Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to her Department’s monthly market overview of aluminium prices for local authorities referred to in the debate of 1 September 2026, where that overview is published and on what date publication began.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The Defra funded WRAP (Waste and Resources Action Programme) and MRW (Materials Recycling World) have published a Material Recycling Weekly price report for over fifteen years. This is a weekly publication that users can access free of charge.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when her Department plans to publish an updated implementation timetable for the outstanding commitments in the ME/CFS Final Delivery Plan, following the progress update issued on 9 October 2026.

Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department continues to work with NHS England and other partners to deliver the remaining commitments in the myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) final delivery plan. Progress on research-related actions will be reported on annually, to the ME/CFS Final Delivery Plan Stakeholder Engagement Group. The Department will provide updates on other actions as appropriate.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what percentage of his Department's procurement budget is committed to buying British.

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

The Ministry of Defence does not ringfence a specific percentage of its procurement budget for buying British. However, the UK defence market is already strong and benefits from significant defence procurement activity. In 2025-26, the department spent £34.1 billion with UK industry, with 85% of its industry spending supporting work carried out in the UK.

As part of our Back British approach, we will go further and use procurement and investment decisions more strategically to strengthen UK industrial capability, resilience, skills and supply chains across the United Kingdom.

Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, with reference to the Critical Minerals Strategy published on 22nd November 2025, what steps his Department is taking to retain secondary aluminium for recycling within the United Kingdom.

Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade) (Jointly with the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Government’s Critical Minerals Strategy recognises recycling and the circular economy as key to securing future supplies of critical minerals, including aluminium, and sets an ambition to meet 20% of total annual UK critical minerals demand through recycling by 2035.

The Department is working to increase domestic recycling capacity and promote the recovery and reuse of materials in circulation. The Strategy includes support for domestic production through public finance mechanisms and up to £50 million of funding for critical mineral projects.

Through the Metals Circularity Group, we are providing a structured forum for engagement and evidence-based policy development on the barriers and opportunities associated with greater domestic retention and recycling of secondary aluminium.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how she plans to reduce inequalities in mortality rates between people (a) without and (b) with learning disabilities.

Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

I refer the Hon. Member to the Written Statement HCWS224 made on 13 July, which is available at the following link:

https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2026-07-13/hcws224

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he will publish his responses to the 335 questions raised by the families of the victims of the RAF Chinook air crash at the Mull of Kintyre on 2nd June 1994.

Answered by Calvin Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans and People)

The Department committed to responding to 20 questions shared by the Chinook Justice Campaign (CJC) during a meeting with Ministers last year and the Campaign has been offered monthly updates on our progress with this work.

These were the only questions shared with the Ministers or the Department during that meeting. There has been no commitment to respond to 335 questions. The Department is completing its work on the CJC's 20 questions.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions she has had with UK Biobank on the suspension of researcher access to its Research Analysis Platform since 23 April 2026; what assessment she has made of the impact on the DecodeME project and other NIHR-funded research on developments in the field; and what steps her Department is taking to help restore access.

Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Further to the answer provided on 8 June in response to HL270, officials have met with UK Biobank and continue to work closely with them to restore access to the Research Analysis Platform. The impacts of the Research Analysis Platform closure include delays for researchers with time-sensitive studies, and slower innovation in the life sciences sector, so it is a key priority for our work in these areas to see that access restored.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, (a) what proportion of aluminium packaging collected by local authorities in England was reported to WasteDataFlow as having been sent to destinations outside the UK in the year from 2024 - 2025 and (b) if she will publish that figure for each local authority.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

WasteDataFlow does not include a total aluminium packaging category, although does collect information on aluminium cans and foil.

Information provided by each Local Authority is published in the full dataset here (Q100 Waste collection data England 2024-25). This includes end destinations of waste when provided (columns L-P), including Outside UK.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to her Answer of 9 July 2026 to Question 15640 (a) whether her Department’s call for evidence on the packaging Extended Producer Responsibility fees has been launched.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

PackUK is planning to launch a Call for Evidence to inform future approaches to fee modulation. Further details will be communicated to stakeholders in due course.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how her Department verifies the accuracy of the destination data reported by local authorities to WasteDataFlow for aluminium packaging.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The information included in the full dataset is raw data as provided by Local Authorities, published to provide additional detail for users.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, a) whether there will be funding available through a Farm Equipment Technology Fund (FETF) in 2027 and b) whether goat dairy producers will be eligible for the FETF.

Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

FETF 2026 is the final FETF grant round in its current form. From 2027, we intend to bring together the strongest elements of our grant schemes, simplifying applications and making it easier for farmers to access funding. The Government keeps the scope and eligibility of grant offers under review.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate her Department has made of the value of commercial goat dairy production a) in the UK b) in England.

Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

While recognising the place of the UK’s longstanding goat milk sector within UK agricultural, no assessment of the value of commercial goat dairy production has been made.

A range of support has been made available in England that businesses including those in the goat milking sector might access including support on farm productivity and slurry and through the Sustainable Farming Incentive.

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 to support commercial goat dairy producers.

Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

While recognising the place of the UK’s longstanding goat milk sector within UK agricultural, no assessment of the value of commercial goat dairy production has been made.

A range of support has been made available in England that businesses including those in the goat milking sector might access including support on farm productivity and slurry and through the Sustainable Farming Incentive.

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