Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department plans to take steps to help Wiltshire and Gloucestershire Council reduce transport poverty in South Cotswolds constituency.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

This Government is committed to improving transport provision across the country. We recognise the challenges people face in accessing transport, particularly in rural areas like the South Cotswolds. This is why we are working at pace to deliver our five key strategic transport priorities, which include the transforming of infrastructure to tackle regional inequality and the delivery of better integrated transport networks. DfT officials will continue to meet regularly with the councils in Wiltshire and Gloucestershire to discuss their aspirations for transport provision and provide support to address their concerns.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of the (a) construction and (b) operational phases of solar parks on (i) traffic and (ii) communities whose main transport routes are single track highways .

Answered by Michael Shanks - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

There are established routes in the planning system, such as the National Policy Statements, which consider the transportation impacts of solar projects throughout their construction and operation.

The main traffic impacts are likely to be during construction, however, solar farms are generally comprised of small structures, transported in smaller vehicles before being constructed on-site. Once operational, traffic movements are usually very light, mainly for site maintenance.

Developers are also required to consider the suitability of access routes as part of their application. They may need to modify existing or construct new roads where current infrastructure is unsuitable.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department has provided support to (a) Wiltshire and (b) Gloucestershire County Council to enable them to encourage pensioners in South Cotswolds constituency to check their eligibility for Pension Credit.

Answered by Emma Reynolds - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

All local authorities in England have received bulletins from both DWP and MHCLG. The bulletins contained information about Pension Credit along with links to DWP’s online stakeholder toolkit which contains a range of materials to help promote Pension Credit to pensioners and their friends and family. The bulletins also invited local authorities to request printed promotional materials to support their local activity.

The Department also shares extensive data with all local authorities for a variety of purposes. Local authorities are allowed to re-use that data under the terms of a data sharing Memorandum of Understanding, subject to them seeking their own legal advice and subject to them notifying the Department of their intent. Through this process, local authorities can re-use the data originating from DWP to help identify people eligible for Pension Credit.

Since 16 September, the Department has also been running national paid marketing activity, including radio (Greatest Hits Radio and Smooth Radio air in Wiltshire and Gloucestershire); national and regional press (including the Swindon Evening Advertiser); paid social media; and GP and Post Office Screens (including six medical centres and nine Post Offices in Wiltshire and Gloucestershire).

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to continue funding for previously agreed (a) Town Deals and (b) Levelling Up Round 3 awards.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

All 101 places selected for Town Deals are now well progressed into delivery, using their share of £2.35 billion to support projects that boost economic regeneration. All Town Deal project business cases have been approved and all monies are now fully allocated. Annual payments are scheduled to be made as planned and the programme is due to close in March 2026. I refer the hon Member to my answer to Question UIN 3603 on 9 September 2024 pertaining to Round 3 of the Levelling Up Fund.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he plans to take to reform funding arrangements for Internal Drainage Board levies.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Defra has committed to work with the internal drainage board (IDB) sector and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to review IDBs’ current funding and costs. This will include examination of whether any changes are needed to their funding model.

IDBs are local independent statutory public bodies, mainly funded by the beneficiaries of their work. This includes farmers who pay drainage rates and local authorities that pay special levies. Those beneficiaries are represented on the boards of IDBs, where decisions are made on the forthcoming programme of work and the annual drainage rates and special levies.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what additional steps she plans to take to support district councils to reduce the levels of homelessness.

Answered by Rushanara Ali - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Government is clear that homelessness is too high and too many families are living in temporary accommodation. We want to take a long-term approach and, working with Mayors and councils across the country, we will develop a new cross-government strategy to get us back on track to ending homelessness. The Deputy Prime Minister will chair an Inter-Ministerial Group to drive this forward.

We are also tackling the root causes of homelessness, including by delivering the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation. We will abolish Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions with immediate effect, preventing private renters being exploited and discriminated against, and empowering people to challenge unreasonable rent increases.

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 potential impact of (a) building more social housing and (b) keeping families out of temporary accommodation on the economy.

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

The Government is clear that homelessness is too high and that too many families are living in temporary accommodation. We intend to take a long-term approach to prevent and end homelessness. Working with Mayors and councils across the country, we will develop a new cross-government strategy to get us back on track to ending homelessness. The Deputy Prime Minister will chair an Inter-Ministerial Group to drive this forward.

We are also tackling the root causes of homelessness, including by delivering the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation. Our aspiration is to ensure that, in the first full financial year of this Parliament (2025-26), the number of Social Rent homes is rising rather than falling.

Our proposed changes to the National Planning Policy Framework include setting a clear expectation that housing needs assessments must consider the needs of those requiring Social Rent homes, and that local authorities should specify their expectations on Social Rent delivery as part of broader affordable housing policies.

