Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department has made an assessment of the fairness and proportionality of penalty charges issued for non-payment of drop-off fees at UK airports; and whether she plans to review the current 24-hour payment window.

Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

Most airports in the UK are managed and operated as private businesses, and the provision and charging of car parking at airports (including payment windows) is a matter for the airport operator as a commercial business to manage and justify. Any issue relating to car parking charges should be raised with the airport operator directly.

However, the Department expects car parking at airports to be managed appropriately and for consumers to be treated fairly, which could include providing information on choices for parking, along with information on how to access them.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on recognising parental alienation as a form of emotional harm to children.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

The Government does not recognise the concept of “parental alienation” syndrome and does not believe it is capable of diagnosis.

The Family Justice Council has published guidance on “responding to a child’s unexplained reluctance, resistance or refusal to spend time with a parent and allegations of alienating behaviour”. The guidance provides a clear framework for assessing whether alienating behaviours are present. The guidance is clear that where the court finds that domestic abuse has occurred then the child’s rejection of the parent is appropriate and justified.

Cafcass practitioners receive mandatory training on alienating behaviours. Cafcass’ training programme includes training on the domestic abuse practice policy (introduced in 2024) and on indicators of understanding why a child does not want to spend family time with a parent guide, including due to alienating behaviours. The training policy and guide make clear that the first step in assessing the reasons for a child not wanting to see a parent is to consider whether domestic abuse is a factor so that Cafcass practitioners can explore the pattern of behaviours in the safest context.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how many trading standards inspections of high street shops took place in the last 12 months in (a) Suffolk Coastal, (b) Suffolk and (c) East Anglia.

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

The Department for Business and Trade does not hold this information. Trading Standards inspections are the responsibility of individual Local Authorities.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he plans to bring forward legislative changes to strengthen local enforcement powers before the introduction of unitary local government arrangements.

Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Local authorities currently exercise a range of enforcement powers across different functions, reflecting the services they deliver. The Government has no plans to amend these powers in connection with local government reorganisation.

Where councils are reorganised, continuity regulations made under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 ensure that all existing powers transfer to new unitary authorities.

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 timely access to mental health support for children and parents affected by family breakdown and parental alienation.

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

The 10-Year Health Plan sets out ambitious plans to boost mental health support across the country, including for children and parents affected by family breakdown and parental alienation. This includes transforming mental health services into 24/7 neighbourhood mental health centres, improving assertive outreach, expanding talking therapies, and giving patients better access to 24/7 support directly through the NHS App.

The 10-Year Health Plan will build on the work that has already begun to bring down waiting lists. This includes providing mental health support for almost one million more young people in school this year and an extra £688 million in Government funding this year to transform mental health services, specifically to hire more staff, deliver more early interventions, and get waiting lists down.

This plan sets out how we will work with schools and colleges to better identify and meet children's mental health needs by continuing to roll out mental health support teams in schools and colleges, to reach full national coverage by 2029.

We are also expanding NHS Talking Therapies so that 915,000 people complete a course of treatment by March 2029, with improved effectiveness and quality of services. We will also expand Individual Placement and Support for severe mental illness so that 73,500 people receive access by March 2028.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what funding his Department has allocated to mental health services for people in the criminal justice system in the current financial year and the previous five financial years; and how that funding has been distributed in (a) England and (b) Suffolk and Norfolk.

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

The information requested is not held centrally. NHS England commissions healthcare services in every prison in England, and funding for mental health services for individuals within the criminal justice system is embedded within wider service contracts. These include services such as RECONNECT and Liaison and Diversion, and the specific expenditure on mental health within these services is not collected.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, (a) whether he is aware of reports that some motor insurers refuse cover to individuals on joining the Armed Forces and (b) what steps he is taking to address this.

Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)

Under the Armed Forces Covenant, organisations are encouraged to make voluntary pledges to support Service personnel, Veterans and their families. However, insurance provision is a matter for private companies, and the Ministry of Defence (MOD) does not have the authority to direct or mandate their commercial decisions.

The MOD continues to engage with industry and promote best practice through the Covenant framework of voluntary pledges and the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme, encouraging businesses to remove barriers and ensure fair treatment for the Armed Forces community.

