Asked by: Henry Tufnell (Labour - Mid and South Pembrokeshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of insourcing the Civil Service Pensions Scheme.
Answered by Sally Jameson - Parliamentary Secretary and Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government)
We are actively developing a strategy the options for the long-term delivery of the scheme, including options to bring scheme administration back in-house in line with our manifesto commitment to oversee the biggest wave of insourcing of public services in a generation, and we will update on this in due course.
Asked by: Henry Tufnell (Labour - Mid and South Pembrokeshire)
Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of (a) banning imports into the UK of goods and services originating from illegal settlements in the West Bank and (b) prohibiting the export of UK goods and services to illegal settlements in the West Bank.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade) (Jointly with the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The UK is clear that Israel's illegal settlements and decisions designed to further them are a flagrant violation of international law. The measures announced by the Foreign Secretary on 8 September will restrict the import of goods originating in illegal settlements into the UK. Furthermore, we are taking action on services, creating new designation powers to go after individuals and companies that support, facilitate or profit from illegal settlement activity. In addition, we will ban advertising or promotion of land and property in illegal settlements and strengthen our existing global human rights sanctions regime to go after those who defy international humanitarian law, in Palestine, and around the world.
Asked by: Henry Tufnell (Labour - Mid and South Pembrokeshire)
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 impact on Debt Management and debt recovery of making advance payments to Universal Credit claimants before the conclusion of their assessment period.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government) (Equalities)
New Claim Advances give customers the option to spread twenty-five Universal Credit payments over twenty-four months, giving them more flexibility over the payments of their Universal Credit award. Advances are not considered a loan so no interest is charged, nor any enforcement action taken, however Advances are recoverable. They are ordinarily repaid through deductions from subsequent Universal Credit awards over an agreed repayment period of up to 24 months. Customers must repay their advances over a maximum period of 24 months.
Asked by: Henry Tufnell (Labour - Mid and South Pembrokeshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment has he made of the potential impact of the different rates of Universal Credit standard allowance payable to single claimants and to couples on a) incentives for fraudulent claims and b) any resulting effects on the housing sector.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government) (Equalities)
Universal Credit is assessed at the household level. Different standard allowance rates apply to single claimants and couples to reflect that people living together may share household resources and living costs, and support is therefore calculated for the household as a whole rather than for each individual separately. Universal Credit awards comprise a standard allowance together with additional amounts that may be payable in recognition of specific needs, such as eligible housing costs, caring responsibilities or disability.
No assessment has been made of the potential impact of the different Universal Credit standard allowance rates on incentives for fraudulent claims or any resulting effects on the housing sector.
Asked by: Henry Tufnell (Labour - Mid and South Pembrokeshire)
Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of providing wrongly convicted applicants to the Horizon Convictions Redress Scheme with the ÂŁ600,000 fixed-sum award as an upfront payment.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Minister of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade)
The Government remains committed to providing full and fair redress to those affected by the Horizon scandal.
In Volume 1 of the Post Office Horizon IT inquiry report, Sir Wyn Williams noted that he could not be convinced 'that the Fixed Sum Offer should, in effect, become a guaranteed minimum payment'. The Department agrees with Sir Wyn and believes it is important to retain the distinction between interim payments and a final settlement. A settlement is the final, total compensation amount agreed upon to resolve a claim, whereas an interim payment is an early, partial payment made before the claim process fully concludes.
The interim payment policy is designed to provide claimants with breathing space, and a meaningful opportunity to consider whether a full assessment would be beneficial to them.
Asked by: Henry Tufnell (Labour - Mid and South Pembrokeshire)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what engagement his Department has had with a) recognised trade unions and b) affected staff regarding the potential impact of the proposals to remove caretaker posts from the Army Reserve and University Officers’ Training Corps estate.
Answered by Calvin Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans and People)
The Army Caretaker Review remains ongoing and no final decisions have been made. Consultation on the proposed implementation plan is taking place with the recognised trade unions. Affected employees have been informed of the proposal and indicative timeline and will be updated following consultation.
Of the 123 caretakers currently in scope of the review, 89% occupy accommodation linked to their caretaker role. This data is correct as at 1 September 2026. The proposed timetable for vacating linked accommodation, including cases where employment may continue beyond 31 March 2027, remains subject to consultation and implementation planning.
The Department recognises the uncertainty and potential impact on affected caretakers and their families. Housing-related issues, including transitional arrangements and the proposed timetable for vacating tied accommodation, are being considered as part of implementation planning. Requests to remain in accommodation beyond the end of the role, under a different rental agreement, would be considered on a case-by-case basis by the property owner, taking account of Defence requirements, site security, estate plans and individual circumstances.
Affected employees will receive support through line management, Human Resources , trades union representatives and the Employee Assistance Programme. Army caretakers across the UK, will also be encouraged to engage early with local housing authorities and relevant independent advice services where they may need support to secure alternative accommodation.
Work is underway to identify suitable redeployment opportunities within Defence and the wider Civil Service. Redundancy would only be considered where suitable redeployment cannot be secured. Any financial assistance or compensation would be considered in line with the relevant Civil Service compensation scheme provisions and wider departmental policy.
Asked by: Henry Tufnell (Labour - Mid and South Pembrokeshire)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking through the Defence Investment Plan to support defence supply chains in Mid and South Pembrokeshire constituency.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Defence Investment Plan commits ÂŁ298 billion over the next four years, backing British industry and strengthening defence supply chains across the UK.
Additionally, in January we launched the Defence Office for Small Business Growth which means we will spend an additional ÂŁ2.5 billion with SMEs by 2028. This is a 50% increase of direct spend with SMEs.
Asked by: Henry Tufnell (Labour - Mid and South Pembrokeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she has considered the potential merits of reviewing the Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) Mandate to ensure it supports the competitiveness of the SAF industry.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The SAF Mandate has been designed to drive decarbonisation at an acceptable cost.
There are, however, inherent uncertainties given the nascency of the SAF industry. We intend to publish an update on SAF before the Summer recess on a range of topics, subject to usual cross-Government approvals. This will include a Call for Evidence on whether additional flexibility is needed in the SAF Mandate to account for uncertainties in global production capacity without undermining investor confidence.
Asked by: Henry Tufnell (Labour - Mid and South Pembrokeshire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking to support the decarbonisation of industry in South West Wales through the development of non‑pipeline carbon capture, utilisation and storage projects.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The government recognises the importance of CCUS and NPT to the decarbonisation of South Wales. As part of the CCUS Programme, we are working with the South Wales Industrial Cluster to assess viable decarbonisation pathways, including CCUS enabled solutions via non-pipeline transport.
The government’s consultation on its proposals for NPT deployment across the UK has just concluded and we are in the process of analysing responses.
Alongside this, the government launched the NPT Pathfinder Selection Process on the 9 April. This is the first time NPT projects will be eligible to apply for storage at the East Coast Cluster and we look forward to seeing which projects come forward to take up this exciting opportunity.
Both initiatives will help inform further NPT deployment in the future, and as such, support the decarbonisation of South Wales.
Asked by: Henry Tufnell (Labour - Mid and South Pembrokeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to support the development and use of green methanol in the road haulage sector.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The supply of green methanol for use in road vehicles is eligible for support under the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO). The RTFO, a certificate trading scheme, has been successful in supporting a UK market for renewable fuels since 2008. In 2024, 68 million litres of renewable methanol was reported as supplied under the RTFO scheme. This is equivalent to around 2% of renewable fuel supplied under the scheme.