Asked by: Sarah Dyke (Liberal Democrat - Glastonbury and Somerton)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to ensure female prisoners receive (a) clothing and (b) personal protective equipment suitable for women.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
Women’s clothing in a range of sizes is available across the women’s estate. This provision has been developed with input from women in custody. Relevant staff in each women’s prison have recently completed training on the ordering process, and a cycle of clothing orders and delivery is in operation. Each establishment has a designated staff member responsible for managing this process.
In line with Prison Service Instruction (PSI) 06/2015 National Policy, Organisation and Summary Arrangements for the Management of Health & Safety, Directors, Deputy Directors and Governors must ensure that work equipment, including personal protective equipment (PPE), provided for use in the workplace is suitable for its intended purpose. Where work undertaken by prisoners has been risk assessed as requiring PPE, appropriate and suitable equipment is provided.
Asked by: Sarah Dyke (Liberal Democrat - Glastonbury and Somerton)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of installing wi-fi in female prisons to facilitate access to (a) education, (b) training and (c) prepare for integration into society.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
The Government recognises the distinct needs of women in custody and the critical role education plays in rehabilitation and reducing reoffending. The national education budget has not been reduced.
However, many prisons in the female estate (as well as the male estate) are having to reduce some elements of delivery due to the rising costs of provision.
Education is only one element of rehabilitation, and we continue to invest in skills and employability training for women, for example HMPPS' Future Skills Programme is supporting women in HMP/YOI Low Newton and HMP/YOI New Hall with the skills required to work in customer service roles. We also support women to desist from crime through housing support on release with a minimum of 10% of temporary accommodation beds reserved for women and nine dedicated Strategic Housing Specialists working across the female estate.
The new Prisoner Education Service includes a secure, standardised IT system across all public sector prisons in England, with Wi-Fi now available in education areas enabling improved internet access and data collection. In two women’s prisons, the Launchpad programme is now providing Wi-Fi across the whole site and in-cell laptops. These digital improvements are intended to support learning, wellbeing, and rehabilitation, better preparing women for employment on release.
Asked by: Sarah Dyke (Liberal Democrat - Glastonbury and Somerton)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of reducing educational programmes funding in female prisons on the level of (a) rehabilitation and (b) reoffending.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
The Government recognises the distinct needs of women in custody and the critical role education plays in rehabilitation and reducing reoffending. The national education budget has not been reduced.
However, many prisons in the female estate (as well as the male estate) are having to reduce some elements of delivery due to the rising costs of provision.
Education is only one element of rehabilitation, and we continue to invest in skills and employability training for women, for example HMPPS' Future Skills Programme is supporting women in HMP/YOI Low Newton and HMP/YOI New Hall with the skills required to work in customer service roles. We also support women to desist from crime through housing support on release with a minimum of 10% of temporary accommodation beds reserved for women and nine dedicated Strategic Housing Specialists working across the female estate.
The new Prisoner Education Service includes a secure, standardised IT system across all public sector prisons in England, with Wi-Fi now available in education areas enabling improved internet access and data collection. In two women’s prisons, the Launchpad programme is now providing Wi-Fi across the whole site and in-cell laptops. These digital improvements are intended to support learning, wellbeing, and rehabilitation, better preparing women for employment on release.
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 plans her Department has for the future of the Sustainable Farming Incentive.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra is working closely with farmers and industry stakeholders to design a future Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) offer that will better target the SFI in an orderly way towards our priorities for food, farming and nature. Information and plans for the next iteration of the scheme will be published in due course.
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 guidance her Department has issued on the treatment of historic (a) glass and (b) plastic bottles distributed prior to the introduction of the Deposit Return Scheme.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Deposit Return Scheme in England, Northern Ireland and Scotland will include single-use drinks containers from 150ml to 3 litres. Materials included are polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic, steel, and aluminium drink containers. Glass drinks containers across the UK are included in the scope of the Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging scheme, to make sure it is appropriately and efficiently recycled.
Only DRS containers placed on the market after 1 October 2027 will carry a deposit on them. Containers placed on the market before 1 October 2027 can still be recycled via kerbside collections.
