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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will have discussions with the Prime Minister on appointing a minister responsible for drowning prevention.

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

Water safety and drowning prevention are of critical importance and involve a range of organisations and government departments. Defra works with navigation authorities, regulators, water companies and other government departments to improve coordination, information sharing and preparedness.

In July, I convened a cross-government roundtable to discuss water safety and ensure departments and key partners are working together to reinforce the importance of water safety and strengthen collaboration to help keep people safe around water.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to undertake a coordinated response to prevent avoidable deaths due to drowning.

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

Responsibility for water safety and drowning prevention is shared across government, local authorities, emergency services, regulators, education partners and asset owners.

I convened a roundtable in July with ministers and representatives from across government to reinforce the importance of keeping people safe around water. I was clear that all organisations must keep working to reduce risks.

The Government recognises the importance of working collectively to reduce drowning. It supports collaborative efforts through organisations such as the National Water Safety Forum, which brings together partners to reduce water-related deaths and associated harms.

The Government will carefully consider the UK Drowning Prevention Strategy 2026–2036 to identify that we are collectively doing all we reasonably can to support this vital work.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to help improve terms and conditions for social care workers.

Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government recognises the scale of the reforms needed to improve recruitment and retention in the social care sector, and this will be a key focus of the reform programme announced by the Prime Minister on 29 July. As a first step, we are establishing the first ever Fair Pay Agreement for social care workers in 2028, backed by £500 million of funding to improve pay and conditions for the current workforce. This Fair Pay Agreement process will strengthen the voice of the workforce through unions, helping to secure fair pay and better conditions that truly reflect the value of their work. Further details are available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/fair-pay-agreement-process-in-adult-social-care

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of Yorkshire Water’s policy of not providing information signage or lifesaving equipment near open water.

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

I convened a roundtable in July with ministers and representatives from across government to reinforce the importance of keeping people safe around water. I was clear that all organisations must keep working to reduce risks.

Following the roundtable, I wrote to water companies, Defra’s arm’s-length bodies and local authorities responsible for designated bathing waters, reiterating the importance of taking appropriate steps to keep people safe around water and seeking further information about their ongoing work.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to ensure that social care is an attractive career for young people.

Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government recognises the scale of the reforms needed to improve recruitment and retention in the social care sector, and this will be a key focus of the reform programme announced by the Prime Minister on 29 July. As a first step, we are establishing the first ever Fair Pay Agreement for social care workers in 2028, backed by £500 million of funding to improve pay and conditions for the current workforce. This Fair Pay Agreement process will strengthen the voice of the workforce through unions, helping to secure fair pay and better conditions that truly reflect the value of their work. Further details are available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/fair-pay-agreement-process-in-adult-social-care

Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, what steps he is taking to support more businesses to expand into the high street.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Minister of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade)

The government’s Plan for Small Businesses includes measures to support high street businesses by addressing crime and antisocial behaviour, updating our licensing regime and targeting funding through our Pride in Place and High Street and Growth Incubator programmes.

Businesses on the high street are also benefitting from new tools to access finance, action on late payments and regulatory costs, greater digital adoption and easier access to business support through the Business Growth Service.

Government has also introduced permanently lower business rate multipliers for retail, hospitality and leisure properties worth nearly £1 billion per year that will benefit over 750,000 properties. We have also introduced a support package worth £4.3 billion to protect ratepayers seeing large overnight increases in bills due to revaluation.

Further action will be announced in a new High Streets Strategy later this year.

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 protect moorland from wildfires.

Answered by Jenny Riddell-Carpenter - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The Government is committed to rewetting peatlands where it can reduce the likelihood of severe and sustained wildfire.

In 2025, we amended the Heather and Grass etc Burning (England) Regulations 2021, expanding restrictions on unnecessary burning practices, to enhance protection of upland deep peat and improve the resilience of our moorlands. Wetter, healthy-functioning peatlands are more resilient to the impacts of wildfire and deliver benefits for biodiversity and water security.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps is she taking with Cabinet colleagues to tackle drowning among children from lower socioeconomic areas.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

The department works closely with other government departments to support drowning prevention activity and ensure that all children gain the skills and knowledge they need. The PE national curriculum requires all primary pupils to be taught to swim competently, confidently and proficiently over a distance of at least 25 metres, use a range of strokes effectively, and perform safe self-rescue in different water-based situations.

In addition, revised statutory relationships, sex and health education guidance will ensure that all pupils in both primary and secondary are taught about the Water Safety Code, including floating as a key lifesaving technique. These requirements will come into force from September.

