Asked by: David Smith (Labour - North Northumberland)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what discussions she has had with Ofcom on considering the needs of rural broadband investment in the Telecoms Access Review.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
As the independent regulator for telecommunications, Ofcom is responsible for making regulatory decisions in the fixed telecoms sector and is currently finalising its Telecoms Access Review.
DSIT officials regularly engage with Ofcom on these issues. In July, we published our draft updated Statement of Strategic Priorities to Ofcom that sets out the government’s view on the importance of competition to promote investment in broadband deployment across the UK, including in rural areas.
In non-commercially viable, often rural, areas, more than £2.4 billion of Project Gigabit contracts have already been signed to connect over one million premises with gigabit-capable broadband.
Asked by: David Smith (Labour - North Northumberland)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when she plans to publish the Integrated National Transport Strategy for England, following the closure of the call for evidence on 20 February 2025.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department is committed to publishing the integrated national transport strategy shortly, which will set the long‑term vision for domestic transport across England.
Asked by: David Smith (Labour - North Northumberland)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what reassurance she can give to farmers whose cashflow relies on Higher Tier payments arriving in early December and who have not received their payments yet from the Rural Payments Agency.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The 2025 payment window opened on 1 December, and by mid-December around three quarters of eligible farmers had already received their Countryside Stewardship and Environmental Stewardship payments. The Agency continues to work hard improving payment performance and to deliver all remaining eligible Countryside Stewardship and Environmental Stewardship payments as quickly as possible.
Asked by: David Smith (Labour - North Northumberland)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the Rural Payments Agency’s performance in delivering Higher Tier and other payments in early December in line with past expectations.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The 2025 payment window opened on 1 December, and by mid-December around three quarters of eligible farmers had already received their Countryside Stewardship and Environmental Stewardship payments. The Agency continues to work hard improving payment performance and to deliver all remaining eligible Countryside Stewardship and Environmental Stewardship payments as quickly as possible.
Asked by: David Smith (Labour - North Northumberland)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help increase funding for education for children around the world.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is a world leader in championing safe, inclusive, quality education, working in partnership with governments and multilaterals to deliver the education that all children deserve. In a context of scarce resources, the UK is working to increase both the volume and effectiveness of global and national financial investments in education, including supporting innovative financing mechanisms such as the International Finance Facility for Education.
Asked by: David Smith (Labour - North Northumberland)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the allegations relating to the (a treatment and (b) location of Y Qunyh Bdap from Vietnam; and what discussions she has had with her counterparts in Vietnam on his (i) location, (iI) wellbeing and (iii) access to legal counsel and independent monitoring.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 11 November in response to Question 83589. The UK raised the case of Y Quynh Bdap in our statement at the UN Human Rights Council in September 2025. On 19 December, the UK Human Rights Ambassador and Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva, Eleanor Sanders, also raised the UK's position on this case with Thailand's Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva, Usana Berananda.
Asked by: David Smith (Labour - North Northumberland)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he will take to remove barriers to accessing a social home for those most in need.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government has already taken action to remove barriers for those most in need of access to social housing, including exempting former members of the regular armed forces, young care leavers under 25 and victims of domestic abuse from local connection tests.
As announced in the government’s National Plan to End Homelessness on 11 December, we will work with partners to update statutory guidance on social housing allocations to ensure that allocations reflect local need and ensure homes go to those who need them the most.
Asked by: David Smith (Labour - North Northumberland)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that patients awaiting elective surgery are provided with clear and timely information about their position on waiting lists; and whether his Department has considered introducing a system that allows patients to (a) track their approximate place in the queue and (b) receive regular updates on expected waiting times.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to putting patients first. This means making sure patients are seen on time and have the information they need to have the best possible experience of care.
As set out in the Elective Reform Plan, published January 2025, patients should expect clear communications that meet their needs throughout their time on a waiting list. This includes information about how long they might wait for their appointment and details about how and when to contact their provider. We are currently working with patients and carers to publish minimum standards patients should expect while they wait for planned care. This includes considering patients’ communication needs.
We have also taken steps to deliver important digital interventions to ensure patients can receive clear and timely information whilst waiting for care. Since March 2025, patients at 87% of hospitals can view information about their elective appointments, estimated waiting times, and average waiting times by specialty on the NHS App. By March 2027, we will significantly improve information about waiting times on the NHS App for patients in elective care and will expand proxy access for parents and carers. We will also review the role and functionality of My Planned Care, which currently provides average waiting times and other information for patients waiting for care. High quality non-digital options should always be in place for those that need them.
Asked by: David Smith (Labour - North Northumberland)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to her Department's press release entitled Mirror, signal, manoeuvres: Military driving examiners mobilised to cut test backlog, published on 12 November 2025, whether an impact assessment has been conducted on the changes to the driving test booking system, including on driving instructors, and vulnerable or neurodiverse learners; and what assessment she has made of the potential merits of allowing approved driving instructors to book driving tests on behalf of pupils under the new system.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
To ensure fairness for everyone wanting to book a practical driving test, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) continues to work hard to combat the unscrupulous practice of reselling tests across the country. The measures the Secretary of State for Transport announced on 12 November are designed to make the practical driving test booking process fairer, providing all learners with equal access to the booking system and ensuring that everyone pays the prescribed fee.
The decision follows a call for evidence and a public consultation that sought views from the driver training industry, learner drivers and other interested parties. In reaching this decision, impacts were fully considered. Further detail on the rationale, which will set out the detailed analysis, will be provided in the consultation report which will be published shortly.
DVSA is aware that some learners will need support to book tests, particularly those with accessibility requirements or learning difficulties. DVSA is working through the details to ensure no one is disadvantaged and will discuss practical solutions with the driver training industry ahead of implementation.
Asked by: David Smith (Labour - North Northumberland)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans her Department has to publish an evaluation framework for the regulatory approval of supervised autonomous vehicle technologies, including indicative timelines.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Automated Vehicles Act 2024 (the Act) provides the powers to regulate the safe use of automated vehicles. Full implementation of the Act, including provisions for authorising self-driving vehicles, is on-track for the second half of 2027. The regulatory framework will be implemented through secondary legislation and guidance and will include a requirement for the Secretary of State to monitor and assess the general performance of authorised automated vehicles. This report must be published on an annual basis following implementation of the Act and the granting of the first authorisation.