Asked by: Sarah Dyke (Liberal Democrat - Glastonbury and Somerton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to ensure communities can access local railways.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
To ensure communities have access to the local railways, this Government is committed to improving accessibility, customer support, and helping to remove barriers to travel for all users of public transport.
Accessibility is an important part of ensuring communities can access local railways, which is why we will soon be publishing an Accessibility Roadmap that sets out how we will deliver a more accessible railway in the lead up to Great British Railways.
The Government also looks to connect communities directly with their local train operators through initiatives such as the Customer and Communities Improvement Schemes which aims to fund community-led projects that deliver a positive social impact in local communities across the country.
The Department also provides support for the Community Rail Network and Partnerships. Community Rail initiatives take many forms across Great Britain, united by a common goal of improving accessibility, connecting people, and bringing the railway into communities. Community Rail Partnerships deliver projects which bring benefits to local communities through social, environmental and economic growth.
Asked by: Sarah Dyke (Liberal Democrat - Glastonbury and Somerton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to support local authorities to provide more rail-bus links.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government knows that public transport needs to be better integrated in order to improve the experience for passengers, providing access to services and keeping communities connected. We also know that in rural areas, bus services can be a lifeline for many and can be the only means of accessing services, including other modes of transportation such as rail links. The Government is taking action to help improve local bus services and encourage greater integration between transport modes.
We have introduced the Bus Services Act 2025, which received Royal Assent on 27 October, to put the power over local bus services back into the hands of local leaders, including in rural areas. In addition, the Government has confirmed over £1 billion for the 2025 to 2026 financial year to support and improve bus services in England outside London. Somerset Council has been allocated £6.8 million of this funding, helping to improve bus services and connectivity across the area.
The Government also intends to publish its long-term strategy for transport to set the vision for domestic transport across England. It will focus on creating a transport network that works well for people, including those in rural areas.
Asked by: Sarah Dyke (Liberal Democrat - Glastonbury and Somerton)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the illegal betting market on the horseracing industry.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The issue of illegal gambling is a concern for this Government and we are committed to working closely with the Gambling Commission, the statutory regulator for gambling in Great Britain, to ensure that illegal gambling, in all its forms, is addressed. The Crime and Policing Bill, introduced in Parliament on 25 February 2025, will grant the Gambling Commission with new powers to more quickly and effectively take down illegal gambling websites.
Estimating the size of the illegal gambling market is difficult due to the changing nature of the sites and channels through which customers are able to access illegal activity. While research in this space is improving, further research is required to robustly estimate the extent of illegal gambling within Great Britain, who is engaging with it, and the impact that it is having on issues such as horseracing and tax revenues. This is a priority area of research for the Gambling Commission. We will continue to monitor the latest evidence in this area to improve our understanding of the illegal market.
Asked by: Sarah Dyke (Liberal Democrat - Glastonbury and Somerton)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the illegal betting market on revenues collected by HMRC.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The issue of illegal gambling is a concern for this Government and we are committed to working closely with the Gambling Commission, the statutory regulator for gambling in Great Britain, to ensure that illegal gambling, in all its forms, is addressed. The Crime and Policing Bill, introduced in Parliament on 25 February 2025, will grant the Gambling Commission with new powers to more quickly and effectively take down illegal gambling websites.
Estimating the size of the illegal gambling market is difficult due to the changing nature of the sites and channels through which customers are able to access illegal activity. While research in this space is improving, further research is required to robustly estimate the extent of illegal gambling within Great Britain, who is engaging with it, and the impact that it is having on issues such as horseracing and tax revenues. This is a priority area of research for the Gambling Commission. We will continue to monitor the latest evidence in this area to improve our understanding of the illegal market.
Asked by: Sarah Dyke (Liberal Democrat - Glastonbury and Somerton)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department is taking steps to help children and young people understand the circular economy.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The government recognises the importance of ensuring that children and young people are taught about and understand sustainability and the circular economy, which is why this topic can already be covered across a range of subjects, including science and design and technology. The national curriculum in England provides a broad framework within which schools have the flexibility to develop the content of their own school curriculum.
The independent Curriculum and Assessment Review’s final report is due to be published this autumn, along with the government’s response. The Review is looking at where the evidence suggests that curriculum and qualifications content needs to be updated to reflect rapid social, environmental and technological change, including a greater focus on sustainability.