theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Cat Smith:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that disabled children between the ages of 16 and 18 with a diagnosis of foetal valproate syndrome receive the full amount of care that was provided during their paediatric years. \p Ashley Dalton: Everyone who has been harmed by sodium valproate has our deepest sympathies.

NHS England recognises that healthcare transition should be need and complexity based, not managed solely on diagnosis or what is routinely provided. Its Children and Young People’s Transformation Programme, along with key stakeholders, has developed a framework to aid the design of healthcare transition pathways that reduce health inequalities and improve health outcomes for all young people.

The guidance outlines key principles and examples of models of care for those aged between zero and 25 years old, including clearer accountability and improved services for those aged 16 to 17 years old. NHS England is due to publish this guidance later this summer.
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Liz Jarvis:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has conducted an impact assessment for the decision to extend cervical screening intervals. \p Ashley Dalton: The UK National Screening Committee’s recommendation to change the cervical screening intervals from three to five years for women aged 25 to 49 years old was made in 2019. The evidence and consultation responses supporting the recommendation can be found at the following link:

https://view-health-screening-recommendations.service.gov.uk/cervical-cancer/

The decision to make the changes was based on what is best for individuals. The more accurate human papillomavirus test requires less frequent screening, and changing the frequency eliminates the unnecessary over screening of the population.

The IT system supporting the national cervical screening programme was updated in July 2024, and can now enable the changes that were recommended.

A full impact assessment and equality impact assessment were considered before the changes were agreed by the Government. We will publish these shortly.
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Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help increase the uptake of at-home cervical screening tests. \p Ashley Dalton: From January 2026, screening providers in the NHS Cervical Screening Programme in England will be able to offer self-sampling kits to women if they have not attended their appointment for six months or more following routine invitation.

Self-sampling will help detect high-risk human papillomavirus, prevent cancer, and save lives in those who currently do not access clinician led screening. However, for those attending clinician testing, a shift to self-sampling might result in a programme that is not yet proven to be of equal efficacy. Further studies to consider whether self-sampling could be used across the whole population are being developed.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

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Cat Smith:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of potential claimants for redress for valproate. \p Ashley Dalton: The Government is carefully considering the work by the Patient Safety Commissioner and her report, which set out options for redress for those harmed by valproate and pelvic mesh. This is a complex issue involving input from different Government departments. The Government will provide a further update to the Patient Safety Commissioner’s report.
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Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to support HIV (a) prevention and (b) care services in (i) Fylde constituency and (ii) Lancashire. \p Ashley Dalton: The Government is committed to ending new transmissions of HIV in England by 2030 and is developing the new HIV Action Plan which we aim to publish this year. The plan will address ways to improve and support HIV prevention and HIV care services across the whole of England, including in Lancashire and the Flyde constituency.

Local authorities such as the Lancashire County Council are responsible for commissioning comprehensive open access to sexual health services, including HIV prevention. It is for individual local authorities to commission HIV prevention services that best suit their population. In 2025/26, the Department has increased funding through the Public Health Grant to £3.858 billion, providing local authorities with an average 3% real terms increase, the biggest real-terms increase after nearly a decade of reduced spending.

NHS England is responsible for providing HIV treatment and care, which continues to have very high coverage and effectiveness across England. Commissioning responsibility for adult specialist services for people living with HIV has been delegated by NHS England to the integrated care boards.
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Fabian Hamilton:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to increase the number of clinical oncologists in regions with the lowest consultant-to-population ratios. \p Ashley Dalton: We’re building our cancer workforce. As of February 2025, there are over 1,800 full time equivalent doctors working in the speciality of clinical oncology in National Health Service trusts and other core organisations in England. This is almost 150, or 8.9%, more than last year.

We will publish a new workforce plan to ensure the NHS has the right people in the right places to deliver the care patients need, transforming the health service and making it fit for the future.
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Layla Moran:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of updating the existing regulations on (a) composition, (b) marketing and (c) labelling of commercial infant and toddler foods. \p Ashley Dalton: Children’s early years provide an important foundation for their future health and strongly influences many aspects of wellbeing in later life.

