Asked by: Alan Gemmell (Labour - Central Ayrshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what progress her Department has made on negotiations on the British Council loan; and whether the British Council plans to close any offices.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon Member to the statement I made to the House on 26 March (HWCS1470).
Asked by: Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what criteria they use to prioritise the British Council's presence in fragile or strategically important regions, particularly where UK security interests are engaged.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
While the British Council is operationally independent from the Government, as an arm's length body of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), it is expected to strategically align with FCDO and wider Government priorities through its strategy and planning process. The British Council consults the FCDO on its overseas presence through this process.
Regarding the British Council's long-term sustainability, I refer the Noble Lord to the evidence provided to the Foreign Affairs Committee on 9 December 2025 by the former Permanent Under-Secretary, and on 16 December 2025 by the Foreign Secretary, as well as to the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 26 March (Statement UIN HLWS1489).
Asked by: Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what role they plan for the British Council in supporting the UK's international climate objectives, including through education, cultural partnerships and engagement with young people in advance of COP31 in November.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
While the British Council is operationally independent from the Government, as an arm's length body of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), it is expected to strategically align with FCDO and wider Government priorities through its strategy and planning process. The British Council consults the FCDO on its overseas presence through this process.
Regarding the British Council's long-term sustainability, I refer the Noble Lord to the evidence provided to the Foreign Affairs Committee on 9 December 2025 by the former Permanent Under-Secretary, and on 16 December 2025 by the Foreign Secretary, as well as to the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 26 March (Statement UIN HLWS1489).
Asked by: Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government which minister has lead responsibility for securing the long-term sustainability of the British Council; and how they will ensure that Parliament remains informed of that progress.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
While the British Council is operationally independent from the Government, as an arm's length body of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), it is expected to strategically align with FCDO and wider Government priorities through its strategy and planning process. The British Council consults the FCDO on its overseas presence through this process.
Regarding the British Council's long-term sustainability, I refer the Noble Lord to the evidence provided to the Foreign Affairs Committee on 9 December 2025 by the former Permanent Under-Secretary, and on 16 December 2025 by the Foreign Secretary, as well as to the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 26 March (Statement UIN HLWS1489).
Asked by: Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that the work of the British Council is aligned with the UK's security, trade, and soft power strategies.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
While the British Council is operationally independent from the Government, as an arm's length body of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), it is expected to strategically align with FCDO and wider Government priorities through its strategy and planning process. The British Council consults the FCDO on its overseas presence through this process.
Regarding the British Council's long-term sustainability, I refer the Noble Lord to the evidence provided to the Foreign Affairs Committee on 9 December 2025 by the former Permanent Under-Secretary, and on 16 December 2025 by the Foreign Secretary, as well as to the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 26 March (Statement UIN HLWS1489).
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent discussions he has had with representatives in the steel industry about the impacts of energy costs on production.
Answered by Chris McDonald - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government appreciates the pressures high energy bills can have on steel businesses. That is why we have introduced and expanded schemes to reduce the industrial electricity prices of energy-intensive industries, including steel. These are the British Industry Supercharger and the Energy Intensive Industries Compensation Scheme. From April 2027, the Government will also launch the British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme, which will include support for some steel companies.
We regularly discuss the impact of energy costs with the industry, including in recent Steel Council meetings. We also worked closely with the steel sector and other industries in the development of the British Industry Supercharger.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Medical Training (Prioritisation) Act 2026 on the eligibility of British citizens studying medicine at UK-accredited overseas campuses for NHS Foundation Year 1 posts; whether he has made an assessment of the consistency of eligibility criteria applied to different UK-accredited international medical training pathways; and whether he plans to introduce transitional arrangements for students who enrolled before the implementation of the Act.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Under the Medical Training (Prioritisation) Act 2026, graduates of United Kingdom medical schools will be prioritised for foundation training places, but not if they spent the majority of the time training for that qualification outside the British Islands. The Government has no plans to introduce transitional arrangements for students studying at overseas campuses of UK medical schools.
Non-prioritised graduates can still apply for foundation training and will be offered places if vacancies remain after prioritised applicants have been allocated. If graduates of overseas campuses have not secured a foundation year one post this year, there are alternative routes to full General Medical Council registration, such as completing an approved internship in the country where they trained.
The Government will, as for all legislation, keep the act under review to ensure that it delivers its policy intent.
Asked by: Jerome Mayhew (Conservative - Broadland and Fakenham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what activities GBRX has completed since its establishment in 2025; how much her Department has spent to date on GBRX; and what expenditure her Department projects for GBRX over the next five years.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
GBRX was established by Network Rail in 2025 to address barriers to the adoption of strategic technologies and to support more joined‑up working as the rail sector moves towards Great British Railways.
Since its establishment, GBRX established the AI Advisory Council in September 2025, to bring expertise in safety, ethics, infrastructure, data and people into the sector’s approach to AI adoption. It has led development of the rail sector’s Artificial Intelligence in Rail Action Plan, launched in April 2026, providing a coordinated roadmap for responsible AI adoption across the railway. GBRX has also launched a sector Data Science and Artificial Intelligence Apprenticeship Programme to build applied technical skills directly within the railway system.
Network Rail funds GBRX from within its existing Control Period 7 settlement and allocated approximately £4 million to it in 2025-26. Any decisions on future expenditure by GBRX will be for Network Rail and for Great British Railways once it is established.
Asked by: Joshua Reynolds (Liberal Democrat - Maidenhead)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the accessibility of the SEND reform consultation process for families with caring responsibilities, disability, literacy barriers or limited time to engage with technical documentation; and what steps her Department is taking to ensure that responses received are representative of the families most affected by the proposed reforms.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) National Conversation engaged over 8,000 people to shape SEND reform proposals ahead of formal consultation.
The SEND consultation document, published on 23 February 2026, was available in multiple formats, including print-ready, web-accessible and large print versions, as well as an Easy Read version, a children and young people’s version, and a British Sign Language version. Braille and 20-point large print versions were also available on request.
Formal consultation ran for 12 weeks until 18 May 2026. Respondents could submit views online via 39 open ended questions or a shorter set of 12 Easy Read questions. Respondents could also submit a response in any format by post or by email.
Alongside this, the department held over 200 engagement events to ensure families affected by the reforms were able to give their views on the proposed changes to the system. This included 9 regional events and 5 online events in partnership with the Council for the Disabled Children (CDC), as well as 26 youth engagement events led by CDC. Ministers held deep dives on key topics, roundtables, and workshops to broaden participation further.
The department is now analysing the consultation responses, which will inform the next phase of policy development.
Asked by: Paulette Hamilton (Labour - Birmingham Erdington)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking, in partnership with organisations such as the British Council, to help promote women’s leadership and economic participation in the Caribbean.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As the Foreign Secretary announced on 19 March, we have committed to ensure that at least 90 per cent of programmes funded worldwide through UK Official Development Assistance (ODA) will be in part designed to protect and promote the rights, safety and empowerment of women and girls, including programmes in the Caribbean.