Every parliamentary written question tabled by Gregory Stafford this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 101–120 of 562 · this parliament
Communities and Local Government, whether he has made an assessment of the risk to public safety from the publication of sensitive information relating to the physical security of properties on local authority planning registers.
My Department has made no such assessment.I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 106884 on 27 January 2026.
What discussions he has had with Ofgem on (a) reducing delays in the processing time for payments made under the Feed-in Tariff scheme and (b) improving the confidence of private investors for that scheme.
Under the Feed-in Tariffs (FIT) scheme suppliers are required to make FIT payments no less than quarterly. The Government engages regularly with Ofgem, as administrator of the scheme, to keep its operation under review and ensure it continues to function effectively. The Government recognises that regulatory stability is essential to maintaining an attractive investment environment. The Government also considers it appropriate to undertake periodic reviews of schemes to ensure they continue to provide value for money for the households and businesses that fund this support.
What steps he is taking to help ensure that investors in the Feed-in Tariff scheme continue to receive payments in line with their original contracts.
The Feed-in Tariffs scheme continues to operate within the statutory framework established by the Feed-in Tariffs Order 2012. Recent confirmed changes to inflation indexation of the scheme will apply to existing generators. Generators will continue to receive inflation-indexed payments for the full duration of their support period.
Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 27th January 2026 to Question 106884, what assessment he has made of the efficacy of local planning authorities in restricting the publication of ‘sensitive’ information relating to the physical security of a property on planning registers.
My Department has made no such assessment. We keep planning practice guidance and procedures under review.
Whether his Department plans to introduce a modern service framework for kidney disease; and what steps he is taking to support early diagnosis and prevention.
As announced in the 10-Year Health Plan, as well as an overall quality strategy, the National Quality Board is overseeing the development of a new series of service frameworks to accelerate progress in conditions where there is potential for rapid and significant improvements in quality of care and productivity.Early priorities include cardiovascular disease, severe mental illness, and the first ever service framework for frailty and dementia. The Government will consider other long-term conditions with significant health and economic impacts for future waves of modern service frameworks.NHS England is delivering a comprehensive programme to improve the diagnosis, treatment, and outcomes of people with kidney disease. In 2023, NHS England published a renal services transformation toolkit to support earlier identification of chronic kidney disease and strengthen management across the whole patient pathway.
Communities and Local Government, when his Department plans to publish the 2024 Housing Delivery Test results.
Following delays to the publication of the 2023 Housing Delivery Test (HDT) results under the previous government, this government is committed to re-establishing a regular publication cycle. We therefore intend to combine the data collections for the 2024 and 2025 HDTs and to publish both sets of results as soon as possible this year.
What steps she is taking to ensure that measures in the Road Safety Strategy are applied effectively during winter.
On 7 January 2026 we published our new Road Safety Strategy, setting out our vision for a safer future on our roads for all. The policy commitments in the Road Safety Strategy will be developed in the usual way, ensuring that thorough consideration is given to all aspects of a policy. This will include consideration of each policy’s effectiveness throughout the year, including during the winter period.
Whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of extending business rates reimbursements to community pharmacies.
In the 2025 Autumn Budget, the Government took the hard choices to protect the National Health Service in England and to continue to prioritise reducing waiting times. We have also stepped in to cap bills and help businesses, as part of a £4.3 billion support package.This year, we have also increased funding to community pharmacies to almost £3.1 billion, the largest uplift in funding for any part of the NHS across 2024/25 and 2025/26.The Department will consult Community Pharmacy England on any proposed changes to reimbursement and remuneration of pharmacy contractors for 2026/27 shortly.
What assessment he has made of the trend in the levels of timeliness of Civil Service Pension payments since Capita took over administration of the MyCSP system on 1 December 2025.
Capita took over the administration on 1 December 2025. Since then, Capita has completed pension payments to approximately 730,000 retired members on time. However, some civil servants and pension scheme members are facing unacceptable delays in accessing their pension payments. While Capita inherited a significant backlog of cases from the previous provider, MyCSP, this is now worse and we are urgently addressing that. In response, we have set up a dedicated team to work urgently with Capita, with 650 full time staff across Government and Capita clearing critical cases by the end of February and restoring normal service as soon as possible. We have agreed a clear recovery plan with Capita, which includes specific milestones and accountability targets for delivery. This includes specific commitments to restore service levels for priority cases, deploy additional resources, and improve communication with affected colleagues, so that staff, both former and serving, receive the quality of service and support they deserve.
Communities and Local Government, if he will make an assessment of the potential public safety considerations of detailed internal residential plans remaining publicly accessible online after development has been completed.
