Every parliamentary written question tabled by Al Pinkerton this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 481–500 of 1,416 · this parliament
What steps he is taking through defence spending to help increase economic growth in (a) Surrey and (b) Surrey Heath constituency.
The Ministry of Defence is committed to ensuring defence is an engine for growth. The Defence Industrial Strategy, published on 8 September 2025, clearly set out how we are making defence an engine for growth - investing more money in key defence areas and regions across the UK to create good jobs.
Whether she has had recent discussions with Surrey County Council on the review of speed limits on arterial roads in Surrey Heath constituency.
I have not held any recent discussions with Surrey County Council regarding a review of speed limits on arterial roads in the Surrey Heath constituency.Local traffic authorities are responsible for making decisions about their own roads, based on their knowledge of the area and taking into account local needs and circumstances. This includes setting local speed limits.
Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to help increase economic growth in the artificial intelligence sector in Surrey Heath constituency.
The Government is putting artificial intelligence at the heart of our mission to grow the UK economy. We are backing British researchers and firms and catalysing regional AI clusters so communities across the country, including Surrey Heath, can benefit.We are opening a £250m procurement for the next phase of the AI Research Resource, our publicly owned supercomputers which can be used – for free – by UK researchers. The Government will act as a “first customer” for promising UK AI hardware through an advance market commitment of up to £100 million, giving UK companies the opportunity to grow and compete. We are also backing British scale‑ups via a new Sovereign AI Unit, supported by around £500 million, and driving local productivity through targeted skills and business adoption programmes that help SMEs adopt AI and equip workers with essential AI skills.Together, these measures place the UK and its communities in a strong position to drive economic growth from the AI sector.
What steps his Department is taking to improve prisoner rehabilitation in (a) Surrey and (b) Surrey Heath constituency.
HM Prison and Probation Service rehabilitation services take many forms, ranging from accredited programmes and interventions that are aimed at giving people skills to change their attitudes, thinking and behaviour, to enabling a person to access education, healthcare, substance misuse support, suitable accommodation, and the means to earn a living pro-socially.Some rehabilitative activity is delivered in-house, and some via our partner organisations. We keep our work under constant review to ensure we are acting in line with the available evidence whilst also meeting the rehabilitative needs of the people we work with.
What discussions his Department has had with Surrey County Council on future arrangements for gathering local patient views on (a) health and (b) social care services in Surrey Heath constituency.
Local patient views will continue to be gathered through a variety of means, including local Healthwatch organisations, patient participation groups, and through national and local surveys. As set out in the 10-Year Health Plan for England: fit for the future, we are proposing to abolish local Healthwatch arrangements to place responsibility for obtaining feedback from local communities with integrated care boards for health, and local authorities for social care. Implementing the abolition of local Healthwatch arrangements will require amendments to primary legislation. The timing of this is subject to the will of Parliament and will happen when parliamentary time allows. As part of her review of patient safety, Dr Dash heard from more than 100 individuals or organisations with an interest in patient safety. The Department has also conducted several engagement events with local Healthwatch organisations and their representatives. This engagement is vital to communicate plans and to answer questions. This engagement will continue as the policy is further developed.
What assessment he has made of the potential impact of parole board hearings on victims and their families in Surrey Heath constituency.
We recognise that parole hearings can be distressing for victims and their families, which is why dedicated Victim Liaison Officers provide support throughout the process. Victims can explain the effect of the offence, and the ongoing impact it has on them, through a Victim Personal Statement, which may be read aloud during the hearing. They can also request specific licence conditions are put forward for the Parole Board to consider applying if an offender is released.Since April, we have made it possible for victims to apply to observe hearings if they wish, to help them understand how the Parole Board considers evidence and assesses risk. We understand how challenging this process can be and we want to ensure that victims and their families are given the support, information and opportunities they need to help them through it.
What steps his Department is taking to support pensioners with (a) energy, (b) food and (c) housing costs in Surrey Heath constituency.
This Government provides a range of measures to help pensioners with the cost of living. Most significantly, the Government’s commitment to supporting and delivering for older people by maintaining the Triple Lock throughout this Parliament will ensure the value of State Pensions continues to rise faster than prices over time. On current forecasts it means pensioners’ yearly incomes are set to rise by up to £2,100 by the end of this Parliament. From this Winter, around 9 million pensioners in England and Wales, over three quarters of all pensioners, will benefit from Winter Fuel Payments. In addition, for eligible households, Cold Weather Payments are made automatically during periods of severe weather, and the Warm Home Discount provides a £150 annual rebate on electricity bills. Pensioners receiving Pension Credit qualify automatically for Cold Weather Payments and the Warm Home Discount. Pension Credit continues to provide invaluable financial support to help low-income pensioners with their day-to-day living costs. That is why we have been running the biggest ever Pension Credit take-up campaign, promoting it to eligible pensioners, their families and friends, so that more pensioners receive the financial help to which they are entitled. Housing Benefit is also available to help pensioners who rent their homes. Pensioner homeowners who receive an income-related benefit, including Pension Credit, can receive Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI), which provides help towards the interest on eligible loans secured against their home and means they can stay in their homes without fear of repossession. Finally, we have enabled local authorities such as Surrey County Council to provide discretionary assistance to pensioners facing hardship, through the Household Support Fund, which has been extended until March 2026. This fund helps vulnerable households with the cost of essentials such as food and energy.
