Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what the proposed timeline is for the implementation of the Warm Homes Plan, and what steps are being taken to ensure collaboration with local authorities, industry stakeholders, and consumer groups in its delivery.

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

The government remains committed to delivering the Warm Homes Plan which will be published soon. At the Autumn Budget 2024 the Chancellor announced an additional £1.5 billion of funding for the Warm Homes Plan, bringing total capital investment to almost £15 billion. This exceeds the manifesto commitment of £13.2 billion.

As part of the development of the Plan, this department has engaged with a broad range of stakeholders through a variety of different fora to ensure a wide range of views are considered.

This includes working with local authorities and social housing providers, who in March last year were allocated £1.8 billion to install energy saving measures across the country through the Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund and Local Grant.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will set out the detailed allocation plan for the additional £1.5 billion funding for the Energy Company Obligation, including the timeline for disbursement and the criteria for prioritising households.

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

ECO4 has played a part in delivering clean heat technologies; however, issues identified by the NAO and PAC support a shift to a more direct, publicly-funded approach focused on technologies that cut bills and accelerate the transition to clean heat such as heat pumps, solar PV and batteries. The government is providing an additional £1.5 billion—taking planned capital investment to almost £15 billion—to upgrade low‑income homes and scale clean home‑energy technologies. Deployment will be further supported through wider policies and details of this will be set out soon in the Warm Homes Plan.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what measures are being introduced to protect and support small and medium-sized enterprises in the retrofit supply chain under the Energy Company Obligation and related schemes.

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

ECO4 has played a part in delivering clean heat technologies; however, issues identified by the NAO and PAC support a shift to a more direct, publicly-funded approach focused on technologies that cut bills and accelerate the transition to clean heat such as heat pumps, solar PV and batteries. The government is providing an additional £1.5 billion—taking planned capital investment to almost £15 billion—to upgrade low‑income homes and scale clean home‑energy technologies. Deployment will be further supported through wider policies and details of this will be set out soon in the Warm Homes Plan.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she had made of the potential implications for her policies that heat batteries do not qualify for VAT relief through the Energy Saving Materials framework, while being MCS-certified and eligible for support under the Boiler Upgrade Scheme in the same way as heat pumps.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

Installations of qualifying energy-saving materials (ESMs) in residential accommodation and buildings used solely for a charitable purpose benefit from a temporary VAT zero rate until March 2027, after which they will revert to the reduced rate of VAT at five per cent. The list of qualifying ESMs, which includes but is not limited to heat pumps, can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/vat-on-energy-saving-materials-and-heating-equipment-notice-7086.

The Government assesses whether to add ESMs to this relief by evaluating them against the following tests: the primary purpose of the technology must be to improve energy efficiency and reduce carbon emissions; relieving the technology of VAT must be a cost effective lever for encouraging installations; and it must be practical for business to operate and for HMRC to administer.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has considered adding heat batteries to the list of Energy Saving Materials.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

Installations of qualifying energy-saving materials (ESMs) in residential accommodation and buildings used solely for a charitable purpose benefit from a temporary VAT zero rate until March 2027, after which they will revert to the reduced rate of VAT at five per cent. The list of qualifying ESMs, which includes but is not limited to heat pumps, can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/vat-on-energy-saving-materials-and-heating-equipment-notice-7086.

The Government assesses whether to add ESMs to this relief by evaluating them against the following tests: the primary purpose of the technology must be to improve energy efficiency and reduce carbon emissions; relieving the technology of VAT must be a cost effective lever for encouraging installations; and it must be practical for business to operate and for HMRC to administer.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if his Department will meet with fireworks industry stakeholders, such as Fireworks Impact Coalition, to discuss calls for a comprehensive review of fireworks legislation.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

I will continue to engage with businesses, consumer groups and charities to gather evidence on fireworks-related issues. I also recently met with the Scottish Government, and a number of MPs to discuss fireworks policy and hope to meet with the Fireworks Impact coalition in the near future.

The insights from these discussions, as well as other evidence gathered on the impact of fireworks will guide future action.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether his Department plans to adopt a UK-wide model similar to the Fireworks and Pyrotechnics Act (Scotland) 2022.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

There are currently no plans to adopt a model similar to the Fireworks and Pyrotechnics Act (Scotland) 2022 on a UK-wide basis.

I recently met with Siobhian Brown MSP, Minister for Victims and Community Safety in the Scottish Government to understand the impact of changes made in Scotland. In addition to this meeting, I will engage with businesses, consumer groups and charities to gather evidence on the issues and impacts of fireworks. The safety of the public and the impact on people, animals and property will be central in decisions on how the Government proceeds in relation to the regulation of fireworks.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment his Department has made to determine whether the 120 dB noise limit for consumer fireworks is sufficient to protect animals and vulnerable people from harm.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

No recent formal assessment of the fireworks legislation has been made including whether further restrictions on sales and use would fuel illegal trade or whether the 120 dB noise limit for consumer firework is sufficient.

I launched a public campaign on fireworks safety in October, just ahead of the fireworks season. Ensuring that these materials were shared widely helped to increase their impact. The campaign featured new guidance for those running community fireworks events, as well as social media materials that emphasised the risks associated with the misuse of fireworks.

To inform any future decisions in relation to the regulation of fireworks, I will engage with businesses, consumer groups and charities to gather evidence on the issues and impacts of fireworks. The safety of the public and the impact on people, animals and property will be central in decisions on how the Government proceeds in relation to the regulation of fireworks.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment of the fireworks black market his Department has made to determine whether further restrictions on sales and use of fireworks would fuel illegal trade.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

No recent formal assessment of the fireworks legislation has been made including whether further restrictions on sales and use would fuel illegal trade or whether the 120 dB noise limit for consumer firework is sufficient.

