Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what he is taking, as co-owner of the International Education Strategy, to ensure UK schools expanding overseas do not use non-disclosure agreements to silence harassment or discrimination in ways that would be unlawful in the UK.

Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade) (Jointly with the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Government is committed to protecting workers from Non-Disclosure Agreement misuse. The Employment Rights Act 2025 includes a measure that void NDAs in cases of workplace harassment and discrimination.

We recently consulted on the measure and are currently analysing responses. A Government response will be issued in due course.

With regards to overseas franchises of UK schools, they must abide by the domestic laws of the host country.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether the Government's response to the Make Work Pay consultation on non-disclosure agreements will address staff employed by the overseas franchises of UK schools.

Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade) (Jointly with the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Government is committed to protecting workers from Non-Disclosure Agreement misuse. The Employment Rights Act 2025 includes a measure that void NDAs in cases of workplace harassment and discrimination.

We recently consulted on the measure and are currently analysing responses. A Government response will be issued in due course.

With regards to overseas franchises of UK schools, they must abide by the domestic laws of the host country.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will consider providing funding to support nurseries in upgrading older buildings to make them safer during hot weather.

Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The department has published guidance to support education and early years settings during hot weather which is available at: https://educationhub.blog.gov.uk/2026/06/hot-weather-and-heatwaves-guidance-for-schools-and-other-education-settings/. This draws on guidance from the UK Health Security Agency.

Early years providers are responsible for managing the needs of very young children during periods of hot weather and for implementing mitigations such as cooling systems and other measures to maintain safe indoor temperatures.

There is no maximum temperature standard set for nurseries and early years settings. Early years providers are responsible for assessing risks and taking appropriate steps to ensure the safety, wellbeing and comfort of children and staff. This may include investing in building upgrades where appropriate.

The department supports maintained nursery schools and other school provision as part of our investment of almost £3 billion per year by 2034/35 in capital maintenance to improve the condition of the school and college estate, rising from £2.4 billion in 2025/26.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of cooling and heat-management systems in nurseries and early years settings during periods of extreme heat.

Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The department has published guidance to support education and early years settings during hot weather which is available at: https://educationhub.blog.gov.uk/2026/06/hot-weather-and-heatwaves-guidance-for-schools-and-other-education-settings/. This draws on guidance from the UK Health Security Agency.

Early years providers are responsible for managing the needs of very young children during periods of hot weather and for implementing mitigations such as cooling systems and other measures to maintain safe indoor temperatures.

There is no maximum temperature standard set for nurseries and early years settings. Early years providers are responsible for assessing risks and taking appropriate steps to ensure the safety, wellbeing and comfort of children and staff. This may include investing in building upgrades where appropriate.

The department supports maintained nursery schools and other school provision as part of our investment of almost £3 billion per year by 2034/35 in capital maintenance to improve the condition of the school and college estate, rising from £2.4 billion in 2025/26.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she plans to issue guidance on the indoor temperatures at which nurseries and early years settings become not safe for young children.

Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The department has published guidance to support education and early years settings during hot weather which is available at: https://educationhub.blog.gov.uk/2026/06/hot-weather-and-heatwaves-guidance-for-schools-and-other-education-settings/. This draws on guidance from the UK Health Security Agency.

Early years providers are responsible for managing the needs of very young children during periods of hot weather and for implementing mitigations such as cooling systems and other measures to maintain safe indoor temperatures.

There is no maximum temperature standard set for nurseries and early years settings. Early years providers are responsible for assessing risks and taking appropriate steps to ensure the safety, wellbeing and comfort of children and staff. This may include investing in building upgrades where appropriate.

The department supports maintained nursery schools and other school provision as part of our investment of almost £3 billion per year by 2034/35 in capital maintenance to improve the condition of the school and college estate, rising from £2.4 billion in 2025/26.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will consider introducing a maximum safe indoor temperature standard for nurseries and early years settings.

Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The department has published guidance to support education and early years settings during hot weather which is available at: https://educationhub.blog.gov.uk/2026/06/hot-weather-and-heatwaves-guidance-for-schools-and-other-education-settings/. This draws on guidance from the UK Health Security Agency.

Early years providers are responsible for managing the needs of very young children during periods of hot weather and for implementing mitigations such as cooling systems and other measures to maintain safe indoor temperatures.

There is no maximum temperature standard set for nurseries and early years settings. Early years providers are responsible for assessing risks and taking appropriate steps to ensure the safety, wellbeing and comfort of children and staff. This may include investing in building upgrades where appropriate.

The department supports maintained nursery schools and other school provision as part of our investment of almost £3 billion per year by 2034/35 in capital maintenance to improve the condition of the school and college estate, rising from £2.4 billion in 2025/26.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she plans to amend the British Schools Overseas standards to prohibit accredited schools from using non-disclosure agreements to prevent disclosure of harassment or discrimination; and whether the approved inspectorates will be required to assess compliance.

Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

British Schools Overseas schools must abide by the local laws of the host country. There are no current plans to amend the British Schools Overseas Standards.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking to help ensure that access to safe and good quality education for children overseas.

Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK Government is committed to promoting equal access to safe, quality and inclusive education for all children worldwide, with a particular focus on girls, children with disabilities, and those displaced due to conflict and the climate crisis. We work closely with impactful and well-coordinated multilateral channels, including the Global Partnership for Education, the World Bank, and Education Cannot Wait, to build stronger, more resilient and inclusive education systems, including in crises.