If she will take steps to ensure (a) trauma informed and (b) neurodiversity awareness practices across children’s social care services in Surrey.
The department is working with local authorities, including Surrey, to transform children’s social care. We have confirmed the rollout of Family Help, multi-agency child protection and family group decision making reforms through the Families First Partnership programme, backed by £2.4 billion over the spending review period. The Families First Partnership programme guide sets out the expected practice changes. We are transforming the whole system of help, support and protection, to ensure that every family can access the right help and support when they need it. For some families this may involve understanding the impact of trauma or supporting those who are neurodiverse. The programme guide expects areas to develop a shared practice framework across agencies that covers the end-to-end system of help, support and protection, in line with the national framework outcomes and the requirements of the ‘Working together to safeguard children’ guidance.
What recent assessment has been made of the extent of regional disparities in access to post adoption (a) therapeutic and (b) practical support services.
The adoption and special guardianship support fund is available nationwide. It funds post-adoption support interventions including therapeutic support for adopted children and their families.Adoption England recently completed a review of regional post-adoption support. The review is available here: https://www.adoptionengland.co.uk/sites/default/files/2025-06/ASGSF%20Options%20Appraisal.pdf. The report finds that families experiences differ by region due to local delivery models and provider capacity.The department invested £8.8 million in Adoption England this year to improve adoption support across the country. This includes the development of a national core offer of support for the first 12-18 months of a placement. Practical support, such as peer groups and parenting programmes, are commissioned locally to reflect local need.Adopted children and their families can also make use of universal provision including Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services and Families First, a local authority-led early help service that provides practical and emotional support to families, including parenting advice and access to community resources, to prevent issues from escalating.
What steps she is taking to ensure that police counters are kept open in Surrey Heath constituency.
Decisions regarding the police estate, including the availability of front counters at police stations, are a matter for Chief Constables equivalents. They are best placed to make these decisions based on their knowledge of local need and their experience.Police stations are just one of the ways in which people can access their local police. They can also speak to police online, including to report crime, 24 hours a day or by using the 101 service for non-emergencies or 999 in an emergency. As part of the Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee, all forces now also have named and contactable neighbourhood officers dedicated to addressing the issues that matter most to their communities.
What steps she is taking to protect civil liberties in the (a) development and (b) implementation of (i) public order and (ii) policing policy.
All protest legislation has been and is developed in line with the UK’s obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights, particularly Articles 10 and 11. The government remains committed to protecting civil liberties, including the right to peaceful protest.It has long been a principle in this country that individuals may gather and express their views, provided they do so within the law. Where protests contravene the law, it is essential that the police who are operationally independent have appropriate powers to respond.The Home Secretary launched an independent review of public order and hate crime legislation on 5 October led by Lord Macdonald of River Glaven KC. The review will ensure police powers remain fit for purpose, are used consistently, and strike the right balance between protecting the public and upholding the right to lawful protest.It will address whether the existing legislation is effective and proportionate, whether it adequately protects communities from intimidation and hate and whether it strikes a fair and sustainable balance between the right to freedom of expression and peaceful protest, and the need to prevent disorder and keep communities safe.The review is underway and will conclude by Spring 2026.
What assessment has been made of whether children’s social care practice adequately supports parents who have experienced trauma, including childhood abuse, to recover and safely parent.
The children’s social care national framework (2023) is statutory guidance that sets direction for children’s social care practice. It describes expectations for practitioners working sensitively with whole families, including to identify and address the impact of trauma. Ofsted plays a crucial role in upholding children’s social care standards. In November 2025, Ofsted confirmed they will update their Inspecting Local Authority Children’s Services inspection framework from April 2026 and continue to align inspection with the national framework.The department has also confirmed the national rollout of Family Help, multi-agency child protection and family group decision making reforms, delivered through the Families First Partnership programme. These services will prioritise supporting the whole family and intervening at the earliest opportunity to prevent problems escalating, including where there are experiences of trauma. This will require excellent place-based service design driven by local authorities working effectively with local partners, including health, police and education providers, and listening closely to families.
What steps her Department is taking to ensure that adoptive families caring for multiple children from the same birth family receive (a) tailored and (b) sustained support in Surrey Heath constituency.
