Asked by: John Whitby (Labour - Derbyshire Dales)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he plans to provide targeted support to businesses that use heating oil.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The government recognises that many businesses across the country will see the global events and be concerned about the impact on their fuel bills. We are monitoring the situation closely and actively engaging with industry and trade associations to understand what support may be needed.
It is vital that consumers are treated fairly. Price gouging will not be tolerated. My Rt hon Friend the Secretary of State has written to the heating oil industry setting out our expectations that they adhere to the industry’s Code of Practice.
We have also requested the CMA undertake a detailed examination of the heating oil market and we will work closely with the CMA to understand their findings and develop options to increase consumer protection.
Asked by: John Whitby (Labour - Derbyshire Dales)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the written statement of 2 March 2026 on Asylum changes, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the timeline for establishing a Named Community Sponsorship scheme.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
In the Restoring Order and Control policy statement, published on 21 November 2025, the Government committed to transforming its approach to safe and legal routes. This included the creation of a named sponsorship scheme to enable community groups to sponsor refugees and displaced persons.
The delivery of the new named sponsorship scheme will support the Government’s overall objective of providing an orderly and controlled system of safe and legal routes that is aligned with community capacity to welcome refugees.
Work is underway to deliver the named community sponsorship route. Further details, including timeframes for the launch of the route, will be set out in due course.
Asked by: John Whitby (Labour - Derbyshire Dales)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to her written statement of 2 March 2026 on Asylum changes, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the proposed Named Community Sponsorship scheme.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
In the Restoring Order and Control policy statement, published on 21 November 2025, the Government committed to transforming its approach to safe and legal routes. This included the creation of a named sponsorship scheme to enable community groups to sponsor refugees and displaced persons.
The delivery of the new named sponsorship scheme will support the Government’s overall objective of providing an orderly and controlled system of safe and legal routes that is aligned with community capacity to welcome refugees.
Work is underway to deliver the named community sponsorship route. Further details, including timeframes for the launch of the route, will be set out in due course.
Asked by: John Whitby (Labour - Derbyshire Dales)
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 ICBs provide an annual health check to adults with cerebral palsy.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to making sure that people with cerebral palsy receive quality care. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has published guidance on cerebral palsy in adults, which is available at the following link:
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng119
The guidance recommends that people with cerebral palsy should have an annual review of their clinical and functional needs, carried out by a healthcare professional with expertise in neurodisabilities. This review should consider mobility, communication, pain, mental and physical health, participation, and any new or changing support needs.
While NICE guidelines are not mandatory, they reflect best practice, and the Government expects healthcare commissioners to take the guidelines fully into account in designing services that meet the needs of their local population and to work towards their implementation over time. Recommendations in NICE guidance are based on rigorous clinical and economic evidence and ensure that services are both clinically effective and cost‑effective, and support more consistent, sustainable care across the country.
Asked by: John Whitby (Labour - Derbyshire Dales)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to its response to recommendation 24 of the Environmental Audit Committee’s report entitled Environmental Sustainability and Housing Growth, published on 13 March 2026, what assessment his Department made of the potential impact of the introduction of mandatory whole-life carbon reporting by EU Member States on the technological readiness of carbon assessment methods.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
My Department has made no such assessment.
Asked by: John Whitby (Labour - Derbyshire Dales)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to increase awareness and funding for (a) materials and mining programmes of study and (b) science and engineering apprenticeships and qualifications in the quarrying sector.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government supports education and skills training in the minerals, mining and quarrying sectors through:
Asked by: John Whitby (Labour - Derbyshire Dales)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assurances he can provide that National Parks and National Landscapes will be fully considered in any proposals for an overnight visitor accommodation levy.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The precise design and scope of the overnight visitor levy power is still under development. Decisions on whether to introduce a levy will rest with Mayors and be shaped through local consultation on its design and the impacts the levy may have, including on National Parks and National Landscapes.
Asked by: John Whitby (Labour - Derbyshire Dales)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what oversight mechanisms exist to ensure that behaviour policies adopted by further education colleges do not disproportionately disadvantage young people with SEND.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Further education (FE) colleges are subject to statutory and regulatory oversight to ensure that policies do not disadvantage learners with special educational needs and disabilities. Colleges must comply with the Equality Act 2010, including the duty to make reasonable adjustments so that disabled learners, including those with learning difficulties, are not placed at a substantial disadvantage.
Colleges must also meet equality and safeguarding requirements set out in their funding agreements. Where providers fail to meet legal or regulatory duties, the department has powers to support and take further action.
Ofsted plays a key role in assessing how effectively providers support learners with high needs. Under its renewed framework, inspectors evaluate participation, development, and behaviour expectations across provision types.
Inspectors evaluate participation and development across different FE and skills settings and consider the nature of the learners, along with differences in approach to behaviour monitoring and management for different groups of learners.
Asked by: John Whitby (Labour - Derbyshire Dales)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of industrial carbon capture projects, such as Peak Cluster, on safeguarding domestic cement production and skilled jobs in Derbyshire and Staffordshire.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Carbon capture, usage, and storage (CCUS) is essential for fully decarbonising clinker production within the cement sector, which is critical for producing foundational materials for the UK economy.
40% of the UK’s cement and lime is produced in Derbyshire and Staffordshire. The Peak Cluster would therefore significantly contribute to the region’s decarbonisation.
Together, the Peak Cluster and Morecambe Net Zero project stated in a recent study that they could create and safeguard 13,000 jobs. This includes:
Asked by: John Whitby (Labour - Derbyshire Dales)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking to take ensure that any consultations with pubs include independent publicans.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
We recognise the valuable contributions of independent publicans in the pubs consultation process.
Ministers and officials from my Department regularly meet with independent publicans and their trade association representatives at the British Institute of Innkeeping and are represented on the Hospitality Sector Council. Last month, I met with pub landlords at a roundtable organised by the British Institute for Innkeeping, attended by several of their members.
We always encourage them to engage with all consultations such as the recent ones on licensing reforms, market access for local beers, the Pubs Code Adjudicator and on the forthcoming review of the rateable valuation methodology for pubs.