Every parliamentary written question tabled by Freddie van Mierlo this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 21–40 of 654 · this parliament
What the (a) average and (b) median processing times were for (i) initial claims and (ii) deterioration claims under the War Pension Scheme in each of the last three financial years; and what steps the Department is taking to introduce clearer (A) service standards and (B) timescales for claimants.
Awaiting answer.
What assessment she has made of the adequacy of integrated data and through-ticketing between rail services and airlines worldwide; and if she will take steps to make the UK a leader in integrated air-rail data sharing and through-ticketing.
Awaiting answer.
Food and Rural Affairs, when she plans to respond to the letter of 7 March 2026 from the Hon. Member for Henley and Thame and the Hon. Member for Earley and Woodley on the invitation to visit the flood affected areas bordering their constituencies.
A reply is being prepared and will be issued to the hon. Member as soon as possible.
With reference to the answer of 20 April 2026 to question 125953, whether the resources provided by Best Start for Life Family Hubs includes guidance for fathers who have been released from prison on co-parenting and handling children's emotional response.
Awaiting answer.
With reference to the answer of 20 April 2026 to question 125954, which (a) organisations (b) government bodies and (c) academic partners are conducting the incremental, evidence led approach.
Awaiting answer.
What monitoring arrangements are in place and what enforcement mechanisms are available if Capita are unable to meet the June 2026 deadline for civil servants awaiting pension payments.
The Cabinet Office awarded the contract to administer the Civil Service Pension Scheme to Capita in November 2023 under the previous government.The issues and delays facing a number of civil servants and pension scheme members in receiving their pension quotes are unacceptable. I want to reassure you that this Government has taken firm action to help put things right as soon as possible. We have agreed a clear recovery plan with Capita, which includes specific milestones and accountability targets for delivery. For priority cases, we have deployed additional resources and improved communication with affected colleagues, so that staff, both former and serving, receive the quality of service and support they deserve.Existing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) have been enhanced and strengthened to deliver improved performance and higher penalties for failure, including financial penalties. These have already been applied in respect to Capita's performance with recent issues and delays in administering the Civil Service Pension Scheme.Capita has made lump sum payments to 11,454 members, the majority of whom have retired but are not yet receiving their pension, and are on track to bring these members into regular pension payments by the end of May.To provide immediate financial support to those who may need it, including those who have left under the compensation scheme, arrangements are in place for interest-free bridging loans of £5,000 and higher in exceptional cases to most recent retirees facing payment delays. This is alongside interim lump sum payments being made to provide immediate funds to retiring members. The pension scheme continues to make monthly pension payments to approximately 730,000 existing pensioner members on time.To mitigate member hardship, employers have issued £8.9 million in Transitional Support Loans to 1,665 members and these arrangements continue to be in place.Interest will be paid on delayed benefits to avoid financial loss by members. In addition, the existing statutory complaints process evaluates claims for financial losses, as well as distress and inconvenience caused, on a case-by-case basis to determine whether compensation is due. This ensures that any retiree who provides evidence of extra costs, such as bank penalties or interest charges caused by the delay, is fairly assessed. This process is run in accordance with the standards set by the Pensions Ombudsman.The Cabinet Office has mandated Capita that they must restore service levels by the end of June 2026. We are using every commercial lever at our disposal, including withholding payments for deliverables that have not been met. We also reserve the right to take further formal action to ensure the service returns to the required standards. The Cabinet Office continues to closely monitor Capita's progress and performance against all contractual service levels.Regular updates on the work to recover the service, continue to be posted on the Civil Service Pensions member portal and on Gov.Uk.
What steps his department is taking to ensure that civil servants awaiting pension payments as part of the remaining backlog do not experience financial hardship while Capita works toward the June 2026 deadline.
