Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to ensure the protection of birds of prey in the Forest of Dean.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

While Defra has not implemented any protections specific to the Forest of Dean, all birds of prey are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. It is an offence to kill or injure or take any wild bird; take, damage or destroy the nest of any wild bird (while that nest is in use or being built); and take or destroy an egg of any wild bird.

Bird of prey persecution is a UK wildlife crime priority and Defra supports the work of the national Bird of Prey Crime Priority Delivery Group, which brings together police, government and stakeholders from conservation and country sports organisations to tackle bird of prey persecution. Furthermore, Defra is a principal funder of the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU), which helps prevent and detect wildlife crime (including bird of prey crime) by obtaining and disseminating intelligence, undertaking analysis which highlights local or national threats and directly assisting law enforcers in their investigations.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will take steps to ensure that (a) self-employed people and (b) employees are not subject to higher taxation on both their earnings and state pension.

Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

At Autumn Budget 2024 we made no changes to the rates of income tax, which means employed and self-employed people will see no increase in the rate of income tax that apply to their earnings or state pension income.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the condition of roads in (a) Forest of Dean constituency and (b) Gloucestershire.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

This Government takes the condition of our country’s roads very seriously and is committed to supporting local authorities in maintaining and renewing their local highway networks. Under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980, Gloucestershire County Council is the local highway authority responsible for the condition and maintenance of roads in the Forest of Dean constituency.

The Government has allocated Gloucestershire County Council £35.3 million for 2025/26 to help them carry out their local highway maintenance responsibilities. This is £9.4 million more than in the current financial year, an increase of around 36%. It is Gloucestershire County Council’s responsibility to decide how that funding is used, based on local needs and priorities. The Government publishes statistics each year on the condition of local roads in different local highway authorities, and these are available on gov.uk.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to support the maintenance of roads in the Forest of Dean constituency.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

This Government takes the condition of our country’s roads very seriously and is committed to supporting local authorities in maintaining and renewing their local highway networks. Under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980, Gloucestershire County Council is the local highway authority responsible for the condition and maintenance of roads in the Forest of Dean constituency.

The Government has allocated Gloucestershire County Council £35.3 million for 2025/26 to help them carry out their local highway maintenance responsibilities. This is £9.4 million more than in the current financial year, an increase of around 36%. It is Gloucestershire County Council’s responsibility to decide how that funding is used, based on local needs and priorities. The Government publishes statistics each year on the condition of local roads in different local highway authorities, and these are available on gov.uk.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of developing a national strategy to place defibrillators in high need areas.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government is committed to improving access to Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) in public spaces and reducing inequalities in access to these life saving devices. Following the depletion of the existing AED fund, launched in in September 2023, the Government approved a further £500,000 in August 2024 to fulfil existing applications to the fund.

The Department selected a joint bid from Smarter Society as its independent partners to manage grant applications. Smarter Society has reviewed funding applications against requirements specified by the Department. Although no decision has been made to develop a national strategy to place defibrillators in high need areas, these requirements are to ensure that resources are allocated to where there is the greatest need, for instance remote communities with extended ambulance response times, places with high footfall and high population densities, hotspots for cardiac arrest including sporting venues and venues with vulnerable people, and deprived areas.