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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of capital investment in SME industrial units in former coalfield communities, including proposals put forward by the Coalfields Regeneration Trust, on economic growth.

Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I recognise the excellent work of the Coalfields Regeneration Trust, supporting coalfield communities across the country reach their full potential. I met with the Trust recently to hear more about this work and their future ambitions.

Our Pride in Place strategy sets out how we will support the most in-need communities to deliver their local priorities. The £5.8 billion Pride in Place programme and the £150 million Pride in Place Impact Fund will support many coalfield communities. However beyond these, every part of the country benefits from our wider Pride in Place strategy to put people in control of their neighbourhoods.

We are working to improve high streets through initiatives such as High Street Rental Auctions; the Community Right to Buy, giving communities the chance to take ownership of valued buildings; and streamlining the compulsory purchase process to support regeneration.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the proposed £50 million capital investment in the Coalfields Regeneration Trust to support SME industrial development.

Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

I recognise the excellent work of the Coalfields Regeneration Trust, supporting coalfield communities across the country reach their full potential. I met with the Trust recently to hear more about this work and their future ambitions.

Our Pride in Place strategy sets out how we will support the most in-need communities to deliver their local priorities. The £5.8 billion Pride in Place programme and the £150 million Pride in Place Impact Fund will support many coalfield communities. However beyond these, every part of the country benefits from our wider Pride in Place strategy to put people in control of their neighbourhoods.

We are working to improve high streets through initiatives such as High Street Rental Auctions; the Community Right to Buy, giving communities the chance to take ownership of valued buildings; and streamlining the compulsory purchase process to support regeneration.

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 place-based employment support programmes such as JobsPlus on levels of economic inactivity and unemployment.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Jobs Plus is a community-led model with strong potential to tackle inactivity and unemployment. The Department is testing the model in ten social housing neighbourhoods to generate evidence on place-based support. The pilots will be evaluated to assess their effectiveness in helping people enter and remain in work.

We will carefully consider what we have learnt from these pilots as we develop our future employment support offer and make decisions on future funding.

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 merits of expanding the number of JobsPlus sites.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Jobs Plus is a community-led model with strong potential to tackle inactivity and unemployment. The Department is testing the model in ten social housing neighbourhoods to generate evidence on place-based support. The pilots will be evaluated to assess their effectiveness in helping people enter and remain in work.

We will carefully consider what we have learnt from these pilots as we develop our future employment support offer and make decisions on future funding.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if his Department will provide long-term funding for the JobsPlus programme.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Jobs Plus is a community-led model with strong potential to tackle inactivity and unemployment. The Department is testing the model in ten social housing neighbourhoods to generate evidence on place-based support. The pilots will be evaluated to assess their effectiveness in helping people enter and remain in work.

We will carefully consider what we have learnt from these pilots as we develop our future employment support offer and make decisions on future funding.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans his Department has to support the national rollout of community-led employment programmes such as JobsPlus following the conclusion of the pilot phase.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Jobs Plus is a community-led model with strong potential to tackle inactivity and unemployment. The Department is testing the model in ten social housing neighbourhoods to generate evidence on place-based support. The pilots will be evaluated to assess their effectiveness in helping people enter and remain in work.

We will carefully consider what we have learnt from these pilots as we develop our future employment support offer and make decisions on future funding.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate she has made of the number of a) adults and b) children, by gender, participating in i) Football ii) Rugby Union iii) Tennis iv) Cricket v) Boxing vi) Athletics vii) Rugby League viii) Golf ix) Gymnastics x) Netball xi) Basketball in 2025.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

The Government tracks activity levels through Sport England’s Active Lives surveys. Two surveys run annually: Active Lives Adult, and Active Lives Children and Young People. These surveys measure the activity levels of people across England and allows the Government to collect accurate data on what and how much sport and physical activity different groups are participating in. You can find out more about the surveys on Sport England's website.

