Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment her Department has made of the potential (a) health benefits and (b) cost savings to the NHS of extending eligibility for the shingles vaccination to immunocompetent people who were aged 65 to 69 before 1 September 2023 and are not currently eligible until they reach the age of 70.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

As part of the expansion of the shingles vaccination programme down to adults aged 60 years old, in line with the advice of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, adults turning 65 and 70 years old became eligible for vaccination from 1 September 2023. This phased roll-out was agreed as a means of maximising population benefit and cost-effectiveness, whilst taking account of National Health Service delivery capacity. There are no plans to change this approach to eligibility in advance of 1 September 2028, when the second phase of the expansion will begin, and adults will become eligible for shingles vaccination when they turn 60 and 65 years old.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, on how many occasions in the last year have Ministers met with the Chief Public Health Nurse to discuss health inequalities in coastal communities, and when did these meetings occur.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

I refer the Hon Member to the answer he was provided on 16 July in response to Question 18268.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities is taking to tackle health inequalities in coastal communities.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

I refer the Hon Member to the answer he was provided on 16 July in response to Question 18268.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Summer Bus Fare Offer for children in August 2026; and whether she plans to reintroduce the scheme during the summer holidays in 2027.

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

The Summer Bus Fare Offer enabled children aged 5 to 15 to travel free on participating bus services across England throughout August 2026, helping families with the cost of getting around during the school holidays.

Industry has reported that over 14.5 million free child bus journeys were made in August as a result of the scheme and the department will be analysing the evidence to assess the effectiveness of the scheme in the coming months.

The scheme was designed as a targeted, time-limited measure and concluded at the end of August as planned. The Government will consider any further schemes through its wider approach to supporting affordable bus travel.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether her Department has reviewed the decision not to include immunocompetent people who were aged 65 to 69 before 1 September 2023 in the catch-up arrangements for the shingles vaccination programme; and whether he plans to extend eligibility to that cohort before they reach the age of 70.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

As part of the expansion of the shingles vaccination programme down to adults aged 60 years old, in line with the advice of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, adults turning 65 and 70 years old became eligible for vaccination from 1 September 2023. This phased roll-out was agreed as a means of maximising population benefit and cost-effectiveness, whilst taking account of National Health Service delivery capacity. There are no plans to change this approach to eligibility in advance of 1 September 2028, when the second phase of the expansion will begin, and adults will become eligible for shingles vaccination when they turn 60 and 65 years old.

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, when the Government will publish the Mobile Market Review.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)

The Government is undertaking a Mobile Market Review to assess major developments in the sector and their impact on investment in high-quality connectivity. The Call for Evidence, which closed on 5 May, sought views on whether the regulatory framework supports future investment, innovation and competition in mobile networks. We are considering the responses alongside our continued engagement with industry and other stakeholders, and we intend to provide an update on the Review’s findings and next steps later this year.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department distinguishes between the time taken by the Child Maintenance Service to respond to complaints and the time taken to resolve the underlying maintenance issues; and if he will publish separate performance statistics for both measures.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

We recognise that response times to hon. Members’ enquiries on behalf of constituents have not been consistently adequate in recent months, as higher complaint volumes and increasing complex cases have affected our response times. However, the Department is actively addressing these pressures and driving improvements in both timeliness and efficiency. The Department is taking urgent action to reduce complaint backlogs and improve response times, with a clear focus on resolving issues as quickly as possible, including at the earliest point of contact where appropriate.

To support this, we have deployed additional resources to complaints and correspondence teams and prioritised activity to reduce outstanding volumes and strengthen performance monitoring to improve timeliness. We have introduced senior oversight and improved case management processes to support faster and more consistent responses. Where a complaint requires formal investigation, the Department’s service standard aims to provide a full response within 15 working days. More complex cases may take longer; however, the Department seeks to keep customers informed of progress and expected timescales.

The Department is clear that hon. Members must be able to rely on timely and accurate information when representing their constituents. Improving response times remains a key operational priority, and these measures are intended to restore performance to the expected standard.

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 level of the administrative burden placed on receiving parents who are required to contact the Child Maintenance Service to pursue unpaid maintenance; and what steps his Department is taking to ensure that cases involving non-payment are progressed proactively without requiring repeated intervention by receiving parents.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) offers two different types of child maintenance arrangement. Under the Direct Pay service, CMS calculates maintenance liabilities and parents arrange payments between themselves. Under the Collect and Pay service, CMS is responsible for collecting and transferring maintenance payments where parents are unable to make arrangements independently.

Where a case is managed through the Collect and Pay service and a paying parent fails to make payments as required, CMS takes action to recover arrears and restore compliance. Where appropriate, this may include the use of a Deduction from Earnings Order (DEO) to collect child maintenance directly from earnings.

CMS has a range of enforcement powers available to address non-compliance by paying parents who fail to meet their child maintenance responsibilities.

For cases managed on the Collect and Pay service, CMS operates established processes and system-generated prompts to identify missed payments and support timely intervention. Receiving parents are not required to repeatedly contact CMS to report missed payments or initiate enforcement action.

The Government plans to reform the CMS by removing the Direct Pay Service and replacing it with a single service type, known as Collect and Pay, where the CMS monitors and transfers all payments. This will represent a significant improvement for many users of the service, resulting in improved compliance, strengthened protections for domestic abuse victims and survivors, and helping ensure more children receive regular maintenance.

Rural fuel duty relief

Sustainable Farming Incentive 2026

Modern Service Framework for neurological conditions

Found: Watch the meeting Transport Committee members present: Ruth Cadbury (Chair); Steff Aquarone; Dr Scott

Found: Watch the meeting Transport Committee members present: Ruth Cadbury (Chair); Steff Aquarone; Dr Scott

Found: Watch the meeting Members present: Ruth Cadbury (Chair); Steff Aquarone; Dr Scott Arthur; Jacob Collier

Found: Watch the meeting Members present: Ruth Cadbury (Chair); Steff Aquarone; Dr Scott Arthur; Jacob Collier