Asked by: Darren Paffey (Labour - Southampton Itchen)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what the remit is of the external remediation team at the Building Safety Regulator; and how it is engaging with stakeholders on applications.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The External Remediation team assess building control applications for proposed remediation works to the external envelope of a building, such as cladding, renders, and balconies. Individual team members liaise with the applicant throughout the application lifecycle, updating them on key milestones and offering wider support through regular educational webinars. An Account Manager function was established in March 2026 responsible for proactively identifying and engaging with key stakeholders to support improvements in the quality of applications.
A new Remediation Enforcement Unit (REU) became operational in March 2026. The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) has identified 650 registered higher-risk buildings that have either combustible Aluminium Composite Material (ACM) or high-pressure laminate as part of their external wall system. The principal accountable persons of buildings with combustible ACM have been directed to apply for a building assessment certificate and are already being assessed via that route.
During April, the REU will contact the remaining buildings to ask for a relevant fire risk assessment and plan, and check that the removal (of cladding) proposal is appropriate to the materials and layout.
The REU is also investigating 83 buildings referred to the BSR by the Cladding Safety Scheme (run by Homes England) with unconfirmed combustible materials. The REU has ruled out 20 of these buildings as not having combustible materials, with the remainder being contacted to provide the necessary fire risk assessments and plans.
Asked by: Darren Paffey (Labour - Southampton Itchen)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what progress the remediation enforcement unit within the Building Safety Regulator has made on its objectives.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The External Remediation team assess building control applications for proposed remediation works to the external envelope of a building, such as cladding, renders, and balconies. Individual team members liaise with the applicant throughout the application lifecycle, updating them on key milestones and offering wider support through regular educational webinars. An Account Manager function was established in March 2026 responsible for proactively identifying and engaging with key stakeholders to support improvements in the quality of applications.
A new Remediation Enforcement Unit (REU) became operational in March 2026. The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) has identified 650 registered higher-risk buildings that have either combustible Aluminium Composite Material (ACM) or high-pressure laminate as part of their external wall system. The principal accountable persons of buildings with combustible ACM have been directed to apply for a building assessment certificate and are already being assessed via that route.
During April, the REU will contact the remaining buildings to ask for a relevant fire risk assessment and plan, and check that the removal (of cladding) proposal is appropriate to the materials and layout.
The REU is also investigating 83 buildings referred to the BSR by the Cladding Safety Scheme (run by Homes England) with unconfirmed combustible materials. The REU has ruled out 20 of these buildings as not having combustible materials, with the remainder being contacted to provide the necessary fire risk assessments and plans.
Asked by: Darren Paffey (Labour - Southampton Itchen)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will publish details of the new batching model being trialled by the Building Safety Regulator to reduce the length of time taken to assess building control applications, including the number of applications being considered.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) publishes monthly data on Building Control Approval applications, including progress on the batching pilot launched in September 2025. Latest data, published in February 2026, showed average approval times for new cases of 18 weeks, representing an almost threefold improvement in processing times when compared to May-July 2025. More complex cases managed through Account Managers are taking around 25 weeks on average for approval.
The BSR has also addressed the backlog of legacy Gateway 2 applications through a substantial expansion of operational capacity and the integration of specialist expertise. These measures have strengthened decision-making, sped up the processing of both new‑build and remediation cases, and supported more efficient partnership working with industry.
In parallel, enhanced guidance, developed jointly with the Construction Leadership Council, is supporting applicants to submit clearer, higher‑quality applications that demonstrate compliance, helping to further reduce determination times.
There are currently four live Gateway 2 applications within the Stockport constituency (SK1–SK5): two remediation cases and two Category A applications.
Asked by: Darren Paffey (Labour - Southampton Itchen)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to promote the National Year of Reading 2026 in educational settings.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
This government has committed to strong foundations in reading and writing for all children, to help every child achieve and thrive at school.
We know that reading for pleasure is hugely important and brings a range of benefits, including strong links with attainment, wellbeing, empathy, confidence, and aptitude for learning, with reading holding the key to accessing the rest of the curriculum. However, recent evidence shows that only one in three children report enjoying reading in their free time with just one in five reading daily. This is even lower for certain groups, for example, in 2025, just 25.7% of boys aged 8-18 said they enjoy reading, compared to 39.1% of girls.
The National Year of Reading 2026 is a UK wide campaign to address the decline in reading for pleasure. It includes a major physical and online marketing campaign, as well as exciting events, webinars, resources, and activities in communities, libraries, schools and early years settings throughout the year. It encourages people of all ages to “Go All In” and explore reading as a way to deepen their interests and passions.
As part of the National Year of Reading, we are investing an additional £5 million for secondary schools to purchase books and other reading material to promote reading enjoyment amongst their pupils. This funding will be distributed during 2026, and further details will be communicated to schools in due course.
In addition to this, we have committed over £10 million, via the Dormant Assets Strategy, to ensure every primary school in England has a library by the end of this parliament.
