Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent discussions he has had with Ofcom on the causes of delays in the delivery of first class post by Royal Mail in (a) the UK (b) Hampshire.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Ministers and officials meet with Ofcom regularly to discuss a range of issues in relation to its role as the independent regulator for the postal sector.
It is for Ofcom to decide how to respond should Royal Mail fail to meet its obligations. While the government does not have a role in Ofcom’s regulatory decisions, in January, I met with representatives from Ofcom to discuss the importance of Royal Mail’s quality of service performance.
The government expects that Ofcom will continue to closely monitor Royal Mail’s performance and take action where appropriate.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of her Department's changes to employers' National Insurance Contributions on trends in the level of employment in the hospitality sector.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
A Tax Information and Impact Note (TIIN) was published alongside the introduction of the Bill containing the changes to employer National Insurance contributions (NICs). The TIIN sets out the impact of the policy on the exchequer, the economic impacts of the policy, and the impacts on individuals, businesses, and civil society organisations, as well as an overview of the equality impacts.
The Office for Budget Responsibility also published the Economic and Fiscal Outlook (EFO), which sets out a detailed forecast of the economy and public finances.
With all policies considered, the OBR's March 2025 EFO forecasts the employment level to increase from 33.6 million in 2024 to 34.8 million in 2029.
The Government decided to protect the smallest businesses from the changes to employer NICs by increasing the Employment Allowance from £5,000 to £10,500. This means that this year, 865,000 employers will pay no NICs at all, and more than half of all employers will either gain or will see no change.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will exempt hospitality businesses from the business rates surcharge.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
To deliver our manifesto pledge, we intend to introduce permanently lower tax rates for retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) properties with rateable values below £500,000 from 2026-27. This permanent tax cut will ensure that RHL businesses benefit from much-needed certainty and support.
This tax cut must be sustainably funded, and so we intend to apply a higher multiplier from 2026-27 on the most valuable properties - those with rateable values of £500,000 and above. These represent less than one per cent of all properties, but cover the majority of large distribution warehouses, including those used by online giants.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the Personal Independence Payment assessment process for people living with bipolar disorder.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Entitlement to Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is based on the needs arising from a long-term health condition or disability and not on a particular disability or diagnosis such as bipolar disorder. Health conditions may be physical, sensory, mental, intellectual or cognitive, or any combination of these, and the assessment takes a comprehensive approach to disability, reflecting the needs arising from the full range of conditions.
Health Professionals conducting PIP assessments are trained specialists in disability analysis. All HPs receive specific training on assessing the effects of mental health conditions and are supported by Mental Health Function Champions (MHFCs). MHFCs are experienced professionals with relevant expertise in mental health, cognitive, developmental, and learning disabilities. They are available to provide advice and support throughout the assessment process. Additionally, HPs have access to Condition Insight Reports and Continuing Professional Development guides. These resources offer detailed clinical and functional information on a range of conditions, including Bipolar, to support HPs in delivering informed assessments.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the document entitled Reforming elective care for patients, published on 6 January 2025, whether his Department's plans to (a) expand non-surgical community-based ear, nose and throat services and (b) develop clinical models to support patients needing ear care will include the provision of ear wax removal services.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Ear, nose, and throat (ENT) services are one of five priority specialties identified in the Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, for significant transformation, due to the waiting times for ENT services. Given that a significant number of ENT referrals can be managed earlier and in a more convenient setting, we are exploring ways to expand community-based services so that patients receive quicker and more local care whilst reducing pressure on hospitals. The provision of earwax services will form part of this.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps his Department is taking to support hospitality businesses that made an economic and social contribution to towns and city centres.
Answered by Gareth Thomas - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
We recognise the vital role hospitality businesses play in driving economic growth and strengthening community cohesion across the country.
We plan to introduce permanently lower business rates for retail, hospitality, and leisure properties with a rateable value under £500,000, we have reduced alcohol duty on qualifying draught beer products, saving the sector over £85 million annually. We’ve introduced a £1.5 million Hospitality Support Scheme to co-fund projects aligned with Department for Business & Trade and Hospitality Sector Council priorities, such as supporting initiatives like Pub is The Hub to encourage local investment. We have also launched a licensing taskforce to cut red tape and remove barriers to business growth.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the adequacy of holiday clubs for parents of children with disabilities.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government is committed to the holiday activities and food (HAF) programme to ensure children who are eligible for free school meals can access enriching activities and healthy meals. More than £200 million has been allocated to the programme for 2025/26.
Local authorities and their providers have flexibility about how they deliver HAF provision to best serve the needs of children and families in their area. The department encourages all local authorities to have a rich mix of provision catering for children with different interests and of different ages. There is flexibility in how the programme can be delivered to children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or additional needs.
When assessing the requirements of children with SEND or additional needs, local authorities should ensure that the provision they fund through the HAF programme is fully compliant with the Equality Act 2010. This will include making sure that they, and the providers they work with, put in place any reasonable adjustments which are required to ensure that children with a disability are not subject to discrimination.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will conduct a review of the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises that concerns have been raised regarding the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme (VDPS). Ministers are currently considering a number of options for reforming the scheme. In parallel, the Department has been working with the NHS Business Services Authority, the administrators of the scheme, to take steps to improve the VDPS by modernising operations, and processing claims at a faster rate.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to improve access to HIV support services for people affected by HIV.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to ending new transmissions of HIV in England by 2030 and is developing the new HIV Action Plan, which we aim to publish this year. The plan will address ways to optimise rapid access to treatment and retention in care, and will improve the quality of life for people living with HIV, including consideration of peer support services.
A key component of the Government’s successful HIV emergency department opt-out testing programme includes a recommendation that 10% of the funding allocated to each site should be used to support community and peer services for individuals diagnosed with a blood borne virus.
NHS England is responsible for delivering HIV care, including support services for those living with HIV. In April 2024, it published the updated national Service Specification for Adult HIV services, which sets out the standards of care that HIV providers are expected to meet, including the availability of community, psychological, and psychosocial support for patients.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will make an assessment of the adequacy of the funding into Parkinson's Disease research.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Government responsibility for delivering Parkinson’s disease research is shared between the Department of Health and Social Care, with research delivered via the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, with research delivered via UK Research and Innovation.
Between the financial years 2019/20 and 2023/24, the Government spent a total of £79.1 million on research into Parkinson’s disease. Research spend is calculated retrospectively, with a time lag due to annual reporting lapses, and so 2023/24 is the most recent financial year we have data for.
As well as funding research itself, the NIHR invests significantly into research expertise and capacity, specialist facilities, support services, and collaborations to support and deliver research in England. Collectively this forms NIHR infrastructure. NIHR infrastructure enables the country’s leading experts to develop and deliver high-quality translational, clinical, and applied research into Parkinson’s disease. For example, in the financial year 2022/23, the NIHR Clinical Research Network enabled 114 studies related to Parkinson’s disease to be conducted in the National Health Service.
The NIHR continues to welcome funding applications for research into any aspect of human health and care, including Parkinson’s disease. These applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money, and scientific quality.
Welcoming applications on Parkinson's disease to all NIHR programmes enables maximum flexibility both in terms of the amount of research funding a particular area can be awarded, and the type of research which can be funded.