Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent progress he has made in ensuring that all sub-postmasters impacted by failures in the Horizon IT system receive their full compensation; and what steps he is taking to address (a) delays and (b) discrepancies in payments under the (i) Historical Shortfall Scheme, (ii) Group Litigation Order Scheme and (iii) Overturned Historical Convictions Scheme.
Answered by Gareth Thomas - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
As of 2 June 2025, £1,039 billion has been paid to over 7,300 claimants across the Horizon schemes. This represents a fourfold increase since July 2024, with more than 4,500 victims receiving compensation for the first time.
Claims across schemes are assessed by applying the specific facts of the case to established legal principles and other factors which support reaching a fair outcome.
We continue to seek the views of the Horizon Compensation Advisory Board to ensure fairness and consider ways we can speed up redress.
We are taking a variety of measures to increase the pace of the delivery of redress across our schemes. For example, we recently announced that we are reintroducing facilitated discussions in the GLO scheme – as requested by claimants’ lawyers. This should provide significant help in increasing the pace at which challenges are resolved.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made a recent assessment of the potential impact of digital-only (a) services and (b) reporting requirements on farming businesses.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra seeks to introduce services that are digital by default which help users to succeed first time, and an assisted digital route is provided for those who are unable to complete a service online. This equally applies to reporting requirements on farming businesses, the main requirement being the Annual Survey of Agriculture and Horticulture which is digital by default but also available as a paper survey form.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 23 June 2025 to Question 58068 on Employment: British National (Overseas), if her Department will make an assessment of the potential implications for its policies of the report by British Future entitled Working it Out: Hong Kongers, Employment and the Cost of Living, published on 29 October 2024.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
As my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, said in the latest six-monthly Report, this government will continue to stand with the people of Hong Kong, strengthening the connections between our societies and remaining steadfast in commitment to the British National (Overseas) (BN(O)) visa route. The UK provides a welcoming home to Hong Kongers today and will continue to do so for Hong Kongers tomorrow. Government departments continue to work together in support of that objective. The BN(O) Welcome Programme continues to provide support to Hong Kongers in the UK, including through a network of 12 Welcome Hubs, helping BN(O)s understand and connect to services in their local area.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 19 March 2025 to Question 37349 on Education: British National (Overseas), what steps her Department has taken (a) before 19 March 2025 and (b) since 19 March 2025, in response to the publication of the report by British Future entitled Working it Out: Hong Kongers, Employment and the Cost of Living, published on 29 October 2024.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The UK provides a welcoming home to Hong Kongers today and it will continue to do so for Hong Kongers tomorrow. In March 2025, the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government announced its fifth year of funding for the Hong Kong British National (Overseas) Welcome Programme, which continues to provide support to Hong Kongers in the UK, including through a network of 12 Welcome Hubs helping BN(O)s understand and connect to services in their local area.
We also recently closed a competitive tender process for the delivery of a new programme to provide English language and employment support for Ukrainians and Hong Kong British Nationals (Overseas) visa holders. This programme will provide support for up to 4,000 individuals.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
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 ensure that (a) children with foetal valproate syndrome and (b) their families are represented in NHS reform.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to raising the healthiest generation of children ever. We are adopting a mission-based approach and will deliver this ambition through the Health and Opportunity Missions, and through the 10-Year Plan for the National Health Service.
The Government is carefully considering the valuable work done by the Patient Safety Commissioner and the resulting Hughes Report, which set out options for redress for those harmed by valproate and pelvic mesh. This is a complex area of work, involving several Government departments, and it is important that we get this right. We will be providing an update to the Patient Safety Commissioner’s report at the earliest opportunity.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
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 merits of taking steps to ensure that the National Planning Policy Framework 2024 gives greater weight to (a) food production and (b) agricultural infrastructure in planning decisions.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government places great importance upon our agricultural land and food production.
The National Planning Policy Framework is clear that planning policies and decisions should recognise the benefits of the Best and Most Versatile Agricultural Land (land in grades 1, 2 and 3a of the Agricultural Land Classification (ALC) system).
Where significant development of agricultural land is demonstrated to be necessary, areas of poorer quality land should be preferred to those of a higher quality.
Later this year, the Government will publish a Land Use Framework for England, which will set out the evidence, data and tools needed to support development that safeguards our most productive agricultural land.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
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 impact of (a) parents and (b) carers reading to young children on the mental wellbeing of (i) children, (ii) parents and (iii) carers.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
No such assessment has been made. We know that, according to research, reading helps to reduce stress levels and could be beneficial to mental health and well-being.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of access to capital from the British Business Bank on rural businesses.
Answered by Gareth Thomas - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The British Business Bank’s programmes are designed to support businesses across the UK, including in rural areas, to access the finance they need to invest and thrive. Start Up Loans have been issued to new businesses in every UK parliamentary constituency, while the Nations and Regions Investment Funds provide debt and equity finance to businesses in both rural and urban areas outside London and the South East.
ENABLE transactions with the likes of Oxbury Bank are helping more rural and agricultural businesses to access lending tailored to their needs.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero on support for oil and gas workers in Scotland.
Answered by Ian Murray - Secretary of State for Scotland
This Government recognises that oil and gas will continue to play a central role in the UK’s energy mix for decades to come. We recently published guidance on Scope 3 emissions in response to the Finch judgment, and soon we will publish our consultation response on the future of North Sea oil and gas licensing. Nonetheless, clean energy is our future, and many oil and gas workers have transferable skills for offshore renewable jobs. The Government’s commitment to investing in clean energy industries will ensure opportunities are created for oil and gas workers to thrive. Recently, we committed development funding to the Acorn carbon capture and storage project in Aberdeenshire, which, subject to business case, will prepare the project for delivery.
Scotland Office Ministers remain in regular contact with DESNZ Ministers regarding this issue. We also continue to engage with a variety of stakeholders from across the energy sector, including oil and gas producers.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
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 equal geographic access to NHS hyperbaric chamber services.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England is committed to ensuring equitably accessible, high-quality services, for anyone who requires hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT). This will be achieved through the commissioning of six geographically dispersed services across England. Three preferred providers have been identified to date, and a further procurement exercise will take place to identify the three remaining centres.
The contract for HBOT services, also known as recompression, was reviewed in 2024, as existing contract terms expired. This included an update of the service specification using the published full methods process, and a public consultation on the proposal to reduce the number of commissioned providers in England from eight to six centres. Further information on the service specification, the published full methods process, and the consultation is available, respectively, at the following three links:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/methods-national-service-specifications/
The updates to the specification seek to ensure timely access to treatment for the most acutely unwell patients with the specification requiring:
The geographical scope of the six services will ensure that there are no more than four hours travelling time by road from coastal locations, from the furthest borders, or between neighbouring commissioned HBOT centres, which is in line with good practice guidelines. The published Equality and Health Inequalities Impact Assessment sets out an evaluation, including access to services and where appropriate action was taken to ensure fair access to any patient who requires this service. Further information on the Equality and Health Inequalities Impact Assessment is available at the following link: