Asked by: Julia Lopez (Conservative - Hornchurch and Upminster)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what progress his Department has made on achieving the Government’s objectives for supporting Small and Medium-sized Enterprises participation in public procurement.
Answered by Chris Ward - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Government is determined to ensure the £400 billion of public money spent on public procurement annually delivers economic growth and supports British businesses, especially SMEs.
The Cabinet Office does not hold a central record of the proportion of procurement contracts awarded by each Government Department to SMEs over the last five financial years. The Government is, however, introducing targets for SME spend going forwards.
The Government is also taking a number of further steps to support SMEs.
We have published a National Procurement Policy Statement (NPPS) which requires contracting authorities to consider ways to increase procurement spend with SMEs and Voluntary, Community, and Social Enterprises (VCSEs).
The Crown Commercial Service has also published an SME Action Plan which sets out the steps it is taking to support Government Departments maximise their procurement spend with SMEs, by removing barriers to participation and opening up opportunities to SMEs through their commercial agreements.
We have also introduced changes allowing local councils to reserve over one billion pounds worth of lower value contracts to suppliers based locally or within the UK which has recently become law, a step strongly supported by SMEs.
We will set out further reforms, including the response to the recent public procurement consultation, in due course. These reforms will further support British SMEs to bid for contracts.
Asked by: Julia Lopez (Conservative - Hornchurch and Upminster)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps the Government Commercial Agency is taking to help improve access to Government procurement processes for (a) Small and Medium-sized Enterprises and (b) other suppliers with expertise in artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies.
Answered by Chris Ward - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Government is determined to ensure the £400 billion of public money spent on public procurement annually delivers economic growth and supports British businesses, especially SMEs.
The Cabinet Office does not hold a central record of the proportion of procurement contracts awarded by each Government Department to SMEs over the last five financial years. The Government is, however, introducing targets for SME spend going forwards.
The Government is also taking a number of further steps to support SMEs.
We have published a National Procurement Policy Statement (NPPS) which requires contracting authorities to consider ways to increase procurement spend with SMEs and Voluntary, Community, and Social Enterprises (VCSEs).
The Crown Commercial Service has also published an SME Action Plan which sets out the steps it is taking to support Government Departments maximise their procurement spend with SMEs, by removing barriers to participation and opening up opportunities to SMEs through their commercial agreements.
We have also introduced changes allowing local councils to reserve over one billion pounds worth of lower value contracts to suppliers based locally or within the UK which has recently become law, a step strongly supported by SMEs.
We will set out further reforms, including the response to the recent public procurement consultation, in due course. These reforms will further support British SMEs to bid for contracts.
Asked by: Julia Lopez (Conservative - Hornchurch and Upminster)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what proportion of procurement contracts awarded by each Government Department were to Small and Medium-sized Enterprises in each of the last five financial years.
Answered by Chris Ward - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Government is determined to ensure the £400 billion of public money spent on public procurement annually delivers economic growth and supports British businesses, especially SMEs.
The Cabinet Office does not hold a central record of the proportion of procurement contracts awarded by each Government Department to SMEs over the last five financial years. The Government is, however, introducing targets for SME spend going forwards.
The Government is also taking a number of further steps to support SMEs.
We have published a National Procurement Policy Statement (NPPS) which requires contracting authorities to consider ways to increase procurement spend with SMEs and Voluntary, Community, and Social Enterprises (VCSEs).
The Crown Commercial Service has also published an SME Action Plan which sets out the steps it is taking to support Government Departments maximise their procurement spend with SMEs, by removing barriers to participation and opening up opportunities to SMEs through their commercial agreements.
We have also introduced changes allowing local councils to reserve over one billion pounds worth of lower value contracts to suppliers based locally or within the UK which has recently become law, a step strongly supported by SMEs.
We will set out further reforms, including the response to the recent public procurement consultation, in due course. These reforms will further support British SMEs to bid for contracts.
Asked by: Baroness Uddin (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, with regard to the statement by the Secretary of State for the Home Office on 26 January (HC Deb col 610), what steps they are taking to correct and define new large language models for facial recognition to ensure errors and potential racial bias are removed.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Facial recognition algorithms provided by or procured with Home Office funding for police use are required to be independently tested for accuracy and bias. Independent testing is important because it helps determine the setting in which an algorithm can safely and fairly be used.
Where potential bias or performance issues are identified, the Home Office works with policing partners to ensure their guidance, practices, and oversight processes minimise any risks arising from use of the technology.
On 4 December last year, we launched a public consultation on when and how biometrics, facial recognition and similar technologies should be used, and what safeguards and oversight are needed. Following analysis of the responses, we will publish a formal government response in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Uddin (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, with regard to the statement by the Secretary of State for the Home Office on 26 January (HC Deb col 610), what assessment they have made of any bias and inconsistency of application in the use of facial recognition assessments and algorithms for Black and Asian men and women.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The algorithm used for retrospective facial recognition searches on the Police National Database (PND) has been independently tested by the National Physical Laboratory (NPL), which found that in a limited set of circumstances it was more likely to incorrectly include some demographic groups in its search results. At the settings used by police, the NPL also found that if a correct match was in the database, the algorithm found it in 99% of searches.
We take these findings very seriously. A new algorithm has been procured and independently tested, which can be used at settings with no statistically significant bias. It is due to be operationally tested in the coming months and will be subject to evaluation.
