Asked by: Lincoln Jopp (Conservative - Spelthorne)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, where the River Thames Scheme is on the Environment Agency's register.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Taking the register referred to as meaning a risk register, the River Thames Scheme is managed as part of the Environment Agency’s (EA’s) capital FCRM Investment programme and is therefore captured within the wider programme-level corporate risk register, rather than as an individual project risk. FCRM Investment programme risks are overseen and managed through the Government Major Projects Portfolio (GMPP) assurance framework, ensuring consistent oversight and mitigation across all major schemes. The approach focuses on managing uncertainty and delivery risk collectively to ensure the programme remains within acceptable risk tolerance while maintaining delivery confidence and value for money. The EA’s risk management framework follows standards set out in the UK Government ‘Orange Book’.
Asked by: Lincoln Jopp (Conservative - Spelthorne)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on the value of profits made by Corporate Travel Management under the Stanwell Hotel asylum contract; and whether any profits made have been returned to the Government.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office entered into an agreement with Corporate Travel Management (CTM) in April 2025. Accommodation at the Stanwell Hotel is provided as part of the contracted services.
Given this contract has been in place for a short period of time, the first financial returns have not yet been provided to the Home Office. These will be made available to the Home Office for review at the next quarterly supplier relationship management board taking place shortly.
The contract between the Home Office and CTM does not include profit share or commission share mechanisms.
Asked by: Lincoln Jopp (Conservative - Spelthorne)
Question
To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of introducing a digital identity system on levels of equality.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As we build and deliver digital ID, the government will undertake the biggest ever programme to drive digital inclusion, to ensure that every person can access all the benefits of using digital tools to access public services.
We are working with expert organisations and community groups to identify barriers and risks early, and that inclusion programmes reach people where they are.
More details will be set out in our public consultation later this year.
Asked by: Lincoln Jopp (Conservative - Spelthorne)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to increase the provision of equipment to Ukraine.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
We can be very proud as a nation that this year, the UK will give more military support to Ukraine than ever, with a £4.5 billion boost, including £600 million into accelerating drone delivery.
As part of the £1.6 billion announced earlier this year, we recently announced delivery of an extra 140 lightweight-multirole missiles ahead of schedule and a UK-Ukrainian project to mass produce thousands of advanced air defence interceptor drones to help take down shahids and cruise missile attacking civilians Ukraine.
The UK is co-leading the Ukraine Defence Contact Group with Germany and Coalition of the Willing with France, encouraging allies to provide more to Ukraine.
Asked by: Lincoln Jopp (Conservative - Spelthorne)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress he has made on the River Thames Scheme.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The River Thames Scheme is a proposed flood risk management project being developed by the Environment Agency and Surrey County Council. It is a landscape-based project designed to reduce flood risk to over 11,000 homes and businesses, while also creating new green open spaces and sustainable travel routes.
The River Thames Scheme is currently in mid project review. This review is to ensure that the scheme remains efficient, cost-effective and aligned with long-term goals; and to ensure the project delivers flood risk benefits in a robust and sustainable manner.
Asked by: Lincoln Jopp (Conservative - Spelthorne)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with Integrated Care Boards to facilitate the return of used (a) wheelchairs and (b) other medical equipment.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
In October 2024, the Department published the Design for Life roadmap, a new strategy to transition away from all avoidable single-use medical technology (MedTech) products towards a functioning circular system by 2045. This includes improving systems that enable the return of mobility aids, such as wheelchairs, and many other types of MedTech.
The Design for Life Roadmap is available at the following link:
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/679ca015a9ee53687470a2ed/design-for-life-roadmap.pdf
This was developed in discussion with a collaborative of more than 80 stakeholders from the UK MedTech industry, the health family, and academia, with wide support across the sector. Moving forward, the Department will continue to engage with the expanding collaborative, including with integrated care boards, to design and implement the systems that facilitate greater levels of return of used MedTech.
Asked by: Lincoln Jopp (Conservative - Spelthorne)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of taxing horse racing at the same rates of other types of gambling on the horse racing industry.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government consultation on proposals to simplify the current gambling tax system by merging the three current taxes that cover remote (including online) gambling into one closed on 21 July 2025. Responses are now being analysed and a response to the consultation will be published at Autumn Budget 2025.
If any changes are made to gambling duties at a future Budget following the consultation, they will be accompanied by a Tax Information and Impact Note which will set out the expected impacts.
Asked by: Lincoln Jopp (Conservative - Spelthorne)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many wheelchairs the NHS have issued in the last year.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for the provision and commissioning of local wheelchair services.
Data on the number of National Health Service wheelchairs issued is not held centrally. While NHS England collects quarterly data from ICBs through the National Wheelchair Data Collection, which supports the drive for improvements in wheelchair services, this is ICB-level data that does not include specific data on individual services, such as numbers of wheelchairs issued. Further information about the National Wheelchair Data Collection is available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/national-wheelchair/
Asked by: Lincoln Jopp (Conservative - Spelthorne)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the evidential basis is for encouraging children with SEND into mainstream schools.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell
The department has published independently commissioned insight from the Delivering Better Value programme. This research suggests that, if the system were extensively improved, including using early intervention and better resourcing mainstream schools, tens of thousands more children and young people could have their needs met without the need for lengthy waits and assessments, and have their needs met in a mainstream setting, rather than a specialist placement. Further detail on the research is available here: https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/63b6e5debb4b0114060dc226/66421eaae18cb50ccc378780_66421a046d5569ec0ad11674_DBV%20-%20Phase%201%20Insights%20Summary_Website%20v1.0_Final.pdf.
Further details of the government's intended approach to special educational needs and disabilities reform will be set out in a White Paper in the autumn.
Asked by: Lincoln Jopp (Conservative - Spelthorne)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has agreed a new two-year contract to put asylum seekers in the Mercure Stanwell Hotel.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
It has been the longstanding policy of the Home Office under successive governments not to disclose information about specific hotels which may or may not be used for asylum accommodation.
However, the Home Office continues to work with a range of stakeholders to fulfil our statutory obligations and deliver our commitment to reduce the overall cost of asylum accommodation, including ending the use of hotels, by the end of this Parliament.