I launched a public campaign on fireworks safety in October, just ahead of the fireworks season. Ensuring that these materials were shared widely helped to increase their impact. The campaign featured new guidance for those running community fireworks events, as well as social media materials that emphasised the risks associated with the misuse of fireworks.

To inform any future decisions in relation to the regulation of fireworks, I will engage with businesses, consumer groups and charities to gather evidence on the issues and impacts of fireworks. The safety of the public and the impact on people, animals and property will be central in decisions on how the Government proceeds in relation to the regulation of fireworks.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if his Department will conduct a review into fireworks legislation.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

No recent formal assessment of the fireworks legislation has been made including whether further restrictions on sales and use would fuel illegal trade or whether the 120 dB noise limit for consumer firework is sufficient.

I launched a public campaign on fireworks safety in October, just ahead of the fireworks season. Ensuring that these materials were shared widely helped to increase their impact. The campaign featured new guidance for those running community fireworks events, as well as social media materials that emphasised the risks associated with the misuse of fireworks.

To inform any future decisions in relation to the regulation of fireworks, I will engage with businesses, consumer groups and charities to gather evidence on the issues and impacts of fireworks. The safety of the public and the impact on people, animals and property will be central in decisions on how the Government proceeds in relation to the regulation of fireworks.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many public sector workers have received an above-inflation pay rise in Washington and Gateshead South constituency since 5 July 2024.

Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury

We value all our public sector workers, and pay awards reflect the important work that our nurses, teachers, doctors, prison officers and soldiers do to keep the country running.

The overwhelming majority of awards announced in 2025/26, including for all of the above workforces, announced are above the OBR’s forecast for CPI inflation over the 2025/26 pay year.

Whilst I cannot confirm the number of public sector workers in the Washington and Gateshead South constituency in receipt of those pay awards, all those workers set out above will benefit from the above inflation pay uplift.

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 impact of measures to reduce child poverty on children in Washington and Gateshead South constituency.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Estimates of the total impact on low income poverty levels, and the number of children gaining, from the main changes included in the strategy for the United Kingdom as a whole are available here: Child Poverty Strategy: Impact on low income poverty levels and children gaining in the UK: December 2025 - GOV.UK. Across the United Kingdom, the measures set out in the strategy are expected to reduce the number of children in poverty by 550,000 in the final year of this Parliament, compared to our estimates without these measures.

Estimates for the number of children and households that are expected to gain from the removal of two-child limit policy at constituency level are available here: Poverty impacts of social security changes at Budget 2025 - GOV.UK. The number of children who are expected to gain from the removal of the two-child limit policy in the Washington and Gateshead South constituency is 2,620.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to ensure adequate policing in Washington and Gateshead South constituency.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Government’s Safer Streets Mission sets a clear expectation for policing to deliver safer communities and improved public confidence. An effective, well-supported police service is central to achieving this.

For 2025-26, a total of up to £422.2 million will be available for Northumbria Police through the police funding settlement, an overall increase of up to £28.8 million when compared to the 2024-25 settlement.

This includes:

• £10,781,126 through the officer maintenance ringfenced grant, and £4,742,769 through the top-up grant, to maintain a total headcount of 3,853 officers
• £6,160,643 through the neighbourhood policing grant to grow by 122 FTE Neighbourhood Policing officers (95 FTE police officers and 27 FTE PCSOs).

It is for Chief Constables and directly elected PCCs, and Mayors with PCC functions, to make operational decisions based on their local knowledge and experience. This includes how best to allocate and deploy the resources at their disposal to provide an effective service to local communities.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many pensioners in Washington and Gateshead South constituency are covered by the pension triple lock.

Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

Caseload statistics for State Pensions are available via Stat-Xplore - Log in. The latest published data currently relate to the quarter ending May 2025.

The State Pensions Triple Lock applies to recipients of the core element of State Pension. Based on latest data, the number of pensioners resident in the Washington and Gateshead South constituency who are in receipt of the State Pension, and therefore covered by the Triple Lock, is 20,085.

This total has been adjusted to exclude a very small number of individuals, who receive only Graduated Retirement Benefit, a category of the Pre-2016 State Pension system, as such payments are uprated using CPI.

The constituency referenced above encompasses Gateshead South as well as the entire Washington area, including Washington Central, Washington South, Washington North, Washington East and Washington West.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent progress he has made in meeting the 18-week referral-to-treatment standard in Washington and Gateshead South constituency.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Washington and Gateshead South constituency is served by the North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board (ICB). Performance against the 18-week Referral to Treatment standard for this ICB has improved from 68.9% to 70.5% since the Government came to office, and the waiting list has dropped by 11,854.

The Elective Reform Plan, which was published in January 2025, sets out the productivity and modernisation efforts needed to reach the 92% standard by March 2029, which improve patient care in the Washington and Gateshead South constituency and across England. We have set a national ambition that by March 2026, 65% of patients will wait no longer than 18 weeks, with every trust expected to deliver a minimum 5% improvement on current performance over that period. We are making progress in several areas including demand management, validation of waiting lists, diagnostics reform, including straight to test pathways, and clinically-led pathway reform in priority specialties.

Harm caused by exposure to sodium valproate

Found: stance strengthened in the OSCE PA by your appointment of the UK Parliament’s Head of Delegation Sharon Hodgson

Found: Leadbeater MP, Marie Tidball MP, Mark Sewards MP, Naz Shah MP, Paul Davies MP, Richard Burgon MP, Sharon Hodgson

Found: Sharon Hodgson, MP for Washington and Gateshead South - MC2025/05963 Postcode district NE37.

Found: ministers@dwp.gov.uk HM Treasury 1 Horse Guards Road London SW1A 2HQ Sharon Hodgson