Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to his proposal to close independent local Healthwatch services and transfer their functions to (a) local authorities and (b) Integrated Care Boards, what proportion of existing funding of £178,600 received by Brighton and Hove council in 2024-25 to commission a local Healthwatch service will be transferred to (i) the Sussex Integrated Care Board and (ii) Brighton and Hove Council to fund the new separate arrangements to collect (A) patient and (B) public views on (1) NHS and (2) publicly funded adult social care services.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The abolition of Healthwatch England and the transfer of its functions, as well as the changes to Local Healthwatch, will require primary legislation. The timing of this is subject to the will of Parliament and will happen when Parliamentary time allows.

A full Impact Assessment, including an Equality Impact Assessment, would be produced and published on the Government website when the legislation is introduced in Parliament. No assessment has been made at this time.

Any changes to the funding regarding the transfer of Local Healthwatch functions to integrated care boards and local authorities will take place after legislation.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will publish the Equalities Impact Statement on the decision to close local Healthwatch services and transfer their functions to local authorities and Integrated Care Boards; and what assessment he has made of the ability of commissioners to reach marginalised groups of people experiencing the greatest health inequalities.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The abolition of Healthwatch England and the transfer of its functions, as well as the changes to Local Healthwatch, will require primary legislation. The timing of this is subject to the will of Parliament and will happen when Parliamentary time allows.

A full Impact Assessment, including an Equality Impact Assessment, would be produced and published on the Government website when the legislation is introduced in Parliament. No assessment has been made at this time.

Any changes to the funding regarding the transfer of Local Healthwatch functions to integrated care boards and local authorities will take place after legislation.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to section 3 of the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023, when she plans to lay a report before Parliament on the delivery of the levelling-up missions.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Government published the Levelling Up Missions annual report 2024 to 2025 on 21 May 2025.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many full-time equivalent staff are working on responding to the Managing Pavement Parking consultation.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

My Department currently has a 0.6 full-time equivalent (FTE) policy lead working on pavement parking. This individual is supported by officials from various Civil Service professions across the Department, including analysts and lawyers, who provide occasional support as necessary as part of their jobs. The timing of the consultation response publication is not dependent on resource, but rather on ensuring the policy decision is correct. A policy announcement is expected imminently and plans are in place to resource the work necessary after an announcement.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy scheme reviews were outstanding as of 5 July 2024; how many remain outstanding; what steps he is taking to reduce the backlog; and what the average time is for processing a review.

Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

On 1 July 2025, I announced the closure of the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) scheme to new applicants via Written Ministerial Statement (Hansard Link: https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2025-07-01/hcws763). Four years on from the scheme’s launch and with over 95% of first-time applications now found ineligible, the time was right. Closing the scheme will also allow the Ministry of Defence (MOD) to process all outstanding applications and focus on supporting those already in the pipeline to restart their lives in the UK as soon as possible.

Two Reviews exist in the ARAP scheme, the Review that follows an ARAP ineligible decision and the Review that follows the rejection or partial rejection of an Additional Family Members application.

On 1 July 2024, 1,514 ARAP Reviews remained outstanding, and 387 AFM Reviews remained outstanding. The current number of outstanding applications is, as of 17 July 2025, is 1,033 ARAP Reviews and 280 AFM Reviews. The mean average time for all ARAP and AFM reviews, closed with a decision made, as 17 July 2025, is 194 days for ARAP reviews and 297 days for AFM reviews.

This Government inherited a large proportion of these cases from the previous administration, and I am determined that every outstanding case will be addressed as soon as possible. From the autumn, I will be introducing new key performance indicators for the ARAP caseload. This will help people understand where they stand in the process - and when they should receive a decision. To help support this work the MOD is also recruiting additional caseworkers to ensure cases are processed as swiftly as possible.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 16 July 2025 to Question 66780 on Transport: Disability, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of supporting access panels to create a national network.

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

The Sustrans Transforming Mobility Report recommends that local leaders, who best understand their communities, use access panels to engage disabled people in shaping, reviewing, and monitoring transport policies and projects. Paid access panels are one potential method for ensuring meaningful involvement.

The government recognises that accessibility improvements require collaboration across national and local authorities, transport operators, and industry. Central to this effort is the voice of disabled people. For nearly 40 years, the Department for Transport has led by example, being advised by the Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee, which mandates that at least half its members are disabled.

More broadly, the government is committed to making public transport more inclusive, enabling disabled people to travel safely, confidently, and with dignity. As part of this commitment, it is working with disabled people’s organisations, service providers, and stakeholders to develop an Accessible Transport Charter. This charter will set out clear, shared commitments based on the principles of accessible and inclusive travel.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will publish an update of recent progress in meeting the objectives of the second cycling and walking investment strategy.

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

The latest National Travel Survey figures published on the 27th August revealed that in 2024 43 percent of short journeys in towns and cities were walked or cycled; 339 walking stages were walked per person; the estimated total number of cycling stages was 0.94 billion stages and 51% of children aged 5 to 10 reported usually walking to school.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has had discussions with Sussex ICB on the reduction of the number of IVF cycles they offer.

