Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of schools' implementation of her Department's guidance entitled Mobile phones in schools, published on 19 February 2024.

Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

Departmental guidance on mobile phones in schools, published in February 2024, is clear that schools should prohibit the use of devices with smart technology throughout the school day, including during lessons, transitions and breaks.

The department expects all schools to take steps in line with this guidance to ensure mobile phones do not disrupt pupils’ learning.

Research from the Children’s Commissioner published in April 2025, with responses from nearly all schools and colleges in England, shows that the overwhelming majority of schools (99.8% of primary schools and 90% of secondary schools) already have policies in place that limit or restrict the use of mobile phones during the school day.

The department does not hold information on costs incurred by schools to implement mobile phone bans. Each school is responsible for deciding how they apply this guidance and how to accommodate the needs of their pupils.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what information her Department holds on the costs incurred by schools for implementing smartphone bans during the school day.

Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

Departmental guidance on mobile phones in schools, published in February 2024, is clear that schools should prohibit the use of devices with smart technology throughout the school day, including during lessons, transitions and breaks.

The department expects all schools to take steps in line with this guidance to ensure mobile phones do not disrupt pupils’ learning.

Research from the Children’s Commissioner published in April 2025, with responses from nearly all schools and colleges in England, shows that the overwhelming majority of schools (99.8% of primary schools and 90% of secondary schools) already have policies in place that limit or restrict the use of mobile phones during the school day.

The department does not hold information on costs incurred by schools to implement mobile phone bans. Each school is responsible for deciding how they apply this guidance and how to accommodate the needs of their pupils.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the Government's ambition that every primary school should have a library, what funding will be available (a) for the staffing of the additional libraries, (b) for the provision of books and (c) to cover other costs.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has responsibility over the Dormant Assets Scheme.

Through the Scheme, £132.5 million has been allocated to increasing disadvantaged young people’s access to enrichment opportunities in the arts, culture, sports and wider youth services, aimed at improving wellbeing and employability over the long term. Funding for this initiative will come from the £132.5m.

The Government is working with The National Lottery Community Fund to co-design the programme and develop more of the specifics around its delivery. Further details will be announced in due course, including funding allocations.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the Government's ambition that every primary school should have a library, how much funding will be available for (a) the building of libraries and (b) the conversion of existing buildings to libraries.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has responsibility over the Dormant Assets Scheme.

Through the Scheme, £132.5 million has been allocated to increasing disadvantaged young people’s access to enrichment opportunities in the arts, culture, sports and wider youth services, aimed at improving wellbeing and employability over the long term. Funding for this initiative will come from the £132.5m.

The Government is working with The National Lottery Community Fund to co-design the programme and develop more of the specifics around its delivery. Further details will be announced in due course, including funding allocations.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will publish interim indicators of progress towards the Government's ambition to add 1,700 primary school libraries.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has responsibility over the Dormant Assets Scheme.

Through the Scheme, £132.5 million has been allocated to increasing disadvantaged young people’s access to enrichment opportunities in the arts, culture, sports and wider youth services, aimed at improving wellbeing and employability over the long term. Funding for this initiative will come from the £132.5m.

The Government is working with The National Lottery Community Fund to co-design the programme and develop more of the specifics around its delivery. Further details will be announced in due course, including funding allocations.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department holds data on the average number of patients typically cared for per nurse for stepdown care for patients in (a) Pathway 1 - home care and (b) Pathway 2 - community hospital care, (i) in England and (ii) by any geographical segmentation in the last three years.

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

We do not hold this information centrally.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the speech at the Labour Party Conference of 29 September 2025, on what evidential basis it was said that 1,700 primary schools do not have a school library.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has responsibility for the Dormant Assets Scheme, which is providing funding to support the primary school library commitment, previously announced by the Chancellor.

Research by the National Literacy Trust estimates there are 1,700 primary schools in England currently without a library. A 2023 NLT report states that 1 in 7 UK state primary schools, rising to 1 in 4 in disadvantaged areas, do not have a library or dedicated library space.

