Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps the Department is taking to help ensure that UK sheep farmers have sufficient access to skilled seasonal shearers for the 2026 shearing season.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

With a national flock of around 30m sheep, Defra recognises the importance that shearing sheep plays in managing the health and welfare of the UK flock. We acknowledge that industry faces continued challenges each year in sourcing sufficient numbers of trained and highly proficient shearers, particularly when individuals can often only utilise these skills for a few months of the year during the short early summer shearing period.

The department is also aware of the role that shearers and sheep farmers from countries such as Australia and New Zealand have provided in sharing skills and expertise with UK sheep farmers as well as in supporting the health and welfare of the UK flock.

Defra continues to work closely with the industry in addressing the challenges they face and to encourage the continued promotion, take up, and delivery of British Wool’s programme to deliver training for domestic sheep shearers. In each of the last five years (2021-2025) British Wool has invested an average of £134,000 net costs in providing shearing training for between 798 and 898 people at skill levels ranging from beginners through to highly proficient commercial shearers.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of adding cystic fibrosis to the list of medical conditions that qualify for exemption from NHS prescription charges.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave to the Hon. Member for Yeovil on 27 January 2026 to Question 107568.

The last review of the prescription charge exemptions for people with long term conditions was conducted in 2009, by Professor Ian Gilmore, the then President of the Royal College of Physicians. His report was published in 2010 and is available on the GOV.UK website, at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/prescription-charges-review-the-gilmore-report

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when the list of medical conditions eligible for exemption from NHS prescription charges was last reviewed; and whether he plans to conduct a further review of that list.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave to the Hon. Member for Yeovil on 27 January 2026 to Question 107568.

The last review of the prescription charge exemptions for people with long term conditions was conducted in 2009, by Professor Ian Gilmore, the then President of the Royal College of Physicians. His report was published in 2010 and is available on the GOV.UK website, at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/prescription-charges-review-the-gilmore-report

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 potential merits of discontinuing the practice of sending letters to pensioners notifying them of small uprating increases, including increases of 25 pence.

Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Department keeps communications with customers under constant review.

We notify individuals of decisions about their benefit, which ensures that they know how much they are entitled to and when and how payment will be made. Letters also inform claimants about their legal responsibilities, such as having to report relevant changes and their legal rights, such as the right of appeal. Individuals' circumstances do change and not everybody receives the same rate of payment every year.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance and support are provided to schools to meet basic first aid requirements in the curriculum, including cardiopulmonary resuscitation and defibrillator awareness.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

I refer the hon. Member for Farnham and Bordon to the answer provided on 26 February 2026 to Question 111782.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care what assessment he has made of the feasibility and cost implications of introducing rotating health warnings on alcohol products, including for long‑lifecycle products such as wine.

Answered by Ashley Dalton

The recently published National Cancer Plan reiterated the commitment made in Fit for the Future: 10-Year Health Plan for England, to strengthen and expand on existing voluntary guidelines for alcohol labelling by introducing a mandatory requirement for alcoholic drinks to display consistent nutritional information and health warning messages.

Department officials are currently exploring and assessing the potential options for and impacts of delivering this policy commitment, which includes reviewing all available and emerging evidence, and considering stakeholder feedback, having just completed a round of stakeholder engagement.

The Department is working towards opening a consultation in late 2026, setting out the options under consideration, for the public and business to respond to.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has assessed the potential merits of using QR codes or digital labelling to supplement mandatory on‑label health warnings.

Answered by Ashley Dalton

The recently published National Cancer Plan reiterated the commitment made in Fit for the Future: 10-Year Health Plan for England, to strengthen and expand on existing voluntary guidelines for alcohol labelling by introducing a mandatory requirement for alcoholic drinks to display consistent nutritional information and health warning messages.

Department officials are currently exploring and assessing the potential options for and impacts of delivering this policy commitment, which includes reviewing all available and emerging evidence, and considering stakeholder feedback, having just completed a round of stakeholder engagement.

The Department is working towards opening a consultation in late 2026, setting out the options under consideration, for the public and business to respond to.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether mandatory alcohol labelling requirements will apply to both on‑trade and off‑trade settings.

Answered by Ashley Dalton

The recently published National Cancer Plan reiterated the commitment made in Fit for the Future: 10-Year Health Plan for England, to strengthen and expand on existing voluntary guidelines for alcohol labelling by introducing a mandatory requirement for alcoholic drinks to display consistent nutritional information and health warning messages.

