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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what consideration is being given to animal welfare in the Sanitary and Phytosanitary agreement being negotiated between the UK and the European Union.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The Government is currently negotiating a Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Agreement to make agrifood trade with our biggest market cheaper and easier, cutting costs and regulatory barriers for British producers and retailers.

The details of this are subject to negotiation, but the Government has been clear about the importance of being able to set high animal welfare standards. While those negotiations are ongoing, Defra cannot comment further however parliament will be informed when they are concluded.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what transitional measures her Department is considering to mitigate the impact of new rules that British citizens with dual nationality must enter the UK with their British passport.

Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

We recognise the potential impact of changing travel requirements on dual British nationals who are seeking to travel to the UK without a valid British passport. We have therefore issued temporary operational guidance to carriers, who may at their own discretion accept some expired British passports as alternative documentation. Individuals who have previously had a British passport can apply for an emergency travel document if they urgently need to enter the UK.

Beneficiaries of the EU Withdrawal Agreement may enter the UK on production of a valid EU passport or (in the case of EEA and Swiss nationals) a national identity card and their valid EUSS status.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of building regulations in ensuring the quality, efficiency, and resilience of installed heat network systems.

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

The Building Regulations set performance requirements for buildings, including buildings connected to heat networks, but they are not responsible for regulating the detailed design or operation of heat network systems themselves. The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero is also consulting on mandatory technical standards for heat networks, that include proposals to ensure new and existing heat networks are designed, built, and operated to a standard, that will deliver good outcomes for consumers.

Found: March 2026 at 10.00 am Meeting in the Speaker’s Study Present: The Speaker, in the Chair Rachel Blake

Found: Labour, Earley and Woodley) (added 21 Oct 2024) 66 of 83 (79.5%) Former members Attendance Rachel Blake