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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to correspondence reference MC2026/09208/NA, what assessment he has made of the potential impact pEPR rules being for glass distributors on (a) costs to consumers and (b) levels of plastic packaging by those distributors.

Answered by Mary Creagh

The Government published its October 2024 assessment of the impact of introducing Extended Producer Responsibility for packaging. It assessed packaging producers as a whole, including consumer-price impacts, but did not assess glass distributors specifically. It estimated the overall inflationary impact to be small, with a central estimate of 0.07% on CPI.

The Department has not made a specific assessment of impacts on levels of plastic packaging used by glass distributors. From 2026, pEPR fees are modulated so less recyclable packaging incurs higher fees and more recyclable packaging lower fees. Defra continues to engage with industry stakeholders including the glass sector.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent discussions had with housing associations on their responsibilities to shared ownership tenants.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

My Department engages regularly with housing associations about their duties in respect of shared ownership properties.

The new Social and Affordable Homes Programme places new expectations on shared ownership providers to improve customer experience. These include giving greater consideration to long-term customer affordability and increasing transparency and fairness on costs.

The majority of Shared Ownership providers are registered with the Regulator of Social Housing and are required to meet applicable regulatory standards, including relevant consumer standards relating to transparency, influence, and accountability.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress she has made on the Fishing and Coastal Growth Fund.

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

Following wide-ranging stakeholder engagement last year, key priorities for support were identified by industry. In response, the Fisheries and Seafood Scheme in England was adapted to start delivering these priorities, including ring-fencing £6 million for the small-scale coastal fleet and introducing competitive funding rounds for high-value projects. Since launching in April, around 260 applications, worth around £15 million, have been received.

In addition, across the UK, seafood exports are being supported through the £1.5 million per year Seafood Export Package. We remain committed to continuing to develop the fund, for example through the FCGF Expert Advisory Group, ensuring it continues to reflect sector priorities and needs.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of a national fisheries action plan.

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

I welcome the leadership my Honourable Friend is demonstrating through the APPG for Fisheries, for the industry, and for coastal communities like ours.

The Government is focused on delivering practical support for the sector, through measures such as the SPS agreement, Fisheries Management Plans, and the Fishing and Coastal Growth Fund.

I welcomed the opportunity to catch up with my honourable friend recently on her important work, and look forward to engaging with the APPG on its priorities.

Question to the Attorney General:

To ask the Solicitor General, what steps she is taking to support the Crown Prosecution Service in tackling serious economic crime.

Answered by Ellie Reeves - Attorney General

Serious economic crime is a growing threat. Last month, the CPS published their Serious Economic and Organised Crime Strategy, which sets out their continued commitment to effectively prosecute these cases amidst the evolving nature and complexity of these crimes.

Ensuring crime does not pay is a core objective. Through asset recovery and financial disruption, the CPS is targeting the profits that drive serious economic and organised crime, depriving offenders of criminal benefit and helping secure compensation for victims.

I will continue to work with the CPS to ensure they deliver justice for victims and hold those who commit serious economic crime to account.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what further steps he is taking to close potential loopholes in Child Maintenance that allow paying parents to avoid the agreed payments if they are paid in cash.

Answered by Andrew Western - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Where a paying parent changes jobs, The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) uses real-time information from HMRC where available, to quickly identify new employment and adjust maintenance calculations accordingly.

People who are self-employed are required to keep accurate records of their business income and expenses for tax purposes. HMRC can charge penalties for inaccurate reporting where it results in tax being unpaid.

Where the information available from HMRC does not give rise to a liability which accurately reflects what a customer believes a paying parent should be paying, the customer can seek a Variation. Variations allow the CMS to look at some circumstances which are not covered by the basic maintenance calculation. A variation can be requested on grounds of diversion of income. This is when the paying parent may be able to control the amount of income they receive. This includes diverting income to another person or for another purpose (including excessive pension contributions).

When income used to calculate the child maintenance assessment is disputed outside of the normal business as usual process, this can be referred for investigation by the Financial Investigation Unit (FIU), whose function is ensuring financial correctness of Child Maintenance assessments. Cases involving complex income can also be investigated by the FIU. This specialist team can request information from financial institutions to check the accuracy of information the CMS is given.

Where the FIU establishes that potential offences contrary to the Child Support Act 1991 have been committed, the case is submitted to the Crown Prosecution Service to make a decision regarding the viability of prosecution/conviction. The CMS is committed to prosecuting where it is in the public interest to do so, whilst balancing the welfare of all children involved in a maintenance assessment.

The FIU and HMRC are developing a new partnership to explore better intelligence sharing and joint working.

We are currently reviewing FIU work with a view to improving performance.

Furthermore, subject to securing primary legislation, we plan to remove Direct Pay and move to a single CMS service. This will enable the CMS to monitor all payments, respond more quickly to non-compliance, and better support victims and survivors of domestic abuse by removing the need for contact between parents and reducing the burden of reporting missed payments.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what evidence is required to establish if paying parents are failing to disclose their full income; and what action the Child Maintenance Service takes if it is proven.

Answered by Andrew Western - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Where a paying parent changes jobs, The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) uses real-time information from HMRC where available, to quickly identify new employment and adjust maintenance calculations accordingly.