Our reforms to the PE curriculum will ensure there is a clear emphasis on swimming and water safety, and our new PE and School Sport Partnerships Network will bring the expertise of national governing bodies including Swim England directly into schools.

The network will provide targeted support where needed to close gaps in attainment and participation, including for pupils from disadvantaged and ethnic minority backgrounds.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions he has had with the Fire and Rescue Services on statutory funding for inland water rescues.

Answered by Florence Eshalomi - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Government is working closely with the fire and rescue sector as part of its wider programme of reform. This includes considering roles and responsibilities such as flooding and inland water rescues.

Fire and rescue authorities have duties under the Civil Contingencies Act (2004) to prepare for emergencies. They also have discretionary powers to respond to incidents under their general powers in the Fire and Rescue Services Act (2004) and in response to the risks set out in their Community Risk Management Plans prepared under the Fire and Rescue National Framework for England.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government recently conducted a Rapid Flood Review alongside the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs that looked to gather evidence around expansion of flood capacity in the sector. Recommendations from this work will help inform future decisions in this area.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help tackle the rate of drowning for black children, in the context of an increase of 35% since 2020, given black children are three times more likely to drown than white children.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

The department works closely with other government departments to support drowning prevention activity and ensure that all children gain the skills and knowledge they need. The PE national curriculum requires all primary pupils to be taught to swim competently, confidently and proficiently over a distance of at least 25 metres, use a range of strokes effectively, and perform safe self-rescue in different water-based situations.

In addition, revised statutory relationships, sex and health education guidance will ensure that all pupils in both primary and secondary are taught about the Water Safety Code, including floating as a key lifesaving technique. These requirements will come into force from September.

Our reforms to the PE curriculum will ensure there is a clear emphasis on swimming and water safety, and our new PE and School Sport Partnerships Network will bring the expertise of national governing bodies including Swim England directly into schools.

The network will provide targeted support where needed to close gaps in attainment and participation, including for pupils from disadvantaged and ethnic minority backgrounds.

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 ensure a joined-up response to preventing avoidable deaths due to drowning.

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

Water safety is a cross-government issue involving a wide range of departments and organisations. In July, I convened a cross-government roundtable to strengthen collaboration, and we will continue working with partners to support water safety and help prevent avoidable drowning deaths.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to tackle antisocial behaviour in rural towns and villages.

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

Every police force in England and Wales now has a dedicated anti-social behaviour lead who works with local communities and partners to implement anti-social behaviour action plans tailored to local needs and concerns. The ASB Action Plan for West Yorkshire Police can be found here: https://www.westyorkshire.police.uk/advice/abuse-anti-social-behaviour/anti-social-behaviour/anti-social-behaviour-action-plan.

Through the Crime and Policing Act, we are also strengthening the powers available to the police and local agencies to tackle anti-social behaviour, including the introduction of Respect Orders for persistent offenders, extending dispersal powers from 48 to 72 hours and increasing the maximum fixed penalty for breaching a Public Spaces Protection Order from £100 to £500. That means stronger consequences for behaviour that damages public spaces and local confidence.

We are also rebuilding neighbourhood policing, with additional investment in neighbourhood officers and PCSOs. With the Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee every neighbourhood, rural or urban, now gets named and contactable officers dedicated to tackling crime and anti-social behaviour locally.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to expand provision of police in semi-rural and rural areas.

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

This Government is introducing the most radical and comprehensive policing reforms in nearly 200 years. This will support it to tackle cross-border crimes like wildlife crime and organised equipment theft, while also restoring neighbourhood policing.

The Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee means that every neighbourhood, including in rural areas, already has named, and contactable officers, dedicated to tackling crime and anti-social behaviour locally.

Every rural area will also be covered by a Local Policing Area under a commander responsible for emergency response, local crime investigation and neighbourhood policing. They will be set targets to ensure they answer 90% of 999 calls within 10 seconds and attend 90% of the most serious incidents within 20 minutes in rural areas.

Found: Labour; Chelsea and Fulham) Dr Beccy Cooper (Labour; Worthing West) Jen Craft (Labour; Thurrock) Josh Fenton-Glynn

Found: Watch the meeting Members present: Layla Moran (Chair); Danny Beales; Jen Craft; Josh Fenton- Glynn;

Found: Q162 Josh Fenton-Glynn: Can I just pause you, to clarify the terms?