Asked by: Tristan Osborne (Labour - Chatham and Aylesford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether apprentices who commenced a Level 7 apprenticeship before 1 January 2026 will continue to have government funding protected through to completion under the apprenticeship funding rules; what guidance he has issued to providers and employers to ensure this protection is applied; and what arrangements exist where a provider discontinues a programme or must transfer apprentices to an alternative provider.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Level 7 apprentices, that started prior to 1 January 2026, will be funded through to completion. As with funding for all apprenticeships, this is subject to employer and training provider compliance with the apprenticeship funding rules and the apprenticeship employer and provider agreements.
Apprentices concerned about ongoing training provision should contact customer.help@service.education.gov.uk.
Asked by: Tristan Osborne (Labour - Chatham and Aylesford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what data his Department holds on the number of patients waiting to start treatment with Medway NHS Foundation Trust in (a) July 2024 and (b) December 2025.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The latest publication was on 15 January 2026 for November 2025 data. Data for December will be published on 12 February 2026.
At the start of July 2024, the number of pathways on the referral-to-treatment waiting list for the same trust was 43,820.
As of the latest published data for the end of November 2025, the number of pathways on the waiting list at the same trust was 37,104. The waiting list at Medway has therefore reduced by 6,716, or by 15.3%.
Reducing waiting lists is a key part of the Government’s Health Mission, and we are committed to putting patients first by ensuring that they are seen on time and that they have the best possible experience of care. Since the Government came into office, the waiting list for routine appointments, operations and procedures in England has now been cut by 312,369. This is despite 30.1 million referrals onto the waiting list.
Data on elective performance is published monthly, with further information avaiable at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/rtt-waiting-times/
Asked by: Tristan Osborne (Labour - Chatham and Aylesford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether the Department is aware of (a) any loss and (b) compromise of personal data held by the Pension Protection Fund affecting pension scheme members; and whether communications requesting updates to beneficiary information are part of routine administration rather than a response to any such incident.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Pension Protection Fund’s recent communications to members about nominating beneficiaries relates to the introduction of its new online beneficiary nomination service, which allows members to nominate or update their beneficiary details directly via the member website. It is a service that’s designed to make the bereavement process faster and more efficient and is not in response to any loss or compromise of members’ personal data.
Asked by: Tristan Osborne (Labour - Chatham and Aylesford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of reclassifying Ketamine from a Class B to Class A drug.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Ketamine is a dangerous substance, which can cause irreversible bladder damage and in some cases death. Ministers are concerned about the harms ketamine causes and on 16 October 2025 the Department for Health and Social Care launched a campaign to alert young people to its dangers.
In January 2025 the Government asked the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) to provide an updated harms assessment of ketamine, advice on reducing those harms and whether ketamine should be moved from Class B to Class A within the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971.
The ACMD carried out a public call for evidence in August 2025, and we expect to receive its report soon. We will then carefully consider its recommendations.
Asked by: Tristan Osborne (Labour - Chatham and Aylesford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what data his Department holds on the number of patients waiting to start treatment with Maidstone and Tunbridge NHS Foundation Trust in (a) July 2024 and (b) December 2025.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
At the start of July 2024, the number of pathways on the referral-to-treatment waiting list at the Maidstone and Tunbridge NHS Foundation Trust was 44,761.
As of the latest published data for the end of November 2025, the number of pathways was 49,595. Published data is available at the following link:
https://data.england.nhs.uk/dashboard/rtt
Data for December 2025 will be published on 12 February 2026.
Asked by: Tristan Osborne (Labour - Chatham and Aylesford)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the Industrial Decarbonisation Strategy is aligned with the Critical Minerals Strategy and the Circular Economy Growth Plan.
Answered by Chris McDonald - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
We are ensuring our upcoming plan for industrial decarbonisation aligns with the Critical Minerals Strategy and the Circular Economy Growth Plan through joint working across government and coordinated policy development. This approach aims to strengthen supply chain resilience and embeds resource efficiency into policy design, helping industry decarbonise while supporting sustainable growth.
Asked by: Tristan Osborne (Labour - Chatham and Aylesford)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure that the UK’s chemical and materials science and engineering sectors have access to the infrastructure necessary to support the transition to a circular economy and green growth.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This Government is committed to transitioning towards a circular economy where resources are kept in use for longer and waste is designed out. This systemic change, with investment in green jobs and vital infrastructure, builds a path to economic growth, progress towards Net Zero, restoration of nature, and a more resilient economy.