It is vital that we maintain the highest standards for foods consumed by babies and infants, which is why we have regulations in place that set nutritional and compositional standards for commercial baby food. The regulations also set labelling standards to ensure consumers have clear and accurate information about the products they buy.  We continue to keep these regulations under review to ensure they reflect the latest scientific and dietary guidelines.
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Rebecca Smith:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help increase the levels of cervical screening uptake in Devon. \p Ashley Dalton: NHS England has created a South West Cervical Cancer Elimination Strategy committee, along with its associated pillars, covering cervical screening, human papillomavirus vaccination, and cervical cancer treatment, which is delivering numerous projects to improve uptake. For cervical screening, this includes: additional funding for primary care, for provision of out hours clinics and innovative ways to invite patients and increase uptake, across 47 Devon practices; extension of provision of cervical screening in sexual health service; and provision of drop-in clinics in acute trusts.
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Sir Julian Lewis:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to (a) increase awareness of, (b) improve screening for and (c) develop research into lobular breast cancer; and what recent discussions his Department has had with NHS England on the (i) prevalence and (ii) detectability of this type of breast cancer. \p Ashley Dalton: Improving the early diagnosis of cancer, including lobular breast cancer, is a priority for NHS England. The National Health Service will improve cancer survival rates and hit all NHS cancer waiting time targets, so that no patient waits longer than they should.

To increase awareness of lobular breast cancer, NHS England and other NHS organisations, nationally and locally, publish information on the signs and symptoms of breast cancer. Further information can be found on the NHS.UK website, which is available at the following link:

https://www.nhs.uk/

The NHS Breast Screening Programme offers all women in England between the ages of 50 and 71 years old the opportunity to be screened every three years for breast cancer, to help detect abnormalities and intervene early to reduce the number of lives lost to breast cancer. However, lobular breast cancer is difficult to detect using imaging scans, such as mammogram.

The Department invests £1.5 billion each year on research through its research delivery arm, the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). NIHR research expenditure for all cancers was £133 million in 2023/24 reflecting its high priority.

The Department has invested £29 million into the Institute of Cancer Research and the Royal Marsden NIHR Biological Research Centre in 2022, supporting their efforts to strengthen research into cancer, including lobular breast cancer. Wider investments into breast cancer research include a £1.3 million project to determine whether an abbreviated form of breast magnetic resonance imaging can detect breast cancers missed by screening through mammography, including lobular breast cancer.

The Department continues to work closely with NHS England on the development of the National Cancer Plan to achieve the overall goal of fewer lives lost to cancer, including to lobular breast cancer. The plan will be published later this year.
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Rachel Gilmour:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help tackle trends in the level of ketamine abuse among young people. \p Ashley Dalton: The Department takes seriously the threat ketamine use poses to young people. Local authorities are responsible for providing drug treatment services based on the needs of their local populations, and this includes services to support ketamine users. In addition to the Public Health Grant, in 2025/26 the Department is providing a total of £310 million in additional targeted grants to improve drug and alcohol services and wider recovery support, including housing and employment.

Local authorities, Combating Drugs Partnerships, and treatment providers lead on prevention, harm reduction, and treatment interventions, which includes awareness raising. Widespread action is already in progress through local and regional initiatives. Many of the national treatment providers, as well as local areas, have developed bespoke awareness-raising resources and approaches in response to ketamine, and a number have held events for professionals working in the field. In addition to this, the Department recently cascaded a briefing to local authorities and treatment systems on data on ketamine use and guidance on prevention, harm reduction, and treatment interventions. Department of Health and Social Care and Home Office ministers have written to festival organisers, asking them to work closely with police and health partners on their harm reduction and first aid measures, which includes highlighting the dangers of ketamine. The Department has also worked with the National Police Chiefs’ Council on a joint letter and advice for the police and local authorities about festivals, drugs, and alcohol, to minimise the risk of harm to individuals at these events.

Statutory guidance on relationships, sex, and health education requires all primary and secondary schools to ensure that pupils know the key facts and risks associated with drug use, as well as how to manage influences and pressure, and keep themselves healthy and safe. The Department has worked with the Personal, Social, Health and Economic Education Association to develop the lesson plans on drugs and alcohol and commissioned an update of the resources, which was published at the end of last year. The Government has a drug information and advice service called Talk to FRANK, which aims to reduce drug misuse and its harms by increasing awareness, particularly for young people and parents. Talk to FRANK offers easy to read information on the risks of using ketamine, including bladder problems, and mixing it with other substances, as well as basic harm reduction advice.

As a result of additional funding, and in response to increased prevalence, the treatment system is responding, and the proportion of children and young people under the age of 18 years old accessing help in relation to ketamine has increased from under 1% in 2015/16 to 9% in November 2024.
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Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to fund improved provision for addiction support services in (a) Fylde constituency and (b) Lancashire. \p Ashley Dalton: The Government is committed to ensuring that anyone with a drug or alcohol problem can access the help and support they need, and we recognise the need for evidence-based, high-quality treatment.

Local authorities are responsible for assessing the local need for alcohol and drug prevention and treatment in their area, and for commissioning services to meet those needs. In addition to the Public Health Grant, in 2025/26, the Department is providing Lancashire with £10,424,106 to help improve drug and alcohol treatment and recovery systems, as set out at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/drug-and-alcohol-treatment-and-recovery-funding-2025-to-2026

All funding is provided at the Lancashire level, and it is for Lancashire County Council to determine how to meet needs in Fylde.

This year, the Government is providing an additional £70 million for local authority-led Stop Smoking Services in England, building on existing funding made available via the Public Health Grant. Additional funding for Stop Smoking Services is based on the number of smokers in each local authority, and Lancashire has been allocated an extra £1,678,549 for 2025/26.

In April 2025, a new statutory levy on gambling operators, expected to raise approximately £100 million per year, was introduced to fund the research, prevention, and treatment of gambling-related harms. The levy will be distributed across the three workstreams, with 50% allocated to NHS England, alongside appropriate bodies in Scotland and Wales, to commission the development of effective treatment and support services at national and sub-national levels.
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Laurence Turner:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many complaints have been made in the last five years to (a) Birmingham and Solihull ICB, (b) all ICBs and (c) NHS England that allege (i) failure to make reasonable adjustments and (ii) disability discrimination. \p Ashley Dalton: Information is not available in the format requested. The annual publication of data on written complaints in the National Health Service, last published in October 2024, does not specify the number of complaints made to either integrated care boards or NHS England that were about either failure to make reasonable adjustments or disability discrimination.
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Sarah Bool:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with NHS England and the UK National Screening Committee on the (a) feasibility and (b) cost-effectiveness of implementing a universal screening programme for type 1 diabetes. \p Ashley Dalton: In the United Kingdom, national screening programmes are introduced based on the recommendations of the UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC), an independent scientific advisory committee which advises ministers and the National Health Service in all four countries on all aspects of population and targeted screening, and which supports implementation.

A proposal for screening for neonatal diabetes mellitus was submitted to the UK NSC via its 2021 annual call process. An evidence-mapping exercise was conducted at that time which concluded that there was not sufficient evidence to recommend screening for this condition.

The UK NSC received a submission via its 2024 annual call process to consider screening for autoimmune type 1 diabetes through blood testing. The committee requested further information from the submitter, and this is now in the process of being reviewed. Further information on the annual call process can be found at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-nsc-annual-call-submitting-a-screening-proposal/uk-nsc-annual-call-how-to-submit-a-proposal

The UK NSC is aware of the ELSA study that is looking at screening children for type 1 diabetes, and looks forward to receiving the results of this study in due course.
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Andrew Gwynne:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with (a) Cabinet colleagues and (b) local authorities to increase Healthy Start scheme uptake. \p Ashley Dalton: My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has regular discussions on the importance of improving children's health.

The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) operates the Healthy Start scheme on behalf of the Department. The NHSBSA is committed to increasing uptake of the Healthy Start scheme as much as possible to ensure all children have a healthy start in life.

