Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that families of adults with learning disabilities are given a greater role in decisions on their (a) care and (b) support.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Under the Government’s 10-Year Health Plan, carers will be actively involved in the care planning of those they care for, mirroring the practices of family group conferencing.

Additionally, we are increasing the information captured about unpaid carers throughout the health and care system to help us better understand responsibilities and provide more targeted support. Development of a new ‘MyCarer’ section of the NHS App will also allow people to communicate more easily with relevant clinical team members on behalf of those for whom they care.

To provide further support, in April, the Government increased the Carer’s Allowance weekly earnings limit from £151 a week to £196, the largest ever increase since the Carer’s Allowance was introduced in 1976.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of extending redundancy protection to 18 months for employees experiencing pregnancy loss at any stage of pregnancy.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

If an employee experiences pregnancy loss within the first 24 weeks of pregnancy, the redundancy protected period ends two weeks from the end of the pregnancy. After a stillbirth from 24 weeks, the protected period ends 18 months from the date of birth.

The Employment Rights Bill establishes a new right to bereavement leave, including pregnancy loss, and powers to provide protections around redundancy and dismissal. A primary driver of the existing enhanced redundancy protections is to protect those who take lengthy absences from work on statutory family leave and thus may be at a disadvantage in a redundancy situation.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of her Department's policies on (a) all people seeking asylum and (b) people seeking asylum whose age is disputed who arrived in the UK by irregular means.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

The impact of our policies on vulnerable individuals and equalities considerations are at the front and centre of our work. As required through the Public Sector Equality Duty, we consider equality impacts throughout the asylum policy development process, and that includes our policy on age assessment.

The Home Office keeps all aspects of the immigration system under regular review, in consultation with a wide range of experts and stakeholders. All policy development is carried out with regard to section 55 of the Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Act 2009 and in line with our international obligations.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the (a) rights and (b) remedies available to tenants affected by (i) nuisance and (ii) overgrown trees on neighbouring land.

Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Through the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014, social landlords, the police and local authorities have been given a range of powers and tools to tackle anti-social behaviour (ASB), including nuisance. There is also a statutory regime for dealing with a range of nuisances including noise, and it is for individual local authorities to determine the detailed arrangements of the services they provide, taking into account their assessment of local needs and circumstances.

Under the new consumer regulation regime, the Regulator of Social Housing will proactively seek assurances that providers are meeting the outcomes set by the Neighbourhood and Community Standard. Providers will be required to collect and publish data on tenants’ satisfaction with their landlord’s approach to handling ASB, which will ensure that tenants can hold registered providers to account.

Under common law, a landowner can cut the branches from a neighbour's trees at the boundary between the two properties, whether or not they are causing any damage, if they overhang his or her property and are regarded as a nuisance. If you live in a conservation area, or the trees in the hedge are protected by a ‘tree preservation order’, you might need your council’s permission to trim them.

Kashmir Black Day and self-determination

Two-child limit

Freezing of Local Housing Allowance

Media Plurality and Press Freedom in Parliament

Five-year indefinite leave to remain pathway for Skilled Worker visa holders

Equitable national prostate cancer screening

Statement on Palestine by children's authors, illustrators and educators

Statement of Changes in Immigration Rules

Digital ID