Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to Question 15645, when he expects the initial wave of Modern Service Frameworks to be completed; and what the National Quality Board’s timeline is for determining conditions to prioritise for new Modern Service Frameworks.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Modern service frameworks define an aspirational, long-term outcome goal for a major condition and then identify the best evidenced interventions and the support for delivery. The first wave of priorities has included cardiovascular disease, sepsis, and the first ever service framework for frailty and dementia.
Progress on these frameworks is at different stages. Some have already been delivered, namely sepsis and cardiovascular disease, with the Government expecting the remainder of the initial wave to be delivered before the end of 2026 or in 2027.
The Government has asked the National Quality Board to consider other long-term conditions for future waves of modern service frameworks, based on an assessment of the potential for rapid and significant improvements in quality of care and productivity. We will update Parliament on the results of that process in the usual way in due course.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate she has made of the potential cost of uprating the social care capital limit in line with CPI since 2010/11.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
No estimate of the kind referred to in Question 31431 has been made, but on Question 32622, I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 1 June in response to Question 4030.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she plans to uprate the social care capital limit for 2027-28.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
No estimate of the kind referred to in Question 31431 has been made, but on Question 32622, I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 1 June in response to Question 4030.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential health impacts of tariff suspensions on high-sugar food items.
Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
No such assessment has been made. However, tackling obesity remains a priority for the Government, as set out in our 10-Year Health Plan.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the impact of remediation liabilities on SME housebuilders’ ability to deliver new homes.
Answered by Florence Eshalomi - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government has been clear that those responsible for unsafe buildings should contribute towards the cost of fixing them. As of March 2025, the Government estimated that it will cost between £11.8bn and £22.7bn to remediate residential buildings 11 metres and above in height that have or had unsafe cladding in England.
Under the Developer Remediation Contract (DRC), 53 major developers have committed to fix or pay to fix over 2,600 buildings at a cost to themselves of around £4.2bn.
Where a building which was not developed by one of the 53 major developers requires cladding remediation, the Government has committed to grant funding. Under the terms of the grant funding agreement, the applicant is required to pursue reasonable cost recovery efforts from third parties, including developers where appropriate.
In addition, the Government is taking legal action to recover costs from those responsible using powers in the Building Safety Act 2022. For example, in May 2026 the department secured a remediation contribution order for £3.7m from a developer responsible for a building in London which the taxpayer had paid to remediate.
The Government does not publish data on the number of small and medium housebuilders who have building safety remediation liabilities. Data on the liabilities of developers under the Developer Remediation Contracts is published on gov.uk here.
The wider housebuilding sector will contribute to remediation costs through the Building Safety Levy, which comes into force from 1 October 2026. Measures within the levy to support smaller developers include an exemption for developments of fewer than 10 units, a 50% discount for new developments on previously developed land and an exemption for affordable housing.
The Government keeps the impact of building safety measures on housing delivery under review.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many small and medium-sized housebuilders face building safety remediation liabilities.
Answered by Florence Eshalomi - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government has been clear that those responsible for unsafe buildings should contribute towards the cost of fixing them. As of March 2025, the Government estimated that it will cost between £11.8bn and £22.7bn to remediate residential buildings 11 metres and above in height that have or had unsafe cladding in England.
Under the Developer Remediation Contract (DRC), 53 major developers have committed to fix or pay to fix over 2,600 buildings at a cost to themselves of around £4.2bn.
Where a building which was not developed by one of the 53 major developers requires cladding remediation, the Government has committed to grant funding. Under the terms of the grant funding agreement, the applicant is required to pursue reasonable cost recovery efforts from third parties, including developers where appropriate.
In addition, the Government is taking legal action to recover costs from those responsible using powers in the Building Safety Act 2022. For example, in May 2026 the department secured a remediation contribution order for £3.7m from a developer responsible for a building in London which the taxpayer had paid to remediate.
The Government does not publish data on the number of small and medium housebuilders who have building safety remediation liabilities. Data on the liabilities of developers under the Developer Remediation Contracts is published on gov.uk here.
The wider housebuilding sector will contribute to remediation costs through the Building Safety Levy, which comes into force from 1 October 2026. Measures within the levy to support smaller developers include an exemption for developments of fewer than 10 units, a 50% discount for new developments on previously developed land and an exemption for affordable housing.
The Government keeps the impact of building safety measures on housing delivery under review.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of funding for further education.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Further Education plays a critical role in delivering the Government’s Missions and ensuring that everyone has access to the opportunities they need, breaking down the barriers to their success and boosting economic growth.
On 1st July we announced an extra £120 million for further education in financial year 2026 to 27 rising to £365 million in 2027 to 28.
Together with increases for post-16 schools this means funding per 16-19 student will have increased by over 12% in two years – comparing academic year 2026 to 27 with 2024 to 25. And this is at a time of significant growth in student numbers. As a result, total 16 - 19 funding will increase from £7.6 billion in academic year 2024 to 25 to over £9 billion in 2026 to 27.
For academic year 2026 to 2027, we are committing to fund, in-year, all exceptional growth in 16 - 19 funded students, this means that institutions can have confidence to offer suitable places in post-16 education for every young person that wants one.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, whether he plans to appoint a Ministerial Champion for the Oxford-Cambridge Corridor.
Answered by Chris McDonald - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Chancellor reaffirmed Government’s commitment to the Oxford-Cambridge Corridor in his growth speech on 7 September, highlighting it alongside the Northern Corridor as one of the UK’s key economic priorities and a central part of the Government’s good growth agenda. Ministerial oversight of the Growth Corridor is provided through the responsible Ministers and departments across Government, with Lord Vallance recently appointed to a new Chair role to provide strategic leadership to the Government’s work in the region, reporting to the Prime Minister.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, what discussions Lord Vallance has had with Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government ministers or officials, in his role as Ministerial Champion for the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor, regarding the implications of local government reorganisation proposals for Cambridgeshire and Peterborough for delivery of the Growth Corridor.
Answered by Chris McDonald - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
As Ministerial Champion for the Oxford to Cambridge Growth Corridor Lord Vallance engaged with ministers across Government on how their departments’ agendas can support our ambition to unlock the economic potential of the region.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the Office of Rail and Road provided input to the Health and Safety Executive during its post-prosecution engagement with Cambridgeshire County Council in relation to the Guided Busway.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Railways Act 2005 excludes guided bus systems from the Office of Rail and Road's (ORR) enforcement remit (along with fairground equipment and cableways). Instead, this is undertaken by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), which undertook a successful prosecution of Cambridgeshire County Council in relation to the Guided Busway. The HSE/ORR MoU provides arrangements for cooperation and the sharing of advice between HSE and ORR on their respective areas of expertise and, as part of this, both organisations have engaged on the Cambridgeshire County Council prosecution case.