Asked by: Virginia Crosbie (Conservative - Ynys Môn)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his Department's timeline is for works to complete the electrification of the North Wales mainline; what the estimated cost is for the electrification of that line; and what estimate he has made of the effect of the upgrade on journey times between Holyhead and London and other destinations.
Answered by Huw Merriman
The Government has announced its commitment to fund the electrification of the North Wales Mainline within the £36 billion Network North programme. We are undertaking detailed delivery planning on a project-by-project basis and will share further information when that work is complete.
Asked by: Virginia Crosbie (Conservative - Ynys Môn)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the potential economic benefits of the funding for the electrification of the North Wales mainline on the constituents of (a) Ynys Mon and (b) North Wales.
Answered by Huw Merriman
The Government has announced its commitment to fund the electrification of the North Wales Mainline within the £36 billion Network North programme. We are undertaking detailed delivery planning on a project-by-project basis and will share further information when that work is complete.
Asked by: Virginia Crosbie (Conservative - Ynys Môn)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to ensure the (a) adequacy and (b) resilience of supplies of ammonia as a feedstock for fertiliser.
Answered by Mark Spencer
We are aware of recent announcements in industry which mean a reduction to prospects for domestic production of ammonia, however Defra and wider government do not anticipate issues as we have recently been reliant on an import model without experiencing any issues. If companies experience difficulties in accessing the chemicals they need, then Defra and wider government encourage them to engage with their suppliers. If this does not resolve any challenges, then they should engage with their industry bodies.
With regards to ammonium nitrate fertilisers, the UK typically imports fertiliser products from more than 20 countries. The supply chain has remained dynamic and we understand farmers have been able to purchase fertiliser for the 2023 growing season. Defra continues to monitor the situation and work closely with other government departments and industry to understand fertiliser supply, demand and price challenges.
Asked by: Virginia Crosbie (Conservative - Ynys Môn)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of implementing a programme to inform the public about the potential contribution of hydrogen to (a) domestic heating, (b) transport and (c) carbon reduction.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Hydrogen Strategy sets out the important role that low carbon hydrogen could play in decarbonising vital UK industrial sectors, providing flexible deployment across power, transport and potentially heat. The Government is providing significant support for research and development across these sectors.
The Government is supporting industry to deliver a hydrogen heating trial in Fife and the Tees Valley Hydrogen Hub, and discussing a potential village trial in Redcar, to understand hydrogen’s future uses better. The Government is working with industry partners to engage the public, informing them about hydrogen and what to expect. The Government will continue public engagement as hydrogen technology matures.
Asked by: Virginia Crosbie (Conservative - Ynys Môn)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she is taking steps to encourage inward investment for (a) components and (b) other equipment to enable the scaling up of low carbon hydrogen.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
My department has been working closely with the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero to showcase the opportunity for investment in the UK hydrogen sector. Together we’ve published a Net Zero Investment Roadmap setting out the UK’s strategy, policies and funding for scaling-up low-carbon hydrogen. The Sector Development Action Plan published in 2022 committed to regular meetings with investors and ‘Meet the-Specifier’ events to help industry understand supply chain opportunities. My officials in the UK and overseas are in communication with equipment manufacturers across the world to ensure they understand what the UK has to offer investors and to advertise the pipeline of hydrogen production projects in development across the country.
Asked by: Virginia Crosbie (Conservative - Ynys Môn)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to encourage (a) innovation and (b) an increase in the use of drug-testing methods that do not involve animals.
Answered by George Freeman
Government’s approach is to actively support and fund the development and dissemination of techniques that replace, reduce and refine the use of animals in research (the 3Rs), primarily through funding from UK Research and Innovation for the National Centre for the 3Rs (NC3Rs) - who have committed £31.6 million for research and innovation into these causes in the past 5 years - and to ensure that the UK has a robust regulatory system for licensing animal studies.
The NC3Rs are on track to meet their commitment to invest 75% of their research and innovation budget on replacement technologies by the end of 2024.