The MOD does not provide financial or legal advice, and neither can we take responsibility for individual financial decisions. Personnel who require such advice are directed by their Unit HR staffs to a list of Services Insurance and Investment Advisory Panel (SIIAP) approved independent financial advisers. However, personnel are, of course, free to use the services of any independent financial adviser.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent data the Government holds on the number of horses seized in connection with illegal export or smuggling in the last three years; and what steps are being taken to prevent horse smuggling.

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

It is an offence to export horses from Great Britain for slaughter under the Animal Welfare (Livestock Exports) Act 2024. Through The Animal Welfare (Livestock Exports) Enforcement Regulations 2024, we have provided the Animal and Plant Health Agency and local authorities with the powers necessary to act against any non-compliance. We are working closely with industry to explore further measures to strengthen implementation of the ban for horses.

Since the ban came into force in July 2024, we have intercepted one consignment of 20 horses at Dover suspected of being exported for the slaughter market. Regulatory action was taken against the transporter involved and the abandoned horses rehomed by a charity.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Department is considering a mandatory digital equine identification system.

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

This is a devolved matter, and the information provided therefore relates to England only.

The Government recognises the importance of the equine sector to the UK economy and to improving equine identification and traceability. The Department has no current plans to implement mandatory digital identification, but Defra officials remain in close contact with industry to look at potential improvements.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether the forthcoming review of disability support will include the needs of people with colour-vision deficiency; and whether he will assess low-cost steps to improve accessibility for people with red/green colour-blindness.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The overarching aims and scope of the Timms Review are set out in its Terms of Reference, which are available on GOV.UK.

The Review will consider the role of PIP in enabling disabled people to live independently; whether the assessment criteria effectively capture the impact of long-term health conditions and disability in the modern world; and whether any other evidence should be considered as part of the assessment. It will also look at how the assessment could ensure people access the right support at the right level.

It will be for the Review’s steering group, once in place, to set the Review’s strategic direction, priorities and workplan. Following an open and accessible expression of interest process, which ran from 30 October to 30 November, we are in the process of shortlisting candidates and will provide an update shortly.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has considered introducing a statutory requirement for annual DBS renewals for individuals engaged in regulated activity with children and vulnerable adults.

Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

Criminal record certificates issued by the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) have a vital role to play in reducing the risk of harm but should always be used as part of an organisation’s broader safeguarding practices and policies, including for example taking up references from previous employers.

Where an individual joins the Update Service provided by DBS, they are able to keep their certificate up to date by giving employers permission to check if anything has changed on their certificate, as long as the role is in the same workforce as the existing certificate. The Update Service allows employers to undertake instant online checking of DBS certificates. This system regularly re-checks a registered individual and if new information is found triggers a “change in status”. This means that when the employer undertakes a status check, they will be informed that new information has come to light since the DBS certificate was issued and that they should apply for a new DBS check.

The Update Service is free to use for volunteers and costs £16 a year for paid employees. Further information and details of how to subscribe can be found at https://www.gov.uk/dbs-update-service.

Except in some sectors like health and education, where DBS checks are mandated by the sector through statutory guidance or regulatory requirements, the use of DBS checks is at the discretion of the employer. It is the responsibility of individual sectors and organsations to decide the frequency of checks on their employees working in regulated activity.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment has been made of the safeguarding risks posed by (a) DBS certificates not automatically updating after issue and (b) the current DBS system in general.

Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

Criminal record certificates issued by the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) have a vital role to play in reducing the risk of harm but should always be used as part of an organisation’s broader safeguarding practices and policies, including for example taking up references from previous employers.

Where an individual joins the Update Service provided by DBS, they are able to keep their certificate up to date by giving employers permission to check if anything has changed on their certificate, as long as the role is in the same workforce as the existing certificate. The Update Service allows employers to undertake instant online checking of DBS certificates. This system regularly re-checks a registered individual and if new information is found triggers a “change in status”. This means that when the employer undertakes a status check, they will be informed that new information has come to light since the DBS certificate was issued and that they should apply for a new DBS check.

The Update Service is free to use for volunteers and costs £16 a year for paid employees. Further information and details of how to subscribe can be found at https://www.gov.uk/dbs-update-service.

Except in some sectors like health and education, where DBS checks are mandated by the sector through statutory guidance or regulatory requirements, the use of DBS checks is at the discretion of the employer. It is the responsibility of individual sectors and organsations to decide the frequency of checks on their employees working in regulated activity.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, following the Expanding the Warm Home Discount Scheme, 2025 to 2026, consultation and the decision not to expand the Park Homes Warm Home Discount Scheme, (a) what support is being provided for people living on boats, and (b) what support is being planned.

