Asked by: Yuan Yang (Labour - Earley and Woodley)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of the decision by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) to remove funding for the Facility for Airborne Atmospheric Measurements (FAAM).
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
As part of a review of its infrastructure investments, the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), within UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), has concluded that the Facility for Airborne Atmospheric Measurements (FAAM) no longer represents good value for money due to rising operating and maintenance costs and limited planned usage.
Only two projects are scheduled to use the aircraft between 2027 and 2029, accounting for around 27% of available flying hours, and FAAM-related research represented a small proportion of overall investment in atmospheric science. NERC has engaged directly with affected programme leads to explore alternative ways to deliver the research, including deploying FAAM instrumentation on other platforms, or by exploring alternative approaches. NERC has already begun investing in new technologies offering lower emissions, greater responsiveness and improved cost effectiveness, including a Net Zero Aerial Capability scoping programme (in collaboration with Innovate UK) on UAV development and investments to explore further autonomous capabilities.
This decision reflects a strategic shift towards more sustainable, flexible and modern technologies. Ceasing FAAM operations will also release over £32 million for reinvestment within UK environmental science, supporting lower-emission, scalable capabilities that support broader range of researchers.
Asked by: Yuan Yang (Labour - Earley and Woodley)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions his Department has had with the Keep Britain Working team on the rate of statutory sick pay.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Sir Charlie Mayfield’s independent Keep Britain Working review report, published on 5 November 2025, aims to tackle health-related economic inactivity, with over one in five working-age adults out of the workforce, substantially because of health problems.
While not the direct focus, Statutory Sick Pay was considered as part of the Keep Britain Working Review, and we will work with the Vanguard employers to explore how to best utilise Occupational Sick Pay to generate the best outcomes for all.
The vanguard phase will consider and make recommendations to government on the incentives needed for employers and employees to deliver better work and health outcomes.
Asked by: Yuan Yang (Labour - Earley and Woodley)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether sick pay falls within the scope of the Keep Britain Working Vanguard Taskforce.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Sir Charlie Mayfield’s independent Keep Britain Working review report, published on 5 November 2025, aims to tackle health-related economic inactivity, with over one in five working-age adults out of the workforce, substantially because of health problems.
While not the direct focus, Statutory Sick Pay was considered as part of the Keep Britain Working Review, and we will work with the Vanguard employers to explore how to best utilise Occupational Sick Pay to generate the best outcomes for all.
The vanguard phase will consider and make recommendations to government on the incentives needed for employers and employees to deliver better work and health outcomes.
Asked by: Yuan Yang (Labour - Earley and Woodley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of (a) how much new NHS primary estate is being built each year and (b) what the year-on-year change in that amount has been.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The primary care estate is a complex mix of general practice (GP) private ownership, third party ownership, and lease arrangements with approximately half of GP premises owned by GPs. As of December 2025, there are 6,210 GP surgeries across England.
The Government recognises the importance of strategic, value for money investments in capital projects, such as new facilities, significant upgrades, or other targeted capital investments.
In May, we announced schemes which will benefit from the £102 million Primary Care Utilisation and Modernisation Fund to deliver upgrades to more than a thousand GP surgeries across England this financial year. These schemes will create additional clinical space within existing building footprints to enable practices to see more patients, boost productivity, and improve patient care.
At the Autumn Budget, we announced our commitment to deliver 250 neighbourhood health centres, with 120 operational by 2030. These centres will co-locate local health services such as GPs and physiotherapists to improve access to care and to support a more preventative and sustainable National Health Service.
Asked by: Yuan Yang (Labour - Earley and Woodley)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment she has made of the future viability of the Community Speedwatch Scheme.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Decisions on adopting the Community Speedwatch scheme, and other schemes, are operational matters for individual Police and Crime Commissioners and Chief Constables to take, based on their local policing plans.
They are best placed to understand how to meet the needs of local communities.
Asked by: Yuan Yang (Labour - Earley and Woodley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the number of registered patients per GP is (a) across Earley and Woodley constituency, (b) the south Reading area and (c) West Berkshire.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
As of September 2025, the number of registered patients per full time equivalent doctor in general practice was:
We cannot provide data for South Reading as it is not a formal geography.
Asked by: Yuan Yang (Labour - Earley and Woodley)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the current distribution of salaries by income tax bracket is for Skilled Worker visa holders in Earley and Woodley constituency.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The information requested is not currently available from published statistics, and the relevant data could only be collated and verified for the purpose of answering this question at disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Yuan Yang (Labour - Earley and Woodley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the system for supporting children with special educational needs and disabilities.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
There are challenges in the special educational needs and disabilities system. We will make mainstream education more inclusive through early identification of needs, effective support and high quality teaching while ensuring special schools can support the most complex needs.
We are engaging with children, parents and experts and experts on wider reforms.
Asked by: Yuan Yang (Labour - Earley and Woodley)
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 (a) trends in levels of (i) flooding and (ii) resulting closure of the B478 from Sonning to Playhatch and (b) the potential impact of climate change on future levels of flooding in that area.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The B478 between Sonning and Playhatch is located on the River Thames floodplain and is subject to frequent flooding. Sonning Quarry is located nearby where Tarmac Group Ltd is extracting minerals and undertaking restoration work.
The Environment Agency is working closely with South Oxfordshire District Council and Oxfordshire County Council to understand how these works, and any subsequent restoration activities, might impact the frequency and severity of flooding. To ensure there is no detrimental impact on local businesses and communities the Environment Agency is working with partners to ensure any works are consistent with national planning policy and an appropriate strategy to manage and mitigate flood risk associated with the works is agreed.
The Environment Agency is always improving it’s understanding of flood risk and shares the best available information with local authorities to influence land use, infrastructure adaptation and potential flood risk mitigations.
Asked by: Yuan Yang (Labour - Earley and Woodley)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether she plans to monitor the number of hours that magistrates volunteer each year.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Magistrates’ sitting levels are already monitored by HM Courts & Tribunals Service and the judiciary. Bench Chairs are responsible for ensuring magistrates meet their minimum sitting commitment of 13 days per year and for supporting effective listing and bench management.
The Secretary of State has no current plans to introduce further monitoring.