Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, what the Department's average response time is for responding to correspondence from (a) the public and (b) Members raising constituency casework.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Minister of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade)
The Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade recognises the importance of timely and accurate responses to correspondence.
The Cabinet Office sets a maximum target deadline of 20 working days for departments and agencies to respond to correspondence, and it is the responsibility of the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade to ensure we have the resources and processes in place to respond to correspondence within this deadline.
The Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade works collaboratively with the Cabinet Office and other Government departments to review and update correspondence policy and processes as required.
The Department does not specifically record performance on average response times for responding to members raising constituency casework, but in 2026 has responded to 81% of correspondence from the public within 15 working days (as of 20th September).
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, what recent steps the Department has taken to reduce response times for correspondence from (a) the public and (b) Members raising constituency casework.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Minister of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade)
The Department aims to respond to correspondence within 20 working days, as per the target set by the Cabinet Office. The Department has taken a number of steps to reduce response times for correspondence, including bringing extra resources into the correspondence team and improving internal processes.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to her Department's press release entitled Government orders that public spending must back British jobs and skills in every postcode, published on 5 August 2026, what recent discussions her Department has had with small and medium-sized businesses on the potential impact of the proposed procurement requirements on their ability to bid for government contracts.
Answered by Mark Ferguson - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Government is committed to supporting small and medium-sized enterprises across the country. The government issued a public consultation on procurement reform last year and has continued to engage stakeholders, including the Federation of Small Businesses. Streamlining the social value requirements in central government procurement will simplify the procurement process and make it easier for businesses of all sizes to bid for government contracts.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
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 potential impact of new development on the availability of green space in a) urban and b) rural communities.
Answered by Florence Eshalomi - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government recognises the importance of publicly available green space for the health and wellbeing of communities. The Department has not made a specific assessment of trends in the level of loss of publicly available green space in England over the last three years, or the impact of new development on the availability of green space in urban and rural communities. However, the Government collects data on access to green and blue space. The latest data shows that 80% of households in England have access to at least one green or blue space within a 15-minute walk.
The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), published in August 2026, sets out that development plans should set local standards for the provision of different types of recreational land and facilities, as well as the provision of green infrastructure, in ways which complement each other and draw on Natural England’s Green Infrastructure Standards. These include a standard on accessible green space which sets criteria on size, proximity and quality. Policies for informal recreation should aim to secure a connected network of high quality, inclusive and accessible opportunities as part of the wider network of green space provision. The new NPPF also safeguards against the loss of open space, sport and recreation facilities.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
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 trends in the level of loss of publicly available green space in England over the last three years.
Answered by Florence Eshalomi - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government recognises the importance of publicly available green space for the health and wellbeing of communities. The Department has not made a specific assessment of trends in the level of loss of publicly available green space in England over the last three years, or the impact of new development on the availability of green space in urban and rural communities. However, the Government collects data on access to green and blue space. The latest data shows that 80% of households in England have access to at least one green or blue space within a 15-minute walk.
The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), published in August 2026, sets out that development plans should set local standards for the provision of different types of recreational land and facilities, as well as the provision of green infrastructure, in ways which complement each other and draw on Natural England’s Green Infrastructure Standards. These include a standard on accessible green space which sets criteria on size, proximity and quality. Policies for informal recreation should aim to secure a connected network of high quality, inclusive and accessible opportunities as part of the wider network of green space provision. The new NPPF also safeguards against the loss of open space, sport and recreation facilities.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the Written Ministerial Statement entitled Iran Sanctions, published on 8 September 2026, what recent discussions his Department has had with international partners on coordinating sanctions against Iran to maximise their effectiveness and minimise opportunities for sanctions evasion.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement on 8 September, which explains that the financial measures in the Statutory Instrument will further reduce the Government of Iran's ability to access the UK financial system and raise funds in support of its nuclear programme. The legislation also expands our powers to sanction ships - strengthening our ability to target ships enabling and facilitating Iran's nuclear programme and malign and destabilising behaviour.
As part of the UK's responsible approach to the use of sanctions, the Government continues to work closely with international partners to ensure our sanctions are effective and to minimise opportunities for sanctions evasion, or unintended consequences.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the Written Ministerial Statement entitled Iran Sanctions, published on 8 September 2026, what assessment has been made of the effectiveness of the sanctions mitigations and general licences in minimising unintended economic consequences for the UK and its partners.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement on 8 September, which explains that the financial measures in the Statutory Instrument will further reduce the Government of Iran's ability to access the UK financial system and raise funds in support of its nuclear programme. The legislation also expands our powers to sanction ships - strengthening our ability to target ships enabling and facilitating Iran's nuclear programme and malign and destabilising behaviour.
As part of the UK's responsible approach to the use of sanctions, the Government continues to work closely with international partners to ensure our sanctions are effective and to minimise opportunities for sanctions evasion, or unintended consequences.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of public awareness campaigns aimed at reducing accidental wildfire incidents.
Answered by Florence Eshalomi - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
We recognise that clear public information helps stop wildfires starting and helps people protect themselves and their property. We are making wildfire advice more visible, including through social media during high-risk periods, the Cabinet Office Prepare website and through educational resources made freely available on the online StayWise platform as the educational arm of the Department’s Fire Kills campaign.
As part of the upcoming Wildfire Summit and the Acton Plan being developed, we will consider what more we can do to drive improvements across wildfire as a risk.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the Written Ministerial Statement entitled Iran Sanctions, published on 8 September 2026, what assessment has been made of the likely effectiveness of the new sanctions in constraining Iran's nuclear programme.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement on 8 September, which explains that the financial measures in the Statutory Instrument will further reduce the Government of Iran's ability to access the UK financial system and raise funds in support of its nuclear programme. The legislation also expands our powers to sanction ships - strengthening our ability to target ships enabling and facilitating Iran's nuclear programme and malign and destabilising behaviour.
As part of the UK's responsible approach to the use of sanctions, the Government continues to work closely with international partners to ensure our sanctions are effective and to minimise opportunities for sanctions evasion, or unintended consequences.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the press release entitled Court upholds CMA findings that firms charged excessive and unfair prices for lifesaving NHS-funded medicine, published on 29 July 2026, what steps the Government is taking to recover costs incurred by the NHS as a result of the excessive and unfair pricing identified by the Competition and Markets Authority.
Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Anti-competitive behaviour, including excessive pricing and abuse of a dominant position, is a matter for the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). The Department asks the CMA to investigate where it has concerns about abuses of competition law for generic medicines and where companies are found by the CMA to be in breach of the legislation, the Department will seek damages and invest that money back into the National Health Service.
As the press release cited by the Hon. Member demonstrates, the current legal and enforcement regime in this area allows for effective action to be taken in relevant cases, and the responsible agencies will continue to take such action whenever necessary.
Following the recent Court of Appeal judgment upholding the CMA's findings in relation to hydrocortisone tablets, the Department is considering the appropriate next steps. Any sums recovered are returned to the NHS and support frontline patient care.