Asked by: Nesil Caliskan (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will publish the average time taken for cladding remediation to be completed following its identification for government remediation programmes.
Answered by Florence Eshalomi - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The department publishes a range of data about remediation progress via the monthly Building Safety Data Release, including the proportion of buildings identified with unsafe cladding that are expected to be remediated as part of MHCLG's remediation programmes as well as the progress on the number of buildings that have started or completed remediation works.
Asked by: Nesil Caliskan (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to improve access to GP appointments in Barking and Dagenham.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are expanding capacity in general practices (GPs) which will help deliver more appointments to patients across England, including in Barking and Dagenham.
Since October 2024, we have funded primary care networks with an additional £160 million to recruit GPs through the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme. Additionally, the new Practice Level GP Reimbursement Scheme, backed by £292 million of ringfenced funding, will help practices hire additional GPs or fund additional sessions with existing GPs to strengthen capacity, access, and improve patient satisfaction, whilst also addressing GP unemployment and underemployment.
We now have the highest number of GPs since 2015. As of July 2024, there were 27,735 fully qualified full-time equivalent GPs, and now there are 30,552, which is an extra 2,800 GPs. We delivered 15.8 million more appointments over the past year than in the previous year and we have asked practices to ensure that they see those who need a clinically urgent appointment on the same day.
As a result, patient experience is also improving, with nearly 77% of patients reporting ease of contact, up 16% since July 2024, and overall satisfaction is improving as well. Specific, integrated care board information on GP appointments is available at the following link:
Asked by: Nesil Caliskan (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Building Safety Regulator.
Answered by Florence Eshalomi - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) has made significant progress over the last year following substantial reform of its leadership and operations. Under new leadership, it has strengthened capability, improved engagement with industry, streamlined processes and driven a wide-ranging programme of operational improvement.
These changes are delivering results, with faster decisions, increased Gateway 2 approvals and more developments progressing through the system while maintaining robust safety standards.
The BSR is now focused on extending this progress across remediation and the wider building safety regime, supporting both safer buildings and housing delivery.
MHCLG continues to work closely with the BSR to improve performance, proportionality and consistency, while supporting its development towards the future Single Construction Regulator.
Asked by: Nesil Caliskan (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many Empty Dwelling Management Orders have been issued, each year, since 2015 in a) London and b) nationally.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
My Department does not collect data on the number of Empty Dwelling Management Orders issued by local authorities in London or nationally.
Asked by: Nesil Caliskan (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Housing Ombudsman.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Housing Ombudsman is an independent, impartial, and free service for social housing residents. My Department monitors it against its strategic objectives and agreed performance measures.
Demand for the Housing Ombudsman’s services has increased by 500% from 2021. Since March 2026, the Ombudsman has increased determination output to an average of more than 1,000 cases a month.
The Ombudsman’s 2026–27 Business Plan sets out a caseload reduction strategy focused on increasing staffing, improving processes and systems, and managing demand by supporting better complaint handling by landlords.
Asked by: Nesil Caliskan (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when she will appoint the Unpaid Carers Champion.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
On 30 September 2026, my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, announced plans to appoint a Champion for Unpaid Carers. Work to establish the role is underway and further information will be announced in due course.
Asked by: Nesil Caliskan (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate she has made of the potential impact of the Social and Affordable Homes Programme on expenditure on housing support over the lifetime of that programme.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
We have assessed the impacts of the Social and Affordable Homes Programme on housing benefit spending and they will be included in the Economic Case of the Social and Affordable Homes Programme Business Case, which remains under development. A summary of that Business Case will be published within four months of final approvals.
Asked by: Nesil Caliskan (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, following the publishing of the new National Planning Policy Framework, what steps she is taking to support a) health, b) education and c) transport infrastructure alongside housing delivery.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to policies HC1, HC3, HC4, and TR1 of the new National Planning Policy Framework published on 17 August.
Asked by: Nesil Caliskan (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of a public food waste reporting requirement for large businesses in reducing food prices through increased supply chain efficiency.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government recognises the importance of improving food waste data to help reduce food waste and improve resource efficiency. The Department is engaging with industry to improve reporting and data quality, while considering a range of policy options. Potential reporting requirements for larger businesses, including mandatory reporting, remain under consideration.
Asked by: Nesil Caliskan (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when she plans to respond further to the 2023 consultation on food waste reporting.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government recognises the importance of improving food waste data to help reduce food waste and improve resource efficiency. The Department is engaging with industry to improve reporting and data quality, while considering a range of policy options. Potential reporting requirements for larger businesses, including mandatory reporting, remain under consideration.