Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to written question 120134 answered on 16 March 2026, for what reason GS4 mix is no longer available to farmers.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
GS4 was previously an option called ‘Legume and herb-rich swards’ available to farmers under legacy Countryside Stewardship Mid Tier and Higher Tier agreements. This option was replaced with a broadly equivalent action called ‘Herbal leys’ under both the new Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) and new Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier (CSHT) offers.
The original mix used for GS4 was a tightly specified herbal ley mix with high species requirements (containing at least 5 species of grass, 4 species of legume and 4 species of herb or wildflowers). It has been replaced in SFI by the CSAM3: Herbal leys action (with lower minimum requirements) and in CSHT by the CGS4: Herbal leys action (using a mix which can be tailored to meet specific local conditions and to support delivery of specific habitats or species).
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
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 has had discussions with stakeholders on the adequacy of the BREEAM Excellent £2,000,000 threshold, in the context of inflation since it was set.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Department has not held discussions with stakeholders on this matter.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of VAT rules on the accessibility and affordability of services provided by CBT psychotherapists, counsellors and other health professionals on PSA Accredited Registers.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Many services provided directly or supervised by registered health professionals are exempt from VAT, meaning no VAT is charged to the final consumer. This does not apply to professionals who do not have statutory registers, such as counsellors and psychotherapists.
The UK’s approach of linking VAT exemption to statutory registration provides a clear and objective criterion for defining ‘health professionals’ for VAT purposes, ensuring that VAT reliefs are tightly targeted. While the Government keeps all taxes under review, there are no current plans to introduce VAT exemptions for counsellors and psychotherapists without statutory registration.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made an assessment of the adequacy of regulation of psychotherapy professions.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is clear that the professions protected in law must be the right ones and that the level of regulatory oversight must be proportionate to the risks to the public.
The Department keeps the professions subject to regulation under review but has no current plans to extend statutory regulation to psychotherapy professions, including counsellors and cognitive behavioural therapy psychotherapists.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has plans to introduce statutory regulation for psychotherapy professions, including counsellors and CBT psychotherapists.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is clear that the professions protected in law must be the right ones and that the level of regulatory oversight must be proportionate to the risks to the public.
The Department keeps the professions subject to regulation under review but has no current plans to extend statutory regulation to psychotherapy professions, including counsellors and cognitive behavioural therapy psychotherapists.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of extending VAT exemption to counsellors, psychotherapists and CBT therapists who are on Professional Standards Authority-accredited registers.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Many services provided directly or supervised by registered health professionals are exempt from VAT, meaning no VAT is charged to the final consumer. This does not apply to professionals who do not have statutory registers, such as counsellors and psychotherapists.
The UK’s approach of linking VAT exemption to statutory registration provides a clear and objective criterion for defining ‘health professionals’ for VAT purposes, ensuring that VAT reliefs are tightly targeted. While the Government keeps all taxes under review, there are no current plans to introduce VAT exemptions for counsellors and psychotherapists without statutory registration.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her department is taking to address the potential risk of social housing residents being excluded from full fibre broadband due to access rights.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government is committed to ensuring at least 99% of premises receive gigabit broadband coverage by 2032. This will primarily be achieved through the commercial deployment of full‑fibre connections. Through Project Gigabit the Government is supporting the rollout of gigabit‑capable broadband to UK premises that are not expected to be reached commercially, helping to ensure that residents, including those in social housing, can benefit from fast and reliable connectivity.
The Department recognises the challenges of connection in social housing, and we continue to engage with Local Authorities and Housing Associations on digital infrastructure deployment. In November 2024, the then Minister of State for Data Protection and Telecoms wrote to Local Authorities to encourage access agreements to be reached for the installation of gigabit-capable broadband on local authority land and assets which include some social housing.
We are currently analysing responses to our consultation on legislative proposals to address broadband rollout in leasehold flats (which closed on 16 February 2026), and will update on the outcomes in due course.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what guidance his Department has issued on Mast Cell Activation Syndrome and the challenges to patients in accessing diagnosis and treatment.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to (a) secure national food supply chains and (b) protect food security through mitigation of disruption caused by extreme weather in the context of her Department's publication entitled Nature security assessment on global biodiversity loss, ecosystem collapse and national security, updated on 2 February 2026.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
UK self-sufficiency has remained broadly stable for several decades. In 2024, the UK was 65% self-sufficient for all food; 77% for food that can be produced here. In most scenarios, strong domestic production and imports through stable trade routes ensure food supply is maintained and can withstand disruptive events such as extreme weather.
Nature underpins our security, prosperity, and resilience and understanding the threats we face from biodiversity loss is crucial to meeting them head on.
Defra works with industry and across Government to monitor risks that may arise. This includes extensive, regular and ongoing engagement in preparedness for, and response to, issues with the potential to cause disruption to food supply chains.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 17 September 2025 to question 80057, what recent progress has been made in the OFGEM investigation into A Shade Greener; and when affected constituents can expect redress.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Ofgem, as the independent regulator, is responsible for investigating whether companies have complied with the rules of the Feed-in Tariff (FIT) scheme and related consumer regulations.
Ofgem’s investigation into the company A Shade Greener remains open. While the Department cannot intervene in the details of that investigation, we continue to support Ofgem in exercising its consumer powers appropriately. Any decisions regarding enforcement action or consumer redress will be taken by Ofgem once its investigation has concluded in due course.