Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of his Department supporting the national response to wildfires, and whether an assessment may be required to consider how bambi buckets could be used to quell the spread of future fires.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to question 24227 on the 8 September 2026.
https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2026-08-28/24772
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to WPQ 13604 answered on 2 July 2026 on Fires, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of public communications during periods of high wildfire risk during the Summer 2026; and whether she plans to enhance the communications strategy for future Summer seasons.
Answered by Florence Eshalomi - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Following the devastating wildfires this summer, the Prime Minister has committed to holding a Wildfire Summit later this year. The summit will bring together a range of partners to turn the lessons of the exceptional wildfire and extreme heat events of 2026 into practical action.
We recognise that clear public information helps stop wildfires starting and helps people protect themselves and their property. We are making wildfire advice more visible, including through social media during high-risk periods, the Cabinet Office Prepare website, the Fire Kills campaign and StayWise, the NFCC-led education platform. We will consider what more we can do as part of the wildfire summit.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what fiscal steps he is taking to close the labour productivity gap in the East Midlands.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with HM Treasury)
The Government's ambition is to support good growth across all parts of the United Kingdom. As set out in the Prime Minister's recent Machinery of Government Statement, No10 North will be responsible for driving good growth through devolution and working in close partnership with local leaders, businesses, and communities to strengthen place-based growth.
We are also committed to fundamentally rewiring the way our country works, transferring greater powers, funding and accountability to the local leaders who know what it takes to drive growth and productivity in their areas.
The government has invested £10m into Team Derby – a city wide partnership between business and regional government designed to turn major national investments into local jobs, skills and regeneration opportunities. The wider East Midlands is receiving £2bn via the Transport for City Regions fund which will enable design of a new mass transit system to connect Derby and Nottingham and drive growth and productivity by better integrating transport networks.
The Chancellor has announced that the Green Book discount rate will be reduced from 3.5% to 3.0%, in line with recommendations from independent academics. This will place greater value on the long-term benefits of investment and strengthen the case for transformational projects that drive growth – wherever they take place.
At Budget, the government will publish a fiscal devolution roadmap which will set out a path to replacing grants from central government with a share of local income tax for every mayor beginning in 2028, such that where a region grows its tax base, it benefits from the increased receipts. This will sit alongside greater retention of the revenue from business rates for local councils and strategic authorities. The long-term certainty of funding via taxation will provide more flexibility and enable greater investment to fund interventions that will deliver a return.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent discussions she has had with NHS leaders to [a] assess the progress being achieved with the aims of the 2026 extension of the Rare Disease Framework and [b] and determine the needs to improve outcomes for people with rare diseases and conditions over the longer term.
Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Ministers from all four nations have agreed to extend the UK Rare Diseases Framework by one year, recognising the continued relevance of its four priorities.
The framework is overseen through UK-wide governance arrangements, including the UK Rare Diseases Framework Board, co-chaired by the Deputy Chief Medical Officer for England, and the Deputy Chief Medical Officer of the other devolved administrations on a rotational basis. The board last met on 20 February 2026 and provides high-level coordination of rare disease policy across the four nations.
Each United Kingdom nation also has its own delivery or implementation group to agree and monitor nation-specific action plans. We continue to engage with National Health Service leaders, delivery partners, devolved administrations, and the rare disease community, including through Genetic Alliance UK-led engagement, to inform future policy options and improve outcomes over the longer term.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to WPQ 106603 answered on 26 January 2026 about Marriage Relatives, what recent discussions the National Disease Registration Service has had with hospital trusts on improve the quality and completeness of data arising from health issues due to first cousin marriage.
Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Disease Registration Service has the responsibility to collect information pertaining to congenital conditions and continuously works with providers to improve data quality and completeness, including for the data item on consanguinity.
This includes ongoing data quality and data liaison activities and adopting a multisource approach to data collection.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to WPQ 13718 answered on 1 July 2026 about Fires, if she will undertake an assessment of the effectiveness of the New Dimensions 2 programme and the impact of the programme on tackling the wildfires in 2026.
Answered by Florence Eshalomi - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government is investing approximately £97m under the New Dimensions 2 programme to uplift and replace national resilience assets. This is the largest scale upgrade of these assets in almost twenty years.
This investment includes a pilot national wildfire response capability with specialist firefighters, equipment and training positioned across England to support fire and rescue services during major incidents.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government (MHCLG) funds the national resilience lead authority in Merseyside to deliver a range of services, including capability assurance, to ensure National Resilience Capabilities operate effectively across the country.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what evaluation has been undertaken of the adequacy of existing (a) mental health emergency departments and (b) community mental health centres and their impact on waiting times, hospital admissions and patient outcomes.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We keep all existing programmes under review. Early implementer mental health emergency departments have provided learning which is informing the next phase of rollout. In addition, the pilot programme for community mental health centres is being evaluated, with a final report expected in October 2026. Further details on the rollout of community mental health centres and mental health emergency departments will be published in due course.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what metrics will be used to determine whether the proposed expansion of community mental health services represents value for money.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We keep all existing programmes under review. Early implementer mental health emergency departments have provided learning which is informing the next phase of rollout. In addition, the pilot programme for community mental health centres is being evaluated, with a final report expected in October 2026. Further details on the rollout of community mental health centres and mental health emergency departments will be published in due course.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to WPQ 13604 answered on 2 July 2026 on Fires, what discussions she has had with executive agencies and ALBs about the effectiveness of wildfire management plans in the context of effective mitigations during the large-scale wildfires in Summer 2026.
Answered by Jenny Riddell-Carpenter - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Land managers have an important role in assessing and managing wildfire risk. Defra is supporting land managers to manage risk and put in place proportionate wildfire management plans, reflecting local risks and circumstances. These plans may include considerations of risk, control measures and monitoring mechanisms.
Defra officials are working with ALBs to ensure an aligned and coherent approach to wildfire policy. Defra’s agencies have a central role in resilience and preparedness, and officials in Defra’s agencies are working closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and Defra to ensure an aligned and coherent approach to wildfire policy. The Forestry Commission supports wildfire resilience through forest and land management, risk assessment and operational preparedness, and Natural England provides evidence-based advice on environmental impacts, habitat management and nature recovery, including burning licence applications.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if she will publish the criteria used to assess whether to use the emergency alerts system on Friday 14 August 2026.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security) (Jointly with the Cabinet Office)
Every Emergency Alert is carefully coordinated with responding public bodies and agencies. This tool is only used in emergency scenarios and where the need is greatest. The Cabinet Office remains committed to reviewing every alert request on a case-by-case basis.