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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps the government is taking to cap service and estate management charges paid by residents.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government has no plans to cap service charges or estate management charges given this would prevent necessary funds being raised for legitimate purposes.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps the government is taking to abolish leasehold tenures for (a) flats and (b) other properties.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government intends to consult this year on the best approach to banning new leasehold flats, ensuring this works effectively alongside the robust ban on leasehold houses provided for by the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of allowing bus pass use on weekdays before 9:30 am.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The English National Concessionary Travel Scheme provides free off-peak bus travel to those with eligible disabilities and those of state pension age. Local authorities in England have the power to use local resources to fund further concessions in addition to their statutory obligations, for example, extending the times travel passes can be used.

The Government has confirmed over £1 billion for the 2025 to 2026 financial year to support and improve bus services in England outside London. This includes £243 million for bus operators and £712 million allocated to local authorities across the country.  East Sussex County Council has been allocated £10.4 million of this funding. Funding allocated to local authorities to improve services for passengers can be used in whichever way they wish, including enhancing the concessionary travel offering in the local area.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to help increase the availability of driving tests in Eastbourne.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA) main priority is upholding road safety standards while it works hard to reduce car practical driving test waiting times. The agency is intensifying its efforts to reduce waiting times and improve access to driving tests that will break down barriers to opportunity as part of the government’s Plan for Change.

On the 12 November, the Secretary of State for Transport, updated the Transport Select Committee on the government’s ongoing response to high driving test waiting times.

In the coming months, DVSA will:

• Change the booking service to allow only learner car drivers to book and manage their tests
• Introduce a limit on the number of times a learner car driver can move or swap a test to twice and also limit the area they can move a test to once booked.
• Make use of Ministry of Defence (MOD) driving examiners for up to 12 months to help tackle driving test waiting times.

DVSA is also continuing with recruitment campaigns across the country to provide as many tests as possible. Since July last year, DVSA has recruited and trained 344 driving examiners (DE) who are now in post and delivering driving tests. A full-time DE can be expected to add approximately 1,200 tests per year to the booking system.

Eastbourne driving test centre is part of a cluster of centres, including Hastings. A new entrant driving examiner has recently successfully passed their training course and has been testing since September. DVSA is in the final stages of a further recruitment campaign where both test centres will be advertised.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans the department has to improve retention of level 3 staff within the NHS.

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

As set out in the 10-Year Health Plan, the Government is committed to making the National Health Service the best place to work, by supporting and retaining our hardworking and dedicated healthcare professionals.

To support this ambition, the Government plans to introduce a new set of standards for modern employment by April 2026. The new standards will reaffirm our commitment to improving retention by tackling the issues that matter to staff including promoting flexible working, improving staff health and wellbeing, and dealing with violence, racism, and sexual harassment in the NHS workplace.

NHS England is already leading work nationally through its retention programme to drive a consistent, system-wide approach to staff retention across NHS trusts. This ensures trusts have access to proven retention strategies, data-driven monitoring, and can foster a more stable, engaged, productive, and supported workforce.

Regarding pay, the Government remitted the Pay Review Bodies on 22 July and published its written evidence on 30 October, with the target of getting uplifts into the pockets of health workers early next year.

Earlier this year, my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care was also able to accept the vast majority of recommendations that were produced from the non-pay work from the 2023 Agenda for Change deal. This covers work on a variety of issues including job evaluation and tackling violence and aggression against staff. NHS organisations are now in the process of implementing these recommendations.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to support Eastbourne residents with food prices.

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

ONS September 2025 CPI food price inflation was 4.5%, down from 5.1% in August. This was the first reduction in the annual rate since March 2025.

We continue to monitor all key agricultural commodities and work with the food industry. The UK Agriculture Market Monitoring Group monitors UK agricultural markets including price, supply, inputs, trade, and recent developments. The Government monitors consumer food prices using the Consumer Prices Index (CPI).

Consumer food prices depend on a range of factors including agri-food import prices, domestic agricultural prices, domestic labour and manufacturing costs, and Sterling exchange rates. Some of these factors are influenced by our trading arrangements with other countries. Change in food prices are dependent on changes in one or more of these factors.

Defra regularly engages with supermarkets and producers on a range of food supply matters. However, it is not for the Government to set retail food prices nor to comment on day-to-day commercial decisions taken by businesses.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking to support Eastbourne residents with energy costs.

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

We recognise that we need to support households struggling with bills while we transition to clean power. That is why we are expanding the Warm Home Discount (WHD) to around an additional 2.7 million households, resulting in up to 6 million households receiving the £150 support to help with their energy bill costs.

In Eastbourne, in 2024-25, 11.9% of households benefited from WHD – that works out as 5,896 households.

In the South East region, the expansion of the Warm Home Discount is projected to add an approximate additional 350,000 households, an increase of 111%.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans there are to widen pay bands for Level 3 Staff in the NHS.

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

Any changes to the Agenda for Change (AfC) pay structure, including for Band 3 staff, will be for the NHS Staff Council to ratify or agree to as part of any future discussions. The NHS Staff Council is a partnership body made up of trade unions and employers and has overall responsibility for the AfC pay system and the terms and conditions of service.

The Government accepted the NHS Pay Review Body’s recommendations for 2025/26 in full, which included a recommendation to provide the NHS Staff Council with a funded mandate to make improvements to the AfC pay structure.

The Department intends to deliver this mandate as soon as possible, to make the changes in time for 2026/27. Once the mandate is confirmed, the Department will work closely with the NHS Staff Council to agree the changes to the pay structure. This may or may not include changes to Band 3 pay, depending on NHS Staff Council views.

Tackling van and tool theft

International Men’s Day and prostate cancer

Bruce Richardson

Schools (Residential Outdoor Education) (Scotland) Bill

Second homes in the Lake District

Conduct of Samir Zitouni and Stephen Crean on the 18.25 Doncaster to Kings Cross train on 1 November 2025

Fossil fuel company profits

Government proposals for mandatory digital ID

Transparency and accountability in social media account closures

The Lakes School

Water bills

Flying Nightingales

Renewable energy and coal

UK trade with illegal settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories

Import and sale of real fur