The NHSBSA actively promotes the Healthy Start scheme through its digital channels and has created free tools to help stakeholders promote the scheme at a local level. The NHSBSA constantly reviews these materials to ensure that the communications reach those that need support most. In May 2025, Healthy Start supported over 358,000 people.
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Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of communications in issuing heat alerts. \p Ashley Dalton: The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) operates a Weather Health Alerting (WHA) system in partnership with the Met Office, as part of its Adverse Weather and Health Plan (AWHP) for the health and social care sector. The UKHSA publishes annual reports which contain an assessment of the AWHP’s performance, including communication. The UKHSA collaborates with academic partners to assess how communications are received, and how guidance is utilised. The WHA system has approximately 35,000 subscribers. The UKHSA undertakes communication activity with the Met Office to ensure that the health system and the public are aware of periods of hot weather, the health risks of heat, and what action they should take. The UKHSA issues proactive communications for the first Heat Health Alert of any summer, and whenever an amber or red alert is issued.
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Andrew Gwynne:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department holds data on the proportion of eligible people that have not enrolled in the Healthy Start scheme in (a) Gorton and Denton constituency and (b) England. \p Ashley Dalton: The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) operates the Healthy Start scheme on behalf of the Department. Monthly figures for the number of people on the digital Healthy Start scheme are published on the NHS Healthy Start website, at the following link:

https://www.healthystart.nhs.uk/healthcare-professionals/

The NHSBSA does not hold data on local constituencies, although it does hold data on the local authorities within which the Gorton and Denton constituency sits. Therefore, the following table shows the number of people on the digital scheme, as of 23 May 2025, in the Manchester and Tameside local authorities:

Local authority

Number of people on the digital scheme

Manchester

5,383

Tameside

1,858

In addition, the following table shows the number of people on the digital scheme, as of 23 May 2025, in England:

Country

Number of people on the digital scheme

England

328,685

The NHSBSA does not currently hold the data on the number of people eligible for Healthy Start or the proportion of eligible people who have not enrolled.
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Wera Hobhouse:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to increase access to breast cancer risk assessment for women under 50. \p Ashley Dalton: National Health Service breast cancer risk assessments are undertaken to identify the risk of having an inherited tendency of developing breast cancer. Breast screening is offered to women under the age of 50 years old according to nationally recommended guidelines, based on assessed risk. These can be found on the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s website, at the following link:

https://cks.nice.org.uk/topics/breast-screening/

Some women have an increased chance of developing breast cancer because of their genes. Five to 10 out of 100, or 5% to 10% of, all breast cancers happen because of an inherited tendency, also called a genetic predisposition.

The Government does not currently plan to increase access to breast cancer risk assessments for women under 50 years old who are not at higher risk of developing breast cancer due to inherited tendency.
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Lee Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will ensure that his Department collects data on (a) lobular and (b) ductal breast cancer separately. \p Ashley Dalton: The National Disease Registration Service in NHS England, as the national cancer registry, collects and analyses diagnosis and treatment data on cancer patients in England. Further information on the National Disease Registration Service is available at the following link:

https://digital.nhs.uk/ndrs

The information collected includes the morphology of the cancer. For breast cancer, this includes recording whether the diagnosis is lobular, ductal, or any other form of breast cancer. In 2022, the most recent year for which data is available, this information was reported in 98% of breast cancer registrations.
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Clive Jones:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what mechanisms his Department has in place to monitor the availability of cancer services during the reorganisation of NHS England into his Department. \p Ashley Dalton: Whilst this transformation takes place, we will ensure that we continue to evaluate impacts of all kinds, and we will work collaboratively to ensure continuity of care and that there are no risks to patient safety.

We continue to work to reduce the time that people are waiting for a diagnosis of cancer and to start treatment, including through the Government’s investment of £70 million of central funding to replace outdated radiotherapy machines, to ensure the most advanced treatment is available to the patients who need it. We will also support the National Health Service to increase capacity to meet the demand for diagnostic services through investment, including magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography scanners.

To achieve this, in line with 2025/26 Planning Guidance, we have asked systems to continue to improve performance against the 28-day faster diagnosis standard to 80%, and the 62-day referral to treatment standard to 75% by March 2026.
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James Naish:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of (a) parents and (b) carers reading to young children on the mental wellbeing of (i) children, (ii) parents and (iii) carers. \p Ashley Dalton: No such assessment has been made. We know that, according to research, reading helps to reduce stress levels and could be beneficial to mental health and well-being.
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Helen Morgan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps the government is taking to attach conditions to public research and development funding to ensure (a) equitable and (b) affordable access to the end products. \p Ashley Dalton: The Department invests over £1.6 billion each year on research through its research delivery arm, the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).

NIHR research contracts require recipients of NIHR funding to promote the dissemination of the intellectual property arising from NIHR research to maximise patient and public benefit. Any commercialisation of NIHR research must take due consideration of my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care’s position regarding access to essential health related technologies, including medicines, in the developing world.

