Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to support local authorities in the (a) recruitment and (b) training of school crossing patrols.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department for Transport supports Local Authorities through legislation, guidance, and best practice frameworks but it does not directly manage the recruitment or training of School Crossing Patrols because that is a non-statutory role delegated to Local Authorities.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been arrested for being a supporter of (a) the Maniacs Murder Cult, (b) Palestine Action and (c) the Russian Imperial Movement since the passing of the Terrorism Act 2000 (Proscribed Organisations) (Amendment) Order 2025.

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

The Government is absolutely clear that support for proscribed organisations is unacceptable. Anyone expressing support for a proscribed organisation should expect to be investigated by the police.

The Home Office releases statistics which cover arrests for terrorist-related activity on a quarterly basis. It would not be appropriate to provide a running commentary on arrests relating to proscribed organisations.

On Palestine Action specifically, the Metropolitan Police Service has also released statistics on the arrests made at the central London protests on 9 August 2025 and 6 September 2025 which can be found here: https://news.met.police.uk/news/update-532-arrested-during-protest-policing-operation-499897 and https://news.met.police.uk/pressreleases/update-on-demonstration-in-support-of-palestine-action-3403168

Operational decisions, including arrests, are a matter for the police, who are independent of Government.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to support HM Prison and Probation Service.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) is an executive agency of the Ministry of Justice. It is responsible for carrying out sentences given by the courts, both in prisons and in the community. Its core objectives are to protect the public and rehabilitate people to reduce the risk of reoffending.

The Ministry of Justice and HMPPS work hand in glove to ensure that policy and operational delivery work together to deliver punishment that cuts crime, swifter justice for victims and ensure that the UK is a beacon for justice and the rule of law.

Policies and frameworks to achieve these outcomes are developed by Ministry of Justice policy and HMPPS operations in tandem. The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and HMPPS are committed to this close working relationship. For example, the Joint Strategic Policy Unit is a mixed MoJ / HMPPS team which reports jointly to HMPPS senior officials, as well as MoJ policy directors and ministers. This ensures that HMPPS and the MoJ are entirely joined up in responding to challenges in the prisons and probation system, as well as on longer-term strategic planning.

The MoJ is also supporting HMPPS with increased investment in both prisons and probation. Probation funding will increase by up to £700 million by the final year of the spending review. That is a 45% increase in annual budgets, which will support additional recruitment and investment in services that rehabilitate offenders and cut crime. A further £4.7 billion prison building investment has been confirmed, backing the largest expansion since the Victorians.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to help secure the safe return of Craig and Lindsay Foreman from Iran.

Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

We are deeply concerned by Craig and Lindsay's detention in Iran. We are providing them with consular assistance and remain in close contact with their family members. We continue to raise the case directly with the Iranian authorities.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he has taken to help secure the release of Alaa Abd el-Fattah.

Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The Government is committed to securing Mr El-Fattah's release so he can be reunited with his family. We continue to engage actively in pressing for his release at the highest levels of the Egyptian government. The Prime Minister raised the case with President Sisi on 26 June. The former Foreign Secretary has also raised the case regularly, most recently in a call with Foreign Minister Abdelatty on 31 August. I most recently raised Mr El-Fattah's case with Foreign Minister Abdelatty on 28 July and with the Egyptian Ambassador to the UK on multiple occasions.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to support Openreach to provide fibre to the premises connections in (a) Alfriston Road, Berwick and (b) other rural areas in Lewes constituency.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

This government is committed to delivering nationwide gigabit coverage by 2032 and we have created a regulatory environment that incentivises private investment, including from Openreach, in areas where deployment is commercially viable.

Additionally, CityFibre is delivering a Project Gigabit contract across East and West Sussex. This contract currently includes approximately 7,800 premises in the Lewes constituency, the vast majority of which are in rural areas. Premises on Alfriston Road, Berwick, are currently included within the scope of this contract.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure adequate funding for children and families.

Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The Spending Review, announced by my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, on 11 June 2025, ensures this government can drive forward progress on its mission to break the link between background and success.

Children’s early years are crucial to their development, health and life chances. Through the government’s Plan for Change, we will ensure every child gets the best start in life, investing in the strongest evidence-based interventions to ensure a record proportion of five year-olds have a good level of development by 2028 and transforming outcomes for children and young people.

The Spending Review includes an additional £1.6 billion a year by 2028/29 for childcare entitlements for working parents, giving children the best start in life and supporting more parents to balance family life and work. It also includes funding to expand a network of family hubs to support families when they need it and get a record proportion of children ready for school.

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 classifying stage 4 breast cancer as very severe in relation to access to life-saving drugs.

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

The Department understands the impact that cancer has on those living with it and their families, and the urgent need for new treatment options.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is an independent body and is responsible for developing the methods and processes it uses to evaluate whether new medicines should be recommended for routine National Health Service funding.

Whilst no such assessment has been made, in developing recommendations on whether medicines represent a clinically and cost-effective use of NHS resources, NICE is able to apply a weighting that recognises the additional value that society places on treatments for severe conditions. The weighting that is applied is calculated for each appraisal based on information on the expected shortfall in life expectancy and quality of life of people with the condition, considering existing treatment options. NICE has concluded for several appraisals of medicines for late-stage breast cancer that a weighting should be applied based on the severity of the condition and has recommended all but one of the new medicines for the treatment of breast cancer, including advanced breast cancer, that it has evaluated since 2018. These treatments are now available for the treatment of NHS patients.

NICE’s methods that are used for determining whether an appraisal qualifies for a weighting under the severity modifier have been developed through extensive engagement with stakeholders and through public consultation.

Conduct of the hon. Member for Runcorn and Helsby

National inquiry into child sexual exploitation

South Downs National Park

Elon Musk at the Unite the Kingdom rally

Political donations

Fruit and Vegetable Aid Scheme

Global Lobular Breast Cancer Awareness Day 2025

UK-US Trade Deal and animal welfare and farming

Import of goods from Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory

Citizenship for refugees

Royal Mail's universal service obligation

US trade and impact assessments

Found: Davies Nusrat Ghani Andrew Murrison Sean Woodcock Apologies: Clive Jones, Lillian Jones, James MacCleary

Found: : Steve Barclay (in the Chair) Luke Akehurst Irene Campbell Paul Davies Nusrat Ghani James MacCleary

Found: present: Steve Barclay (in the Chair) Luke Akehurst Paul Davies Nusrat Ghani Clive Jones James MacCleary

Found: : Steve Barclay (in the Chair) Luke Akehurst Irene Campbell Paul Davies Nusrat Ghani James MacCleary

Found: Barclay (in the Chair) Luke Akehurst Irene Campbell Nusrat Ghani Clive Jones Lillian Jones James MacCleary

Found: Jones Kate Osborne Andrew Murrison Sean Woodcock Apologies: Matt Bishop, Lillian Jones, James MacCleary

Found: Barclay (in the Chair) Matt Bishop Irene Campbell Nusrat Ghani Clive Jones Lillian Jones James MacCleary

Found: Chair) Matt Bishop Phil Brickell Irene Campbell Nusrat Ghani Clive Jones Lillian Jones James MacCleary