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

We expect integrated care boards to commission fertility services in line with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines, ensuring equal access to fertility treatment across England.

NICE is currently reviewing the fertility guidelines and will consider whether the current recommendations for access to National Health Service funded treatment are still appropriate.

In light of broader pressures on the NHS and on-going changes within NHS England, we have been looking again at achievable ambitions to improve access to fertility services and fairness for all affected couples.

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 support Sussex Integrated Care Board to implement the Women's Health Strategy recommendations on access to fertility services for LGBTQ+ people.

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

We expect integrated care boards to commission fertility services in line with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines, ensuring equal access to fertility treatment across England.

NICE is currently reviewing the fertility guidelines and will consider whether the current recommendations for access to National Health Service funded treatment are still appropriate.

In light of broader pressures on the NHS and on-going changes within NHS England, we have been looking again at achievable ambitions to improve access to fertility services and fairness for all affected couples.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is is taking to increase awareness among workers of their proposed new rights under Clause 22A of the Employment Rights Bill.

Answered by Justin Madders

The Government will work with organisations such as the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service on updates to their guidance on non-disclosure agreements (NDAs), also known as confidentiality clauses, to ensure that workers and employers understand the changes to the law in relation to NDAs that are introduced through the Employment Rights Bill. The Government will also liaise with employer groups, the legal industry and unions about updates to their guidance and information on NDAs.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether guidance will be issued for (a) employees and (b) legal advisers on interpreting confidentiality clauses under the new regime under Clause 22A of the Employment Rights Bill.

Answered by Justin Madders

The Government will work with organisations such as the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service on updates to their guidance on non-disclosure agreements (NDAs), also known as confidentiality clauses, to ensure that workers and employers understand the changes to the law in relation to NDAs that are introduced through the Employment Rights Bill. The Government will also liaise with employer groups, the legal industry and unions about updates to their guidance and information on NDAs.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 6 January 2025 to Question 21111 on Local Housing Allowance, what the overall increase in rental prices was in the period under consideration.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The rental data referenced in the previous question was a combination of the ONS Price Index of Private Rents, which was an increase of 8.4% as of September 2024, as well as rental data supplied by the Valuation Office Agency, Rent Officers Scotland, and Rent Officers Wales, which showed that the 30^th percentile had on average increased by 8.6%, (comparing rental data 12 months to September 2023 with 12 months to September 2024).

Latest ONS Price Index of Private Rents official statistic: Private rent and house prices, UK - Office for National Statistics

Valuation Office Agency list of rents publication, which contains all rental market data collected for LHA in England: Local Housing Allowance List of Rents - GOV.UK

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 6 January 2025 to Question 21111 on Local Housing Allowance, if she will publish the analysis of the range of factors considered in the decision not to increase local housing allowance rates.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The impacts referenced in the previous answer were determined using a wide variety of metrics, data and analysis. These included:

• Current and past rental data supplied by the Valuation Office Agency, Rent Officers Scotland, and Rent Officers Wales;
• Analysis of current and past DWP administrative data on recipient households, including the modelling of the effects of potential policy changes: and
• Forecasts of benefit caseloads and related matters.

At Autumn Budget the Government prioritised a downpayment on poverty, by introducing a Fair Payment Rate for Universal Credit (UC) customers with deductions to retain more of their benefit award. We also invested £1bn in extending the Household Support Fund and maintaining Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs) at current levels (including Barnett impacts) for 2025/26. Additionally, from 1 April 2026, we are introducing a new Crisis and Resilience Fund, incorporating Discretionary Housing Payments and funding to ensure the poorest children do not go hungry outside of term time. This will provide £842 million per year (£1 billion including Barnett consequential) to reform how crisis support is delivered locally.

This support can be paid to those entitled to Housing Benefit or Universal Credit who face a shortfall in meeting their housing costs.

DWP forecast data is regularly published and can be found in our benefit expenditure tables: Benefit expenditure and caseload tables - GOV.UK

The Rent Officers Order 2025 Explanatory Memorandum includes considerations for reviewing LHA rates for 2025/26:
The Rent Officers (Housing Benefit and Universal Credit Functions) (Modification) Order 2025

In addition, the department regularly publishes Universal Credit and Housing Benefit data via Official Statistics. The data can be obtained via Stat-Xplore:

Stat-Xplore - Log in

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she plans to publish a sustainable tourism plan.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government is committed to supporting the growth of a more sustainable and resilient tourism sector. We are in the process of developing a Visitor Economy Growth Strategy with the Visitor Economy Advisory Council which will map out plans to support the growth of the tourism industry. This will address continuing to work with Local Visitor Economy Partnerships (LVEPs) to promote regenerative tourism practices and an approach where residents are involved in decision making and benefit directly from tourism.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 23 July 2025 to Question 68002 on Business Rates: Tax Allowances, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the communication with affected businesses of the change to reliefs in April 2025; and whether he has held discussions with stakeholders on that communication and the extent to which it allowed businesses to plan for the changes.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

Retail, Hospitality and Leisure (RHL) relief has been extended year-by-year by previous Governments since the pandemic, creating uncertainty for businesses and an unsustainable fiscal pressure for Government.