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

Support may be available to houseboats dwellers via the Industry Initiative element of the Warm Home Discount Scheme. These are energy-related and financial measures that energy suppliers can deliver to their own customers or working with industry partners. These include energy efficiency measures, energy advice, boiler and central heating replacements, financial assistance payments and debt write-off,

Each participating supplier has a spending obligation towards Industry Initiatives. This allows them to help customers who are fuel poor or at risk of fuel poverty through a variety of activities and third parties. Households are encouraged to contact any participating supplier about the Industry Initiatives they offer, without the need to be an existing customer.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what data her Department holds on (a) the number of people aged 60 and over currently enrolled in further education, (b) the number of people aged 60 and over currently undertaking postgraduate study, and (c) the number of people aged 60 and over who have completed a PhD in each of the last ten years.

Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

Adult further education and skills learner participation by age is published in the further education and skills statistics publication which can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/further-education-and-skills/2024-25. However, participation figures for the 60+ age group specifically are not published

In 2024/25, there were 307,750 further education and skills learners aged 50 and above. The following table presents numbers of further education and skills learners by age for academic years between 2019/20 and 2024/25: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/dc701901-2aeb-421f-4a31-08de398c3998.

The Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) is responsible for collecting and publishing data on the UK higher education (HE) sector. In the academic year 2023/24, across all modes of study, there were 7,415 postgraduate student enrolments aged 60+ across all UK HE providers. The following table presents numbers of HE students by age and permanent address for academic years between 2019/20 and 2023/24: https://www.hesa.ac.uk/data-and-analysis/students/table-58.

Data on the number of people aged 60 and over who have completed a PhD in each of the last ten years is not published, but has been produced using unpublished HESA data and, for qualifiers across all UK HE providers, is shown in the table below:

Note - Age taken at start of final year of study

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department is considering changes to postgraduate research funding eligibility for older learners as part of the Lifelong Learning Entitlement.

Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The lifelong learning entitlement (LLE) will deliver transformational change to the current student finance system by broadening access to high quality, flexible education and training.

From January 2027, all undergraduate higher education courses, including integrated master’s courses, will be funded through the LLE. Tuition fee loans will be available for people up to the age of 60.

The government will continue to provide a dedicated loan package for postgraduate study. The postgraduate master’s loan, administered by Student Finance England, currently provides up to £12,858 for tuition fees and living costs for eligible students.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made on whether current enforcement powers available to county council Trading Standards services are sufficient to tackle illegal and illicit trading linked to organised crime on high streets.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Government recognises the crucial role Trading Standards services play in tackling illegal and illicit trading on our high streets, including activity linked to organised crime.

At the recent Budget, the Chancellor committed £30 million over the next three years to strengthen our response to high street criminality and ensure Trading Standards and partners have the tools and resources needed to identify and dismantle organised criminal networks operating on our high street. This includes establishing a cross-government taskforce to disrupt money laundering and related criminality, boosting Trading Standards capabilities, and funding at least 45 law enforcement officers.

The taskforce will design systemic interventions to disrupt the threat and consider whether further legislative or operational changes – including in relation to local authorities – are necessary to further protect consumers and legitimate businesses.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to Section 159 of the Energy Act 2023, when he plans to launch the consultation on technical issues for the proposed renewable liquid heating fuel obligation.

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

The government has published a consultation on alternative heating solutions which seeks to gather evidence on the role that these technologies could play in ensuring that every household has a low-carbon option that is right for them. The consultation will run until 10 February and can be found here: Exploring the role of alternative clean heating solutions - GOV.UK.

The government will consider the evidence from this consultation before making any decisions on whether to support the use of renewable liquid fuels in heating, including through an obligation.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the proposed reforms to Landfill Tax on the competitiveness and viability of the UK foundry sector; and what steps the Government is taking to ensure that any changes do not disproportionately affect small and medium-sized foundries.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Government recognises the importance of businesses in the foundry sector, which employ thousands of people across the UK and support critical supply chains.

The Government has listened to concerns from businesses and announced at Budget 2025 that it will not proceed with the plan to converge towards a single rate of Landfill Tax. Instead, the Government intends to prevent the gap between the two rates from widening further over the coming years.