The figures for the Active Lives Adult Survey covering November 2024 to November 2025 will be published by Sport England on 23 April 2026.

The figures for the Active Lives Children and Young People survey who participated at least once a week in the Academic Year 2024/25 can be found in the attached PDF.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of carbon capture, utilisation and storage on safeguarding domestic foundation industries, including cement and lime, while meeting the UK’s carbon budgets.

Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The emissions of some foundational industries, such as refining and cement and lime, are mainly from processes that cannot be reduced by fuel switching. The CCC have said that CCS would be responsible for 62%% of emissions reductions in the cement and lime sectors by 2050.

We have signed a contract with the UK’s first carbon capture-enabled cement plant at Padeswood, which located in the HyNet carbon capture cluster, to receive support under the ICC business model. This will forge a cleaner future with secure, long-term jobs for workers and businesses in the cement industry.

The Peak Cluster project plans to deploy CCS to decarbonise cement and lime sites in the Peak District. This could decarbonise 35% of the UK’s cement and lime emissions, as well as create and protect 3,500 jobs.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the end of the Renewables Obligation scheme on methane emissions from landfills.

Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

DESNZ has been working with Defra to consider the potential impact of the end of the Renewables Obligation for landfill gas generation, including impacts on methane emissions.

Government is exploring implementation of a long‑term methane capture scheme with appropriate transitional arrangements.

DESNZ, with support from Defra, intend to consult on a potential transitional arrangement later this year. Any support provided will be subject to rigorous value for money and impact assessments.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he plans to provide transitional support for the landfill gas to energy sector.

Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

Government recognises the role that landfill gas generation can play in reducing methane emissions. As set out in the Methane Action Plan, we are committed to exploring the implementation of a long‑term methane capture scheme with appropriate transitional arrangements.

The Department, with support from Defra, intends to consult later this year on transitional arrangements. No final decisions have yet been taken, and any proposals would be subject to consultation outcomes and value‑for‑money considerations.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make an estimate of the potential impact of the expiry of the Renewables Obligation scheme in April 2027 on the number of landfill gas to energy plant closures.

Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Department recognises that the planned expiry of Renewables Obligation accreditation in April 2027 for many landfill gas generators, could affect their commercial viability.

The Government is exploring implementation of a long-term methane capture scheme with appropriate transitional arrangements.

DESNZ, with support from Defra, intend to consult on a potential transitional arrangement later this year. Any support provided will be subject to rigorous value for money and impact assessments.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence on access to fampridine for people with multiple sclerosis in England.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Health is a devolved matter and decisions on the availability of medicines in the devolved administrations are a matter for their own governments.

Ministers and Department officials have had no recent discussions with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) about access to fampridine. NICE’s updated guideline on the diagnosis and management of multiple sclerosis (MS) in adults, published in June 2022, recommends that fampridine should not be offered to treat mobility issues in people with MS as it is not found to be a cost-effective treatment at the current list price. NICE keeps its guidance under active surveillance and decisions on whether published guidelines should be updated in light of new evidence are taken by the NICE prioritisation board, chaired by the NICE Chief Medical Officer, in line with its published prioritisation framework. NICE has indicated that it has no current plans to review its recommendations on fampridine.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made a comparative assessment of the adequacy of availability of fampridine (fampyra) for patients across the four nations of the UK.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Health is a devolved matter and decisions on the availability of medicines in the devolved administrations are a matter for their own governments.

Ministers and Department officials have had no recent discussions with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) about access to fampridine. NICE’s updated guideline on the diagnosis and management of multiple sclerosis (MS) in adults, published in June 2022, recommends that fampridine should not be offered to treat mobility issues in people with MS as it is not found to be a cost-effective treatment at the current list price. NICE keeps its guidance under active surveillance and decisions on whether published guidelines should be updated in light of new evidence are taken by the NICE prioritisation board, chaired by the NICE Chief Medical Officer, in line with its published prioritisation framework. NICE has indicated that it has no current plans to review its recommendations on fampridine.

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