The Cabinet Office awarded the contract to administer the Civil Service Pension Scheme to Capita in November 2023 under the previous government.The issues and delays facing a number of civil servants and pension scheme members in receiving their pension quotes are unacceptable. I want to reassure you that this Government has taken firm action to help put things right as soon as possible. We have agreed a clear recovery plan with Capita, which includes specific milestones and accountability targets for delivery. For priority cases, we have deployed additional resources and improved communication with affected colleagues, so that staff, both former and serving, receive the quality of service and support they deserve.Existing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) have been enhanced and strengthened to deliver improved performance and higher penalties for failure, including financial penalties. These have already been applied in respect to Capita's performance with recent issues and delays in administering the Civil Service Pension Scheme.Capita has made lump sum payments to 11,454 members, the majority of whom have retired but are not yet receiving their pension, and are on track to bring these members into regular pension payments by the end of May.To provide immediate financial support to those who may need it, including those who have left under the compensation scheme, arrangements are in place for interest-free bridging loans of £5,000 and higher in exceptional cases to most recent retirees facing payment delays. This is alongside interim lump sum payments being made to provide immediate funds to retiring members. The pension scheme continues to make monthly pension payments to approximately 730,000 existing pensioner members on time.To mitigate member hardship, employers have issued £8.9 million in Transitional Support Loans to 1,665 members and these arrangements continue to be in place.Interest will be paid on delayed benefits to avoid financial loss by members. In addition, the existing statutory complaints process evaluates claims for financial losses, as well as distress and inconvenience caused, on a case-by-case basis to determine whether compensation is due. This ensures that any retiree who provides evidence of extra costs, such as bank penalties or interest charges caused by the delay, is fairly assessed. This process is run in accordance with the standards set by the Pensions Ombudsman.The Cabinet Office has mandated Capita that they must restore service levels by the end of June 2026. We are using every commercial lever at our disposal, including withholding payments for deliverables that have not been met. We also reserve the right to take further formal action to ensure the service returns to the required standards. The Cabinet Office continues to closely monitor Capita's progress and performance against all contractual service levels.Regular updates on the work to recover the service, continue to be posted on the Civil Service Pensions member portal and on Gov.Uk.
With reference to the response of 20 April 2026 to question 125947; what progress has been made on receiving independent expert advice from the JCVI on the meningococcal B vaccination programme, including whether this should be extended to young people who were not eligible for the routine infant immunisation programme introduced in 2015.
The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
If he will make it his policy to produce a set of specific local recommendations for each trust included in the Amos review of maternity and neonatal care following the publication of the National recommendations.
The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
What assessment he has made of the adequacy of response times to hon. Members when making enquiries to his Department on behalf of constituents about benefit claims.
Awaiting answer.
What assessment she has made of the adequacy of consumer protection and reimbursement for victims of authorised push payment and investment frauds that occurred before 7 October 2024.
Awaiting answer.
What assessment he has made of the adequacy of the treatment of NHS staff employed on honorary contracts in recruitment processes during periods of hiring freezes; and whether such staff are classified as internal candidates for the purposes of those processes.
Awaiting answer.
Pursuant to WPQ 125951 submitted on the 30th March, what the new cost per minute of call is under the rates agreed for the period between 1 April 2025 to 31 May 2027.
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Pursuant to the response of 20 April 2026 to question 126112, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Service Pupil Premium in meeting the additional needs of pupils who are the children of service personnel.
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
What recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of the availability of ADI part 2 and ADI part 3 tests in Oxfordshire.
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) is aware that demand for approved driving instructor (ADI) part 2 and part 3 tests is high in some areas across the country and recognises the time constraints this may place on trainee driving instructors. As ADI examiners are deployed across multiple test centres, understanding when and where candidates wish to take tests helps DVSA deploy examiner resource appropriately. Consequently, DVSA does not publish waiting times for ADI tests. DVSA has recruited, and continues to recruit, additional ADI examiners and has increased its capacity to train new examiners.
What assessment his department has made of the adequacy of Capita’s progress towards meeting the June 2026 deadline for clearing the Civil Service Pension Scheme backlog; and whether his Department has contingency plans.
The Cabinet Office awarded the contract to administer the Civil Service Pension Scheme to Capita in November 2023 under the previous government. The issues and delays facing a number of civil servants and pension scheme members in receiving their pension quotes are unacceptable. I want to reassure you that this Government has taken firm action to help put things right as soon as possible. We have agreed a clear recovery plan with Capita, which includes specific milestones and accountability targets for delivery. For priority cases, we have deployed additional resources and improved communication with affected colleagues, so that staff, both former and serving, receive the quality of service and support they deserve. Existing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) have been enhanced and strengthened to deliver improved performance and higher penalties for failure, including financial penalties. These have already been applied in respect to Capita's performance with recent issues and delays in administering the Civil Service Pension Scheme. Capita prioritised the most urgent cases and by the end of February, all death in service cases were either settled or progressed to the final stage or awaiting a member response. The same position was reached for ill health retirement applications by mid-March. Capita has made lump sum payments to 9,873 members, the majority of whom have retired but are not yet receiving their pension, and are on track to bring these members into regular pension payments by the end of April. To provide immediate financial support to those who may need it, including those who have been dismissed with compensation, arrangements are in place for interest-free bridging loans typically up to £5,000 or £10,000 in exceptional cases to most recent retirees facing payment delays. This is alongside interim lump sum payments being made to provide immediate funds to retiring members. The pension scheme continues to make monthly pension payments to approximately 730,000 existing pensioner members on time. The Cabinet Office has mandated Capita that they must restore service levels by the end of June 2026. We are using every commercial lever at our disposal, including withholding payments for deliverables that have not been met. We also reserve the right to take further formal action to ensure the service returns to the required standards. The latest position of the Civil Service Pension Recovery Plan Update is available at this weblink: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-pension-recovery-plan-updates
What steps he is taking to ensure that coronial complaints procedures are independent and transparent; and what assessment he has made of the adequacy of measures in place to prevent conflicts of interest within that process.
