Asked by: Rebecca Smith (Conservative - South West Devon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of proposed changes to the Health and Social Care Act 2008 on volunteer mountain rescue teams; and if he will introduce an exemption to ensure that rescue cover provided by such teams is not classified as a regulated activity requiring registration with the Care Quality Commission.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Registration is only required where the service is providing the regulated activity of Treatment of Disease, Disorder or Injury by, or under the supervision of, specified healthcare professionals. Organisations providing exclusively first aid may be out of scope of these changes.
The Care Quality Commission will commence a consultation, starting on 8 May 2026, which will provide opportunities for further consideration around the appropriate implementation of the regulation to sectors such as individual clinicians, volunteers and mountain rescue services. This includes a separate stream specifically for mountain rescue.
Asked by: Rebecca Smith (Conservative - South West Devon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to improve (a) access to, and (b) outcomes in, higher education for adopted children.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Asked by: Rebecca Smith (Conservative - South West Devon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help ensure that adopted children receive appropriate pastoral support in schools.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Asked by: Rebecca Smith (Conservative - South West Devon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Business and Trade on improving the recognition of overseas qualifications and reducing barriers to employment in the NHS.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The statutory regulation of healthcare professionals in the United Kingdom is designed to protect patients and the public by ensuring that registered practitioners are appropriately trained, competent, and fit to practise.
The UK’s healthcare professional regulators are independent bodies responsible for setting standards of education, training, and professional conduct. They are also responsible for setting registration routes, including for overseas‑qualified applicants, to ensure UK standards of safe and effective practice are met. Only those who meet these requirements can legally practise in regulated healthcare professions.
National Health Service employers are responsible for ensuring that individuals appointed to specific roles meet the requirements of those posts in line with service needs, patient safety requirements, and relevant NHS frameworks.
The Government is committed to maintaining robust regulatory frameworks that support public safety, professional standards, and confidence in the healthcare system. Through its programme of regulatory reform, the Government will bring forward legislation to modernise the legislative frameworks of the regulators to ensure that they have the powers they require to protect the public while supporting an effective and flexible workforce. In the meantime, we continue to engage with regulators to support the effective use of their existing powers and frameworks to facilitate efficient registration pathways for both UK and overseas‑qualified applicants, consistent with public protection.
The 10 Year Workforce Plan will set out how the Government will ensure the NHS has the right people, in the right places, with the right skills to care for patients when they need it.
Asked by: Rebecca Smith (Conservative - South West Devon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of regulatory and accreditation barriers on the level of NHS workforce.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The statutory regulation of healthcare professionals in the United Kingdom is designed to protect patients and the public by ensuring that registered practitioners are appropriately trained, competent, and fit to practise.
The UK’s healthcare professional regulators are independent bodies responsible for setting standards of education, training, and professional conduct. They are also responsible for setting registration routes, including for overseas‑qualified applicants, to ensure UK standards of safe and effective practice are met. Only those who meet these requirements can legally practise in regulated healthcare professions.
National Health Service employers are responsible for ensuring that individuals appointed to specific roles meet the requirements of those posts in line with service needs, patient safety requirements, and relevant NHS frameworks.
The Government is committed to maintaining robust regulatory frameworks that support public safety, professional standards, and confidence in the healthcare system. Through its programme of regulatory reform, the Government will bring forward legislation to modernise the legislative frameworks of the regulators to ensure that they have the powers they require to protect the public while supporting an effective and flexible workforce. In the meantime, we continue to engage with regulators to support the effective use of their existing powers and frameworks to facilitate efficient registration pathways for both UK and overseas‑qualified applicants, consistent with public protection.
The 10 Year Workforce Plan will set out how the Government will ensure the NHS has the right people, in the right places, with the right skills to care for patients when they need it.
Asked by: Rebecca Smith (Conservative - South West Devon)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will publish figures for the percentage of Universal Credit claimants who are working, broken down by hourly increments, in each of the past five years.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Statistics on the number of people on Universal Credit are regularly published on Stat-Xplore, with the latest statistics by employment status available to February 2026. As there is no limit to how many hours a person can work and still get Universal Credit, information on the number of hours worked for those in employment is not collated.
Asked by: Rebecca Smith (Conservative - South West Devon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to HMS Dragon's deployment to the eastern Mediterranean and the planned retirement of Type 23 frigates before the Type 26 and Type 31 replacements enter service, what steps he has taken to mitigate the Royal Navy’s capability gap in escort vessels.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Type 26 frigates are expected to begin entering service from 2028, and all Type 31s are expected to be in service by the early 2030s. This is part of a carefully managed modernisation programme, which will see these new highly capable Frigates enter service, and the Type 23s retire from the Royal Navy following decades of dedicated service. In addition, there will be significant long-term investment in the six Type 45s, to enhance and sustain these world beating Air Defence platforms into the late 2030s.
Asked by: Rebecca Smith (Conservative - South West Devon)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to her Department's press release entitled Nationwide plans announced to design safer streets as 9 in 10 women report feeling unsafe walking at night, published 25 March 2026, what assessment she has made of the biggest barriers to the installation of lighting on walking, wheeling and cycling routes.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Barriers to the installation of appropriate lighting include a lack of energy infrastructure, higher scheme cost for upfront work, the impact on nature and wildlife, the long-term revenue budget required for the ongoing maintenance of lighting installation, and the balance between these factors that is part of scheme development. The forthcoming guidance from ATE will include the importance of implementing better-designed lighting.
ATE’s Route Check Tool includes specific metrics relating to lighting coverage, visibility, user safety, and minimising light pollution, helping authorities to plan routes that meet modern safety and design standards.
Asked by: Rebecca Smith (Conservative - South West Devon)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the total value of public funding committed to electric vehicle uptake and charging infrastructure is across all schemes since 2024.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Since 2024, the Government has allocated the following funding to electric vehicle uptake and charging infrastructure:
Autumn Budget 2024: £0.3 billion
Spending review 2025: £1.8 billion
Autumn Budget 2025: £1.5 billion
Total: £3.6 billion funding out to 2030.
Asked by: Rebecca Smith (Conservative - South West Devon)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment he has made of the potential economic impact of levels of underemployment among refugees with a right to work; and what steps his Department is taking to improve skills recognition and employment matching for such individuals.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The government agrees that we need to make full use of the skills and qualifications of refugees. We want everyone who can to succeed in work, contribute to economic growth and have roles which align with their potential.
That is why DWP work coaches are trained to support claimants, including refugees, into work looking both at how their existing skills can be best matched to employment vacancies as well as identifying any skill gaps and providing support to address these.
For those who have qualifications obtained overseas, work coaches signpost to the European National Information Centre (ENIC), who provide guidance and advice on getting foreign qualifications recognised in the UK.
In addition, we are reforming Jobcentre Plus and creating a new service across Great Britain that will enable everyone to access support to find good, meaningful work, and support to help them to progress in work, including through an enhanced focus on skills and careers. As part of this, we will improve our support for employers to help them find the right candidates to fill their vacancies.