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 she has made with Cabinet colleagues of the potential impact of the Public Service Vehicles Accessibility Regulations expiring on 31 July 2026 on the ability of students aged 16 and over in rural areas to travel to their place of education or training in the 2026/27 academic year.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Following careful consideration, we have decided to offer further exemptions from the Public Service Vehicles Accessibility Regulations for home-to-school services until 2030. The coach sector has benefitted from exemptions since 2019 when providing home-to-school and rail replacement services. Improved accessibility on rail replacement services means exemptions are now only required for school transport.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will takes steps to introduce dedicated swimming pool funding for schools.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government is committed to ensuring that no child leaves primary school without the capability and confidence to keep themselves safe in and around water.
Schools receive funding for curriculum provision, which includes swimming and water safety lessons. While there is no dedicated funding for swimming pools, the department provided £2.1 billion of capital funding for the 2025/26 financial year to improve the condition of the school estate, which includes sports facilities and school swimming pools, up from £1.8 billion committed for the 2024/25 financial year. This will rise in line with inflation to around £2.3 billion in 2029/30, over £400 million more than in 2024/25.
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, what data his Department holds on the (a) number of children between 5 and 10 admitted to hospital for dental procedures in each of the last five years and (b) average cost of such instances from admission to discharge.
Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The following table shows the number of finished admission episodes (FAEs) for children aged five to 10 years old where the main purpose was for a dental procedure, in each year from 2020/21 to 2024/25:
Year | Number of children admissions |
2020/21 | 12,702 |
2021/22 | 22,698 |
2022/23 | 25,740 |
2023/24 | 25,437 |
2024/25 | 27,748 |
An FAE is the first period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FAEs are counted against the year or month in which the admission episode finishes. These figures do not represent the number of patients, as a child may be admitted to hospital more than once during the period.
Data is not specifically collected on the average cost of such instances from admission to discharge.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the timing of the announcement to the Sports Premium on schools' ability to set an effective budget to be approved in time for the next academic year.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department engages regularly with school leadership organisations on the changes to PE and school sport funding and have responded to schools' concerns about managing the transition by increasing the transitional PE premium payment to £150 million, giving time for the School Sport Partnerships Network to work with schools to mobilise during the spring term and bring in new support from April.
The government announced in May that the PE and sport premium will be ending and will be replaced by the new School Sport Partnerships Network.
The department recognises the importance of supporting schools through this transition and has engaged sector representatives on supporting schools through the change as effectively as possible.
As usual, the government will be supporting schools further with the publication of guidance and conditions of grant for the start of the new academic year. Primary schools will be provided with a one-off payment of PE and sport premium to cover the transition to the new system and individual funding allocations will be confirmed this autumn.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when her Department plans to provide further details on the transitional PE Premium payment for primary schools.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department engages regularly with school leadership organisations on the changes to PE and school sport funding and have responded to schools' concerns about managing the transition by increasing the transitional PE premium payment to £150 million, giving time for the School Sport Partnerships Network to work with schools to mobilise during the spring term and bring in new support from April.
The government announced in May that the PE and sport premium will be ending and will be replaced by the new School Sport Partnerships Network.
The department recognises the importance of supporting schools through this transition and has engaged sector representatives on supporting schools through the change as effectively as possible.
As usual, the government will be supporting schools further with the publication of guidance and conditions of grant for the start of the new academic year. Primary schools will be provided with a one-off payment of PE and sport premium to cover the transition to the new system and individual funding allocations will be confirmed this autumn.
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, if she will take steps with Cabinet colleagues to negotiate a longer-term pet passport arrangement with the European Union.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
I refer the hon. Member to the response given on 26 June 2026 to the hon. Member for Clapham and Brixton Hill for PQ UIN 11733.
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 he will make an assessment of the potential merits of supporting a pharmacy-led gluten free service in England, with annual health checks and collaboration between pharmacies, GPs and dieticians, in the context of (a) support for coeliac patients and (b) similar arrangements in Scotland.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Secretary of State for Wales
We are aware of the Scottish Gluten-free Food Service, under which eligible patients can obtain gluten-free foods through community pharmacy and adults are offered an annual pharmacist health check. While health services are devolved and arrangements in Scotland are a matter for the Scottish Government, we continue to consider evidence and experiences from across the United Kingdom as part of wider policy development.
Community pharmacy in England is already playing an increasing clinical role, but any proposal for a new national pharmacy-led service would require careful assessment of clinical benefit, workforce implications, affordability, and interaction with existing care pathways. The Department will continue to keep relevant evidence and service models under review.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to facilitate the transferring of funds to Ukrainian charities.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
The UK remains one of Ukraine's leading humanitarian donors, having committed up to £577 million in humanitarian assistance to Ukraine and the wider region since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion. Through trusted humanitarian partners, UK support helps protect vulnerable people affected by the conflict, promote respect for International Humanitarian Law, and provide lifesaving assistance to those most affected by Russia's continued attacks.
The Charity Commission for England and Wales also published guidance for charities and trustees responding to the crisis in Ukraine in March 2022.
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, whether she plans to (a) provide guidance to veterinary practices on the pricing of Animal Health Certificates and (b) introduce regulations on the price levels for Animal Health Certificates set by veterinary practices.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
All fees set by veterinary surgeons or veterinary practices are a private matter between individual practices and their clients. Neither the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS), the UK regulator of the veterinary profession, nor Defra intervene in the level of fees that are charged.
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 he will establish provisions for people with stomas in public toilets within NHS establishments.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
National Health Service organisations make decisions locally on the provision of toilets within their facilities, including provisions in toilets for people with stomas.
National guidance is provided to the NHS on designing sanitary spaces in healthcare settings, including toilets for patients, visitors, and staff. Health Building Note (HBN) 00-02: Sanitary Spaces details layouts for independent wheelchair/semi ambulant toilets which incorporate a shelf adjacent to the toilet for the emptying of urine bottles/colostomy bags.
Over this Spending Review period, we are backing local NHS organisations with £21 billion in operation capital funding, which they can allocate to their priorities, such as ensuring the provision of appropriate public toilets.