Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what guidance his Department provides to local planning authorities on escalating enforcement action, including the use of injunctions under section 187B of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, in cases involving repeated or sequential breaches of planning control.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 119662 on 18 March 2026.
Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what guidance his Department provides to local planning authorities on escalating enforcement action, including the use of injunctions under section 187B of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, in cases involving repeated or sequential breaches of planning control.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given Question UIN 119662 on 18 March 2026
Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department plans to collect data on the number of planning applications or appeals in which Grey Belt policy is cited.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
My Department is currently exploring with local planning authorities ways in which data relating to grey belt land might usefully be collected. However, no decisions have yet been made.
Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of the subdivision and sale of agricultural land into multiple small plots on the effectiveness of planning enforcement by local planning authorities.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given Question UIN 119661 on 18 March 2026.
Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department plans to update guidance to enable local planning authorities to take account of cumulative breaches of planning control across subdivided land where individual plots are under separate ownership.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
My Department has no current plans to update guidance in respect of this matter.
Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the accessibility of written examination formats for neurodiverse students in schools and further education settings.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Ofqual, as the independent regulator of qualifications, is responsible for ensuring the exams system is fair and accessible for all students. It has published guidance for awarding organisations to follow when designing qualifications, setting clear expectations around accessible language, layout, structure and the removal of unnecessary burdens to ensure that exams are designed to be accessible for all learners, including neurodiverse students.
Ofqual has also conducted research into the role of time pressure in assessment, including speed of working, the impact of having extra time in exams and the wider evidence base on timed assessment.
Under the Equality Act 2010, awarding organisations are required to make reasonable adjustments for disabled persons to prevent substantial disadvantage in exams and assessments. Reasonable adjustments may include 25% extra time in the exam or the use of a reader, scribe, word processor or assistive technology, and ensure that students can demonstrate their knowledge without changing the exam content. A range of access arrangements are also available for all national curriculum tests and assessments, and guidance is provided by the Standards and Testing Agency.
Additionally, in the government response to the Curriculum and Assessment Review, the department committed to working with Ofqual and the exam boards to ensure that accessibility implications are fully considered for all young people throughout the qualification process, including for those with special educational needs and disabilities.
Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of timed examinations on the performance of neurodiverse students.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Ofqual, as the independent regulator of qualifications, is responsible for ensuring the exams system is fair and accessible for all students. It has published guidance for awarding organisations to follow when designing qualifications, setting clear expectations around accessible language, layout, structure and the removal of unnecessary burdens to ensure that exams are designed to be accessible for all learners, including neurodiverse students.
Ofqual has also conducted research into the role of time pressure in assessment, including speed of working, the impact of having extra time in exams and the wider evidence base on timed assessment.
Under the Equality Act 2010, awarding organisations are required to make reasonable adjustments for disabled persons to prevent substantial disadvantage in exams and assessments. Reasonable adjustments may include 25% extra time in the exam or the use of a reader, scribe, word processor or assistive technology, and ensure that students can demonstrate their knowledge without changing the exam content. A range of access arrangements are also available for all national curriculum tests and assessments, and guidance is provided by the Standards and Testing Agency.
Additionally, in the government response to the Curriculum and Assessment Review, the department committed to working with Ofqual and the exam boards to ensure that accessibility implications are fully considered for all young people throughout the qualification process, including for those with special educational needs and disabilities.
Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps his Department has taken to increase the number and capacity of dementia trials.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Government responsibility for delivering dementia research is shared between the Department for Health and Social Care, with research delivered by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, with research delivered via UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).
The Department for Health and Social Care is committed to ensuring that all patients, including those with dementia, have access to cutting-edge clinical trials and innovative, lifesaving treatments. Government funding is already enabling the dementia clinical trials landscape to become more efficient and accessible.
The Dame Barbara Windsor Dementia Goals programme, with up to £150 million expected to be allocated to, or aligned with it, aims to speed up the development of new treatments for dementia and neurodegenerative conditions by accelerating innovations in biomarkers, clinical trials, and implementation.
Closely aligned to the programme, the NIHR has invested up to £50 million into the UK Demetia Trials Network (UKDTN). UKDTN aims to expand the United Kingdom’s early phase clinical trial capabilities in dementia by addressing industry challenges around trial recruitment and fragmented research infrastructure. The UKDTN will establish a coordinated network of over 20 trial sites, with a real-time database to enable efficient identification of trial sites for industry collaboration. The network will also build a skilled workforce of dementia trial specialists, including early-career researchers, and embedded research nurses to support trial set-up and delivery.
In addition, the Medical Research Council’s £20 million investment into a Dementia Trials Accelerator aims to embed more innovation in how clinical trials are designed and delivered in order to increase the speed and quality, while driving down the cost of large-scale trials.
In partnership with Alzheimer’s Society, Alzheimer’s Research UK, and Alzheimer Scotland, the NIHR also delivers Join Dementia Research, an online platform which enables the involvement of people with and without a dementia diagnosis, as well as carers, to take part in a range of important research, including studies evaluating potential treatments for dementia. As of March 2026, over 110,000 participants have joined dementia research through the service, with 112 studies currently open.
Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential to scale up investment in dementia clinical trials, including through the Dementia Goals Programme.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Government responsibility for delivering dementia research is shared between the Department for Health and Social Care, with research delivered by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, with research delivered via UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).
The Department for Health and Social Care is committed to ensuring that all patients, including those with dementia, have access to cutting-edge clinical trials and innovative, lifesaving treatments. Government funding is already enabling the dementia clinical trials landscape to become more efficient and accessible.
The Dame Barbara Windsor Dementia Goals programme, with up to £150 million expected to be allocated to, or aligned with it, aims to speed up the development of new treatments for dementia and neurodegenerative conditions by accelerating innovations in biomarkers, clinical trials, and implementation.
Closely aligned to the programme, the NIHR has invested up to £50 million into the UK Demetia Trials Network (UKDTN). UKDTN aims to expand the United Kingdom’s early phase clinical trial capabilities in dementia by addressing industry challenges around trial recruitment and fragmented research infrastructure. The UKDTN will establish a coordinated network of over 20 trial sites, with a real-time database to enable efficient identification of trial sites for industry collaboration. The network will also build a skilled workforce of dementia trial specialists, including early-career researchers, and embedded research nurses to support trial set-up and delivery.
In addition, the Medical Research Council’s £20 million investment into a Dementia Trials Accelerator aims to embed more innovation in how clinical trials are designed and delivered in order to increase the speed and quality, while driving down the cost of large-scale trials.
In partnership with Alzheimer’s Society, Alzheimer’s Research UK, and Alzheimer Scotland, the NIHR also delivers Join Dementia Research, an online platform which enables the involvement of people with and without a dementia diagnosis, as well as carers, to take part in a range of important research, including studies evaluating potential treatments for dementia. As of March 2026, over 110,000 participants have joined dementia research through the service, with 112 studies currently open.
Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to end the use of promotional offers by gambling companies that may increase gambling-related harm.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
As part of the Gambling Commission’s licence conditions, all gambling operators in the UK must comply with advertising codes enforced by the Advertising Standards Authority independently of the government. These advertising codes contain a range of measures which are designed to protect children and vulnerable adults from harm.
The Gambling Commission have also introduced further restrictions to ensure that bonuses are constructed in a responsible way which does not encourage harmful gambling. Since January 2026, operators have been banned from cross-marketing more than one gambling product within one incentive. This measure further raises standards to ensure that advertising does not encourage excessive and harmful gambling.
We will continue to monitor the best available evidence that assesses the impact of consumer protection measures when making future policy decisions.