Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what support is available to help UK-based organisations become a UKRI approved research organisation to allow them to apply for research grants.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

To apply to become an eligible organisation, UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) provides:

• Detailed criteria for becoming an approved Research Organisation (RO)
• Step‑by‑step instructions on how to apply for eligibility
• Additional conditions for public sector bodies, charities, museums, and businesses.

UKRI encourages organisations to engage with the relevant UKRI Research Council and further information can be found at: https://www.ukri.org/apply-for-funding/before-you-apply/apply-to-be-an-eligible-organisation/.

To become a UKRI-eligible RO, the entity must demonstrate independent capability to lead, manage, and report on research, with a strategy aligned to UKRI priorities. The entity must also be legally constituted, have a track record of research investment, and provide evidence of their ability to manage public funding, such as having a physical UK research base.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the London Borough of Bexley's news story entitled Bexley's Roads 7th best in England, published on 12 January 2026, if her Department will publish the data cited in that story.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department published a new traffic light rating system on 11 January. Under this system, all local highway authorities in England received a red, amber or green rating based on the condition of their roads, how much they spend to maintain their roads, and whether they do so using best practice. The ratings can be found online, at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/local-road-maintenance-ratings/local-road-maintenance-ratings-2025-to-2026.

The full methodology and data sources used to produce the ratings has also been published online. This includes a table setting out methodological detail on the individual metrics and scores used to calculate local authorities' ratings. Further detail can be found online at:

www.gov.uk/government/publications/methodology-used-to-calculate-ratings-for-local-road-maintenance.

Bexley received an overall amber rating, with individual scorecards showing green for condition, green for spend and amber for wider best practice.

Bexley received a green rating for their road condition. This rating was worked out based on the road condition statistics for the financial year ending 2024. Detail about these statistics can be found online, at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/road-network-size-and-condition. Rankings are not published as part of these road condition statistics.

The ratings are not designed to provide a ranked list of local highway authorities, but instead assign authorities a rating within the broader categories of red, amber, or green.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions he has with the Secretary of State for Business and Trade on the number of wheelchair accessible vehicles that are purchased through the Motability Scheme are produced in the United Kingdom.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Secretary of State regularly meets with colleagues across government to discuss a range of issues.

Motability Operations, an independent commercial company which delivers the Motability Scheme, will continue to prioritise customer needs, ensuring vehicles remain affordable and that support for wheelchair accessible vehicles and specialist adaptations remain at the heart of the Scheme.

Motability Operations has announced plans to support the government’s Modern Industrial Strategy. The number of British-made vehicles purchased by the Scheme will reach 25% by 2030, with an ambition of 50% of vehicles registered on the Scheme being made in the UK by 2035.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking to help ensure that wheelchair accessible vehicles are produced in the United Kingdom.

Answered by Chris McDonald - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Government supports the wheelchair accessible vehicles sector in the UK through investment in innovation, research & development and skills. Our flagship DRIVE35 (Driving Research and Investment in Vehicle Electrification) initiative will support the latest R&D in strategic vehicle technologies, accelerate commercial scale-up, and unlock investment. As part of this ambitious programme, we are committing £4 billion of automotive capital and R&D funding to 2035.

International Epilepsy Day 2026