We have asked Homes England and the Greater London Authority to maximise the number of Social Rent homes in allocating the remaining Affordable Homes Programme funding. The Government has started to review the increased Right to Buy discounts introduced in 2012, on which we will bring forward more details and secondary legislation to implement changes in the autumn. We have also announced new flexibilities for how councils can use their Right to Buy receipts to deliver replacement homes; these flexibilities will be in place for an initial 24 months, subject to review.

We are committed to setting out details of future Government investment in social and affordable housing at the Spending Review.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will increase the discounted Public Works Loan Board rate to local councils for investment in social housing.

Answered by Darren Jones - Chief Secretary to the Treasury

The Public Works Loan Board (PWLB) lending facility exists to provide cost effective loans to local authorities to support investment and service delivery. HM Treasury keeps all PWLB rates under review, including the discounted rate for investment in social housing. The current discounted rate for Housing Revenue Account lending remains available until June 2025.

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 role that district councils will have in a potential devolution deal for Gloucestershire.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

This Government believes that the benefits of devolution are best achieved through the establishment of combined authorities or combined county authorities over sensible economic geographies and supported by a mayor.

The Government recognises the vital role district councils play and strongly encourages their involvement in combined county authorities in a number of ways, including non-constituent membership, positions on overview and scrutiny and audit committees, and via local joint working on key issues.

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 potential impact of changes in the level public sector pay on district council budgets over the last three years.

Answered by Jim McMahon - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Local authorities are independent employers responsible for the management and organisation of their own workforces, including remuneration. The Government recognises the challenges local authorities are facing as demand increases for critical services. Future local authority funding decisions will be a matter for the Budget and Local Government Finance Settlement in which we are engaged.

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 restructuring of Out-of-Hours GP services in (a) Wiltshire, (b) Gloucestershire and (c) other rural areas does not restrict patient access to urgent care.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

General practices (GPs) are independent businesses who are contracted by National Health Service commissioners to perform medical services. The GP contract ensures that a consistent provision of healthcare is provided, including out of hours services which should be available to all patients, including in Wiltshire, Gloucestershire, and other rural areas.

Practices may provide out of hours services themselves, for which they will be paid, or they can opt out of providing these with their commissioner’s approval. If a practice chooses to opt out of delivering these services, they must be made available from an alternative provider for that practice’s registered patients. This is to provide practices with flexibility, as they are best placed to understand their own workforce and workloads. Any changes in services are determined by local commissioners.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure that children with (a) hearing impairments and (b) other disabilities receive adequate support at their local schools when specialist facilities are not available; and what support her Department provides for transport in cases where parents have to send their child to a school further away that provides such support.

Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)

The government’s ambition is that all children and young people receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life. We are committed to improving inclusivity and expertise in mainstream schools, as well as ensuring special schools cater to those with the most complex needs, restoring parents’ trust that their child will get the support they need.

Whilst we recognise the urgency and need to drive improvements, we are conscious that there are no quick fixes and want to take a considered approach to deliver sustainable education reform. Our initial work includes commissioning independent evidence reviews to identify what works to support children and young people with different needs, including hearing impairments. We are also working with Ofsted to consider how outcomes for children with special educational needs and disabilities are better reflected in the Education Inspection Framework.

The department’s home-to-school travel policy aims to make sure no child is prevented from accessing education by a lack of transport. Local authorities must arrange free home-to-school travel for children of compulsory school age who attend their nearest school and would not be able to walk there because of the distance, their special educational needs, disability or mobility problem, or because the route is unsafe. Where a child’s nearest school is unable to offer them a place, the nearest school that can admit them becomes their nearest school for school travel purposes.

Bus fare cap

Bus fare cap hike

Israeli Knesset decision to ban UNRWA

Support for community energy initiatives

Agricultural Property Relief and Business Property Relief

GWR Sunday timetable

Social care workers and National Insurance

Use of swift bricks

Children's Grief Awareness Week 2024

Implications for rural communities of the Autumn Budget 2024

Triple negative breast cancer

Establishment of the Women’s Caucus in Westminster

Rural Crime Action Week 2024

Private security and community policing

Frozen pensions for UK citizens overseas

Prevention of cyber-crime

Impact of austerity on the Fire and Rescue Service

Thames Water price rises

UK arms exports to Israel

World Mental Health Day 2024

75th anniversary of the Cheltenham Literature Festival

Conflict in the Middle East

Immediate ceasefire in Lebanon

Peace in the Middle East

Value of grasslands

Business relief for pubs

World Homelessness Day 2024

World Mental Health Day and rural communities

Found: Lisa Smart Christine Jardine Wendy Chamberlain Layla Moran Jess Brown-Fuller Calum Miller Dr Roz

Found: Lisa Smart Christine Jardine Wendy Chamberlain Layla Moran Jess Brown-Fuller Calum Miller Dr Roz