People who are self-employed are required to keep accurate records of their business income and expenses for tax purposes. HMRC can charge penalties for inaccurate reporting where it results in tax being unpaid.

Where the information available from HMRC does not give rise to a liability which accurately reflects what a customer believes a paying parent should be paying, the customer can seek a Variation. Variations allow the CMS to look at some circumstances which are not covered by the basic maintenance calculation. A variation can be requested on grounds of diversion of income. This is when the paying parent may be able to control the amount of income they receive. This includes diverting income to another person or for another purpose (including excessive pension contributions).

When income used to calculate the child maintenance assessment is disputed outside of the normal business as usual process, this can be referred for investigation by the Financial Investigation Unit (FIU), whose function is ensuring financial correctness of Child Maintenance assessments. Cases involving complex income can also be investigated by the FIU. This specialist team can request information from financial institutions to check the accuracy of information the CMS is given.

Where the FIU establishes that potential offences contrary to the Child Support Act 1991 have been committed, the case is submitted to the Crown Prosecution Service to make a decision regarding the viability of prosecution/conviction. The CMS is committed to prosecuting where it is in the public interest to do so, whilst balancing the welfare of all children involved in a maintenance assessment.

The FIU and HMRC are developing a new partnership to explore better intelligence sharing and joint working.

We are currently reviewing FIU work with a view to improving performance.

Furthermore, subject to securing primary legislation, we plan to remove Direct Pay and move to a single CMS service. This will enable the CMS to monitor all payments, respond more quickly to non-compliance, and better support victims and survivors of domestic abuse by removing the need for contact between parents and reducing the burden of reporting missed payments.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what investigations are undertaken by the Child Maintenance Service into paying parents who are suspected of having undeclared income.

Answered by Andrew Western - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Where a paying parent changes jobs, The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) uses real-time information from HMRC where available, to quickly identify new employment and adjust maintenance calculations accordingly.

People who are self-employed are required to keep accurate records of their business income and expenses for tax purposes. HMRC can charge penalties for inaccurate reporting where it results in tax being unpaid.

Where the information available from HMRC does not give rise to a liability which accurately reflects what a customer believes a paying parent should be paying, the customer can seek a Variation. Variations allow the CMS to look at some circumstances which are not covered by the basic maintenance calculation. A variation can be requested on grounds of diversion of income. This is when the paying parent may be able to control the amount of income they receive. This includes diverting income to another person or for another purpose (including excessive pension contributions).

When income used to calculate the child maintenance assessment is disputed outside of the normal business as usual process, this can be referred for investigation by the Financial Investigation Unit (FIU), whose function is ensuring financial correctness of Child Maintenance assessments. Cases involving complex income can also be investigated by the FIU. This specialist team can request information from financial institutions to check the accuracy of information the CMS is given.

Where the FIU establishes that potential offences contrary to the Child Support Act 1991 have been committed, the case is submitted to the Crown Prosecution Service to make a decision regarding the viability of prosecution/conviction. The CMS is committed to prosecuting where it is in the public interest to do so, whilst balancing the welfare of all children involved in a maintenance assessment.

The FIU and HMRC are developing a new partnership to explore better intelligence sharing and joint working.

We are currently reviewing FIU work with a view to improving performance.

Furthermore, subject to securing primary legislation, we plan to remove Direct Pay and move to a single CMS service. This will enable the CMS to monitor all payments, respond more quickly to non-compliance, and better support victims and survivors of domestic abuse by removing the need for contact between parents and reducing the burden of reporting missed payments.

Found: Members present: Bill Esterson (Chair); Ms Polly Billington; Sir Christopher Chope; Lizzi Collinge; Melanie Onn

Found: Members present: Bill Esterson (Chair); Ms Polly Billington; Sir Christopher Chope; Lizzi Collinge; Melanie Onn

Found: Members present: Bill Esterson (Chair); Ms Polly Billington; Sir Christopher Chope; Lizzi Collinge; Melanie Onn

Found: Members present: Bill Esterson (Chair); Ms Polly Billington; Sir Christopher Chope; Lizzi Collinge; Melanie Onn

Found: Labour, Gateshead Central and Whickham) (added 28 Oct 2024; removed 3 Mar 2025) 1 of 1 (100.0%) Melanie Onn

Found: Labour, Gateshead Central and Whickham) (added 28 Oct 2024; removed 3 Mar 2025) 6 of 6 (100.0%) Melanie Onn

Energy support and decarbonisation funding for the chemicals and ceramics sectors was an encouraging sign that Government recognises a central challenge for industry: decarbonisation and electricity prices go hand in hand. It offers a potential model for future targeted support by linking help with energy costs to incentives for cleaner production. However, it also highlights the absence of a broader strategic framework for industrial decarbonisation/electrification across manufacturing. Current support remains uneven.  

The government will establish a Warm Homes Agency (WHA) – a dedicated public body to support the delivery of the Warm Homes Plan, and guide consumers through the transition. It will consolidate Salix, relevant DESNZ functions, and parts of Ofgem and work at both a national and local level (subject to agreement with the devolved governments). 

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Nuclear fusion is the process that powers the Sun, and for decades humans have been working towards harnessing its remarkable, "clean" power.