The Government has also decided not to remove key exemptions to Landfill Tax including the water discounting scheme and Qualifying Fines regime, and is committed to continuing to work with businesses to develop new solutions that enable them to recycle more of the waste they produce.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has had recent discussions with the Charity Commission on adopting a more proportionate approach to regulatory and audit requirements for small and medium-sized charities, to help reduce administrative burdens and additional compliance costs at lower income levels.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

DCMS is working closely with the Charity Commission to reduce administrative burdens for charities. On 31 October 2025 we published our response to the consultation on financial thresholds in charity law; setting out how we will reduce burdens for charities, while ensuring appropriate scrutiny and oversight. The changes, which should be implemented later this year, will save charities an estimated £47m per year.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to improve coordination between NHS mental health services and criminal justice agencies.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

Together with NHS England, we are committed to continuing to work in partnership to improve services to ensure that people in contact with the criminal justice system have access to timely and effective mental health care that is tailored to their needs. This is reflected in the National Partnership Agreement on Health and Social Care in England which was published in February 2023 and is supported by robust governance and regular ministerial engagement between Departments.

The National Partnership Agreement sets out a shared priority workplan to deliver safe, decent and effective care that improves health outcomes for people in prison and those subject to supervision by the probation service in the community. This ensures a coordinated approach between health and justice partners to improve health outcomes for those in contact with the justice system.

To improve continuity of care and swift access to treatment on release, we have recruited over 67 Health and Justice Partnership Coordinators who strengthen healthcare pathways and bolster support, including for those on Mental Health Treatment Requirements (MHTRs), by building partnerships between prison, probation and treatment providers. NHS England’s RECONNECT service also supports prison leavers with identified health needs, to engage with the right health services in the community. Services work with people up to 12 weeks before release, and 6 months post-release.

Our ongoing partnership with NHSE has achieved an increase in the number of MHTRs, with the number of people sentenced to MHTRs now more than five times higher than it was a decade ago, up from 960 in 2014 to 4,880 in 2024.

We are committed to continuing to work with our health partners to provide effective, coordinated services for those with a mental health need.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what specialist mental health support is available to children experiencing parental alienation.

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

The 10-Year Health Plan sets out ambitious plans to boost mental health support across the country and deliver timely, efficient care for children and young people, including children affected by parental alienation.

As prioritised in our Medium-Term Planning Framework, we are taking action to reduce the longest waits for specialist mental health support, tackling regional disparities, and expanding access, thereby making services more productive so children and young people spend less time waiting for the treatment they need.

We are also accelerating the rollout of Mental Health Support Teams in schools and colleges to reach full national coverage by 2029. As part of this, we are investing an additional £13 million to pilot enhanced training for staff so that they can offer more effective support to young people with complex needs, such as trauma, neurodivergence, and disordered eating.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has considered amending the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 to allow county councils to issue closure notices and apply directly for closure orders.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

The closure power, under the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014, enables police or local councils to quickly close premises which are causing or likely to cause nuisance or disorder.

County councils may already issue a closure notice and apply directly for closure orders in England and Wales providing that there is no district council in the area.

This Goverment keeps all legislative options under review.

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 adequacy of mental health provision for people in prisons.

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

The Chief Medical Officer’s report on the health of people in prison, on probation and in the secure National Health Service estate in England was published on 6 November 2025 and we are carefully considering its findings and recommendations.

Healthcare services in the prison estate are commissioned by NHS England. All prison healthcare providers are commissioned and contracted to use National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.

Every prison in England has onsite healthcare teams providing primary care, mental health, dentistry, and substance misuse services. As part of the formal prisoner induction process, all prisoners undergo health screening that incorporates a mental health assessment. The secondary care mental health assessment is carried out by a mental health professional. Routine assessments are carried out within five working days. Where an individual is in a state of mental health crisis, presents with rapidly escalating needs, or is at risk of immediate harm to themselves or others, an urgent assessment should be undertaken within 48 hours.

NHS England commissions health needs assessments across the prison estate to determine the needs of the prison population and is updating all 19 health and justice service specifications by March 2026 to ensure it continues to meet those needs while assessing opportunities to improve healthcare in prisons.

Found: Juliet Campbell; Charlie Dewhirst; Sarah Dyke; Terry Jermy; Jayne Kirkham; Josh Newbury; Jenny Riddell-Carpenter

Found: Juliet Campbell; Charlie Dewhirst; Sarah Dyke; Terry Jermy; Jayne Kirkham; Josh Newbury; Jenny Riddell-Carpenter