Asked by: Virginia Crosbie (Conservative - Ynys Môn)
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 assess the impacts of rising sea levels; and what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of rising sea levels.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
UK marine and coastal areas are being impacted by climate change, including through sea level rise. These impacts have consequences throughout the UK on livelihoods, ecosystems, communities and society. We are improving our understanding of the impact of climate change and rising sea levels through the Marine Climate Change Impacts Partnership (MCCIP). MCCIP engages with a wide range of scientific authors to supply policy makers and the public with updates on the current and predicted impacts of climate change.
In the UK we are committed to ensuring that climate change adaptation, resilience and mitigation are fully considered and integrated in our policies. Under the Climate Change Act, government committed to laying policies and proposals before parliament to address risks identified by the third Climate Change Risk Assessment. We will do so through the third National Adaptation Programme, published 17 July 2023.
As climate change leads to sea level rise and more extreme rainfall, the number of people at risk from flooding and coastal erosion is likely to grow. The Government announced in March 2020 a record £5.2 billion investment over six years in flood and coastal erosion schemes to better protect communities across England. In July 2020, the Government published a long-term Policy Statement, which sets out our ambition to create a nation more resilient to future flood and coastal erosion risk.
Asked by: Virginia Crosbie (Conservative - Ynys Môn)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work Pensions, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of exempting people with autism from the under occupancy penalty on the grounds of their sensory needs.
Answered by Mims Davies - Shadow Minister for Women and Equalities
The removal of the spare room subsidy (RSRS) policy seeks to encourage greater mobility within the social rented sector.
There are no plans to review the policy, and there are easements which allow for the provision of an additional bedroom in certain circumstances, such as to support the needs of disabled people.
Where a member of the household is, by virtue of their disability, not able to share a bedroom and is in receipt of a qualifying disability benefit, they are entitled to claim for an additional bedroom. The same applies where someone requires and receives overnight care on a regular basis from a non-resident carer, providing they meet qualifying criteria.
Where additional support is required, Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs) are available for those who face a shortfall in meeting their housing costs. Since 2011 we have provided nearly £1.6 billion in funding to local authorities for DHPs.
Asked by: Virginia Crosbie (Conservative - Ynys Môn)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to ensure that meat is labelled clearly to inform consumers about provenance from (a) animals reared and slaughtered (i) in the UK and (ii) abroad and (b) meat grown in a lab.
Answered by Mark Spencer
Country of Origin labelling is compulsory for prepacked unprocessed beef, veal, lamb, mutton, pork, goat and poultry meat. For beef an indication of where the animal was born, reared and slaughtered is required while for the other meats, reared and slaughtered is required. The word ‘origin’, where used on unprocessed fresh or frozen meat, means it is from an animal that was born, reared and slaughtered in the indicated country. Additional labelling rules apply for foods with primary ingredients. Where meat is the primary ingredient of a food product, for example a sausage or bacon, the origin of the primary ingredient must be given if different to the origin that is provided for the food product (which will be where the product is manufactured). This means consumers can have confidence in provenance and quality of the food they buy.
Each ingredient of pre-packed food must be included on the label. The ingredient must be the legal name of the food or, if there is no legal name, the customary name or a name that is sufficiently descriptive to enable consumers to know its true nature and distinguish it from other products with which it might be confused. Lab-grown meat is not meat as defined in food labelling legislation and does not therefore require its origin to be given, unless the omission of this information would cause a consumer to be misled. It is however required to be clearly labelled as an ingredient.
Asked by: Virginia Crosbie (Conservative - Ynys Môn)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding his Department plans to provide for the rollout of musculoskeletal first contact practitioner services in general practice.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
We remain committed to growing and diversifying the general practice workforce, through the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS). Primary care networks (PCNs) and practices have recruited over 29,000 additional staff, including nursing associates, pharmacists, physiotherapists and social prescribing link workers, hitting the Government’s target to recruit 26,000 a year ahead of the March 2024 target.
NHS England have committed to supporting all of the roles recruited through the scheme into the future, and PCNs can be confident that there will be funding for any ARRS role recruited before March 2024