Asked by: Ian Byrne (Labour - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department has made an assessment of trends in the level of leasehold tenure in new residential developments in Liverpool; and what steps she is taking to protect leaseholders in those developments from ground rents, service charges and management practices.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to Written Ministerial Statements made on 27 January 2026 (HCWS1278), 15 July 2026 (HCWS270) and 12 October 2026 (HCWS363).
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Labour - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when she plans to bring forward proposals to regulate property managing agents; and whether those proposals will include mandatory professional qualifications, transparency requirements and sanctions for poor practice.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to Written Ministerial Statements made on 27 January 2026 (HCWS1278), 15 July 2026 (HCWS270) and 12 October 2026 (HCWS363).
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Labour - Liverpool West Derby)
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 adequacy of protections for leaseholders in high-rise and mixed-use residential developments from service charges, management fees and freeholder control.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to Written Ministerial Statements made on 27 January 2026 (HCWS1278), 15 July 2026 (HCWS270) and 12 October 2026 (HCWS363).
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Labour - Liverpool West Derby)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of sponsorship deals with companies involved in Israel's illegal occupation of Palestinian territory on UK sports clubs.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
Sports clubs and sporting bodies in the United Kingdom are independent organisations and any business sponsorship arrangements are a matter for them. The Government’s long-standing guidance strongly advises against conducting any economic and financial activities in illegal Israeli settlements.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Labour - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of tax reform.
Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General
At Budget, the Chancellor announced reforms to the tax system including making online platforms liable for collecting VAT on behalf of sellers, implementing a new system of VAT e-invoicing, and publishing a Call of Evidence on modernising Corporation Tax administration.
These measures will make it easier for individuals and businesses to navigate the tax system and pay the right amount of tax at the right time, reducing error and unnecessary burdens.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Labour - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what information her Department holds on the projected increase in the average United Utilities household bill between 2024-25 and 2029-30 attributable to (a) enhancement investment, (b) base maintenance expenditure, (c) financing costs, (d) returns to equity investors and (e) other factors.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Ofwat is the independent regulator of the water industry. Through the Price Review, Ofwat agrees allowed company spending on investment, maintenance, and returns. It then also set the revenues companies can reclaim from customers over the five year period. The current allocations for each company remain on the Ofwat website.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Labour - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether costs incurred by United Utilities as a consequence of (a) environmental fines, (b) enforcement action and (c) remediation following breaches of environmental permits may be recovered (i) directly and (ii) indirectly through customer bills; and whether safeguards prevent customers paying those costs.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Customers will not have to bear the costs of more penalties for Water companies. Any costs must be the responsibility of the shareholders.
The economic regulator can take enforcement action if companies do not comply with this.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Labour - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will commission an independent review of NHS continuing healthcare.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Independent Commission on Adult Social Care will explore and consider all options for care and support for adults across the social care system to make recommendations on fixing the system for all those who need it. The commission is considering the interface between health and care as part of this work.
The commission will report its findings by Summer 2027. In the meantime, the Department will continue to work productively with its partners, including NHS England, integrated care boards and local authorities, to support the delivery of national National Health Service continuing healthcare policy.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Labour - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how the proposed National Care Service will ensure that dementia carers receive consistent support across England.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We will publish the first ever Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia at the end of this calendar year, to set a clear direction and a long-term blueprint to improve outcomes for people living with dementia and frailty. We are considering options to help reduce waiting times and improve dementia diagnosis and care.
NHS England collects and publishes data about people with dementia at each general practice in England, to enable National Health Service general practitioners and commissioners to make informed choices about how to plan their dementia services around patients’ needs.
We must ensure unpaid carers receive the right support at the right time. This is why the Government is acting now, and the cross-Government Unpaid carers action plan, published on 14 July, sets out how. The plan is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/unpaid-carers-action-plan-recognise-refer-reach
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Labour - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia will provide for the regular publication of data on (a) dementia diagnosis and waiting times, (b) access to post-diagnostic support, (c) workforce capacity, (d) continuity and co-ordination of care and (e) outcomes for people living with dementia and unpaid carers by Integrated Care Board area; and whether she plans to publish an annual assessment of progress against the standards and outcome measures contained in that framework.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We will publish the first ever Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia at the end of this calendar year, to set a clear direction and a long-term blueprint to improve outcomes for people living with dementia and frailty. We are considering options to help reduce waiting times and improve dementia diagnosis and care.
NHS England collects and publishes data about people with dementia at each general practice in England, to enable National Health Service general practitioners and commissioners to make informed choices about how to plan their dementia services around patients’ needs.
We must ensure unpaid carers receive the right support at the right time. This is why the Government is acting now, and the cross-Government Unpaid carers action plan, published on 14 July, sets out how. The plan is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/unpaid-carers-action-plan-recognise-refer-reach