These initiatives demonstrate our commitment to ensuring that every child has access to high-quality reading opportunities, to inspire a love of reading that lasts a lifetime. We also look forward to engaging with the Education Select Committee’s inquiry into Reading for Pleasure and reviewing its findings.
Asked by: Darren Paffey (Labour - Southampton Itchen)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of alternative arrangements for British dual nationals travelling to the UK who do not hold a British (a) passport and (b) certificate of entitlement but are unable to obtain an Electronic Travel Authorisation as British citizens.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
British citizens seeking to enter the UK may only evidence their right of abode in the UK at the border with a valid British passport, or other passport endorsed with a certificate of entitlement to the right of abode. On 26 February 2026, certificates of entitlement transitioned from physical vignettes in passports to digital records. There are no plans to make alternative arrangements at this time.
Asked by: Darren Paffey (Labour - Southampton Itchen)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of HGV testing capacity provided by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency in Southampton; what assessment she has made of the potential impact of examiner shortages on (a) vocational test volumes, (b) driver recruitment pipelines and (c) supply chain resilience in major port cities; and what steps she is taking to increase HGV testing capacity in those areas.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) is committed to ensuring there are sufficient vocational driving tests to meet demand from the HGV and PSV training sector across the country, including in major port cities. In 2024/25, the national average waiting time for a vocational practical test was 4.9 weeks.
Whilst DVSA is continuing to deploy examiner resource to vocational testing, it needs to ensure this is done in a way which balances all of the demands on DVSA’s examiner resource.
DVSA business account managers are working closely with training providers to understand when and where large goods vehicle tests are required and if there is likely to be any peaks in demand.
There are several vocational test sites that serve customers in Southampton, and currently there are not any known delays in test availability for these sites. The vocational testing waiting time in the DVSA regional zone in which Southampton is situated, is currently 2.6 weeks. The national average, as of 9 February, is 3.9 weeks.
Asked by: Darren Paffey (Labour - Southampton Itchen)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of (a) existing mechanisms for an employee to raise concerns about an occupational health provider appointed by their employer and (b) independent oversight of the conduct and quality of these providers.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Employers are responsible for providing a mechanism for employees to raise concerns about an occupational health provider through their own industrial relations arrangements. Concerns about the quality and conduct of occupational health practitioners should be taken to the relevant professional body, such as the General Medical Council (GMC), Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) and the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC).
Asked by: Darren Paffey (Labour - Southampton Itchen)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment has been made of the potential impact of recent UK Research and Innovation and The Science and Technology Facilities Council's decisions to reduce funding for particle physics, nuclear physics and astronomy on (a) the training and retention of highly skilled graduates and (b) the UK’s long-term economic growth, scientific capability and international standing.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
DSIT and UKRI remain committed to international scientific collaboration, and UKRI’s record £38.6 billion settlement over the Spending Review will support areas including talent, scientific capability and international collaboration, including £14 billion in curiosity-driven research that underpins long-term economic growth.
The Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) within UKRI is currently consulting with the scientific community about spending priorities within their settlement ahead of determining final allocations. No final spending decisions have been made.
Due to a rising cost base, choices are required to put the council on a financially sustainable footing. As part of this consultation, STFC is working with the sector to model scenarios for its portfolio in particle physics, astronomy and nuclear physics. The impacts of these different spending scenarios will be considered alongside feedback from the sector when taking final decisions.
UKRI’s CEO Sir Ian Chapman has confirmed that STFC’s core budget will hold relatively flat from £835 million to £842 million over the Spending Review period. Applicant-led research in STFC will increase from £83 million in 2026/27 to £90 million by 2029/30. As legacy commitments/awards come to their conclusion, headroom will also open up for UKRI-funded research and innovation under its government and societal priorities allocation which is open for competition.
Separately, informed by independent expert advice from UKRI’s Infrastructure Advisory Committee in late December, UKRI decided to stop several Infrastructure Fund projects, including some international projects in particle physics. These decisions have enabled UKRI to continue investing in other essential projects that seek to strengthen scientific capability and attract private investment.
DSIT has been in active dialogue with UKRI to ensure that any implications from funding decisions are fully understood and that they reflect both the UK’s strategic research priorities and its global commitments. DSIT has asked UKRI to ensure that its final allocations are informed by meaningful consultation with the research community and a robust assessment of potential consequences for the UK’s scientific capability and international standing.
Asked by: Darren Paffey (Labour - Southampton Itchen)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of requiring planning permission to change residential homes to short-term lets.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
While short-term lets can benefit local economies, the government recognise that excessive concentrations of them impact on the availability and affordability of homes for local residents to buy and rent, as well as local services.
We are considering what additional powers we might give local authorities to enable them to respond to the pressures created by short-term lets as well as second homes.
Asked by: Darren Paffey (Labour - Southampton Itchen)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when the proposed mandatory national register for short term lets will be introduced.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
We are committed to the introduction of the new national short-term lets registration service as soon as possible. The service entered user testing at the end of October 2025 to ensure it is robust, easy to use and meets the needs of the scheme, ahead of its public launch in 2026.