In addition, the NIHR has made research inclusion a condition of its funding. Applicants to domestic research programmes are required to demonstrate how inclusion is being built into all stages of the research lifecycle. Applicants are also required to provide details of how their research contributes towards the NIHR’s mission to reduce health and care inequalities.
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Luke Murphy:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of introducing a national system for tracking gamete and embryo donors. \p Karin Smyth: The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA), the United Kingdom’s fertility sector regulator, has advised that HFEA licensed clinics are required by law to provide treatment and outcome information on all gamete or embryo donations taking place at clinics.

This information is published on the HFEA’s website. Clinics are required to monitor the usage of donor gametes and embryos in the UK, and to act in accordance with the guidance set out in the HFEA Code of Practice.

The HFEA also runs the Opening The Register service, which enables people born through donor treatments in licenced clinics to trace their genetic origins.
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Gavin Robinson:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will strengthen the provisions of the Hunting Act 2004. \p Daniel Zeichner: This Government was elected on a mandate to introduce the most ambitious plans in a generation to improve animal welfare and that is exactly what we will do. The Hunting Act 2004 makes it an offence to hunt a wild mammal with dogs, except where it is carried out in accordance with the exemptions in the Act and completely bans hare coursing. Those found guilty under the Act are subject to the full force of the law. The Government has committed to a ban on trail hunting. Work to determine the best approach for doing so is ongoing and further announcements will be made in due course.
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Joe Robertson:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 17 April 2025 to Question 44040 on Packaging: Recycling and with reference to his Department's guidance entitled Simpler recycling: workplace recycling in England, updated on 21 May 2025, if he will clarify the circumstances in which the Environment Agency will issue fines for contaminated recyclable waste; and whether the level of a fine to a business will be affected by previous fines issued. \p Mary Creagh: All compliance and enforcement activities are conducted in line with the Regulator’s Code and the Environment Agency’s Enforcement and Sanction Policy to ensure a proportionate, risk-based approach.

When contamination of workplace recyclables is suspected, the Environment Agency’s initial intervention is usually is to provide advice and guidance, as set out in Simpler recycling: workplace recycling in England  guidance updated on 21 May 2025. The Environment Agency does not possess powers to issue on the spot fines or fixed penalty notices and financial sanctions arise only via prosecution. Formal action, such as serving a compliance notice, however, is only likely to occur if advice and guidance is ignored.

The level of any fine will not be adjusted on the basis of previous fines issued, as sentencing follows standard judicial criteria including the seriousness of the offence and culpability of the offender. The Government remains committed to supporting businesses in meeting their recycling obligations whilst safeguarding the quality of recyclable materials.
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Sir John Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the size of the hedgehog population in each of the last ten years. \p Mary Creagh: As hedgehogs are widespread but scarce, there are practical challenges in estimating their number nationally. In the last 10 years, only one estimate, updated in 2024, has been made which indicated a population size estimate of 597,000 hedgehogs in England. However, confidence in the accuracy of this estimate is low.

Natural England is supporting the National Hedgehog Monitoring Programme, in partnership with the Peoples Trust for Endangered Species and The British Hedgehog Preservation Society, to provide a more robust national estimate of Britain’s hedgehog population. The pilot is due to be completed in May 2026.
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Dr Luke Evans:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 12 June 2025 to Question 57375 on Responsible Dog Ownership Working Group, on which dates the Responsible Dog Ownership Taskforce has met since July 2024; what topics it is considering; and what the action points were from its last meeting. \p Daniel Zeichner: The Responsible Dog Ownership taskforce was reconvened in May 2025. The taskforce is considering four themes: education, training for both dogs and their owners, enforcement, and improving data on dog attacks. We look forward to receiving the findings and recommendations from the taskforce in due course.
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Sarah Bool:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he plans to take to help support UK-based innovation in fertiliser development in the context of the proposed UK-EU agreement on agri-food. \p Daniel Zeichner: There are significant opportunities for innovation in the fertiliser sector, particularly development of newer types of fertilising products and production processes that improve nutrient use efficiency, which are made from clean energy or recycled nutrients from other materials.

