Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to help support small landowners in accessing (a) legal and (b) technical advice when negotiating agreements under the Electronic Communications Code.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is keen that negotiations for Electronic Communications Code agreements are developed as collaboratively as possible. We recognise the benefits of all parties having access to sufficient information and advice to support this.
We endorse the work of the National Connectivity Alliance, an alliance of telecommunications providers, infrastructure providers, landowners and their professional advisers who are brought together to collaborate on areas of mutual interest. Their activity includes a working group specifically aimed at developing guidance notes to provide education around issues in telecoms leases, with a view to assisting in the timely conclusion of wayleaves and code agreements for mobile sites.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the amendments made in Schedule 6, Part 2, Clause 41 of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill relating to the Protection of Badgers Act 1992 on (a) the potential number of badgers killed and (b) local wildlife populations.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
These amendments standardise licences for development purposes under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992 with those for other species under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations, 2017. This is intended to facilitate strategic-level Environmental Delivery Plans.
We are legislating that all badger licences will be subject to strict tests required by the Bern Convention, which set a high bar. For licences under the Nature Restoration Fund, an overall improvement in the conservation status of badgers will be required.
The impact of these provisions will depend on practical application by Natural England through EDPs or individual licences.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when he plans to make a formal decision on the methodology for the 2031 Census; and what steps he plans to take to hold stakeholder consultation prior to that decision.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The UK Statistics Authority published their recommendation on the next (2031) Census on 17 June. The recommendation outlines the consultation they undertook in order to reach their recommendation.
The Government will publish their response in due course.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the Spending Review 2025, published on 11 June 2025, which local authorities will be allocated additional funding for the Affordable Homes Programme; and how much each of those local authorities will receive.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
As under the existing Affordable Homes Programme, registered providers will need to bid for the grant funding announced at the Spending Review. The government will confirm further details, including the timing and process for bids to the new fund, in due course.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Driving and Vehicle Standards Agency's consultation entitled Improving car driving test booking rules, published on 28 May 2025, what her Department's planned timeline is for making changes to car driving test booking rules.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
As part of the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA) plan to reduce driving test waiting times, announced in December 2024, the agency launched a call for evidence seeking views and experiences of booking and managing practical car driving tests, which received almost 27,000 responses. The DVSA analysed the evidence from this and developed proposals on improving processes.
On the 23 April, the Secretary of State for Transport appeared before the Transport Select Committee and announced the consultation, following on from the call for evidence, had been fast-tracked.
As acknowledged in the announcement regarding these measures, DVSA understands the potential impact on learner drivers, including younger drivers, and the importance of helping learners pass quickly.
The consultation launched on 28 May. Views are being sought from the driver training industry, learner drivers and other interested parties. The consultation will close at 11:59pm on 23 July 2025.
The consultation has already seen a large number of responses. Once closed, and all responses analysed, DVSA will announce next steps as soon as possible.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the process for booking a driving test through the DVLA test booking system on the mental health of young people.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
As part of the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA) plan to reduce driving test waiting times, announced in December 2024, the agency launched a call for evidence seeking views and experiences of booking and managing practical car driving tests, which received almost 27,000 responses. The DVSA analysed the evidence from this and developed proposals on improving processes.
On the 23 April, the Secretary of State for Transport appeared before the Transport Select Committee and announced the consultation, following on from the call for evidence, had been fast-tracked.
As acknowledged in the announcement regarding these measures, DVSA understands the potential impact on learner drivers, including younger drivers, and the importance of helping learners pass quickly.
The consultation launched on 28 May. Views are being sought from the driver training industry, learner drivers and other interested parties. The consultation will close at 11:59pm on 23 July 2025.
The consultation has already seen a large number of responses. Once closed, and all responses analysed, DVSA will announce next steps as soon as possible.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will take steps with the Food Standards Agency to (a) review the standards for baby food products and (b) ensure that those standards are updated to include (i) new baby foods made available in the last 20 years, (ii) a limit on the total sugar content of baby foods and (iii) standards for health claims made by manufacturers on baby food packaging.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Children’s early years provide an important foundation for their future health and strongly influences many aspects of wellbeing in later life.
It is vital that we maintain the highest standards for foods consumed by babies and infants, which is why we have regulations in place that set nutritional, compositional, and labelling standards for commercial baby food. These ensure that the ingredients used in commercial baby food are suitable for the nutritional needs of infants and require businesses to ensure that labelling in clear and not misleading. The regulations also set labelling standards to ensure consumers have clear and accurate information about the products they buy. We continue to keep these regulations under review to ensure they reflect the latest scientific and dietary guidelines.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to ensure the effective roll out of broadband infrastructure in rural areas.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Project Gigabit is designed to deliver gigabit-capable broadband to premises that will not be built to by the market without subsidy. The significant majority of these premises will be in rural areas.
More than £2.3 billion of Project Gigabit contracts have already been signed to connect over 1 million more premises with gigabit-capable broadband. This includes two contracts being delivered by Wessex Internet benefiting the Mid Dorset and North Poole constituency.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of duplicate fibre broadband cabling on the (a) distribution of fibre coverage nationally, (b) environment and (c) infrastructure for residents on roads with duplicate cabling.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Competition in the broadband market leads to positive outcomes for consumers, including widespread coverage and competitive pricing. We do not intervene in commercial deployment decisions.
We are aware that having multiple operators can mean deployment of overlapping networks. The sharing of ducts and poles between operators can minimise the disruption this can cause. To support, this Ofcom has put regulations in place to require Openreach to give access to its physical infrastructure to other networks. The Access to Infrastructure (ATI) Regulations 2016 also gives operators the right to request access to another operator’s physical infrastructure to facilitate sharing across utility, transport and communications sectors.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the housing benefit taper rate on young people in supported housing who increase working hours.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The income taper in Housing Benefit ensures people in work are better off than someone wholly reliant on benefits. In addition to any financial advantage, there are important non-financial benefits of working. These include learning new skills, improved confidence and independence as well as a positive effect on an individual's mental and physical health.
Notwithstanding these positive outcomes from work, the Department acknowledges there is a challenge presented by the interaction between Universal Credit and Housing Benefit for those residing in Supported Housing and Temporary Accommodation and receiving their housing support through Housing Benefit. The department is considering the issue carefully in partnership with stakeholders.