Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to proposed reforms to the Basic Compliance Assessment in the White Paper entitled Restoring Control over the Immigration System, published on 12 May 2025, if she will consult with (a) sponsoring institutions and (b) bodies representing them on the implementation of those reforms.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The Home Office regularly engages with a range of stakeholders when developing policy. The implementation timetable, transitional arrangements, and further details of the reforms to the Basic Compliance Assessment will be confirmed in due course.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the White Paper entitled Restoring Control over the Immigration System, published on 12 May 2025, if she will make it her policy to (a) consult on and (b) publish an implementation timetable for the proposed reforms to the basic compliance assessment metrics.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The Home Office regularly engages with a range of stakeholders when developing policy. The implementation timetable, transitional arrangements, and further details of the reforms to the Basic Compliance Assessment will be confirmed in due course.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the White Paper entitled Restoring Control over the Immigration System, published on 12 May 2025, if she will make it her policy to implement a transition period for compliance with basic compliance assessment metrics by sponsoring institutions.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The Home Office regularly engages with a range of stakeholders when developing policy. The implementation timetable, transitional arrangements, and further details of the reforms to the Basic Compliance Assessment will be confirmed in due course.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what progress she has made on developing a national financial inclusion strategy.
Answered by Emma Reynolds - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
I have convened a Financial Inclusion Committee of industry and consumer representatives to develop the Government’s Financial Inclusion Strategy, which will be published later this year.
The strategy will tackle a range of issues, including access to affordable credit, digital inclusion, and financial capability and education. I am meeting with the Committee in June to discuss potential strategy interventions.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working Green Paper, published on 18 March 2025, how Scottish claimants would access the health element of Universal Credit, in the context of the planned use of the single Personal Independence Payment assessment for this purpose.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Pathways to Work Green Paper, published in March 2025, sets out our plans to reform health and disability benefits and employment support and opened a consultation on certain reforms. The consultation extends to Scotland, but the proposals will only apply to UK Government’s areas of responsibility. DWP Ministers are engaging with Scottish Government throughout the consultation period and beyond.
The interactions of the reformed system, in particular the abolition of the Work Capability Assessment and the introduction of a PIP passporting model and the implications for Devolved Governments, will need to be fully considered before being implemented. This will be particularly important in Scotland as PIP is devolved and has been replaced by Adult Disability Payment, so we will carefully consider how entitlement to the UC health element will be determined for people in Scotland.
DWP currently treats Scottish Government’s disability benefits in the same way as the equivalent DWP benefits for the purposes of reserved premia and additions. Whilst this will be kept under review, it will in any event be necessary for the UK Government to ensure that people in Scotland are not disadvantaged in the reserved benefit system compared with people in England and Wales.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to her Department's consultation Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working Green Paper, updated 7 April 2025, whether she plans to amend eligibility to (a) disability premiums and (b) other passported benefits in Scotland.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Pathways to Work Green Paper, published in March 2025, sets out our plans to reform health and disability benefits and employment support and opened a consultation on certain reforms. The consultation extends to Scotland, but the proposals will only apply to UK Government’s areas of responsibility. DWP Ministers are engaging with Scottish Government throughout the consultation period and beyond.
The interactions of the reformed system, in particular the abolition of the Work Capability Assessment and the introduction of a PIP passporting model and the implications for Devolved Governments, will need to be fully considered before being implemented. This will be particularly important in Scotland as PIP is devolved and has been replaced by Adult Disability Payment, so we will carefully consider how entitlement to the UC health element will be determined for people in Scotland.
DWP currently treats Scottish Government’s disability benefits in the same way as the equivalent DWP benefits for the purposes of reserved premia and additions. Whilst this will be kept under review, it will in any event be necessary for the UK Government to ensure that people in Scotland are not disadvantaged in the reserved benefit system compared with people in England and Wales.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions she has had with her counterpart in the Scottish government on the proposed changes to eligibility for the Personal Independence Payment.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Pathways to Work Green Paper, published in March 2025, sets out our plans to reform health and disability benefits and employment support and opened a consultation on certain reforms. The consultation extends to Scotland, but the proposals will only apply to UK Government’s areas of responsibility. DWP Ministers are engaging with Scottish Government throughout the consultation period and beyond.
The interactions of the reformed system, in particular the abolition of the Work Capability Assessment and the introduction of a PIP passporting model and the implications for Devolved Governments, will need to be fully considered before being implemented. This will be particularly important in Scotland as PIP is devolved and has been replaced by Adult Disability Payment, so we will carefully consider how entitlement to the UC health element will be determined for people in Scotland.
DWP currently treats Scottish Government’s disability benefits in the same way as the equivalent DWP benefits for the purposes of reserved premia and additions. Whilst this will be kept under review, it will in any event be necessary for the UK Government to ensure that people in Scotland are not disadvantaged in the reserved benefit system compared with people in England and Wales.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the efficiency of the Royal Mail First Class service in delivering letters of notification on driving suspensions from the DVLA.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
When a driving licence is revoked, the law requires that the notice of revocation must be served in writing to the licence holder. The letter notifying the individual of the revocation is sent by first class post and the licence is revoked two working days from the date the letter is posted.
The Royal Mail aims to deliver over 90 per cent of first-class post by the next working day, including Saturdays. The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency already makes allowances for Bank Holidays and non-working days.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 26 March 2025 to Question 39218 on Infrastructure, whether his Department plans to implement recommendation 27 of the report by the National Infrastructure Commission entitled Second National Infrastructure Assessment, published on 1 October 2023.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) is the lead department for recommendation 27. The Government will draw on the National Infrastructure Commission’s analysis for the forthcoming 10-Year Infrastructure Strategy, which HMT is due to publish in June. My officials are working with DSIT, Ofcom, and Ofgem to support the identification of the future telecommunications requirements of the energy sector.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department undertakes Child Rights Impact Assessments for international development policies.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As a ratifier of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, the UK is committed to safeguarding and promoting the rights and wellbeing of children. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) does not undertake mandatory Child Rights Impact Assessments, but it is FCDO policy to consider the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED), which includes age, and Safeguarding responsibilities across our policies and investments.