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 steps he is taking to help ensure that increased medicine prices do not have an adverse impact on NHS activity.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
This deal is a vital investment that builds on the strength of our National Health Service and world leading life sciences sector to increase access to life-changing medicines without taking essential funding from our frontline NHS services.
We will always prioritise the needs of NHS patients and at the Spending Review we delivered record real terms increase for day-to-day spending for the NHS in England up to April 2029.
This deal will be funded by allocations made at the Spending Review, where front line services will remain protected through the record funding secured. Future year funding will be settled at the next Spending Review.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the risks to the safety of Hong Kong BN(O) visa holders travelling through Hong Kong or mainland China of the transition from physical Biometric Residence Permits to the digital eVisa system.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
An eVisa is a digital record of a person's identity and their immigration permission in the UK, and any conditions which apply. As with biometric residence permits (BRPs), it is issued to enable a person to prove their status when travelling to the UK, including via third countries, and when living in the UK.
The transition from physical BRPs to eVisas does not create a risk for those travelling through mainland China or Hong Kong. Hong Kong BN(O) visa holders do not need to present their eVisa for this travel, since they do not require a UK immigration status for this purpose.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether it is her policy that only one person per household can respond to her open consultation on earned settlement.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The earned settlement model, proposed in ‘A Fairer Pathway to Settlement’, announced changes to the mandatory requirements and qualifying period for indefinite leave to remain. It is currently subject to a public consultation, running until 12 February 2026.
The consultation is open to anyone including multiple members of the same household. Each response must be submitted separately. People can request alternative formats of the consultation or report technical issues by contacting EarnedSettlementConsultationQueries@homeoffice.gov.uk.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether interest generated on savings will count towards the proposed £12,570 personal income threshold for acquiring permanent residence.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The earned settlement model, proposed in ’A Fairer Pathway to Settlement’, is currently subject to a public consultation, running until 12 February 2026.
Details of mandatory requirements, including those relating to the personal income threshold, will be finalised following that consultation.
The final model will also be subject to economic and equality impact assessment, which we have committed to publish in due course.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 27 November 2025 to Question 94005 on Immigration: Hong Kong, what plans her Department has to conduct face-to-face meetings with those people potentially affected and relevant campaign groups during the development of the impact assessment for the proposed earned settlement model.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Immigration White Paper set out the principle that settlement should be earned through contribution to the UK economy and society. The publication, ‘A Fairer Pathway to Settlement’, built on this principle and laid out proposals for the earned settlement model. It stated that we will raise the standard qualifying period for settlement from five years to ten years and everyone who wishes to settle in this country will need to meet mandatory requirements, including a clean criminal record and strong English language skills.
The consultation on the earned settlement model was launched on 20 November 2025 and will close on 12 February 2026.
The Government remains steadfast in its support for members of the Hong Kong community in the UK. BN(O) visa holders will attract a five-year reduction in the qualifying period for settlement, meaning they will continue to be able to settle in the UK after five years’ residence, subject to meeting the mandatory requirements.
The consultation seeks views from Hong Kongers on the proposals, including whether there should be transitional arrangements for those already on a pathway to settlement.
Details of the earned settlement scheme will be finalised following the close of that consultation. In the meantime, the current rules for settlement under the BN(O) route will continue to apply.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department consulted with British National (Overseas) visa holders on the drafting of the White Paper entitled Restoring control over the immigration system, published on 12 May 2025.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Immigration White Paper set out the principle that settlement should be earned through contribution to the UK economy and society. The publication, ‘A Fairer Pathway to Settlement’, built on this principle and laid out proposals for the earned settlement model. It stated that we will raise the standard qualifying period for settlement from five years to ten years and everyone who wishes to settle in this country will need to meet mandatory requirements, including a clean criminal record and strong English language skills.
The consultation on the earned settlement model was launched on 20 November 2025 and will close on 12 February 2026.
The Government remains steadfast in its support for members of the Hong Kong community in the UK. BN(O) visa holders will attract a five-year reduction in the qualifying period for settlement, meaning they will continue to be able to settle in the UK after five years’ residence, subject to meeting the mandatory requirements.