We also collaborate with partner governments in line with our modern approach to development, providing evidence on what works, as well as technical assistance and tailored support to strengthen education systems. That includes helping countries to deliver their own services more cost effectively, to ensure that marginalised children can access education and that all children can achieve foundational learning outcomes, including basic literacy and numeracy.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if she will use the Illicit Finance Summit to press the Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies to introduce publicly accessible registers of beneficial ownership without delay or dilution.

Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

Tackling illicit finance at home and internationally remains a key priority for this Government. We recognise the role of those professional enablers who exploit the integrity of their professions to facilitate serious and organised crime and corruption. That is why the upcoming Illicit Finance Summit will focus on strengthening global enforcement against illicit finance, including forging new partnerships to disrupt such professional enablers and take the profit out of crime and corruption. By driving greater transparency, stronger enforcement and higher global standards, we will also make it harder to hide or misuse money, including through tax evasion. We will confirm details of attendance at the Illicit Finance Summit in the normal way in due course.

We regularly raise our expectations on publicly accessible and legitimate interest access registers of beneficial ownership with Overseas Territories (OTs) and Crown Dependencies, and I most recently discussed this with OT leaders and representatives on 16 July.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking to tackle the enablers of illicit finance in the financial and legal services sectors.

Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

Tackling illicit finance at home and internationally remains a key priority for this Government. We recognise the role of those professional enablers who exploit the integrity of their professions to facilitate serious and organised crime and corruption. That is why the upcoming Illicit Finance Summit will focus on strengthening global enforcement against illicit finance, including forging new partnerships to disrupt such professional enablers and take the profit out of crime and corruption. By driving greater transparency, stronger enforcement and higher global standards, we will also make it harder to hide or misuse money, including through tax evasion. We will confirm details of attendance at the Illicit Finance Summit in the normal way in due course.

We regularly raise our expectations on publicly accessible and legitimate interest access registers of beneficial ownership with Overseas Territories (OTs) and Crown Dependencies, and I most recently discussed this with OT leaders and representatives on 16 July.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if she will expand the remit of the Illicit Finance Summit to include tax abuse.

Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

Tackling illicit finance at home and internationally remains a key priority for this Government. We recognise the role of those professional enablers who exploit the integrity of their professions to facilitate serious and organised crime and corruption. That is why the upcoming Illicit Finance Summit will focus on strengthening global enforcement against illicit finance, including forging new partnerships to disrupt such professional enablers and take the profit out of crime and corruption. By driving greater transparency, stronger enforcement and higher global standards, we will also make it harder to hide or misuse money, including through tax evasion. We will confirm details of attendance at the Illicit Finance Summit in the normal way in due course.

We regularly raise our expectations on publicly accessible and legitimate interest access registers of beneficial ownership with Overseas Territories (OTs) and Crown Dependencies, and I most recently discussed this with OT leaders and representatives on 16 July.

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 reduce avoidable emergency admissions for people with neurological conditions.

Answered by Sharon Hodgson

The Government is committed to reducing avoidable emergency admissions for people with neurological conditions by improving earlier diagnosis, strengthening community-based care, and ensuring better coordination between services.

NHS England is encouraging systems to adopt personalised care and support planning, including anticipatory care approaches for people at higher risk of admission. This can involve the use of care plans, rapid access to community teams, and closer monitoring to ensure issues such as infections are identified and treated promptly, reducing the need for hospital admission. National programmes such as Getting It Right First Time and NHS RightCare support systems to identify unwarranted variation and adopt best practice in managing long-term conditions, including neurological conditions.

NHS England’s service specification for adult neurology sets out clear expectations for proactive, coordinated care to reduce the risk of avoidable complications. It emphasises early identification of clinical risks, personalised care planning, and timely access to multidisciplinary support, including specialist nurses, therapists, and community services. By promoting regular monitoring, effective management of common complications like swallowing, mobility, and bladder function, and close coordination between primary, community, and specialist care, the specification supports early intervention and continuity of care. This approach helps to minimise preventable deterioration, reduce unplanned hospital admissions, and improve outcomes and quality of life for people.

Together, these measures support local systems to take a proactive, joined-up approach to care, helping people with neurological conditions remain well in the community for longer and reducing avoidable hospital admissions.

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 Cabinet colleagues about imports from Israeli settlements mislabeled as originating from Israel.

Answered by Chris Bryant - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland

I have had several discussions with colleagues on trade with and within the Israeli settlements in Palestine, which are illegal under international law. We strongly advise against conducting any economic and financial activities in settlements.

Goods produced in these settlements are not entitled to benefit from preferential tariff treatment under the UK’s trade agreements with the Palestinian Authority and Government of Israel. UK operators are advised on gov.uk that, to claim preferential tariffs, all movement certificates and invoice declarations made out in Israel must include the origin where production has taken place. Where there are doubts about the declared origin of goods, HMRC undertakes checks to verify it.

The UK Government has introduced guidelines outlining how products originating from the territories occupied by Israel since 1967 should be specifically labelled as such as not to mislead the consumer.

Touring artists mobility arrangements

Palantir and the NHS (No. 2)

110th anniversary of the Battle of the Somme

Bank holiday for celebrations if England win the 2026 FIFA World Cup

Found: Children and young people’s reading in 2026, June 2026 38 Department for Education (RFP0171) 39 Q61 [Luke Taylor

Found: Committee members present: Charlotte Cane; Sam Carling; Lauren Edwards; Simon Hoare; Peter Lamb; Luke Taylor