Coroners are independent judges, but operational responsibility for coroner services lies with the lead local authorities which fund and administer of each of the 74 coroner areas in England and Wales. Whist the framework of accountability in the coronial jurisdiction is therefore complex, it is nevertheless robust and transparent. Complaints about the standard of service provided in the context of a coroner’s investigation should be raised in the first instance with the coroner’s office and/or with the funding local authority. If the complainant remains dissatisfied, the matter can be reported to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (https://www.lgo.org.uk/make-a-complaint), which aims to provide a remedy to complaints through impartial and fair investigation. The Ombudsman cannot investigate a coroner’s decisions as an independent judge. However, these can be challenged through the judicial review process or, in some circumstances, by applying to the Attorney General for leave to apply to the High Court for a fresh inquest. Complaints about the personal conduct of coroners should be made to the independent Judicial Conduct Investigations Office (https://www.complaints.judicialconduct.gov.uk/).
Communities and Local Government, with reference to the oral contribution of the Hon Member for Chester North and Neston in the eight sitting of the Representation of the People Bill Committee, 16 April 2026, col 359, what estimate his Department has made of the cost of drafting and publishing a report assessing a range of options to support postal voting for overseas electors.
The Department has not made a specific estimate of the cost of drafting and publishing such a report. As set out during the Representation of the People Bill Committee, the Government considers that the issues raised have already been extensively examined. In the 2025 policy paper, Restoring trust in our democracy: Our strategy for modern and secure elections, the Government set out a package of measures intended to improve the resilience and responsiveness of the postal voting system overall. These measures include moving the postal vote application, and candidate nomination deadlines earlier in the electoral timetable. This will provide more time for the production, distribution and return of postal vote packs. These changes will benefit all administrators and voters, including those living overseas.
With reference to the Public Service Vehicles Accessibility Regulations 2000, what recent assessment she has made of the future viability of (a) parent funded school transport schemes and (b) spare seat schemes.
The Public Service Vehicles Accessibility Regulations 2000 (PSVAR) set minimum accessibility requirements for buses and coaches, designed to carry over twenty-two passengers and used on local or scheduled services. They support millions of disabled people, including young people and children, to make the journeys important in their lives. PSVAR have applied to certain home-to-school (HTS) services for 25 years. In response to widespread non-compliance in the sector, including HTS services where spare capacity is sold, the government issued exemptions to enable these essential services to continue operating whilst operators procured compliant coaches. The current Medium-Term Exemptions (MTE) for HTS and rail replacement coach services expire on 31st July. In 2023 the previous Government began a review of PSVAR, including inviting feedback from local authority commissioners, providers and users of transport services, through a Call for Evidence, with a view to understanding the extent to which the Regulations remained appropriate and continued to serve disabled passengers. We continue to work with partners to understand the best way forward and we will announce our proposed next steps on PSVAR, including a decision on the future of the MTE scheme and its implications for HTS services, soon.
With reference to the Department's Research and analysis paper entitled Removing the two-child limit on Universal Credit, whether the calculation that the removal of the two-child limit will lift 450,000 children out of poverty has taken in to account how many of those households will now be impacted by the benefit cap.
The Department for Work and Pensions’ Policy Simulation Model (PSM) was used to model the impact of the removal of the two-child limit on Universal Credit. The PSM uses household characteristics, caseload forecasts and benefit rules to estimate policy impacts for each year, currently up to and including FYE 2031. It is estimated that there will be 450,000 fewer children in relative poverty after housing costs in the final year of parliament (FYE 2030) as a result of the removal of the two-child limit within Universal Credit, compared to baseline projections. This estimate takes full account of the benefit cap, which is modelled in both the baseline and policy projections. Removing the two-child limit on Universal Credit: Impact on low income poverty levels in the United Kingdom - GOV.UK