Manual safeguards embedded in police training, operational practice and guidance have always required trained users and investigating officers to visually assess all potential matches. Training and guidance have been re-issued and promoted to remind them of these long-standing manual safeguards. The National Police Chiefs’ Council has also updated and published data protection and equality impact assessments.
Given the importance of this issue, the Home Secretary has asked HMICFRS, supported by the Forensic Science Regulator, to inspect police and relevant law enforcement agencies’ use of retrospective facial recognition, with work expected to begin before the end of March.
It is important to note that no decisions are made by the algorithm or solely on the basis of a possible match– matches are intelligence, which must be corroborated with other information, as with any other police investigation.
For live facial recognition, NPL testing found, a 1 in 6,000 false alert rate on a watchlist containing 10,000 images. In practice, the police have reported that the false alert rate has been far better than this. The NPL also found no statistically significant performance differences by gender, age, or ethnicity at the settings used by the police.
On 4 December last year, we launched a public consultation on when and how biometrics, facial recognition and similar technologies should be used, and what safeguards and oversight are needed. Following analysis of the responses, we will publish a formal government response in due course.
Asked by: Kate Osamor (Labour (Co-op) - Edmonton and Winchmore Hill)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to his Department's consultation entitled Late payments consultation: tackling poor payment practices, when he plans to publish his response to that consultation; and whether that response will include an assessment of the potential impact of late payment practices on self‑employed workers.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
This Government will legislate to end the scourge of late payments, ensuring small businesses and the self-employed are paid on time. On 23rd October 2025 we concluded a 12-week public consultation on our legislative proposals. On 16th January 2026 we published an update on GOV.UK, restating our intention to publish our response early this year. We will publish a Government response to the consultation soon and intend to take forward legislation as soon as Parliamentary time allows. In line with the Better Regulation Framework, we will also publish an Impact Assessment that considers the impact on small and medium-sized businesses.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment has he made of the adequacy of dental care given to (a) veterans and (b) those suffering with long-term illnesses.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are aware of the challenges faced by many in accessing a National Health Service dentist, including people suffering with long-term illnesses, and valued members of the Armed Forces community, such as our respected veterans who have spent their careers defending our country.
We have asked integrated care boards (ICBs) to commission extra urgent dental appointments to make sure that patients with urgent dental needs can get the treatment they require. ICBs have been making extra appointments available since April 2025.
ICBs are also recruiting dentists through the Golden Hello scheme. This recruitment incentive will see dentists receiving payments of £20,000 to work in those areas that need them most for three years.
We are committed to delivering fundamental reform of the dental contract before the end of this Parliament. As a first step, on 16 December we published the Government’s response to the public consultation on the quality and payment reforms to the NHS dental contract. The changes will be introduced from April 2026. These reforms will put patients with the greatest need first, incentivising urgent care and complex treatments. Further information is available at the following link:
Free NHS dental care is available to people who meet the following criteria:
under 18 years old, or under 19 years old and in full-time education;
pregnant or have had a baby in the previous 12 months;
being treated in an NHS hospital and the treatment is carried out by the hospital dentist, although patients may have to pay for any dentures or bridges;
receiving low-income benefits, or under 20 years old and a dependant of someone receiving low-income benefits; and
receiving War Pension Scheme payments, or Armed Forces Compensation Scheme payments and the treatment is for your accepted disability.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
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 adequacy of access to dentistry services for (a) veterans and (b) people suffering with long-term illnesses.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are aware of the challenges faced by many in accessing a National Health Service dentist, including people suffering with long-term illnesses, and valued members of the Armed Forces community, such as our respected veterans who have spent their careers defending our country.
We have asked integrated care boards (ICBs) to commission extra urgent dental appointments to make sure that patients with urgent dental needs can get the treatment they require. ICBs have been making extra appointments available since April 2025.
ICBs are also recruiting dentists through the Golden Hello scheme. This recruitment incentive will see dentists receiving payments of £20,000 to work in those areas that need them most for three years.
We are committed to delivering fundamental reform of the dental contract before the end of this Parliament. As a first step, on 16 December we published the Government’s response to the public consultation on the quality and payment reforms to the NHS dental contract. The changes will be introduced from April 2026. These reforms will put patients with the greatest need first, incentivising urgent care and complex treatments. Further information is available at the following link:
Free NHS dental care is available to people who meet the following criteria:
under 18 years old, or under 19 years old and in full-time education;
pregnant or have had a baby in the previous 12 months;
being treated in an NHS hospital and the treatment is carried out by the hospital dentist, although patients may have to pay for any dentures or bridges;
receiving low-income benefits, or under 20 years old and a dependant of someone receiving low-income benefits; and
receiving War Pension Scheme payments, or Armed Forces Compensation Scheme payments and the treatment is for your accepted disability.
Asked by: Charlie Dewhirst (Conservative - Bridlington and The Wolds)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many responses her Department received to the consultation entitled Amending the hydrofluorocarbon phasedown schedule.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
137 responses to the consultation were received. Defra is currently considering their contents.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the role of media literacy in helping children identify misleading or harmful online content.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Media literacy is currently covered in the citizenship, relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) and computing curricula.
Following publication of the independent Curriculum and Assessment Review’s final report on 5 November 2025, vital applied knowledge and skills in media and digital literacy relevant to identify misleading or harmful online content will be embedded into the revised curriculum from 2028.
The department will engage with sector experts in working out how best to reflect this in the updated curriculum. There will be public consultation on the updated curriculum programmes of study, to seek views on the content before they are finalised.