Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking to support the hospitality industry.
Answered by Gareth Thomas - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Hospitality businesses are at the heart of our communities and are vital for economic growth.
This is why the Government is creating a fairer business rate system, reducing alcohol duty on qualifying draught products and transforming the apprenticeship levy to support business and boost opportunities. This work will be supported by the publication of The Small Business Strategy Command Paper which will be published later this year.
Through the Hospitality Sector Council, we are addressing strategic issues for the sector related to high street regeneration, skills, sustainability, and productivity.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if her Department will make an assessment of the potential impact of changes made to Support for Mortgage Interest in 2018 on people in receipt of that loan.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department published research looking at Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI) loan take-up in March 2022. This is available here:Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI): Overview - GOV.UK The Department has also commissioned further research looking at the impact of SMI on existing loan recipients. The report will be released in due course.
The Department does not have any plans to revert SMI to a benefit. When SMI transitioned to a loan in April 2018, support was provided at the same level and therefore, it provides the same level of protection against repossession. Loans are repayable from any available equity when the property is sold and therefore, the policy represents excellent value for the taxpayer whilst continuing to protect homeowners.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of changing Support for Mortgage Interest from a loan to a benefit.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department published research looking at Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI) loan take-up in March 2022. This is available here:Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI): Overview - GOV.UK The Department has also commissioned further research looking at the impact of SMI on existing loan recipients. The report will be released in due course.
The Department does not have any plans to revert SMI to a benefit. When SMI transitioned to a loan in April 2018, support was provided at the same level and therefore, it provides the same level of protection against repossession. Loans are repayable from any available equity when the property is sold and therefore, the policy represents excellent value for the taxpayer whilst continuing to protect homeowners.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of a tourism tax on the tourist industry.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
We have no plans to introduce a tourism tax. The Government keeps all tax policy under review.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to reduce ambulance waiting times (a) in the A&E queue and (b) for Torbay and South Devon NHS foundation trust.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Ambulance response times and ambulance handover times have been below the high standards that patients should expect in recent years, including at the Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundational Trust.
The Government has committed to supporting the National Health Service to improve performance and achieve the standards set out in the NHS Constitution, including ambulance response times, but we must be clear that there are no quick fixes.
We are determined to turn things around through investment and reform. My Rt. Hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced £25.6 billion of additional healthcare funding over the next two years, and we will set out a 10-Year Health Plan to radically reform the NHS and build a health service that is fit for the future.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average waiting time is for (a) ambulances held in queues and (b) people waiting at home for an ambulance.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The national average ambulance handover time was 43 minutes and 32 seconds in December 2024. The following table shows the national ambulance response time, including for people who have called for an ambulance from their home, for Category 1, 2, 3, and 4 incidents, in hours, minutes and seconds:
Category of incident | December 2024 national average | NHS Constitution standard |
Category 1 average response time | 00:08:40 | 00:07:00 |
Category 1 90th centile response time | 00:15:25 | 00:15:00 |
Category 2 average response time | 00:47:26 | 00:18:00 |
Category 2 90th centile response time | 01:41:40 | 00:40:00 |
Category 3 90th centile response time | 07:21:03 | 02:00:00 |
Category 4 90th centile response time | 08:15:44 | 03:00:00 |
Source: NHS England Ambulance Quality Indicators, which is available at the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/ambulance-quality-indicators/
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of maladministration around communications of State Pension age changes on the six sample cases in the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman's report entitled Women’s State Pension age: our findings on injustice and associated issues, HC 638, published on 21 March 2024.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman set out their assessment of the impact on the six sample complainants in the report published in March 2024. Our comments on the sample complainants can be found in our detailed report placed in the House library.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what her timeline is for completing the second pensions review.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
This government is committed to enabling tomorrow’s pensioners to have security in retirement– which is why we announced the landmark Pensions Review days after coming into office in July.
The first phase focussed on boosting investment and economic growth and we are committed to a second phase focused on retirement adequacy. We will provide further details on the scope and timetable for the second phase in due course
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the impact of breeding for extreme conformations on the health and welfare of (a) dogs and (b) cats.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
To provide a detailed scientific view on the range of issues faced by breeding dogs and cats, the Department commissioned two Opinions from the Government’s Animal Welfare Committee. One Opinion assesses the welfare implications of specialised canine reproductive practices, and one on the welfare implications of current and emergent feline breeding practices. The Opinions can be found here: Animal Welfare Committee (AWC) - GOV.UK.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will make an assessment of the adequacy of the recall to prison programme.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Government’s absolute focus is on public protection. Offenders on licence can be swiftly recalled to prison if they breach their licence conditions in such a way as to indicate that their risk to the public has increased and they are about to commit further offences. The recall of an offender to custody is an important public protection measure. We remain focused on reducing reoffending and the risks presented by offenders, so that they do not need to be recalled in the first place.
The HMI Probation Thematic Report on Probation Recall Culture & Practice, published in 2020, found that: “Public protection and the protection of victims are central to probation service decision-making on recall.”
We continue to work across Government to ensure that we take the necessary steps to reduce the recall population and keep the system functioning safely, whilst protecting the public which is our top priority.