Asked by: Sarah Dyke (Liberal Democrat - Glastonbury and Somerton)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of basing Skills Bootcamps Wave 7 funding allocations on historic delivery data from 2024-25.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
We are giving local areas greater control of the delivery of Skills Bootcamps in line with our commitment to devolution; supporting areas to use Skills Bootcamps to more closely meet the needs of their local employers and economies.
As part of this, a new funding model for local areas from 2026-27 will ensure the distribution of funding remains fit for purpose and sustainable as the programme matures.
Under devolution, local areas are the commissioners of Skills Bootcamps and can plan provision according to local skills priorities. They are responsible for decisions relating to the allocation of funding to individual providers in line with their preferred commissioning method.
We will continue to work with local areas on the implementation of the new funding methodology.
Asked by: Sarah Dyke (Liberal Democrat - Glastonbury and Somerton)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to ensure that colleges do not face disproportionate reductions in Skills Bootcamps budgets compared with 2025-26.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
We are giving local areas greater control of the delivery of Skills Bootcamps in line with our commitment to devolution; supporting areas to use Skills Bootcamps to more closely meet the needs of their local employers and economies.
As part of this, a new funding model for local areas from 2026-27 will ensure the distribution of funding remains fit for purpose and sustainable as the programme matures.
Under devolution, local areas are the commissioners of Skills Bootcamps and can plan provision according to local skills priorities. They are responsible for decisions relating to the allocation of funding to individual providers in line with their preferred commissioning method.
We will continue to work with local areas on the implementation of the new funding methodology.
Asked by: Sarah Dyke (Liberal Democrat - Glastonbury and Somerton)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of projected funding allocations for Skills Bootcamps in Wave 7.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
We are giving local areas greater control of the delivery of Skills Bootcamps in line with our commitment to devolution; supporting areas to use Skills Bootcamps to more closely meet the needs of their local employers and economies.
As part of this, a new funding model for local areas from 2026-27 will ensure the distribution of funding remains fit for purpose and sustainable as the programme matures.
Under devolution, local areas are the commissioners of Skills Bootcamps and can plan provision according to local skills priorities. They are responsible for decisions relating to the allocation of funding to individual providers in line with their preferred commissioning method.
We will continue to work with local areas on the implementation of the new funding methodology.
Asked by: Sarah Dyke (Liberal Democrat - Glastonbury and Somerton)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how his Department’s Defence Skills Passport will be used to improve the retention of serving female personnel and promote women into senior leadership positions.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
Defence’s transition to a skills‑based organisation is driven by the Pan‑Defence Skills Framework (PDSF). PDSF provides a single, governed set of skills that enables objective capability assessment and establishes a common language for identifying, defining, and managing skills. All personnel, both Service and civilian, will be required to record their PDSF Skills Profile, the utilisation of which will reduce gender bias, improve transparency, and create clearer, fairer pathways for progression.
Career progression and workforce decisions will rely on objective assessment of skills and demonstration of leadership behaviours. This ensures that women can compete on a level platform at every career stage, provides a strong mechanism for their retention and increases the number of women progressing into senior leadership roles. It also reinforces gender-focused initiatives, such as mentoring, and targeted leadership development to broaden competition for roles.
Building on the PDSF, the Defence Skills Passport will support more flexible movement between roles across Defence, enabling women to continue progressing without leaving the organisation. Future workforce insights tools will help Defence better identify and address gender disparities, strengthening the pipeline of women into senior leadership roles. Together, these measures strengthen the environment in which servicewomen can thrive, remain in Defence for longer, and progress into senior posts.
Asked by: Sarah Dyke (Liberal Democrat - Glastonbury and Somerton)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to help improve female participation rates in the cadet forces and the percentage of female personnel serving in the armed forces.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
We are proud of the gender diversity within the cadet organisations. As of April 2025, girls made up 36% of cadets in the community Cadet Forces and 39% in the Combined Cadet Force (CCF), with the proportion of girls growing in both settings since April 2021. We are working to deliver the Strategic Defence Review recommendation to grow the Cadet Forces by 30% by 2030, increasing cadet numbers both in community-based units and in CCF contingents in schools. The ‘30 by 30’ campaign will see an increase of over 40,000 cadets across the UK, providing the opportunity for many more young people to enjoy the fantastic benefits of the cadet experience.