Department officials are currently exploring and assessing the potential options for and impacts of delivering this policy commitment, which includes reviewing all available and emerging evidence, and considering stakeholder feedback, having just completed a round of stakeholder engagement.

The Department is working towards opening a consultation in late 2026, setting out the options under consideration, for the public and business to respond to.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans his Department has to develop a definition of health warning for the purposes of alcohol labelling reforms.

Answered by Ashley Dalton

The recently published National Cancer Plan reiterated the commitment made in Fit for the Future: 10-Year Health Plan for England, to strengthen and expand on existing voluntary guidelines for alcohol labelling by introducing a mandatory requirement for alcoholic drinks to display consistent nutritional information and health warning messages.

Department officials are currently exploring and assessing the potential options for and impacts of delivering this policy commitment, which includes reviewing all available and emerging evidence, and considering stakeholder feedback, having just completed a round of stakeholder engagement.

The Department is working towards opening a consultation in late 2026, setting out the options under consideration, for the public and business to respond to.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the National Cancer Plan for England, if he will set out the formats for mandatory health warnings on alcohol labels that his Department is considering, including whether these include text‑only warnings, cancer‑specific messaging, imagery, rotating labels, and pictograms.

Answered by Ashley Dalton

The recently published National Cancer Plan reiterated the commitment made in Fit for the Future: 10-Year Health Plan for England, to strengthen and expand on existing voluntary guidelines for alcohol labelling by introducing a mandatory requirement for alcoholic drinks to display consistent nutritional information and health warning messages.

Department officials are currently exploring and assessing the potential options for and impacts of delivering this policy commitment, which includes reviewing all available and emerging evidence, and considering stakeholder feedback, having just completed a round of stakeholder engagement.

The Department is working towards opening a consultation in late 2026, setting out the options under consideration, for the public and business to respond to.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of mandatory alcohol health warnings for regulatory alignment with the EU, Ireland, and other trading partners.

Answered by Ashley Dalton

In both the Fit for the Future: 10-Year Health Plan for England and the National Cancer Plan for England, the Government committed to strengthen and expand on existing voluntary guidelines for alcohol labelling by introducing a mandatory requirement for alcoholic drinks to display consistent nutritional information and health warning messages.

Department officials have recently completed a round of stakeholder engagement regarding the policy. We are working at pace to review all available and emerging evidence.

This work will inform the development assessment of policy options that will be set out in formal consultation which we are working towards opening in late 2026. International alignment will be considered as part of the process, taking into account the outcome of the Sanitary and Phytosanitary (Agri-Food) Agreement negotiations with the European Union.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the National Cancer Plan for England, what empirical evidence his Department is reviewing to inform the design of mandatory alcohol health warnings, including those used in South Korea and Ireland.

Answered by Ashley Dalton

The recently published National Cancer Plan reiterated the commitment made in Fit for the Future: 10-Year Health Plan for England, to strengthen and expand on existing voluntary guidelines for alcohol labelling by introducing a mandatory requirement for alcoholic drinks to display consistent nutritional information and health warning messages.

Department officials are working at pace to review all available and emerging evidence. This includes data from a broad range of countries and engaging with a wide range of national and international stakeholders, including stakeholder feedback provided at and after the recent roundtables.

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 encourage community organisations, schools, and workplaces in Farnham and Bordon to register their Automated External Defibrillators on the Circuit Defibrillator Network.

Answered by Ashley Dalton

In order to increase survival rates from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest NHS England has worked in partnership with St John’s Ambulance and others to increase access to cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training. Local ambulance trusts, charities, including St John’s Ambulance and the British Heart Foundation, and private providers deliver CPR training and training on the use of defibrillators both in the community and in schools, under the Restart a Heart programme.

The Government’s position is that local communities, including in Farnham and Bordon, are best placed to make decisions about procuring, locating, and maintaining automated external defibrillators (AEDs). Over 110,000 defibrillators are registered in the United Kingdom on The Circuit, the independent AED database. Over 30,000 of these have been added in the past two years, many as a result of local community led action.

It is not uncommon for charities supplying defibrillators through a fund to require those defibrillators to be registered on The Circuit. Defibrillator charities also promote The Circuit on their website.

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 (a) increase survival rates from out-of-hospital cardiac arrests and (b) increase the availability of defibrillators in Farnham and Bordon.

