Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his department is taking to ensure that publicly available court information is not fragmented or incomplete, in the context of the deletion of the court desk archive.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

There has been no deletion of the Courtsdesk archive of courts lists. Courtdesk does not hold courts records. We recognise that the ability for journalists to access and search courts lists in a single place is helpful. We are doing three things to improve the way in which magistrates’ and Crown court lists are made available. First, we have launched a market engagement exercise for new providers to apply to reuse our data under a new licensing regime (which would be open to Courtsdesk to apply for). Second, we have met Courtsdesk with a view to potentially re-establishing their service, provided they can demonstrate they will comply with data protection requirements. Third, by the end of March we will be expanding the Court and Tribunal Hearings (CaTH) service, an online portal which allows journalists, professional users and the public to access and search court-related information, to include magistrates’ and Crown court lists alongside the civil, family and tribunal hearing lists already published.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the introduction of mandatory online booking systems does not mean the withdrawal of other options such as face to face receptions and phone calls.

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

National Health Service organisations must ensure that all patients have equitable access to care, and that decisions or policies do not unfairly disadvantage people or lead to an increase in inequalities. All NHS organisations are legally obliged to not discriminate against patients or staff.

This means that a non-digital solution should be available for those patients who cannot or do not wish to engage digitally, including those with mental health conditions or language barriers. These non-digital routes must be available for all services provided by NHS organisations.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with the Advertising Standards Authority on the print size of the costs of phone lines on advertising in relation to the main body of the advertisement.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

My Department meets regularly with representatives of the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) on a range of matters.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) is the independent regulator for advertising in the UK and enforces the ‘CAP Code’ and ‘BCAP Code’, which set the standards for non-broadcast and broadcast advertising, respectively. These codes include specific rules intended to protect consumers from misleading marketing communications. If advertising includes the omission, exaggeration, or ambiguous presentation of information, for example in relation to prices, it can be considered misleading.

Further, Ofcom has overall responsibility for the regulation of non-geographic service numbers and premium rate services. Organisations using these numbers in broadcast and non-broadcast advertising must ensure that the service charge is displayed prominently and in close proximity to the number itself.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department plans to publish the findings of the urgent review into foreign financial interference in politics in their entirety.

Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

In December, the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government announced an independent review into countering foreign financial influence and interference in UK politics. The review findings will be delivered to the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government and the Security Minister by the end of March 2026.

The Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government will ensure that Mr Rycroft’s report is made available to Parliament at the earliest opportunity after it is received.

Found: Alex Ballinger (Labour; Halesowen) Aphra Brandreth (Conservative; Chester South and Eddisbury) Phil Brickell