Asked by: Gareth Bacon (Conservative - Orpington)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the outcome of the Fair Funding Review 2.0 on the London Borough of Bromley.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government has been listening closely to the views expressed by the public, local authorities and other stakeholder bodies on the proposals set out in the Fair Funding Review 2.0 consultation.
No final decisions on the outcome of the review have yet been taken. However, the government’s proposals will target central government grant funding to where it is needed the most. The vast majority of councils with social care responsibilities will see their Core Spending Power increase in real terms over the multi-year Settlement.
We will publish further information in the government’s consultation response in Autumn, followed by the provisional Local Government Finance Settlement later this year.
Asked by: Gareth Bacon (Conservative - Orpington)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the outcome of the Fair Funding Review 2.0 on local authorities in London.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government has been listening closely to the views expressed by the public, local authorities and other stakeholder bodies on the proposals set out in the Fair Funding Review 2.0 consultation.
No final decisions on the outcome of the review have yet been taken. However, the government’s proposals will target central government grant funding to where it is needed the most. The vast majority of councils with social care responsibilities will see their Core Spending Power increase in real terms over the multi-year Settlement.
We will publish further information in the government’s consultation response in Autumn, followed by the provisional Local Government Finance Settlement later this year.
Asked by: Gareth Bacon (Conservative - Orpington)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of applying VAT to private hire journeys outside London on the private hire industry.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Private hire vehicle services provided by VAT-registered businesses are, and always have been, subject to VAT. The Government continues to take the issue of VAT treatment of private hire vehicle services seriously and recognises the importance of clarity to the sector. It is right, however, that decisions on tax policy are taken at fiscal events in the context of overall public finances. The Government will therefore publish a response to the consultation soon.
Asked by: Gareth Bacon (Conservative - Orpington)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what her Department's planned timetable is for publishing its response to the consultation entitled VAT Treatment of Private Hire Vehicles, which closed on 8 August 2024.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Private hire vehicle services provided by VAT-registered businesses are, and always have been, subject to VAT. The Government continues to take the issue of VAT treatment of private hire vehicle services seriously and recognises the importance of clarity to the sector. It is right, however, that decisions on tax policy are taken at fiscal events in the context of overall public finances. The Government will therefore publish a response to the consultation soon.
Asked by: Gareth Bacon (Conservative - Orpington)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to support (a) ports and (b) shipping companies to (i) cut emissions and (ii) transition to clean fuels.
Answered by Mike Kane
In March 2025, we published the Maritime Decarbonisation Strategy, setting out our plans for decarbonising the domestic maritime sector. Alongside the Strategy, we also published the Net Zero Ports call for evidence that explores the opportunities and barriers to reducing emissions at berth, with a focus on the role ports can play in enabling their tenants and the shipping sector to decarbonise. All policies will go through formal consultation before implementation, including with a formal consultation on fuel regulations next year.
The UK Shipping Office for Reducing Emissions (UK SHORE) programme in the Department for Transport provides Research and Development funding to accelerate the technologies necessary to decarbonise the UK maritime sector. Between April 2022 and March 2025, UK SHORE allocated over £200 million to more than 150 projects across the UK. In January 2025, UK SHORE announced a further £30 million funding for the current financial year (April 2025-March 2026) to continue to build on the success of UK SHORE.
Asked by: Gareth Bacon (Conservative - Orpington)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department holds information on whether asylum (a) claimants and (b) applicants have previously successfully claimed asylum in an EU member state.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
A proper account of a claimant’s immigration history is taken as part of the screening process, and during the substantive asylum interview where necessary, to fully understand the chronology and detail of how the person came to the UK, including the circumstances of their departure from their country of origin, their reasons for leaving apparently safe countries and, where relevant, the opportunity they had to claim asylum there and any reasons given for not doing so.
Asked by: Gareth Bacon (Conservative - Orpington)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make it her policy to retain passive provision for the HS2 junction north of Birmingham Interchange.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Department’s priority is on delivering Phase 1 at the lowest reasonable cost. We continue to review the wider position we inherited on rail infrastructure and will announce more details in due course.
Asked by: Gareth Bacon (Conservative - Orpington)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make it her policy to retain passive provision for the HS2 junction at Fradley/Streethay.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Department’s priority is on delivering Phase 1 at the lowest reasonable cost. We continue to review the wider position we inherited on rail infrastructure and will announce more details in due course.
Asked by: Gareth Bacon (Conservative - Orpington)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to ensure that more than ten HS2 services can be accommodated at Euston station when required.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The new HS2 Euston station will consist of 6 platforms, which can support up to 10 HS2 trains per hour. We are considering whether and how to future-proof the station with additional platforms, to accommodate any longer-term expansion.
Asked by: Gareth Bacon (Conservative - Orpington)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will take steps to renew the land purchase powers contained in the HS2 West Midlands to Crewe hybrid Bill before they expire in February 2026.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
I am aware of the limitations on land purchase powers contained in the High Speed Rail (West Midlands to Crewe) Act 2021. This government is carefully reviewing the position it has inherited on HS2 and wider rail infrastructure and I will set out detailed plans in due course.