As part of the criteria for the adoption and special guardianship support fund, all children must have an assessment of their individual needs completed within three months of the application submission. This ensures that any support commissioned by the local authority or Regional Adoption Agency is tailored to their circumstances.Where families adopt multiple children from the same birth family, each child is assessed separately, and each child has their own Fair Access Limit.
What steps she is taking to deliver effective community policing in Surrey Heath constituency.
The Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee makes sure that every neighbourhood has named, contactable officers dedicated to addressing the issues facing their communities, including in Surrey Heath.£200 million has been made available in 2025/26 to support the first steps of delivering 13,000 more neighbourhood policing personnel across England and Wales by the end of this Parliament, including up to 3,000 additional neighbourhood officers by the end of March 2026. Based on their £2,588,427 allocation from the Neighbourhood Policing Grant, Surrey Police are projected to grow by 25 FTE neighbourhood police officers in 2025/26.
What oversight exists to ensure that local authorities engage constructively with parents who raise concerns on (a) fair process and (b) statutory obligations.
Local authorities must engage constructively with parents when concerns arise about fair process or statutory duties. Oversight is provided through several mechanisms. First, parents can use the statutory three-stage complaints procedure for children’s services, which includes independent review. If they remain dissatisfied, they may escalate to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, which investigates maladministration and recommends remedies to ensure fairness and compliance.Ofsted inspections also assess how effectively authorities involve parents and meet legal obligations.
Whether her Department plans to review the statutory framework governing post adoption support to help prevent avoidable family breakdowns.
The department is not currently planning to review the statutory framework for post adoption support.We are funding Adoption England £8.8 million this year to develop consistent and high quality adoption support provision across the country. This includes implementing a new framework for an early support core offer for the first 12 to 18 months after placement, rolling out a new Adoption Support Plan book for all new adoptive families, and developing a national protocol to be used for all adoption support service teams and local authority front door safeguarding services to ensure that parents receive support when they need it most and help prevent family breakdown.The department will set out plans to launch a public engagement process in 2026 to better understand how well the adoption and special guardianship support fund is working, what the evidence tells us and what further evidence is required, and importantly what is working well for families and why.
What steps she is taking to tackle hate crime in (a) Surrey and (b) Surrey Heath constituency.
The government is determined to tackle all forms of hate crime wherever in the country it occurs, and whoever is responsible for committing it. We have a robust legislative framework in place to respond to hate crimes which target race, religion, sexual orientation, disability, and transgender identity, and we back the police in taking strong action against the perpetrators of these heinous crimes. The Home Secretary launched an independent review of public order and hate crime legislation on 5 October. The review will ensure police powers remain fit for purpose, are used consistently, and strike the right balance between protecting the public and upholding the right to lawful protest. It will address whether the existing legislation is effective and proportionate, whether it adequately protects communities from intimidation and hate and whether it strikes a fair and sustainable balance between the right to freedom of expression and peaceful protest, and the need to prevent disorder and keep communities safe. In addition, the government funds an online hate crime reporting portal, True Vision, designed so victims of all types of hate crime do not have to visit a police station to report. The government also funds the National Online Hate Crime Hub, which supports individual local police forces in dealing specifically with online hate crime, providing expert advice to police to support them in investigating these abhorrent offences.
Whether her Department plans to review the (a) funding and (b) accessibility of the Adoption Support Fund, particularly for families with (i) complex or (ii) high risk placements in Surrey Heath constituency.
This financial year, the department has invested £50 million into the adoption and special guardianship support fund (ASGSF). We have approved applications for nearly 14,000 children since April, for both therapy and specialist assessments. We continue to review the impact of the changes to funding made in April 2025. The ASGSF was formed specifically to meet the needs of complex and high-risk placements.
What steps her Department is taking to ensure that South Western Railway rail replacement bus services are fully wheelchair accessible in Surrey Heath constituency.
Regulatory requirements apply to South Western Railway (SWR) to ensure rail replacement buses meet the necessary standards on accessibility across their network, including in Surrey Heath constituency. SWR works with its rail replacement providers to ensure services are accessible as far as possible, but if accessible options are not available, SWR will arrange alternative accessible transport.
Media and Sport, what discussions her Department has had with charitable organisations working on loneliness among older people in Surrey Heath constituency.
From a government perspective, social connection is the golden thread running through much of our work. It will help us to achieve ambitions including creating a healthier society, more connected communities and ensuring opportunities for all. This government also recognises the social benefits and connections that volunteering can offer to all, including older people. That is why DCMS is supporting the launch of The Big Help Out 2026, which this year will be running alongside the Big Lunch, bringing more people together including in Surrey Heath.Government alone cannot improve social connection; collaboration is required across the public, private and civil society sectors. Charitable organisations have a key role to play. The government provides funding for the Tackling Loneliness Hub, an online forum for people including voluntary community groups, working to reduce loneliness and isolation to come together and share insights, research and best practice.