The consultation seeks views from Hong Kongers on the proposals, including whether there should be transitional arrangements for those already on a pathway to settlement.
Details of the earned settlement scheme will be finalised following the close of that consultation. In the meantime, the current rules for settlement under the BN(O) route will continue to apply.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether pensions income that is not eligible for taxation in the UK due to the UK and Hong Kong Tax Treaty will count towards the proposed £12,570 personal income threshold for British National (Overseas) visa holders wanting to acquire permanent residence.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The earned settlement model, proposed in ’A Fairer Pathway to Settlement’, is currently subject to a public consultation, running until 12 February 2026.
The Government remains steadfast in its support for members of the Hong Kong community in the UK. BN(O) visa holders will attract a five-year reduction in the qualifying period for settlement, meaning they will continue to be able to settle in the UK after five years’ residence, subject to meeting the mandatory requirements.
The consultation seeks views from Hong Kongers on the proposals, including whether there should be exemptions from the mandatory economic contribution.
Details of mandatory requirements, including those relating to personal income threshold, will be finalised following the close of that consultation. In the meantime, the current rules for settlement under the BN(O) route will continue to apply.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether pensions income that is not eligible for taxation in the UK due to the UK and Hong Kong Tax Treaty will count towards the proposed £12,570 personal income threshold for British National (Overseas) visa holders wanting to acquire permanent residence.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The earned settlement model, proposed in ’A Fairer Pathway to Settlement’, is currently subject to a public consultation, running until 12 February 2026.
The Government remains steadfast in its support for members of the Hong Kong community in the UK. BN(O) visa holders will attract a five-year reduction in the qualifying period for settlement, meaning they will continue to be able to settle in the UK after five years’ residence, subject to meeting the mandatory requirements.
The consultation seeks views from Hong Kongers on the proposals, including whether there should be exemptions from the mandatory economic contribution.
Details of mandatory requirements, including those relating to personal income threshold, will be finalised following the close of that consultation. In the meantime, the current rules for settlement under the BN(O) route will continue to apply.
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, pursuant to the answer of 29 January 2026 to Question 101938, how many meetings her Department has held with commercial lenders where the financial position of a specific named university was discussed since 2020.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
As set out in our response on 29 January 2026, the department meets with a variety of stakeholders, including commercial lenders, to hear their views on the higher education sector. Where individual providers experience financial difficulties, the department engages with them to understand the pressures they face. This has included meeting commercial lenders to hear their position.
The department keeps records of its engagements with external stakeholders, including meetings with commercial lenders. However, any discussions relating to the financial position of providers would be commercially sensitive and therefore inappropriate to discuss publicly.
As My noble Friend, the Minister for Skills told the Education Select Committee in November 2025, the government does not intervene in the interests of providers. However, if a provider was at risk of unplanned closure, the department would work with the OfS, the provider and other government departments to ensure students' and taxpayers’ best interests were protected. This might involve supporting the transfer of students, exploring potential partnerships, or addressing relevant operational issues, such as how student loan payments are administered.
Higher education providers are independent from government and as such must continue to make the necessary and appropriate financial decisions to ensure their long-term sustainability.
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, whether her Department has indicated to commercial lenders that the Government would take steps to prevent the failure of a financially distressed university since 2020.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
As set out in our response on 29 January 2026, the department meets with a variety of stakeholders, including commercial lenders, to hear their views on the higher education sector. Where individual providers experience financial difficulties, the department engages with them to understand the pressures they face. This has included meeting commercial lenders to hear their position.
The department keeps records of its engagements with external stakeholders, including meetings with commercial lenders. However, any discussions relating to the financial position of providers would be commercially sensitive and therefore inappropriate to discuss publicly.
As My noble Friend, the Minister for Skills told the Education Select Committee in November 2025, the government does not intervene in the interests of providers. However, if a provider was at risk of unplanned closure, the department would work with the OfS, the provider and other government departments to ensure students' and taxpayers’ best interests were protected. This might involve supporting the transfer of students, exploring potential partnerships, or addressing relevant operational issues, such as how student loan payments are administered.
Higher education providers are independent from government and as such must continue to make the necessary and appropriate financial decisions to ensure their long-term sustainability.