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 impact on patients with relapsed or refractory Mantle Cell Lymphoma of NICE’s draft decision not to recommend brexucabtagene autoleucel (Tecartus) for NHS use; and whether he plans to review the CAR‑T delivery tariff to ensure continued access to treatments.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is currently re-evaluating brexucabtagene autoleucel to determine whether it can be recommended for routine National Health Service funding following a period of managed access through the Cancer Drugs Fund. NICE’s draft guidance, published in December, does not recommend it as a clinically and cost-effective use of NHS resources. The Government recognises that the potential withdrawal of brexucabtagene autoleucel as a treatment for future patients with mantle cell lymphoma will be concerning for patients and their families, but it is right that these decisions are taken independently and on the basis of the available evidence. In line with an arrangement between NHS England and the company, if NICE’s final guidance does not recommend use, patients who started treatment during the managed access period can continue their treatment.

The CAR-T delivery tariff reflects the costs which the NHS incurs for delivering CAR-T therapy. The tariff was updated for the start of the 2024/25 financial year following a planned costing review involving all CAR-T providers in England. This enabled the tariff to be updated with the benefit of the significant delivery experience that can be drawn on having first routinely introduced CAR-T in the NHS in 2023. Other than considering an appropriate inflationary uplift on an annual basis, in line with usual practice, there are no plans to further review the tariff at this time. Other CAR-T therapies have been recommended for routine NHS adoption in England by NICE based on an assessment of clinical and cost effectiveness that reflects the existing CAR-T delivery tariff, most recently obecabtagene autoleucel for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to extend NHS eligibility for the Shingrix shingles vaccine to older adults who previously received Zostavax.

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

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) is an independent departmental expert committee which advises the Government on matters related to vaccination and immunisation.

In November 2024, the JCVI provided advice to the Government on eligibility for the shingles vaccination programme. This included advice that the Government should consider expanding the shingles vaccination offer to include older adult cohorts aged 80 years old and over, regardless of whether these older individuals have previously been eligible for, or have been vaccinated with, Zostavax. The Department is carefully considering this advice as it sets the policy on who should be offered shingles vaccinations.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent discussions she has had with local authorities and employer groups on the availability of work‑experience placements for Year 10 pupils; and what steps she is taking to ensure adequate placements in all areas.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

The government set out its vision for reforming work experience in the 2025 careers statutory guidance. Every pupil will have access to 2 weeks’ worth of multiple and varied workplace experiences throughout key stages 3 and 4.

According to the Careers & Enterprise Company (CEC) Compass+ self-assessment tool, the majority of students in 74% schools and colleges had an experience of the workplace in the 2024/25 academic year. Note this data does not capture duration.

The department funds the CEC to work with local areas and engage employers to deliver this commitment. CEC’s careers hubs work in partnership with mayoral strategic authorities and local authorities resulting in stronger career provision and increased employer engagement, locally. Findings from a recent pilot found that careers hubs, working with local authorities and mayoral strategic authorities, successfully coordinated work experience provision across multiple schools and employers, reducing duplication and widening access.

Regionally, careers hubs work with cornerstone employer groups, who represent the local labour market and support the region's strategic employment engagement. Nationally, CEC holds strategic partnerships with employer groups, sector and representative bodies supporting all employers to deliver workplace experiences.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment he has made of the potential impact of guarantor requirements in the private rented sector on prospective tenants who can demonstrate affordability but do not have access to a suitable guarantor.

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

According to the latest English Private Landlord Survey, which can be found on gov.uk here, 21% of landlords required a guarantor for their most recent letting.

The government recognises that blanket requirements for a guarantor could act as a barrier to renting for some tenants and expects landlords and agents to consider tenants’ individual circumstances when negotiating rental conditions.

We are committed to monitoring the use of guarantors as part of our wider evaluation of the impact of our reforms on the private rented sector.

Where a landlord or agent is not satisfied by the outcome of pre-tenancy checks, they may ask a prospective tenant to provide a guarantor. If this is not possible, then a tenant may choose to use a professional guarantor service as an alternative. Local authorities may offer guarantee schemes to help people on low incomes or at risk of homelessness.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the noise from aircraft operating between 4,000 and 7,000 feet under the proposed Aviation Navigation Guidance 2026 on affected communities; and whether that is a material consideration in airspace change decisions.

Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department for Transport consultation on changes to the Air Navigation Guidance closed on 26 January 2026 and responses are now being reviewed. The consultation included a proposal for new airspace design priorities which would prioritise flight efficiency and reducing carbon emissions from 4,000 feet and above, with minimising noise impacts prioritised below that altitude.

An Options Appraisal was published alongside the consultation. The detailed assessment of the impacts of a specific airspace change would be carried out as part of that airspace change proposal. As well as taking account of the airspace design priorities it would also reflect other airspace modernisation measures which can have a positive impact on noise, such as steeper climbs and descents, meaning that aircraft spend less time at lower altitudes.

A key requirement for any airspace change proposal is, and will continue to be, that people who may be affected by a change have the necessary information and are consulted before any final decisions are made.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of ringfencing Section 31 grants.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

The Department does not routinely ringfence the section 31 grants it pays. We have listened to what local government needs and we are consolidating and simplifying the funding we pay to authorities. Local Transport Authorities know their areas better than government can, so this greater freedom and flexibility will help authorities to spend on the most important and impactful local projects. The Government will use Outcomes Frameworks to ensure that spending is used to improve transport for all its users.

Role of the House of Lords in scrutinising legislation

Radiotherapy in the National Cancer Plan

Found: Labour; Rotherham) Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour; Slough)Bill Esterson (Labour; Sefton Central) Mike Martin

Found: Q20 Mike Martin: Can we find their subs?

Found: Mike Martin made representations.

Found: Members present: Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Chair); Mr Calvin Bailey; Alex Baker; Emma Lewell; Mike Martin