Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, in reference to question UIN 43714 tabled on 2 April 2025, what recent progress her Department has made in public guidance for a process of withdrawing certificates of exemption for dogs wrongly registered as XL Bullies.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

We are continuing to develop a withdrawal scheme so that owners who no longer believe that their dog is an XL Bully can apply to have their certificate of exemption for their dog withdrawn. This work is still in progress, and further details will be shared once finalised.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has considered banning prong collars in addition to shock collars as part of the Government's Animal Welfare Strategy published 22nd December 2025.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

As set out in the Animal Welfare Strategy, we will consult on whether to ban the use of electric shock collars later in this Parliament. We will carefully consider the scope of the consultation ahead of its publication.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has any plans to legislate to ban the sale, and not just ownership, of shock collars as part of the Government's Animal Welfare Strategy published 22nd December 2025.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

As set out in the Animal Welfare Strategy, we will consult on whether to ban the use of electric shock collars later in this Parliament. We will carefully consider the scope of the consultation ahead of its publication.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent progress his department has made on the parental leave and pay review.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The Parental Leave and Pay Review’s Call for Evidence closed on 25 August 2025 after receiving almost 1500 responses, which are currently being analysed and will go on to inform the review.

We are engaging with a range of stakeholders, including advocacy groups, trade unions and business representatives, including through a series of thematic roundtables to inform our ongoing work. We intend to continue this engagement in 2026.

The Review will be concluded in early 2027 and the Government will outline next steps for taking any reforms forward to implementation.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of closing the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) on those employed by it.

Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

ECO4 has played a part in delivering clean heat technologies; however, issues identified by the NAO and PAC support a shift to a more direct, publicly-funded approach focused on technologies that cut bills and accelerate the transition to clean heat such as heat pumps, solar PV and batteries.

The government is providing an additional £1.5 billion—taking planned capital investment to almost £15 billion—to upgrade low‑income homes and scale clean home‑energy technologies. Deployment will be further supported through wider policies and details of this will be set out soon in the Warm Homes Plan.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what consideration his Department has given to repealing S2(4) of the Law Reform (Personal Injuries) Act 1948.

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

The rising costs of clinical negligence claims against the National Health Service in England are of great concern to the Government. Costs have more than doubled in the last 10 years and are forecast to continue rising, putting further pressure on NHS finances.

As announced in the 10-Year Health Plan for England, David Lock KC is providing expert policy advice on the rising legal costs of clinical negligence and how we can improve patients’ experience of claims. The review is ongoing, following initial advice to ministers and the recent National Audit Office report.

We welcome the report by the National Audit Office. The results of David Lock’s work will inform future policy making in this area. No decisions on policy have been taken at this point, and the Government will provide an update on the work done and next steps in due course.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to address the rising legal costs of clinical negligence.

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

The rising costs of clinical negligence claims against the National Health Service in England are of great concern to the Government. Costs have more than doubled in the last 10 years and are forecast to continue rising, putting further pressure on NHS finances.

As announced in the 10-Year Health Plan for England, David Lock KC is providing expert policy advice on the rising legal costs of clinical negligence and how we can improve patients’ experience of claims. The review is ongoing, following initial advice to ministers and the recent National Audit Office report.

We welcome the report by the National Audit Office. The results of David Lock’s work will inform future policy making in this area. No decisions on policy have been taken at this point, and the Government will provide an update on the work done and next steps in due course.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to establish Staff Treatment Hubs.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Following the publication of the 10-Year Health Plan on 3 July 2025, work is underway to develop implementation and operational plans for the Staff Treatments Hubs. This will determine factors such as location, budgets, timeframes and capacity

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve workplace catering and break facilities for healthcare workers.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Good physical working environments are important for staff wellbeing and retention. Staff need to be given the time and space to rest and recover from their work, particularly when working on-call or overnight. This is recognised as a priority in the NHS People Promise which sets out the importance of employers prioritising spaces for staff to rest and recuperate, and ensuring access to hot food and drinks.

In May 2024, NHS England and NHS Charities Together launched a £10 million Workforce Wellbeing Programme to support National Health Service staff in England. It will provide tailored health and wellbeing support to NHS staff, including grants to improve facilities. A three-year programme of work named Great Food, Good Health, led by NHS England, aims to improve the experience and quality of nutritious food that patients, staff, and visitors receive in hospital. As part of this, the NHS made clear that NHS organisations must be able to demonstrate they have suitable 24/7 food service provision.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to update healthcare professional regulation.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government is committed to modernising the regulatory frameworks for all healthcare professionals in the United Kingdom.