Plans and drawings of proposed residential development, including any plans for internal arrangements, submitted with a planning application must be maintained and published by local planning authorities on their planning registers. Local planning authorities should not publish information on their register which they consider to be ‘sensitive’, including information relating to the physical security of a property.
When updated guidance on electric car salary sacrifice schemes for multi-academy trusts will be published; and whether interim measures will be provided to allow trusts to implement schemes in the meantime.
New electric vehicle salary sacrifice schemes in the public sector are currently paused whilst a cross-government review on these schemes is undertaken by HMT. Academy trusts with existing schemes can keep them in place but not expand them by adding new members. The department will inform academy trusts when a decision has been made, and the Academy Trust Handbook will be updated accordingly.
Whether she has made a comparative assessment of the financial impact of business rates increases on (a) pubs and (b) retail businesses.
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to UIN 101363.
Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with her Indian counterpart on reported incidents of violence against Christian communities.
I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 25 November 2025 in response to Question 90911.
What assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing a rolling automatic pension calculation for former armed forces personnel who have received an Early Departure Payment.
There are no plans to introduce a rolling automatic calculation. However, former Armed Forces personnel can annually request a free forecast at any time by completing a Form 14, available on Gov.uk at the following link:www.gov.uk/guidance/veterans-uk-armed-forces-pensions-forms The Ministry of Defence (MOD) provides support for members of the Armed Forces Pension Schemes through the Joint Personnel Administration Centre (JPAC). Scheme members can access assistance via the following contact details: Freephone (UK only): 0800 085 3600Telephone (Overseas): +44 141 224 3600Phone (Military): 94560 3600Email: dbs-pensionshelp@dbspv.mod.ukMail Point 480 Kentigern House 65 Brown Street Glasgow G2 8EX
How many Armed Forces Pension Scheme payments have been (a) delayed and (b) unpaid in the last five years, where the recipient’s entitlement is manually calculated by his Department.
This information is not held. All Armed Forces Pension Scheme (AFPS) pensions are processed using Ministry of Defence approved calculators. The only manual interaction involved in the process is the input of specific criteria, such as service dates and date of birth, which may affect the outcome of the calculation.
Communities and Local Government, when local authorities will be informed of their indicative allocations of the Homelessness, Rough Sleeping and Domestic Abuse Grant for each consecutive financial year from 2026 to 2029.
Provisional allocations of the Homelessness, Rough Sleeping and Domestic Abuse Grant have been published on gov.uk here. Final allocations will be published in due course.
What assessment they have made of the potential impact of abolishing local Healthwatch organisations on constituents’ ability to raise concerns about health and social care services.
The abolition of Healthwatch England and the transfer of its functions and the changes to Local Healthwatch will require primary legislation. The timing of this is subject to the will of Parliament and will happen when parliamentary time allows. A full Impact Assessment, including an Equality Impact Assessment, will be produced and published on the Government website when legislation is introduced in Parliament.We are proposing to place responsibility for the health function of local Healthwatch (LHW) with integrated care boards (ICBs). ICBs will ensure the functions are incorporated in provider organisations alongside existing patient engagement work such as Patient Participation Groups. Local authorities will be responsible for the social care LHW functions.
What progress his Department has made on developing independently verified, modelled projections of the numbers of NHS staff needed to meet future population demand in the 10-Year Workforce Plan.
The 10 Year Workforce Plan will ensure the National Health Service has the right people in the right places, with the right skills to care for patients, when they need it. It will include modelling of the potential size and shape of the future workforce and population projections.That updated workforce modelling and its underlying assumptions will be set out in and alongside the plan, when published in spring 2026. It will be supported by external independent scrutiny.
Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations the Government has made to the Government of India on the protection of freedom of religion or belief for religious minority communities, including their ability to participate in civil society.
I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 25 November 2025 in response to Question 90911.
What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of permitting Abu Wadee to (a) enter and (b) remain in the United Kingdom on (i) national security and (ii) public safety; and what checks were undertaken on previous statements, associations and activities relating to antisemitism and extremist ideology before any decision was taken.
The Home Office does not routinely comment on individual cases.The first priority of government is protecting national security. All applications for UK immigration status, including asylum claims, are subject to comprehensive security checks. Where an individual is assessed as presenting a risk to our country, we take swift and robust action.The Home Office uses various tools to detect and disrupt travel by individuals of national security interest and by individuals excluded from the UK; previously deported from the UK; or using lost, stolen or revoked documents and visas. This includes the use of domestic and international watchlists.