Asked by: Desmond Swayne (Conservative - New Forest West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has of the potential impact of removing the waiting period for statutory sick pay on the number of claims made by agency workers; and what steps he plans to take to ensure that the removal of the waiting period does not result in fraudulent or duplicate claims from agency workers.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Strengthening Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) is part of the Government’s commitment to implement our Plan to Make Work Pay. The Government conducted a Regulatory Impact Assessment here on the impact of the SSP measures, including the removal of the waiting period in the Employment Rights Bill.
Whilst this is not a specific assessment on the impact on recruitment agencies or agency workers, the Government believes that the SSP measures strike the right balance between providing financial security to employees and limiting additional costs to employers, including agencies. The Bill ensures that people who work through employment agencies and employment businesses have comparable rights and protections to their counterparts who are directly employed. Employers, including those in the recruitment sector, are best placed to manage sickness absences and ensuring employees receive appropriate support. If employers have the right policies and practices in place, risks of inappropriate absenteeism can be mitigated.
The Government intends to conduct a post-implementation review (PIR) of the Employment Rights Bill within five years of implementation. The impact of the measures to strengthen Statutory Sick Pay will be monitored on employers and employees alike. This can include considering the impact on workers in the agency sector.
Asked by: Desmond Swayne (Conservative - New Forest West)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether it is his policy to seek UK participation in the Security Action for Europe instrument.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
As outlined in the Minister for Cabinet Office’s Written Ministerial Statement on 1 December, we entered good-faith negotiations on SAFE participation, but no agreement was possible that met our national interest. UK industry retains access under third-country terms. We will continue to explore cooperation with the EU that strengthens European Security and underpins our NATO First policy.
The UK has a long history of collaborating with our European partners on major defence projects, which will continue, regardless of participation in SAFE. This year, we have struck a £10 billion deal with Norway, secured an £8 billion agreement with Türkiye, and signed an agreement with Germany to pursue joint export campaigns for jointly produced equipment like Boxer armoured vehicles.
Asked by: Desmond Swayne (Conservative - New Forest West)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether his Department has conducted international comparisons on the definition of low hours to inform how the threshold for low hours is set and the reference periods used to calculate guaranteed hours for temporary and agency workers.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The definition of the hours threshold and the length and frequency of reference periods will depend on the outcome of the forthcoming consultation on the details of the measures to end exploitative zero hours contracts.
We have considered international examples of employment rights in developing this consultation. Many countries have taken steps to restrict or prohibit zero-hours contracts altogether. For example, New Zealand and Norway have banned their use, while Ireland allows them only in limited circumstances, and both the Netherlands and Finland require employers to offer contracts on equivalent terms to workers who regularly work a consistent shift pattern.
Asked by: Desmond Swayne (Conservative - New Forest West)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, under the provisions of the Employment Rights Bill, in what circumstances will responsibility for providing guaranteed hours to an agency worker default from the end hirer to the employment agency.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The government will consult on the details of the measures to end exploitative zero hours contracts to inform regulations. Decisions on the circumstances in which regulations might place the duty to offer agency workers guaranteed hours on the agency or another intermediary in the supply chain, as opposed to the end hirer, will depend on the outcome of this consultation.
Asked by: Desmond Swayne (Conservative - New Forest West)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he has made an assessment of how reasonable notice periods may vary for agency workers in sectors that require high levels of flexibility or short notice.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The government understands that what should be considered reasonable notice will differ depending on different sectors and circumstances. Regulations will specify how much notice should be ‘presumed reasonable’ as well as other factors that should be considered when determining whether the notice was reasonable or not, as opposed to setting a single notice period to be deemed reasonable in all cases. Decisions on these regulations will depend on the outcome of the forthcoming consultation on the details of the measures to end exploitative zero hours contracts.
Asked by: Desmond Swayne (Conservative - New Forest West)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when she plans to publish the Integrated National Transport Strategy.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Integrated National Transport Strategy will be published early next year and set the long-term vision for domestic transport across England.
Asked by: Desmond Swayne (Conservative - New Forest West)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what engagement she has had with organisations representing motorcyclists in preparation for the Integrated National Transport Strategy.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The department has conducted extensive research and engagement with stakeholders and members of the public to inform the strategy. We have heard directly from motorcyclists and motorcycle representative groups, including the Motorcycle Action Group, through our Call for Ideas which closed with 6,340 responses and an 11-stop Regional Roadshow across England.
The insights gathered through our engagement activities have been analysed and are directly informing the strategy as it continues to evolve. The strategy will seek to address the main barriers people face in accessing good transport that were identified through our engagement.
Officials also met bilaterally with the Motorcycle Action Group on 29 August 2025 to respond to a range of matters of concern to motorcyclists which included an update on the development of the strategy. An update was also provided at the most recent meeting of the officials-led Motorcycle Strategic Focus Group on 15 September, chaired by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency.
Asked by: Desmond Swayne (Conservative - New Forest West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions she has had with her Nigerian counterpart on the recent abduction of students and teachers from St. Mary’s Catholic Primary and Secondary School in Papiri; and what diplomatic steps she is taking to help ensure their release.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon Member to the Written Ministerial Statement of 27 November 2025.
Asked by: Desmond Swayne (Conservative - New Forest West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will take steps to ensure that Pupil Premium Plus is not absorbed into school budgets but is spent spent specifically on adopted the children that qualified for the payment.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The pupil premium grant provides funding to schools to improve educational outcomes for disadvantaged pupils. ‘Pupil premium plus’ (PP+) refers to the portion of the pupil premium grant for children who are looked after by the local authority or were previously looked after by a local authority or other state care.
Pupil premium funding, including PP+, is not a personal budget for individual pupils. It is for schools to decide how to allocate the funding after assessing the needs of their disadvantaged cohort, including looked after and previously looked after children. Statutory guidance is clear that the school’s designated teacher should ensure the specific needs of the PP+ cohort are understood by the school’s staff and reflected in how the school uses PP+ to support these children. They should encourage parents and guardians’ involvement in deciding how the PP+ is used.
Maintained schools and academies must publish strategy statements setting out their planned use of pupil premium.
Asked by: Desmond Swayne (Conservative - New Forest West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions she had had with her counterpart in Bangladesh on recent targeted attacks on St Mary’s Cathedral and St Joseph’s School in Dhaka; and what steps she is taking to help ensure the protection of Christians in Bangladesh.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We condemn all acts of violence in Bangladesh, including those on 7-8 November, and we regularly raise issues of justice, accountability and the protection of fundamental rights, including Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB), with Bangladesh's Interim Government.
In February 2025, the UK's Human Rights Ambassador, Eleanor Sanders, discussed these issues on her visit to Bangladesh, and during her visit on 13-14 November, the Minister of State for International Development and Africa highlighted to Chief Adviser Professor Yunus the importance of democratic transition, human rights and reconciliation.
The UK's commitment to these issues is also reflected in our £27 million Collaborative, Accountable and Peaceful Politics programme in Bangladesh, which aims to protect civic space, foster inclusive dialogue and address tensions that can lead to violence.