Answered by Ashley Dalton

In order to increase survival rates from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest NHS England has worked in partnership with St John’s Ambulance and others to increase access to cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training. Local ambulance trusts, charities, including St John’s Ambulance and the British Heart Foundation, and private providers deliver CPR training and training on the use of defibrillators both in the community and in schools, under the Restart a Heart programme.

The Government’s position is that local communities, including in Farnham and Bordon, are best placed to make decisions about procuring, locating, and maintaining automated external defibrillators (AEDs). Over 110,000 defibrillators are registered in the United Kingdom on The Circuit, the independent AED database. Over 30,000 of these have been added in the past two years, many as a result of local community led action.

It is not uncommon for charities supplying defibrillators through a fund to require those defibrillators to be registered on The Circuit. Defibrillator charities also promote The Circuit on their website.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of proposed mandatory alcohol labelling reforms on producers, small businesses, supply chains and exporters.

Answered by Ashley Dalton

The recently published National Cancer Plan reiterated the commitment made in Fit for the Future: 10-Year Health Plan for England, to strengthen and expand on existing voluntary guidelines for alcohol labelling by introducing a mandatory requirement for alcoholic drinks to display consistent nutritional information and health warning messages.

Department officials are currently exploring and assessing the potential options for and impacts of delivering this policy commitment, which includes reviewing all available and emerging evidence, and considering stakeholder feedback, having just completed a round of stakeholder engagement.

The Department is working towards opening a consultation in late 2026, setting out the options under consideration, for the public and business to respond to.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to ensure industry and civil society are prepared for the forthcoming consultation on mandatory alcohol labelling; and whether draft policy scenarios will be shared with Parliament ahead of its launch of a consultation.

Answered by Ashley Dalton

In Fit for the Future: 10 Year Health Plan for England, the Government committed to strengthening and expanding existing voluntary guidelines for alcohol labelling by introducing a mandatory requirement for alcoholic drinks to display consistent nutritional information and health warning messages. The plan can be accessed online at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/10-year-health-plan-for-england-fit-for-the-future

The Department is working towards opening a consultation in late 2026, setting out the options under consideration, for the public and businesses to respond to. The consultation will be prepared in line with guidance on seeking collective agreement across Government departments.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care when he plans to publish draft designs for mandatory alcohol health warnings; and what his planned timetable is for (a) consultation on and (b) the implementation of those warnings.

Answered by Ashley Dalton

In Fit for the Future: 10 Year Health Plan for England, the Government committed to strengthening and expanding existing voluntary guidelines for alcohol labelling by introducing a mandatory requirement for alcoholic drinks to display consistent nutritional information and health warning messages. The plan can be accessed online at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/10-year-health-plan-for-england-fit-for-the-future

The Department is working towards opening a consultation in late 2026, setting out the options under consideration, for the public and businesses to respond to. The consultation will be prepared in line with guidance on seeking collective agreement across Government departments.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reason dual British-Australian nationals, including children of such nationals who were born in Australia, will be required to hold a UK passport or a Certificate of Entitlement to enter the UK from 26 February 2026; what steps her Department is taking to support such people; and for what reason such requirements do not apply to dual British-Irish nationals.

Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

Under UK immigration legislation, a dual British Citizen is not eligible for an Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA). Dual British citizens should prove their permission to travel and enter the UK border with a valid British passport or a passport containing a Certificate of Entitlement (CoE) to the right of abode. Without either of these documents, they risk being refused boarding when travelling to the UK from 25 February 2026. We have delivered a comprehensive range of communications and engaged with an extensive network of stakeholders, including global carriers and operators. We have sent emails to those impacted and have included information for dual citizens in our ETA communications campaign which has been running since 2023.

Irish citizens, including dual citizens, are also exempt from the ETA requirement.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has made an assessment of the risk to public safety arising from the publication of sensitive information relating to the physical security of properties on local authority planning registers.

Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer given to UIN 106884 on 27 January 2026 by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether the consultation on children’s use of social media will include the option of requiring social media platforms to provide personal user controls over algorithmic content delivery.

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

The consultation, published 2^nd March, on children’s use of technology, considers a range of further measures to give children a good life online, ensuring they have the childhood they deserve and are prepared for the future.

This includes exploring the option of banning social media below for children below a certain age, as well as restricting access to risky functionalities and “addictive” features – including content recommendation algorithms.

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