Without any Government intervention, RHL relief would have ended entirely in April 2025, creating a cliff-edge for businesses. Instead, the Government extended the relief at 40 per cent in 2025-26, up to a cash cap of £110,000 per business, ahead of our intended introduction of permanently lower rates for RHL properties from 2026-27.

As is typical with fiscal announcements, the Government announced this decision at Autumn Budget 2024, ahead of it coming into force in April 2025. On 19 November 2024, the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) communicated the Budget measures to Local Authorities via a Business Rates Information Letter. On 16 January 2025, MHCLG published final scheme guidance to help local authorities implement the relief.

The Government also carried out extensive engagement with stakeholders following Autumn Budget 2024 on business rates.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the deterrent effects of classification on drug (a) use, (b) production, (c) sales and (d) the reduction of anti-social behaviour.

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

The Government has not made a formal assessment of the deterrent effects of classification. The Government consults the statutory expert advisory group, the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) established under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, about the classification of drugs under the Act.

Recommendations made by the ACMD about classification are determined by an assessment of health and social harm, based on the evidence at the time of the review. ACMD advice on classification will depend on a range of factors, including evidence of actual and potential harms and comparisons with the harm of other controlled substances. While the Government must consider ACMD recommendations it is not bound by ACMD advice.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of changes to funding for level 7 solicitor apprenticeships on (a) equalities and (b) social mobility.

Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

I refer the hon. Member for Brighton Pavilion to the answer of 13 June 2025 to Question 57823.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential implications for her Department's policies of the Protect Student Choice’s report entitled Causing gaps, creating uncertainty: why the government should lift the ban on AGQ diplomas and extended diplomas in T level subjects, published on 23 July 2025.

Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

This government is fully committed to the future of T Levels, which are delivering fantastic results for thousands of young people. T Level learners who go directly into work are more likely to work in a sector related to their course than learners on other large level 3 qualifications. 71% of T Level learners agreed that their course prepared them for the workplace. This is greater than learners on comparable level 3 courses with differences of 10-15 percentage points. In 2023 and 2024, 97% of T Level learners who applied for higher education through UCAS received at least one offer.

The department’s plans for further reform to level 3 qualifications will be set out soon, informed by the independent Curriculum and Assessment Review.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to her oral evidence to the House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee on 22 July 2025, on what evidential basis the country has cared more about bats than about commuter times for people in Leeds and West Yorkshire.

Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury

In the past, our planning system has acted as a brake on growth, with consenting times for major infrastructure taking far too long and costing too much money. Environmental and planning compliance has meant projects like HS2 have suffered excessive costs and delays as referenced by James Stewart’s review of the problems in that programme and the approach to governance and assurance of major transport projects. This has damaged investment in the UK, costing us jobs and economic growth.

That’s why we are committed to creating a planning system that is an enabler of growth; delivering both the high-quality housing and critical infrastructure that communities need. We are reforming the National Planning Policy Framework and are taking a new growth-focused approach to the planning system with major reforms in the Planning and Infrastructure Bill.

The new Nature Restoration Fund will enable developers to meet their environment obligations quicker without compromising on environmental improvement.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has made a recent estimate of the value of the illegal drugs market for (a) cannabis, (b) cocaine, and (c) opioids.

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

The most recent estimate of the value of the illegal drugs market for cannabis, cocaine and opioids is available as a part of the Dame Carol Black’s Independent Review of Drugs: Evidence Pack. This is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/review-of-drugs-phase-one-report

The evidence pack provides the following estimates for value of the illegal drugs market in England and Wales, measured by the amount spent on these drugs:

• Powder cocaine: £1.9bn
• Cannabis: £2.4bn
• Crack cocaine: £1.3bn

Opiates: £3.8bn

Local Healthwatch

Emergency Palestinian Family Visa Scheme

Fertility funding access for LGBTQIA+ people

Air Ambulance Week 2025

First female Astronomer Royal

Eating disorders and online harms

Harmful chemicals in period products

Conduct of Lord Mandelson (No. 2)

Neurodivergent children at school

Oversight of automated moderation by social media companies

Wealth taxes

State visit to the UK of US President Donald Trump

Final delivery plan on Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS)

Fourth anniversary of the Taliban takeover in Afghanistan

Statement on Palestine by children's authors, illustrators and educators

Job reductions at news publisher Reach plc

Sanctions on Israel and International Court of Justice findings

Carers and social care reform

Emotional support animals

Samaritans Awareness Day 2025

Jagtar Singh Johal (No. 2)

Childhood Cancer Awareness Month

Armed Forces Training Contract and Elbit Systems

Global Sumud Flotilla

Oscar Mayer workers in Wrexham

Plastic in chewing gum

Statutory right for leaseholders to access information

Intergenerational volunteering and sustainability initiatives

Arrest of protestors in Liverpool

Disciplinary action against protesting students by SOAS

Support for local independent businesses, shops, markets and producers

Women’s sports

Church of the Holy Family, Gaza

Asylum funding for local authorities

Access to NHS-funded IVF

Support for early years and the National Literacy Trust

Awdah Hathaleen

Motor neurone disease

Journalist Sherwan Sherwani

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