Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when she plans to bring forward regulations to introduce a public food waste reporting requirement for large businesses.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government recognises the importance of improving food waste data to help reduce food waste and improve resource efficiency. Defra is engaging with industry to improve reporting and data quality, while considering a range of policy options.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of the Care Quality Commission (CQC) introducing a "special circumstances" policy permitting 16- and 17-year-olds with specific care needs to be placed in CQC registered provision.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Young people aged under 18 may, in certain circumstances, be accommodated in services registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC). Whether registration with CQC is appropriate depends on the facts of the individual case, the nature of the service being provided and the relevant statutory and regulatory frameworks. Guidance is available to providers and local authorities on the respective regulatory responsibilities of Ofsted and CQC, including the joint Ofsted and CQC guidance ‘Children's homes and health care: registration with Ofsted or CQC’, which sets out the circumstances in which services should be registered with Ofsted, CQC, or both regulators.
The CQC does not have a published provision directly equivalent to Ofsted's special circumstances policy. The department is working with the Department for Health and Social Care, Ofsted, and the CQC to explore how regulation can support and improve transitions into adult services. As part of this work, the department keeps policy and regulatory arrangements in this area under review, including issues relating to young people transitioning into adult services.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of the Care Quality Commission (CQC) introducing a "special circumstances" policy permitting 16- and 17-year-olds with specific care needs to be placed in CQC registered provision.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
16- and 17-year-olds with specific care needs can be accommodated in services registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC), provided the service is delivering a CQC-regulated activity and does not meet the statutory definition of a children's home.
We keep policy and regulatory arrangements in this area under review as part of our work with the Department for Education on transitions.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, whether the Government remains committed to delivering the Replacing Animals in Science Strategy; whether it is his Department that will be leading on this; and when an update on progress against that strategy will be published.
Answered by Chris McDonald - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government remains committed to delivering the Replacing Animals in Science strategy, which sets out a long-term, cross-government programme to accelerate the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods. Delivery is underway across Government departments and partner organisations, with responsibility for overseeing implementation sitting with the Minister for Science, Innovation and Investment. A number of commitments are already in progress, including the establishment of a Pre-clinical Translational Models Hub and the development of the UK Centre for the Validation of Alternative Methods (UKCVAM). The Government will publish a delivery update, alongside key performance indicators, later in 2026.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to engage with the Scottish Government on the inclusion of onshore wind in Scotland in the upcoming Strategic Spatial Energy Plan.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Strategic Spatial Energy Plan is being developed by the National Energy System Operator, following joint commissioning by the UK, Scottish and Welsh Governments. It will assess electricity generation and storage across Great Britain, including onshore wind in Scotland, as part of future energy infrastructure planning.
We are engaging with the Scottish Government through SSEP analytical, advisory groups, and official-level discussions. This enables views on Scottish energy priorities, planning, consenting, environmental issues and renewable deliverability to inform the process.
The Scottish Government will also be able to provide formal views before the Secretary of State decides on the preferred pathway.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment her Department has made of the implications for its policies of analysis from Aurora Energy Research which notes that rebalancing a share of planned Scottish offshore wind towards Scottish onshore wind after 2030 as part of the Strategic Spatial Energy Plan would reduce energy system costs by £5 billion pounds a year.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The National Energy System Operator (NESO) is delivering the first Strategic Spatial Energy Plan (SSEP). This will consider the cost optimal types and locations of future energy infrastructure including onshore and offshore wind - whilst also factoring in environmental, societal, and other spatial interests.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the potential for empowering local authorities to assess flexibility and microgrid opportunities before pursuing network buildout, in the context of the recommendations in the ADE: Demand report entitled Powered by People, Powered by Place.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government has noted the Association for Decentralised Energy's report, Powered by People, Powered by Place, and recognises the importance of local evidence in identifying flexibility and other opportunities before network investment decisions are made.
The Regional Energy Strategic Plans (RESPs) methodology, being developed by the National Energy System Operator, proposes bringing together local authorities and stakeholders to help provide a whole-energy and bottom-up view of how local energy systems need to evolve to meet local and national priorities. Distribution Network Operators would remain responsible for detailed network planning, including flexibility, microgrid opportunities and network investment, informed by RESP outputs.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to Regional Energy Strategic Plans, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the 10% voting share for demand-side stakeholders on Strategic Boards, as highlighted in the ADE: Demand report entitled Powered by People, Powered by Place.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Responsibility for the development of Regional Energy Strategic Planning (RESP) and the governance arrangements sits with the National Energy System Operator (NESO), under Ofgem’s policy framework and guidance.
Following their consultation, NESO is currently finalising the RESP methodology, which includes the voting share of the Strategic Boards. DESNZ Secretary of State and Ofgem is due to review and approve the methodology in due course.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to the ADE: Demand report entitled Powered by People, Powered by Place, what assessment has his Department has made of the appropriateness of the exclusion of contracted consumer-led flexibility data from the data collection process informing National Energy System Operation modelling for Regional Energy Strategic Plans.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government has noted the Association for Decentralised Energy's report, Powered by People, Powered by Place.
The National Energy System Operator (NESO) will be developing Regional Energy Strategic Plans (RESPs) to support whole-system distribution-level planning across energy demand, supply, storage and flexibility. The aim is for flexibility to form part of a number of RESP outputs, including modelled Pathways and Strategic Investment Need. We are working with NESO on the RESP methodology, which will be published in due course.
The distribution networks will remain responsible for detailed network planning, including consideration of contracted flexibility alongside network investments.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if her Department will publish data on unregulated fare movements by GWR since the regulated freeze was announced on the Bath Spa to London Paddington route.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) publishes annual statistics on changes in rail fares, for both regulated and unregulated fares. The most recent data covers 2024-25 and is available on the ORR website at https://dataportal.orr.gov.uk/statistics/finance/rail-fares/. Data for 2025-26 will be published in July 2026.
Information on changes in unregulated fares by individual train operating companies is not held centrally by the Department. This level of detail is not routinely compiled and would require bespoke analysis.