As a first step, we aim to consult on secondary legislation to modernise the General Medical Council’s regulatory framework early this year and to lay this legislation before Parliament in the same year. We also plan to update the governing legislation of the Nursing and Midwifery Council and the Health and Care Professions Council within the current parliamentary period.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to increase public awareness of changes to the Highway Code as part of the new Road Safety Strategy.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

Injuries and fatalities from road collisions caused by driving are unacceptable, and this Government will work hard to prevent these tragedies for all road users.

That is why on 7 January 2026, we published our new Road Safety Strategy, setting out our vision for a safer future on our roads for all.

Following updates to the Highway Code in 2022, the department ran large-scale THINK! advertising campaigns to raise awareness of the changes.

Via the THINK! campaign, we are also running year-round radio filler adverts encouraging compliance with the guidance to improve safety for those walking, cycling and horse riding. We will also continue to promote the changes via THINK! and Department for Transport social media channels, as well as through partner organisations.

However, as set out in the strategy, more work is needed to continue embedding these changes and overall awareness of the Highway Code. We are considering options in this area, and further details will be shared in due course.

As our road environment and technologies evolve, providing education for all road users throughout their lifetime is vital to improving road safety. As announced in the strategy to support a Lifelong Learning approach in the UK, the government will publish for the first time national guidance on the development and delivery of road safety education, training and publicity. Alongside this, the government will publish a manual to support the implementation of a Lifelong Learning approach for road safety.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if she will include Women, Peace and Security as a core theme of the UK's Presidency of the UN Security Council.

Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

Details of our plans for the UK's Presidency of the UN Security Council will be set out in the usual way in due course. In the interim, I refer the Hon Member to the Foreign Secretary's speech on 24 November 2025 confirming the importance that this Government attaches to the Women, Peace and Security agenda, which is available at this link: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/twenty-five-years-of-women-peace-and-security

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what plans her Department to demonstrate leadership on Women, Peace and Security in the programme of the UK's UN Security Council Presidency.

Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

Details of our plans for the UK's Presidency of the UN Security Council will be set out in the usual way in due course. In the interim, I refer the Hon Member to the Foreign Secretary's speech on 24 November 2025 confirming the importance that this Government attaches to the Women, Peace and Security agenda, which is available at this link: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/twenty-five-years-of-women-peace-and-security

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions he has had with Royal Mail on the adequacy of delivery services (a) in Rushcliffe constituency and (b) nationally.

Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

Ministers and officials have discussions with Royal Mail on a regular basis in its capacity as the universal service provider.

In November, I met the CEOs of Royal Mail and International Distribution Services and raised concerns about Royal Mail’s performance. They reported continued targeted action to improve reliability. I will continue to raise concerns with Royal Mail if quality of service does not improve.

Ofcom, as the independent regulator of postal services, has told Royal Mail it must urgently publish and implement a credible plan that delivers major and continuous improvement.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the answer of 8 January 2025 to Question 22112, what progress she has made on assessing the potential merits of bringing forward legislative proposals to create a new category for vehicles that park four wheels on pavements.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

On 8 January 2026, the Secretary of State announced the publication of the government’s formal response to the 2020 public consultation 'Pavement parking: options for change' which sets out the legislative measures to tackle pavement parking.

In the first instance we will give local authorities powers in 2026 to issue Penalty Charge Notices for vehicles parked in a way that unnecessarily obstructs the pavement.

At the next opportunity we will also introduce the necessary primary legislation to make powers available on an opt-in basis to local transport authorities to prohibit pavement parking across their whole area. They will also have powers to exempt locations where pavement parking would still be necessary to maintain traffic flow, such as in narrow streets. Where there is no strategic authority, unitary authorities and county councils would also have the choice to opt in.

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Found: Democrat; Melksham and Devizes) David Mundell (Conservative; Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale) James Naish

Found: ” ○ James Naish MP stated that the UK should retain the five-year pathway to settlement for BNO Hongkongers

Found: According to a survey conducted by Labour MP James Naish, only 8% of BN(O) visa holders would fully

Found: Q105 James Naish: Thank you, Minister, and thanks for coming.