Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to improve (a) universal, (b) targeted and (c) specialist speech, language and communication support for children in schools.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department is working closely with the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England to improve access to community health services, including speech and language therapy, for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities. This includes extending the Early Language Support for Every Child programme, trialling new ways of working to better identify and support children with speech, language and communication needs in early years settings and primary schools.
We are also continuing to grow the pipeline. In addition to the undergraduate degree route, speech and language therapists can also train via a degree apprenticeship. This route is now in its fourth year of delivery and offers an alternative pathway to the traditional degree route into a successful career as a speech and language therapist.
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 steps he is taking to monitor the quality of paid services offering assistance with Attendance Allowance applications.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Free help, support and advice on claiming Attendance Allowance is widely available, including on GOV.UK, from DWP, and organisations such as Age UK. There is no need for claimants to pay for advice and support with benefit applications.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, in addition to banning trophy hunting imports, what further plans she has to prevent British firms from selling hunting holidays.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government is committed to banning the import of hunting trophies from species of conservation concern, which is the most effective approach the Government can take on this matter. The department continues to engage with relevant stakeholders to ensure that we can implement a robust ban. Timeframes for introducing legislation will be provided once the Parliamentary timetable for future sessions is determined.
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 improve the clarity of guidance available to individuals applying for non-disclosure of address orders in insolvency cases.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Insolvency Service has published guidance on the government website www.gov.uk to explain how an individual can apply for a Person at Risk of Violence order (PARV order) to prevent their address being disclosed in insolvency cases. The guidance relates to bankruptcy applications. The only amendment currently being made to this guidance removes references to a fee being payable to the court when a PARV order application is made.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment her department has made of the potential impact of the removal of business rates relief and the business rates revaluation on high street businesses.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The amount of business rates paid on each property is based on the rateable value of the property, assessed by the Valuation Office Agency (VOA), and the multiplier values, which are set by the Government. Rateable values are re-assessed every three years. Revaluations ensure that the rateable values of properties (i.e. the tax base) remain in line with market changes, and that the tax rates adjust to reflect changes in the tax base.
At the Budget, the VOA announced updated property values from the 2026 revaluation. This revaluation is the first since Covid, which has led to significant increases in rateable values for some properties as they recover from the pandemic. To support with bill increases, at the Budget, the Government announced a support package worth £4.3 billion over the next three years, including protection for ratepayers seeing their bills increase because of the revaluation. As a result, over half of ratepayers will see no bill increases, including 23% seeing their bills go down. This means most properties seeing increases will see them capped at 15% or less next year, or £800 for the smallest.
More broadly, the Government is delivering a long overdue reform to rebalance the business rates system and support the high street, as promised in our manifesto.
The Government is doing this by introducing new permanently lower tax rates for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure (RHL) properties. These new tax rates are worth nearly £900 million per year, and will benefit over 750,000 properties, including pubs, hotels, restaurants, indoor leisure facilities, and nightclubs.
The new RHL tax rates replace the temporary RHL relief that has been winding down since Covid. Unlike RHL relief, the new rates are permanent, giving businesses certainty and stability, and there will be no cap, meaning all qualifying properties on high streets across England will benefit.
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 he is taking to monitor the level of administrative charges by Royal Mail applied to unstamped mail.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Royal Mail is an independent business. The government does not have a role in its operational decisions. The operation and administration of Royal Mail’s products and services, including stamps and associated surcharges, is a matter for the business. This includes the authority to apply administrative charges to unstamped mail.
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 ensure ICBs offer routine podiatry surgeries.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning services that meet the needs of their local populations, including podiatry and related surgical interventions where clinically appropriate. NHS England has issued guidance to ICBs to ensure equitable access to community and specialist services.
We recognise the importance of community health services (CHS) to the health and care system. The Medium-Term Planning Framework – delivering change together 2026/27 to 2028/29, published October 2025, sets clear targets for reducing waiting times for CHS.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department has plans to review documentation made public following the expiry of the 20-year confidentiality period relating to gurkha pensions and their alignment to British military standards.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
This Government holds the Gurkhas in the utmost esteem and greatly values their exceptional and lasting contribution to the United Kingdom. Their courage, loyalty, and commitment have been an integral part of the British Armed Forces for more than 200 years. The Government remains dedicated to honouring their service and ensuring they are treated with fairness and respect.
Defence has no current plans to review documentation made public following the expiry of the 20-year confidentiality period relating to Gurkha pensions and their alignment to British military standards. Defence considers the Gurkha Pension Scheme (GPS) to be a fair scheme, tailored to the historical circumstances during which it was open. The terms of the GPS have been challenged in a number of judicial reviews, including a case which went to the European Court of Human Rights and, at all levels, the courts have upheld the Government’s position that the scheme is lawful.
Gurkha service in the British Armed Forces was established under the 1947 Tripartite Agreement between Nepal, the UK, and India. The 1948 GPS was designed to support veterans retiring to Nepal, where their families lived. The Brigade of Gurkhas has been based in the United Kingdom since July 1997 and terms and conditions changed over time to reflect this new reality: Since 2006, Gurkhas have served on the same terms and conditions of service as the rest of the British Army, with certain provisions preserving the Brigade’s unique identity.
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 increase support for voluntary and charitable organisations providing dementia support services in Hampshire.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The provision of dementia health care services is the responsibility of local integrated care boards (ICBs), and may include services provided by voluntary or charitable organisations. We expect ICBs to commission services based on local population needs, taking account of National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.
We will deliver the first ever modern service framework for frailty and dementia to deliver rapid and significant improvements in quality of care and productivity. This will be informed by phase one of the independent commission into adult social care, expected in 2026.
The Frailty and Dementia Modern Service Framework will seek to reduce unwarranted variation and narrow inequality for those living with dementia and will set national standards for dementia care and redirect National Health Service priorities to provide the best possible care and support.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when her Department expects all eligible retired members of the Teachers’ Pension Scheme to receive their McCloud remedy payments; and what steps she is taking to expedite payments to retired teachers impacted by the McCloud pension remedy.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Capita, as administrator of the teachers’ pension scheme, is processing Remediable Service Statements (RSSs) for retired members affected by the McCloud remedy as quickly as possible. As of 15 October 2025, 69,798 RSSs have been issued to retired members.
Payments are made as soon as possible following the return of completed RSSs. To speed up delivery, the department is working with Capita to increase staffing, automate processes, improve IT systems, and prioritise complex cases. Members will continue receiving their original pension until remedy choices are implemented, and any backdated payments will include interest to ensure no financial disadvantage.
This is a high priority for the department and we are committed to resolving this with Capita and ensuring retired members receive their RSSs as quickly as possible.