We seek to continually improve the diversity of our cadets by offering a safe, welcoming environment with a range of activities on offer, and our Cadet Force Adult Volunteers (CFAVs) are excellent role models for female cadets. Within the community-based units, 35% of all CFAVs are women. We will ensure that volunteering within the Cadet Forces is as accessible and inclusive for women as possible as we develop an improved volunteer proposition as part of the ’30 by 30’ campaign.
We are committed to increasing the proportion of women in the Armed Forces. Defence has introduced a wide range of initiatives over the past four years, including strengthened action on unacceptable behaviours, flexible working provisions, improved welfare and support, and better equipment and uniform. These initiatives are removing barriers and helping women thrive across all three Services. We will continue embedding this work to ensure women are supported throughout their careers and that the Armed Forces remain an employer of choice for talent from all backgrounds.
Asked by: Sarah Dyke (Liberal Democrat - Glastonbury and Somerton)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment has been made of the effectiveness of attenuation ponds in reducing both the volume and flow of run from major roads where such works were not considered necessary pre-1990.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Attenuation ponds are deployed by Risk Management Authorities as a flood alleviation measure; they are determined by a range of factors including cost to benefit ratio and the standard of protection that can be achieved. In recent years, the highway sector has been innovative in its use of sustainable drainage and green infrastructure to help manage road flooding.
A new three-year £4.2 billion Flood and Coastal Risk Investment Programme will start in April 2026, where new projects will align with the strategic objectives set out in the Government’s new funding rules announced in October 2025. This means investment goes where it is most needed, accounting for flood risk, value for money, natural flood management opportunity and additional contributions to make Government investment go further. This investment will benefit properties, infrastructure and agriculture.
The Government and the Environment Agency are committed to improving England’s picture of flood and coastal erosion risk, including from surface water. The Environment Agency published its new National Flood Risk Assessment (NaFRA) data in 2025.
Asked by: Sarah Dyke (Liberal Democrat - Glastonbury and Somerton)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the relative cost benefit of attenuation ponds compared with repeated flood damage to (a) properties, (b) infrastructure and (c) agricultural land.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Attenuation ponds are deployed by Risk Management Authorities as a flood alleviation measure; they are determined by a range of factors including cost to benefit ratio and the standard of protection that can be achieved. In recent years, the highway sector has been innovative in its use of sustainable drainage and green infrastructure to help manage road flooding.
A new three-year £4.2 billion Flood and Coastal Risk Investment Programme will start in April 2026, where new projects will align with the strategic objectives set out in the Government’s new funding rules announced in October 2025. This means investment goes where it is most needed, accounting for flood risk, value for money, natural flood management opportunity and additional contributions to make Government investment go further. This investment will benefit properties, infrastructure and agriculture.
The Government and the Environment Agency are committed to improving England’s picture of flood and coastal erosion risk, including from surface water. The Environment Agency published its new National Flood Risk Assessment (NaFRA) data in 2025.
Asked by: Sarah Dyke (Liberal Democrat - Glastonbury and Somerton)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the planned legislative timetable is for the Defence Readiness Bill.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Defence Readiness legislation is being considered to ensure the Government has the powers it needs to keep the UK safe in crisis or war, as recommended in the Strategic Defence Review. Legislation will be brought forward when Parliamentary time allows.
Asked by: Sarah Dyke (Liberal Democrat - Glastonbury and Somerton)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the full deployment timeline will be for the roll out of female body armour in the Armed Forces; and what feedback mechanisms will be established to help improve users’ experiences.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The current Tactical Ballistic Plate (TBP) project, which is currently in its assessment phase, will deliver hard armour plates in a range of different sizes, thus ensuring greater comfort and integration for all users across Defence. Multiple Human Factors Integration (HFI) trials have been completed with female representation. Further information regarding the timelines for the roll out of TBP will be available as the project progresses.
The Army will continue to investigate options to procure complex geometry plates, working alongside both industry and Dstl. However, the technology is new, and the market does not currently offer complex geometry plates which meet current requirements.
With regards to feedback mechanisms, there are opportunities for users to provide feedback however they will become more established with time.
Asked by: Sarah Dyke (Liberal Democrat - Glastonbury and Somerton)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the evidential basis is for his Department's position that all of the Atherton Report’s recommendations have been implemented in full.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 16 December 2025 to Question 98153 to the hon. Member for Lewes (James MacCleary).
https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2025-12-08/98153