Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the regulatory and consumer protection implications of the use of AI as financial guidance tools; and what safeguards they are putting in place to protect consumers.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government aims for the UK to be a global leader in AI, using our strengths in financial services and AI to boost growth, productivity and consumer benefits. Safe adoption is central to this.
Organisations must handle personal data fairly, lawfully, transparently and securely, with individuals retaining rights such as access, correction and deletion.
The Financial Conduct Authority is also acting in this space, including publishing guidance for consumers on using AI tools for investment research and highlighting risks like inaccurate or outdated information.
The FCA’s Supercharged Sandbox and AI Live Testing service give firms access to computing, data and safe real‑world environments to support responsible AI use in UK financial markets.
More broadly, the Government recognises that people often lack the support they need when making financial decisions. To improve this, we are introducing a new targeted support regime enabling trusted firms to suggest suitable products or actions based on a customer’s circumstances. Targeted Support will launch in April 2026.
Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she is taking to help ensure regulatory co-operation with China does not impact on UK standards in financial supervision.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The agreements reached at the first UK‑China Financial Working Group in Beijing will strengthen cooperation with China in ways that support the UK’s position as an open, competitive and well‑regulated international financial centre, supporting jobs and growth in the UK.
As set out in HM Treasury’s press release and the joint readout of the first UK-China Financial Working Group meeting (FWG), the FWG provides a new formal mechanism for structured, substantive and technical dialogue between UK and Chinese financial authorities on issues including financial stability and resilience, capital markets, market development and sustainable finance.
Specific outcomes include the designation of Bank of China’s London Branch as the UK’s second renminbi (RMB) clearing bank, which will broaden the range of services available to UK businesses trading with China and strengthen London’s role as a leading international financial centre. Technical discussions were also held on long-term initiatives to support the UK’s capital markets, as well as green finance and asset management sectors. Alongside the FWG and the Prime Minister’s visit, the UK and China also agreed to pursue new cooperation on innovative financing, such as RMB-denominated sovereign biodiversity bond issuances, cementing the City's role as the global hub for green finance.
Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she has taken to ensure UK firms are impacted the designation of the Bank of China’s London Branch as the UK’s second renminbi clearing bank.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The agreements reached at the first UK‑China Financial Working Group in Beijing will strengthen cooperation with China in ways that support the UK’s position as an open, competitive and well‑regulated international financial centre, supporting jobs and growth in the UK.
As set out in HM Treasury’s press release and the joint readout of the first UK-China Financial Working Group meeting (FWG), the FWG provides a new formal mechanism for structured, substantive and technical dialogue between UK and Chinese financial authorities on issues including financial stability and resilience, capital markets, market development and sustainable finance.
Specific outcomes include the designation of Bank of China’s London Branch as the UK’s second renminbi (RMB) clearing bank, which will broaden the range of services available to UK businesses trading with China and strengthen London’s role as a leading international financial centre. Technical discussions were also held on long-term initiatives to support the UK’s capital markets, as well as green finance and asset management sectors. Alongside the FWG and the Prime Minister’s visit, the UK and China also agreed to pursue new cooperation on innovative financing, such as RMB-denominated sovereign biodiversity bond issuances, cementing the City's role as the global hub for green finance.
Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the outcomes of the UK-China Financial Working Group on UK-China trade flows.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The agreements reached at the first UK‑China Financial Working Group in Beijing will strengthen cooperation with China in ways that support the UK’s position as an open, competitive and well‑regulated international financial centre, supporting jobs and growth in the UK.
As set out in HM Treasury’s press release and the joint readout of the first UK-China Financial Working Group meeting (FWG), the FWG provides a new formal mechanism for structured, substantive and technical dialogue between UK and Chinese financial authorities on issues including financial stability and resilience, capital markets, market development and sustainable finance.
Specific outcomes include the designation of Bank of China’s London Branch as the UK’s second renminbi (RMB) clearing bank, which will broaden the range of services available to UK businesses trading with China and strengthen London’s role as a leading international financial centre. Technical discussions were also held on long-term initiatives to support the UK’s capital markets, as well as green finance and asset management sectors. Alongside the FWG and the Prime Minister’s visit, the UK and China also agreed to pursue new cooperation on innovative financing, such as RMB-denominated sovereign biodiversity bond issuances, cementing the City's role as the global hub for green finance.
Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what mechanisms she will use to monitor the implementation of agreements reached on innovative biodiversity financing with China.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The agreements reached at the first UK‑China Financial Working Group in Beijing will strengthen cooperation with China in ways that support the UK’s position as an open, competitive and well‑regulated international financial centre, supporting jobs and growth in the UK.
As set out in HM Treasury’s press release and the joint readout of the first UK-China Financial Working Group meeting (FWG), the FWG provides a new formal mechanism for structured, substantive and technical dialogue between UK and Chinese financial authorities on issues including financial stability and resilience, capital markets, market development and sustainable finance.
Specific outcomes include the designation of Bank of China’s London Branch as the UK’s second renminbi (RMB) clearing bank, which will broaden the range of services available to UK businesses trading with China and strengthen London’s role as a leading international financial centre. Technical discussions were also held on long-term initiatives to support the UK’s capital markets, as well as green finance and asset management sectors. Alongside the FWG and the Prime Minister’s visit, the UK and China also agreed to pursue new cooperation on innovative financing, such as RMB-denominated sovereign biodiversity bond issuances, cementing the City's role as the global hub for green finance.
Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the agreements from the first UK-China Financial Working Group in Beijing on UK financial services.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The agreements reached at the first UK‑China Financial Working Group in Beijing will strengthen cooperation with China in ways that support the UK’s position as an open, competitive and well‑regulated international financial centre, supporting jobs and growth in the UK.
As set out in HM Treasury’s press release and the joint readout of the first UK-China Financial Working Group meeting (FWG), the FWG provides a new formal mechanism for structured, substantive and technical dialogue between UK and Chinese financial authorities on issues including financial stability and resilience, capital markets, market development and sustainable finance.
Specific outcomes include the designation of Bank of China’s London Branch as the UK’s second renminbi (RMB) clearing bank, which will broaden the range of services available to UK businesses trading with China and strengthen London’s role as a leading international financial centre. Technical discussions were also held on long-term initiatives to support the UK’s capital markets, as well as green finance and asset management sectors. Alongside the FWG and the Prime Minister’s visit, the UK and China also agreed to pursue new cooperation on innovative financing, such as RMB-denominated sovereign biodiversity bond issuances, cementing the City's role as the global hub for green finance.
Asked by: Shaun Davies (Labour - Telford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a public interest assessment for large-scale acquisitions in the adult social care sector.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) oversees the Market Oversight Scheme (MOS), which was established under Section 53 of the Care Act 2014 as an independent scheme with the aim of ensuring continuity of care services. The MOS was launched in 2015 and monitors the financial sustainability of the largest and most difficult to replace providers of adult social care.
The scheme enables the CQC to give impacted local authorities advance notification in discharging their Care Act obligations to temporarily ensure continuity of care for all people receiving services. The CQC also notifies the Department, which will then activate its Operational Contingency Plan and convene national partners in order to monitor local efforts to ensure continuity of care.
There are no current plans to expand the public interest considerations under the Enterprise Act 2002 beyond matters relating to financial stability, media plurality, and public health emergencies. The Government is committed to ensuring our policy making is informed by the best available evidence.
Merger investigations on competition grounds are a matter for the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which operates independently of the Government. The CMA determines which transactions to review based on statutory thresholds and whether there is a realistic prospect of a substantial lessening of competition. The Government keeps the merger control regime under regular review to ensure it remains fit for purpose and works effectively within the current regulatory environment.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reported growth in demand for ethical AI and technology skills in UK financial services; and how this is informing (1) workforce policy, and (2) regulatory policy.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Government is taking significant steps to expand skills and training in ethical and responsible AI. In January, further public and private sector partners joined the AI Skills Boost, increasing our ambition to upskill 10 million workers by 2030. More than 1 million AI upskilling courses have already been delivered since last summer, helping ensure UK workers - including those in financial services - have access to high‑quality training in the safe and ethical use of AI.
To complement this, the Government has established the cross‑government AI and Future of Work Unit to monitor how advanced AI tools are reshaping professional work, ensure innovation is supported responsibly, and coordinate policy so that workers and businesses can adopt these technologies safely.
We have also concluded a Call for Evidence on proposals for the AI Growth Lab, a cross‑economy AI sandbox that would allow responsible AI products and services to be tested under close supervision in live markets, building trust and supporting economic growth. Alongside this, the FCA’s Supercharged Sandbox and AI Live Testing service provide firms with enhanced access to computing, data and safe real‑world testing environments, enabling the responsible use of AI across UK financial markets.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what guidance his Department has issued to local authorities on setting adult social care fee uplifts in financial year 2026-27.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Under the Care Act 2014, local authorities are tasked with the duty to shape their care markets to meet the diverse needs of all local people. This includes negotiating fees individually with care providers to achieve a sustainable balance of quality, effectiveness, and value for money.
The Department recognises that sustainable fee rates play a crucial role in improving the quality of care. Appropriate fee rates enable providers to recruit and retain a skilled workforce, ultimately supporting more stable, higher quality services for people who draw on care.
In December 2025, the Department launched a new publication, Adult social care priorities for local authorities: 2026 to 2027. The publication lists expectations for local authorities to help drive their delivery of the Government’s overall priorities for adult social care. It states that local authorities should, ‘set fee rates at a sustainable level, in line with commissioning priorities, to help shape markets and enable adult social care providers to recruit a skilled workforce and stabilise and improve workforce capacity, and in preparation for employment rights reforms, starting from financial year 2026, and the fair pay agreement, starting in financial year 2028’. Further information on the fair pay agreement is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/fair-pay-agreement-process-in-adult-social-care
The publication is not statutory guidance, nor is it a replacement for local authorities’ existing statutory duties under the Care Act 2014, rather the expectations outlined in the publication are designed to help support local authorities in delivering their current statutory duties.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment her Department has made of the (a) economic state and (b) financial viability of independent veterinary businesses.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra has not done its own assessment of the economic state and financial viability of veterinary businesses., however, it welcomes the Competition and Markets Authority’s (CMA’s) market investigation into veterinary services for household pets. As part of their market investigation, the CMA carried out an economic assessment of the sector. The CMA released its provisional decision report on 15 October for the veterinary profession to respond. The CMA will review all responses before releasing its final report. Defra will formally respond to the CMA’s final report, and the items within it, when it is published in the Spring. Some of the CMA’s provisional recommendation will require reform of the Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966, on which Defra is currently consulting, and further assessments will be carried out as required.