Novel fertilisers have been in scope of Defra’s Farming Innovation Programme, including within the Programme’s £15 million nutrient management competition, and successful applicants to this competition started their projects earlier this year. We welcome the announcement within the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy to allocate at least £200 million to the Programme up to 2030 which will offer targeted funding to drive innovation in agriculture.

Recently Defra has launched the Accelerating Development of Practices and Technologies Fund (ADOPT) as part of the above Farming Innovation Programme, committing up to £20.6 million of funding in 25/26 to support the introduction of innovative technologies aimed at improving productivity, resilience and sustainability.

Fertiliser product regulation does not fall within the scope of the UK-EU Sanitary and Phytosanitary Agreement.
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Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential impact of introducing booking systems at Household Waste Recovery Centres on fly tipping. \p Mary Creagh: This Government has no plans to undertake an assessment of the impact of introducing booking systems at Household Waste Recovery Centres (HWRCs) on fly-tipping.
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Sarah Bool:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Welsh government on the application of the Precision Breeding Act 2023 in Wales; and what steps he is taking to support (a) plant breeders and (b) farmers in Wales given the regulatory disparity. \p Daniel Zeichner: The secondary legislation needed to implement The Genetic Technology (Precision Breeding) Act 2023 for plants in England was passed on 13 May 2025 and the new regulatory framework will commence on 14 November 2025.

The Department has engaged with the Welsh Government at Ministerial and official level to discuss the implementation of these regulations. The Department recognises the importance of working closely with Welsh Government on this and will continue to do so in the run up to the commencement of the new regulations.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

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Helen Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support local authorities in improving surface water drainage to prevent overloading of combined sewer systems. \p Emma Hardy: The Government is strongly committed to improving the implementation of Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS) and ensuring adoption and maintenance arrangements.

New national standards make clear that SuDS should be designed to cope with changing climatic conditions as well as delivering wider water infrastructure benefits in the form of flood prevention and storm overflow reduction, offering reuse opportunities, reducing run off, and helping to improve water quality, amenity, and biodiversity. The standards are a material consideration in deciding planning applications in accordance with paragraphs 181 and 182 of the National Planning Policy Framework.

The Environment Agency has a strategic overview role for all sources of flooding, including surface water; playing an active role in supporting and enabling local authorities to plan and adapt to current and future surface water flood risk.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

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Sarah Bool:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department is taking steps to help support high-yield, productive farming in the context of its environmental targets. \p Daniel Zeichner: We are investing £2.7 billion a year into sustainable food production and nature’s recovery, with funding for our Environmental Land Management schemes increasing by 150%.

We have more farmers than ever in nature friendly farming schemes and are reforming the Sustainable Farming Incentive to target funds fairly and effectively towards food, farming and nature priorities. We will announce further details later this year.

Additionally, up to £110 million is available in new grant competitions starting in 2025/26. These grants will support research and innovation, technology and equipment for farmers to boost farm businesses, food production, and the natural environment

Furthermore, our farming roadmap ‘Farming 2050: Growing England’s Future’ will involve government working with farmers and farming and environmental organisation representatives to set the course of farming over the next 25 years. It will provide a vision for our farming sector and set the direction for how we get there, with a focus on delivering our food security and environmental objectives and supporting farms to be resilient and profitable. Publication is planned later this year.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

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James Cartlidge:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential long-term impact of the UK agreement with the EU, announced on 19 March 2025, on British farmers. \p Daniel Zeichner: On the 19 May 2025, Defra published a methodology note setting out an assessment of the impact of a Sanitary and Phytosanitary agreement on the UK agricultural sector. This can be accessed here: Ad hoc analyses and data releases - GOV.UK.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

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Anna Gelderd:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent progress his Department has made on meeting the good environmental status indicators set out in the report entitled Marine Strategy Part One, published in October 2019. \p Emma Hardy: The Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs published a UK-wide consultation on 20 June this year, which details the latest assessment on the state of UK seas and progress toward Good Environmental Status. This follows publication of the updated UK Marine Strategy Programme of Measures in January this year, which sets out measures for achieving GES.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

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Ben Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of bonfires involving non-garden waste materials on (a) the environment and (b) public health. \p Emma Hardy: Existing laws prevent burning household waste if it will cause pollution or harm people’s health. Local authorities may also issue an abatement notice if smoke from bonfires causes a nuisance. We have published further guidance on this issue Reducing air pollution from outdoor burning.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

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Dr Roz Savage:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of Special Protection Zone regulations on the ability of small towns to establish new burial grounds; and what assessment he has made of the merits of providing (a) guidance and (b) funding support for communities facing (i) environmental and (ii) planning barriers to cemetery provision. \p Emma Hardy: Source Protection Zones are sensitive areas because the underlying groundwater contributes towards public drinking water supplies.