The Government convened a Circular Economy Taskforce of experts to help map that transition; we will soon publish a Circular Economy Growth Plan that sets out how government will deliver a more circular and more prosperous economy.
The Plan will set out the biggest opportunities to support growth in sectors right across the economy, including chemicals and plastics, as well as: agri-food; built environment; electrical and electronic equipment; textiles; and transport. It will consider critical enablers such including skills and infrastructure.
Defra, in collaboration with experts across Government, industry, academia and relevant non-governmental organisations, will assess what further interventions may be needed across the chemical and materials science and engineering sectors, including any interventions on skills and infrastructure.
We have noted the report Jobs and skills for a circular economy: a cross-sector perspective from the chemical and materials science and engineering communities, by the Institution of Chemical Engineers, the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining, and the Royal Society of Chemistry. The report reflects our emphasis on skills development and the chemicals and plastics sector to support the transition towards a circular economy.
Asked by: Tristan Osborne (Labour - Chatham and Aylesford)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department has taken to help support the upskilling of the chemical and materials science and engineering workforce to enable the delivery of a circular economy and green growth.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This Government is committed to transitioning towards a circular economy where resources are kept in use for longer and waste is designed out. This systemic change, with investment in green jobs and vital infrastructure, builds a path to economic growth, progress towards Net Zero, restoration of nature, and a more resilient economy.
The Government convened a Circular Economy Taskforce of experts to help map that transition; we will soon publish a Circular Economy Growth Plan that sets out how government will deliver a more circular and more prosperous economy.
The Plan will set out the biggest opportunities to support growth in sectors right across the economy, including chemicals and plastics, as well as: agri-food; built environment; electrical and electronic equipment; textiles; and transport. It will consider critical enablers such including skills and infrastructure.
Defra, in collaboration with experts across Government, industry, academia and relevant non-governmental organisations, will assess what further interventions may be needed across the chemical and materials science and engineering sectors, including any interventions on skills and infrastructure.
We have noted the report Jobs and skills for a circular economy: a cross-sector perspective from the chemical and materials science and engineering communities, by the Institution of Chemical Engineers, the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining, and the Royal Society of Chemistry. The report reflects our emphasis on skills development and the chemicals and plastics sector to support the transition towards a circular economy.
Asked by: Tristan Osborne (Labour - Chatham and Aylesford)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what consideration her Department has given to the report Jobs and skills for a circular economy: a cross-sector perspective from the chemical and materials science and engineering communities, published by the Institution of Chemical Engineers, the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining, and the Royal Society of Chemistry; and how that report is informing efforts to ensure the UK has the chemical and materials science and engineering skills required to maximise the opportunities of the circular economy and green growth.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This Government is committed to transitioning towards a circular economy where resources are kept in use for longer and waste is designed out. This systemic change, with investment in green jobs and vital infrastructure, builds a path to economic growth, progress towards Net Zero, restoration of nature, and a more resilient economy.
The Government convened a Circular Economy Taskforce of experts to help map that transition; we will soon publish a Circular Economy Growth Plan that sets out how government will deliver a more circular and more prosperous economy.
The Plan will set out the biggest opportunities to support growth in sectors right across the economy, including chemicals and plastics, as well as: agri-food; built environment; electrical and electronic equipment; textiles; and transport. It will consider critical enablers such including skills and infrastructure.
Defra, in collaboration with experts across Government, industry, academia and relevant non-governmental organisations, will assess what further interventions may be needed across the chemical and materials science and engineering sectors, including any interventions on skills and infrastructure.
We have noted the report Jobs and skills for a circular economy: a cross-sector perspective from the chemical and materials science and engineering communities, by the Institution of Chemical Engineers, the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining, and the Royal Society of Chemistry. The report reflects our emphasis on skills development and the chemicals and plastics sector to support the transition towards a circular economy.
Asked by: Tristan Osborne (Labour - Chatham and Aylesford)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she plans to take to help ensure the UK is an attractive destination for cryptoasset capital.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The government recognises the transformative potential of digital assets and blockchain technologies to drive economic growth in the UK and increase efficiencies across financial markets.
That is why the government is bringing in legislation to establish a new financial services regulatory regime for cryptoassets.
This will support growth in the UK by giving cryptoasset firms the regulatory certainty needed to invest here, and to help drive innovation in our financial services sector.