Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what safeguards are in place to ensure that parties appearing before the Social Security and Child Support Tribunal are informed of any material change in the nature of allegations made against them during proceedings: and what recourse is available when a change is not properly disclosed or explained.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Social Security and Child Support (SSCS) Tribunal’s job is to establish if DWP’s decision was correct when it was originally made. As such, allegations are not part of the proceedings.
DWP lapsing a decision, which is where the department finds in a claimant’s favour before their appeal is heard by a tribunal, is the only situation in which the DWP could be considered to make a material change to its understanding of the case during proceedings. This change can only be made in the claimant’s favour and would be notified in writing to the claimant with accompanying appeal rights.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking with local authorities going through Local Government Reorganisation to ensure that food waste collections align with new boundaries.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Amended section 45A of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 requires local authorities in England to arrange for the separate collection of food waste from all households, at least once a week. All local authorities should provide a food waste service for every household by 31 March 2026, unless they have been given a transitional arrangement where long-term waste disposal (mechanical biological treatment and energy from waste) contracts present a barrier to introducing separate food waste collections. Affected local authorities are listed in the commencement regulations with the date by which they must introduce food waste collections from households. Defra will continue to engage with affected local authorities including on any potential impacts of local government reorganisation.
During the local government reorganisation process, it is essential that councils continue to deliver their business-as-usual services and duties, including waste collection, which remain unchanged until reorganisation is complete. There is a suite of general continuity regulations for local government reorganisation made under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 which ensure smooth transfer to new unitary councils. These general regulations provide transitional and supplementary arrangements, so that the councils can undertake specific functions to enable a successful move to the single tier of local government.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer to Question 107848 on 27 January 2026, if he will publish (a) the list of attendees and (b) the minutes of his meeting with Norfolk County Council on 16 December 2025.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The meeting was attended by representatives from Norfolk and Suffolk County Councils: Cllr Matthew Hicks, Nicola Beach, Andrew Cook, Cllr Kay Mason Billig and Tom McCabe.
My Department has no plans to publish the minutes of the meeting.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, on what dates his Department had discussions with Norfolk County Council on the cancellation of 2026 elections; and and if he will publish the minutes from those meetings.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I met all leaders of Devolution Priority Programme Areas on 11 December, where many areas raised concerns about their capacity to deliver local government reorganisation alongside local elections. I also met Norfolk County Council on 16 December where the same concerns were raised.
A summary of the decision was provided through the Written Ministerial Statement of 22 January and the letter sent to council leaders, both of which are publicly available.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will publish documents relating to his decision to postpone Norfolk county council elections.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I met all leaders of Devolution Priority Programme Areas on 11 December, where many areas raised concerns about their capacity to deliver local government reorganisation alongside local elections. I also met Norfolk County Council on 16 December where the same concerns were raised.
A summary of the decision was provided through the Written Ministerial Statement of 22 January and the letter sent to council leaders, both of which are publicly available.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of inflation and supply chain pressures on capital costs for local authorities delivering domestic food waste collection services; and whether she plans to review funding allocations.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The cost modelling for the new burdens funding formula, which took place in 2023, took inflation into account by conducting market research on the most recent industry prices on all aspects being funded. WRAP (the Waste and Resources Action Programme) provided us with unit price assumptions, regularly review those and use their network to inform projections on how inflationary pressure may impact further prices.
We are aware of concerns about pressure on supply chains for vehicles and containers and are engaging with key stakeholders across the sector and welcome input to help us understand the challenges and ensure successful delivery. Additionally, we are working with WRAP to scope interventions to address bottlenecks in supply chains.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
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 adequacy of capital funding provided to local authorities for the implementation of domestic food waste collections to meet the costs of depot expansion and redevelopment required to accommodate the service including vehicle parking, washing facilities, storage and staff welfare provision.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We have run an appeals process for the funding for weekly food waste collections, which has allowed local authorities to seek financial support in circumstances where their depot space needs to be modified. These are currently being considered, and the outcome will be communicated to local authorities in due course.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of the cost incurred by children and young people from North Norfolk for attending their cancer treatment in the nearest specialist treatment centre in Cambridge; how many of them are not receiving support for their travel costs; and whether he will introduce a Young Cancer Patient Travel Fund to support with these costs.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) knows that the cost of travel is an important issue for many young cancer patients and their families in England.
The Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme (HTCS) is designed to provide financial support for eligible patients to facilitate their journeys to and from National Health Service-funded secondary care. Eligibility for HTCS is set by DHSC and details are available at the following link:
https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/help-with-health-costs/healthcare-travel-costs-scheme-htcs/
Patients who do not qualify for the HTCS and who are on a low income may be able to claim the costs from the Department for Work and Pensions through Universal Credit or a Personal Independence Payment. There are also several charities in the United Kingdom who provide support, including financial support, for patients with cancer.
NHS England does not collect national patient-level data on uptake of the HTCS. This data is held by the organisation paying for the claim, often the hospital trust or integrated care board. Therefore, DHSC has not made a formal assessment of the cost incurred by children and young people from North Norfolk for attending their cancer treatment in the nearest specialist treatment centre in Cambridge and how many of them are not receiving support for their travel costs.
On 4 February 2025, DHSC relaunched the Children and Young People Cancer Taskforce to identify tangible ways to improve outcomes and experiences for young cancer patients. The taskforce will ensure that the unique needs of children and young people with cancer are carefully considered as part of the National Cancer Plan, which will include further details on how we will improve experience and outcomes for children and young people with cancer in England.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
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 treating Maternity Allowance as unearned income for the purposes of Universal Credit on working mothers who are not eligible for Statutory Maternity Pay.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government has committed to review the parental leave and pay system.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of his Departments policies relating to Maternity Allowance on women in rural and coastal labour markets in the context of the prevalence of seasonal, part-time or based on short-term contracts in those areas.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government provides a range of state-funded support for new parents depending on individual circumstances. Maternity Allowance is a benefit for women who are working, or have worked recently, but who do not qualify for Statutory Maternity Pay.
To ensure that it caters for different types of working arrangements the qualifying conditions for Maternity Allowance are flexible. Maternity Allowance claimants must have worked for at least 26 weeks in the 66 weeks prior to the expected week of childbirth but that work does not have to be for the same employer, continuous, or undertaken on the same basis. Agency workers and women on zero-hours contracts are also eligible. To calculate the rate of Maternity Allowance women’s earnings are averaged over 13 weeks within their 66-week test period. The 13 weeks do not need to be consecutive, and women can select their highest-earning weeks to increase the rate of Maternity Allowance they will receive.
The Government has also committed to review the parental leave and pay system.