient specific directions or patient group directions.

Any changes to medicines responsibilities follow a robust process to ensure patient safety. NHS England develops clinical cases for change with professional bodies, the Commission on Human Medicines provides advice, and, where proposals are progressed, the Department amends the Human Medicines Regulations 2012.

The Department has recently concluded a consultation on extending medicines responsibilities for a group of allied health professionals. We are analysing the responses and will consider proposals relating to other professional groups once this work is complete.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether Hong Kongers with dual nationality of a third country eligible for an ETA, who also have an expired BN(O) passport, will be able to obtain an ETA to enter the UK.

Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

BN(O) passport holders who do not also hold British citizenship are not exempt from UK immigration control in law. They may apply for an ETA using the passport of an ETA-eligible nation.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 4 December 2025 to Question 95904 on Health Professions: Regulation, if he will publish a consultation on secondary legislation to modernise the General Medical Council’s regulatory framework which would enable them to consider fitness to practise concerns arising from allegations of sexual misconduct that are more than five years old during this parliamentary session.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government is committed to modernising the regulatory frameworks for all healthcare professionals in the United Kingdom.

As a first step, we aim to consult on secondary legislation to modernise the General Medical Council’s (GMC) regulatory framework shortly with a view to laying this legislation before Parliament this year.

As part of the consultation, we will be consulting on a reformed fitness to practise process for the GMC.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether the MP hotline can be used by hon. Members for raising non-emergency queries about claimants who have been sent housing payment demands as a result of being migrated from ESA to Universal Credit.

Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

We recognise that for some customers, the transition to Universal Credit can feel complex at the outset. To support individuals during this period, dedicated help is available through our Universal Credit helpline, where colleagues can provide guidance and reassurance tailored to their circumstances.

The Department’s MP Hotlines are specifically intended for urgent, non‑complex enquiries where a claimant may be at risk of harm to their wellbeing, facing an imminent loss of income, or experiencing another situation requiring immediate intervention. As such, they are not designed for routine or non‑urgent matters, including standard enquiries relating to managed migration from Employment and Support Allowance to Universal Credit or issues relating to the issuing of housing payment notifications.

Hon. Members wishing to raise non‑emergency enquiries of this type are encouraged to use the Department’s established written correspondence routes. This ensures that all enquiries are properly logged, triaged, and responded to in a way that allows us to provide thorough and appropriate support to constituents.

Windermere

Delay Repay scheme

Airport drop-off charges

Outdoor learning

NHS access to medical cannabis for children with drug-resistant epilepsy

Cardiac risk in the young

Funding for rural fire and rescue services

Conduct of the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care

Palantir and the NHS

Leasehold reform