To protect those supplies from pollution, unless exempt, new cemeteries must operate under an environmental permit and the Environment Agency has published guidance on this, including information needed to support a planning application. The Environment Agency has recently consulted on a proposal to develop simpler, cheaper, permitting options for cemeteries, which could lead to cost-saving for eligible operators.

The Government has asked the Law Commission to review the legal framework governing burial and cremation, including concerns raised about the long-term availability of burial space. They anticipate publishing the report on their findings in late 2025. The Government will consider the Law Commission’s recommendations once these have been published and will respond in due course.”

For context, the Government does not have operational day-to-day responsibility for burial grounds, which are managed locally, and there is no statutory duty on local authorities to provide burial facilities. Although Government (DCA/MoJ) does provide Guidance for Burial Ground Managers (which includes issues to consider when planning burial space) and Guidance for Operators of Natural Burial Grounds neither address this specific issue.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

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Alex Mayer:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to help tackle the sources of littering in (a) Bedfordshire and (b) England. \p Mary Creagh: Littering is a crime that blights communities and the environment. Local councils are usually best placed to respond to littering and related problems, in a way tailored to the community in which they occur. They have a range of enforcement tools at their disposal including fixed penalty notices of up to £500 and prosecution action which can lead to a criminal record and a fine of up to £2500. We are considering how we can further support local councils.

In the meantime, we are targeting some of the more commonly littered items to reduce the presence of these on our streets. The sale of single-use vapes was banned on 1 June and a Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) will go live in England, Northern Ireland, and Scotland in October 2027. The DRS will introduce a redeemable deposit on single-use in-scope drinks containers which can be redeemed when the empty container is returned. Litter composition data indicates that 55% of litter by volume is made up of containers in-scope of DRS. The DRS will therefore significantly reduce this form of litter.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

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Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what (a) funding and (b) other support his Department gives to seasonal campaigns run by (i) the RSPCA, (ii) the Dogs Trust and (iii) other campaigning organisations to highlight the risks of leaving pets in hot vehicles. \p Daniel Zeichner: The Government greatly appreciates the work undertaken by the nation’s animal welfare organisations to highlight the risks associated with leaving pets in hot vehicles. The Government regularly engages with animal welfare organisations to discuss their campaigns but does not provide funds.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

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Alex Mayer:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has had discussions with the Secretary of State for Transport on tackling non-exhaust emissions from road transport as a source of particulate pollution. \p Emma Hardy: The Government is committed to meeting legal targets for air quality, including the PM2.5 targets recently set under the Environment Act 2021. My officials have regular discussions across Government about the policies needed to ensure we meet these targets, including officials in the Department for Transport on action to reduce non-exhaust emissions from road transport.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

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Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when statutory fly‑tipping enforcement guidance for local authorities will be published; and what his planned timeline is for its implementation. \p Mary Creagh: The Government is seeking powers in the Crime and Policing Bill to provide statutory fly-tipping enforcement guidance. Following Royal Assent, we will carry out a consultation with relevant stakeholders including local authorities. Once the consultation has concluded and responses taken into account, we will look to publish the guidance as soon as is practical.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

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Dr Caroline Johnson:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the badger population in each year since the enactment of the Protection of Badgers Act 1992. \p Mary Creagh: Since the enactment of the Protection of Badgers Act 1992, two national badger monitoring surveys have taken place. A 1994-97 survey estimate did not provide an estimate of the overall population but instead estimated there were 46,100 family groups in England and Wales. A survey of the badger population in 2011-13 estimated that there were approximately 424,000 badgers in 71,600 family groups in England and Wales.

In February 2025, the Animal and Plant Health Agency commenced the latest badger population survey which will estimate badger abundance and population recovery to illustrate the impact of widespread culling over the past decade.