Through the Scheme, £132.5 million has been allocated to increasing disadvantaged young people’s access to enrichment opportunities in the arts, culture, sports and wider youth services, aimed at improving wellbeing and employability over the long term. Funding for this initiative will come from the £132.5m.

It is for individual schools to decide how best to provide and maintain a library service for their pupils, including whether to employ a qualified librarian. The Department for Education, therefore, does not collect data on the number or structure of school libraries or number of librarians in primary or secondary schools.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the press release entitled UK and Albania agree groundbreaking new arrangement on prisoner transfers, published on 24 May 2023, how many prisoners have been transferred under the agreement with Albania since 31 December 2024.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

Since 31 December 2024, six Albanian national offenders have been transferred to Albania under the bi-lateral Prison Transfer Agreement. Prisoner transfer is just one scheme where foreign national offenders can be removed early from prison, and it is more suited to those serving longer sentences. The Government pursues removal through all available mechanisms. The latest Home Office data indicate that 1,625 Albanian foreign national offenders were removed from England and Wales in 2024.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how she will measure the impact of the 2026 'Year of Reading' on children and young people.

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

The National Year of Reading is a UK-wide campaign to address the steep decline in reading enjoyment amongst children, young people and adults, aiming to engage new audiences in reading and make lasting change to the nation’s reading habits.

Grounded in existing evidence and new research by an external research agency, the campaign is designed to deliver meaningful impact during 2026 and beyond. The impact of the National Year of Reading will be measured through an independent external evaluation. The evaluation will examine how the campaign influences reading behaviours, connects with audiences and shapes attitudes towards reading, particularly among the campaign’s priority audiences including teenage boys, the early years, and families from disadvantaged communities. It will also assess the wider impact on the literacy sector and the foundations for long-term change. The findings will be published in 2027.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he will assess the potential merits of allowing local authorities to roll over unspent Connect to Work funding into the following year.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Expenditure on Connect to Work is annualised in line with standard practice for managing public funds. To retain funding controls, my Department cannot automatically carry forward underspends into future years. As part of the Connect to Work Delivery Plan approval process, local areas must profile their programme activity for the entire funding period, broken down by financial year and by month within those years. This ensures that funding is aligned with planned delivery and performance milestones. My Department will have regular performance conversations with lead authorities for Connect to Work and will seek to support any area that may not be delivering against their profile and will seek to support any area that may not be delivering against their profile. This will include the opportunity to reprofile in year as part of the annual review process

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the total staff remuneration through bank staff arrangements paid otherwise than through NHS Professionals Bank staff contracts in the last 12 months.

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

Bank staffing allows the National Health Service to meet workforce demand fluctuations without the need to increase capacity above that which is required on a sustained basis. NHS England publishes the total bank and agency spend for providers on a quarterly basis. This includes NHS Professionals as NHS England does not hold a split of spend by companies. The information is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/publications/financial-performance-reports/

NHS Professionals’ annual report and financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2025 shows that remuneration paid through NHS Professionals Bank staff contracts for 2024/25 was approximately £1.1 billion. This information is available at the following link:

https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/06704614/filing-history

However, definitions used in the two publications may vary so the data is not necessarily comparable.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department are taking to improve the accessibility of streets for people with sight loss.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

The design and maintenance of local streets is the responsibility of local authorities, who are bound by the Equality Act 2010 and the Public Sector Equality Duty to ensure their infrastructure meets the needs of all users, including people with sight loss. The Department for Transport provides local authorities with best practice guidance to support accessible street design.

The Department for Transport also works closely a range of stakeholders such as Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) and Guide Dogs to inform policy and guidance on issues such as tactile paving, pavement parking, and bus stop accessibility.

Found: Q273 Damian Hinds: That was in time for the January meeting.

Found: Q273 Damian Hinds: That was in time for the January meeting.

Found: Q30 Damian Hinds: YouTube take ads.

Found: Q151 Damian Hinds: Thank you very much.

Found: Damian Hinds: Thank you very much.

Found: Q151 Damian Hinds: Thank you very much.