Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to her Department's press release entitled Over half a million more children to get free school meals, published on 4 June 2025, if she will make an estimate of how many additional children will be made eligible for free school meals from September 2026 in (a) the West Midlands, (b) the Birmingham local authority area and (c) the Birmingham Northfield constituency.

Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

This government is determined to tackle child poverty and spread growth and opportunity to every family in every part of our country. We have now announced the biggest expansion of free school meal eligibility in England in a generation. We will give every child whose family is in receipt of Universal Credit the entitlement to free school meals (FSM) from September 2026. This means that over half a million children from the most disadvantaged backgrounds will become eligible for a free, nutritious lunchtime meal every school day. This will lead to higher attainment, improved behaviour and better outcomes, meaning children get the best possible education and chance to succeed in work and life.

Crucially, this will lift 100,000 children across England out of poverty and put £500 back into parents’ pockets, supporting families with decisive action to improve lives ahead of the Child Poverty Strategy coming later this year.

Department for Work and Pensions data shows that 11,350 children in the Birmingham Northfield constituency will be eligible for FSM from September 2026. Following publication of the updated school census on 5 June, the department will publish further information on the numbers of children currently in receipt of means-tested FSM and the numbers of eligible children, by parliamentary constituency, in the coming weeks.

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 effectiveness of The Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training on Learning Disability and Autism for improving compliance with the Equality Act at CQC registered practices.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

It is for individual organisations, including Care Quality Commission (CQC) registered practices, to comply with the Equality Act 2010, guidance on which is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/equality-act-2010-guidance

A code of practice has been published to guide CQC registered providers on how to meet the statutory requirement for learning disability and autism training under the Health and Care Act 2022 which is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/oliver-mcgowan-code-of-practice

The Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training on Learning Disability and Autism, otherwise known as Oliver’s Training, is the Government’s recommended training package.

The CQC has a role in assessing the completion and effectiveness of training, which may include Oliver’s Training, in relation to Regulation 18: Staffing of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. Where an inspection involves the assessment of staff training, the CQC assesses the impact of training on the lives, outcomes and experiences of autistic people and people with a learning disability. The CQC also assesses whether people’s care, treatment and support promotes equality, removes barriers or delays and protects their rights under the Equity in experiences and outcomes quality statement, which is available at the following link:

https://www.cqc.org.uk/guidance-regulation/providers/assessment/single-assessment-framework/responsive/equity-experiences-outcomes

All assessments carried out through formal inspection activity are reported on and published on the CQC website.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, on what date the powers to make compulsory purchases of land for HS2 Phase One purposes expire.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The powers to make compulsory purchases of land for HS2 Phase One expired on 23 February 2022.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many complaints have been made in the last five years to (a) Birmingham and Solihull ICB, (b) all ICBs and (c) NHS England that allege (i) failure to make reasonable adjustments and (ii) disability discrimination.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Information is not available in the format requested. The annual publication of data on written complaints in the National Health Service, last published in October 2024, does not specify the number of complaints made to either integrated care boards or NHS England that were about either failure to make reasonable adjustments or disability discrimination.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of facilitating repatriation flights for UK nationals in Iran.

Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The safety and security of British nationals (BNs) is our top priority. We have long advised against all travel to Iran. We have taken the precautionary measure to temporarily withdraw our UK staff from Iran. The embassy will continue to operate remotely. The UK Government will not be able to evacuate or provide face-to-face assistance to BNs. If BNs intend to depart Iran across a land border and consider it safe, they should check the travel advice of the country they intend to enter before travelling to the border, including visa requirements. BNs requiring assistance can contact the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office 24/7.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average processing time is for (a) self-employed and (b) freelancer applications to Access to Work.

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

We do not hold separate average processing time data for (a) self-employed and (b) freelancer applications to Access to Work. These types of applications are included within the overall Access to Work processing time.

The current average processing time for access to work is 92.0 days from April 2025 to June 2025

Please note that the data supplied is derived from unpublished management information, which was collected for internal Departmental use only, and have not been quality assured to National Statistics or Official Statistics publication standard. They should therefore be treated with caution.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, on what date the powers to make compulsory purchases of land for HS2 Phase 2a purposes expire.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

Compulsory Purchase powers under the Phase 2a Act will expire on 11^th February 2026.

Found: Leighton Buzzard) Baggy Shanker (Labour; Derby South) Rebecca Smith (Conservative; South West Devon) Laurence Turner

Found: present: Ruth Cadbury (Chair); Mrs Elsie Blundell; Alex Mayer; Baggy Shanker; Rebecca Smith; Laurence Turner

Found: present: Ruth Cadbury (Chair); Mrs Elsie Blundell; Alex Mayer; Baggy Shanker; Rebecca Smith; Laurence Turner

Found: Alison Hume Bambos Charalambous Adam Dance Daniel Francis Matt Western Josh Fenton-Glynn Laurence Turner

Found: Alison Hume Bambos Charalambous Adam Dance Daniel Francis Matt Western Josh Fenton-Glynn Laurence Turner

Submit Evidence (by 1 Aug 2025)

The Transport Committee is carrying out an inquiry into the Government’s proposal for a revised National Policy Statement for Ports (NPSP).

Submit Evidence (by 8 Sep 2025)

Taxis and private hire vehicles (PHVs) form a key part of the transport network, particularly for people who face barriers to using other forms of transport and as a driver of the nighttime economy. However, the current system for regulating these vehicles can vary across different licensing authorities, creating inconsistencies and raising questions about how effective present standards are.