Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of regulatory requirements for barbering businesses in ensuring that practitioners hold relevant qualifications and liability insurance.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Businesses in the hair and beauty sector including barber shops, hairdressers and beauty salons are required to comply with the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and associated regulations, which place duties on businesses to assess the risk of infection for employees and others affected by their work, including members of the public.
While the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) are the policy lead for the hair and beauty sector, responsibility for enforcing health and safety legislation at individual businesses rests with the local authority in which the premises are located.
Where there is evidence that risks are not being properly managed, local authorities may intervene and take appropriate enforcement action to ensure employees and customers are protected.
Local authorities are also responsible for managing hygiene standards in businesses, but this is not within HSE’s remit.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the current average time taken is to pay Access to Work suppliers for services delivered; and what steps his Department is taking to reduce delays in paying suppliers.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Access to Work payment processing is currently at 10 working days for generic payments and 15 days for special aids and equipment. We are upskilling additional staff to deliver payments and reduce processing times.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the accessibility of the Disability Living Allowance claim form; and whether he plans to take steps to improve it.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
An accessible online version of a DLA1 (new claim form) is available to download from gov.uk.
All other DLA Child forms and letters are available as a reasonable adjustment for customers who require alternative methods to interact with the department. These include, but are not limited to, email accessible version, braille, large print, audio.
All forms and letters are regularly reviewed to ensure they provide the customer with the information required and support a smooth customer interaction.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she is taking steps to reduce the processing time of up to 18 weeks to obtain a Certificate of Sponsorship.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
UKVI are constantly seeking to improve efficiency and reduce processing times however, we need to clarify that the 18 weeks is a service level agreement (SLA) not the processing time and the majority of applications are processed well within this SLA.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what mechanisms are in place to help facilitate Parliamentary scrutiny of contracts awarded for the administration of public sector pension schemes; and how value for money and performance are monitored once such contracts are awarded.
Answered by Satvir Kaur - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
Details of Government contracts over £12,000 are published online primarily to ensure transparency, accountability, and fairness in the expenditure of public money. Ministers and senior officials regularly appear before parliamentary committees as an integral part of the parliamentary process of holding the government to account.
The Sourcing Playbook emphasises best practice managing contracts through a proactive, partnership-based approach, ensuring they are designed for effective monitoring from the outset. This includes guidance on robust, ongoing contract management to deliver public services efficiently, requiring clear KPIs, performance monitoring, and risk mitigation, particularly for major outsourcing projects.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the planned timeline is for publishing a national implementation plan for the rollout of Fracture Liaison Services; and what milestones have been set for achieving nationwide coverage by 2030.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Fracture Liaison Services are commissioned by integrated care boards, which are well-placed to make decisions according to local need.
Our 10-Year Health Plan committed to rolling out Fracture Liaison Services across every part of the country by 2030.
Officials continue to work closely with NHS England to explore a range of options to provide better quality and access to these important preventative services.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will take steps to align compensation available to people affected by roadworks with other forms of transport.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
We are focused on tackling the cause of delays. We have raised fines for overruns to up to £10,000 a day. We have recently approved 7 lane rental schemes to charge those who dig up the busiest roads at the busiest times.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many Golden Hello scheme places were filled at the end of 2024-25; whether he has extended the recruitment period for dentists under that scheme; and when recruitment for dentists under that scheme will end.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Integrated care boards are continuing to recruit dentists through the Golden Hello scheme. The scheme offers a £20,000 recruitment incentive payment to dentists to work in those areas that need them most for three years. The recruitment of dentists in underserved areas remains a priority.
Golden Hello data will be published this year and will consist of data showing the regional distribution of the original allocation of posts and the number of posts recruited to at both a national and regional level.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of funding for Social Work England to clear the fitness to practise backlog; and what her Department's target is for reducing the average time from referral to hearing outcome.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department is the sponsor department for Social Work England (SWE), the independent regulator, and monitors their performance on an ongoing basis. Funding is provided to SWE annually and is based on the need to deliver against its business plan. SWE report into their board on case progression and are ahead of their current trajectory to reduce the backlog of fitness to practise cases awaiting a hearing. They also continue to increase the rate for hearings. SWE’s board papers are publicly available on their website.
SWE consulted in October 2025 on the potential of introducing adjudicator consensual disposal. The proposed guidance would introduce a new process that allows adjudicators and social workers, in suitable cases, to reach an agreed outcome without the need for a disputed final hearing. This approach would enable cases to be resolved more quickly when both parties agree on the facts and appropriate sanctions. As the independent regulator of the social work profession, SWE will respond to their consultation in due course.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of Social Work England's proposals for adjudicator consensual disposal as a means of expediting fitness to practise cases.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department is the sponsor department for Social Work England (SWE), the independent regulator, and monitors their performance on an ongoing basis. Funding is provided to SWE annually and is based on the need to deliver against its business plan. SWE report into their board on case progression and are ahead of their current trajectory to reduce the backlog of fitness to practise cases awaiting a hearing. They also continue to increase the rate for hearings. SWE’s board papers are publicly available on their website.
SWE consulted in October 2025 on the potential of introducing adjudicator consensual disposal. The proposed guidance would introduce a new process that allows adjudicators and social workers, in suitable cases, to reach an agreed outcome without the need for a disputed final hearing. This approach would enable cases to be resolved more quickly when both parties agree on the facts and appropriate sanctions. As the independent regulator of the social work profession, SWE will respond to their consultation in due course.