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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to consult on phasing out the use of cages for layer hens in England.

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

I refer the hon. Member to the reply previously given to the hon. Member for Wokingham, Clive Jones, on 31 October 2024, PQ UIN 11121 .

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 ensure that domiciliary care is sustainably funded.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government is committed to reforming adult social care and improving the quality of care for people in need. That’s why we are taking steps to ensure all adult social care is sustainably funded, including domiciliary care. In 2025/26, the Government is providing at least £600 million in new grant funding for social care, as part of a broader estimated real terms increase in local government spending power of approximately 3.2%.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which organisation is responsible for (a) litter collection and (b) tree management along the A52 in Nottinghamshire.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

Responsibility for litter collection on the A52 in Nottinghamshire lies with the local authorities in the area, in this case that is Broxtowe Borough Council, Nottingham City Council and Rushcliffe Borough Council.

National Highways is responsible for tree management on the A52 in Nottinghamshire, this includes cyclical inspections of trees within National Highways ownership and can include third party trees that are identified as being a significant and imminent hazard to the Strategic Road Network.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to ensure that Highways England fulfils its statutory functions for (a) litter collection and (b) tree management.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department for Transport regularly engages with National Highways to discuss its performance and management of the Strategic Road Network.

The Office for Road and Rail, as Highways Monitor, also plays an important role in monitoring on behalf of the Secretary of State, holding National Highways to account for its licence commitments to maintain, operate and improve motorways and major ‘A’ roads in England. Should the Office for Road and Rail deem that National Highways is not complying with its statutory functions or the requirements outlined in the Roads Investment Strategy, they may determine that enforcement action is appropriate.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to encourage practices to create salaried GP roles instead of using physician associates.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

We have committed to training thousands more GPs across the country which will increase capacity in the system and take the pressure off those currently working in the system. NHS England is working to address training bottlenecks so the health service has enough staff for the future and we are providing £82 million to fund the recruitment of over 1,000 newly qualified GPs, via the additional roles reimbursement scheme, so patients can get the care they need.

Physician associates (PAs) can make a valuable contribution to patient care providing appointments and performing clinical and administrative tasks as part of the wider General Practice multi-disciplinary team with appropriate supervision. But they must not substitute the role of the GP within general practice.

GP practices are self-employed contractors to the NHS and it is largely up to employers to determine how best to staff their primary care network (PCN) or GP practice to best meet the needs of their population.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to publish the results of the consultation entitled the Fur market in Great Britain, published on 31 May 2021.

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

Ministers are reviewing policies, which will be announced in due course, including the consultation on the Fur Market in Great Britain. Defra is continuing to build the evidence base on the fur sector. This includes commissioning our expert Animal Welfare Committee on what constitutes responsible sourcing of fur. The report that they produce will support our understanding of the fur industry and help inform our next steps.

Labour Government will introduce the most ambitious programme for animal welfare in a generation.

Found: Respiratory Diseases 11 October 2024 | UIN 6728 Asked by: James Naish To ask the Secretary of State

In Development: call for potential topics of inquiry

Submit Evidence (by 7 Jan 2025)

In November 2020, the Government announced a reduction of Official Development Assistance (ODA) from 0.7 per cent to 0.5 per cent of Gross National Income (GNI), a “temporary measure” until a set of certain fiscal rules were met. In the 2024 Autumn Budget, the Government confirmed that the FCDO would be held to the previous government’s fiscal rules, with the OBR confirming that these rules, and therefore a restoration of the aid budget, are not expected to be met during the life of this Parliament. With the UK’s aid budget being under further strain due to Home Office spend on in-donor refugee costs, it becomes increasingly important that the FCDO ensures Value for Money on its programme spending.

Submit Evidence (by 15 Jan 2025)

International humanitarian law includes important rules to facilitate the passage of humanitarian relief such as food, clothing and medical supplies as well as rules on the protection of humanitarian personnel. In addition, UN Security Council resolutions have called for safe and unhindered access for humanitarian personnel. Yet, in recent years there have been concerning trends in the adherence to IHL by combatant parties in conflict. In particular, there are increasingly frequent accounts of cases where the requirements for access to allow the delivery of relief material and the protections for those who deliver it have been ignored.

Submit Evidence (by 21 Jan 2025)

2024 saw a continuing rise in global displacement, with at least 117.3 million people forced to flee their homes, including nearly 43.4 million refugees, around 40% of whom are under the age of 18. These vast movements of peoples, and the associated costs and disruptions, can cause significant problems in host countries.