Written questions by Dillon.

Whether his Department plans to conduct a review of NHS weight management services, including their eligibility criteria.

The National Health Service and local government provide a range of weight management services. Commissioning and funding decisions for obesity services are made locally. NHS integrated care boards, local authorities, and NHS England are expected to take National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance into account when designing services.NICE guidance on overweight and obesity management sets out the core components, standards, and eligibility criteria for weight management programmes.In this context, the Department has no current plans to review NHS weight management services, or their eligibility criteria. The Department and NHS England continue to provide national policy direction, including by providing commissioning guidance for local systems. We are committed to expanding access to obesity medicines and expanding the NHS Digital Weight Management Programme to support an additional 125,000 people over the next three years.

When his Department plans to publish guidance on Neighbourhood Health Plans.

No specific assessment has been made of the potential impact of the time taken to publish guidance on community health services. We are developing guidance on Neighbourhood Health Plans to provide greater clarity and consistency for systems in developing and scaling neighbourhood health. We expect this to be available soon.Our upcoming guidance will build on and complement our existing set of publications that set out the actions needed to lay the groundwork for a Neighbourhood Health Service. This suite of guidance, which includes the NHS Medium Term Planning Framework for 2026/27 to 2028/29, the strategic commissioning framework for integrated care boards (ICBs), and the Model Region and ICB blueprints, supports National Health Service operational planning and joined-up partnership work between local government and ICBs.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the time taken to publish guidance on Neighbourhood Health Plans on community health services.

No specific assessment has been made of the potential impact of the time taken to publish guidance on community health services. We are developing guidance on Neighbourhood Health Plans to provide greater clarity and consistency for systems in developing and scaling neighbourhood health. We expect this to be available soon.Our upcoming guidance will build on and complement our existing set of publications that set out the actions needed to lay the groundwork for a Neighbourhood Health Service. This suite of guidance, which includes the NHS Medium Term Planning Framework for 2026/27 to 2028/29, the strategic commissioning framework for integrated care boards (ICBs), and the Model Region and ICB blueprints, supports National Health Service operational planning and joined-up partnership work between local government and ICBs.

What plans he has to review the NHS dental banding system to reflect the treatment of patients with complex needs.

We are introducing three new care pathways for patients with significant dental decay and gum disease, with payments to dentists ranging from £248 to £709.Under the new care pathways, patients will agree a single care plan with their dentist, setting out the prevention, treatment, and appointments they need. Patients will pay one charge for the whole course of care, normally a Band 2 charge. This approach benefits patients by reducing the need for repeated visits and avoiding multiple charges, while supporting more effective, joined‑up care.By incentivising complex treatments, we’re encouraging dentists to undertake vital National Health Service work, benefiting patients across the country who will pay one charge for the whole course of treatment.We are committed to delivering fundamental reform of the dental contract before the end of this Parliament. As a first step, on 16 December we published the Government’s response to the public consultation on quality and payment reforms to the NHS dental contract. The changes will be introduced from April 2026. These reforms will put patients with greatest need first, incentivising urgent care and complex treatments. Further information is available from the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/nhs-dentistry-contract-quality-and-payment-reforms/outcome/government-response-to-consultation-on-nhs-dentistry-contract-quality-and-payment-reforms

What steps he is taking to improve child dental health in Newbury constituency.

The 10-Year Health Plan confirms that child dental health is a priority. We are introducing changes to dental access that will benefit children. Following public consultation, from April 2026 we will introduce a new course of treatment for fluoride varnish for children to be applied by suitably trained dental nurses in between regular check-ups. We will also increase remuneration for dentists for fissure sealants, to support increased use of this effective treatment for primary prevention purposes.In the Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West Integrated Care Board, 26,221, or 12%, more NHS dental treatments were delivered to children in April to October 2025 compared to the same period before the election.The Government is also prioritising the prevention of poor dental health in children. Through the national supervised toothbrushing programme, the West Berkshire Council has been allocated approximately £33,000 over the 2025/26 and 2026/27 financial years to target three- to five-year-olds in deprived areas. The West Berkshire Council has also received approximately 700 free toothbrushes and toothpastes through our five year collaboration with Colgate-Palmolive.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of local authority funding pressures on recruitment and retention in the adult social care workforce.

No specific assessment has been made on the potential impact of local authority funding pressures on recruitment and retention in the adult social care workforce.English local authorities have a responsibility under the Care Act 2014 to meet social care needs and statutory guidance directs them to ensure there is sufficient workforce in adult social care. The Government recognises the scale of reforms needed to make the adult social care sector attractive, to support sustainable workforce growth and improve the retention of the domestic workforce.The Government is making over £4.6 billion of additional funding available for adult social care in 2028/29 compared to 2025/26, to support the sector in making improvements. This includes £500 million to introduce the first ever Fair Pay Agreement in 2028 to improve pay and conditions for the adult social care workforce.

What assessment his Department has made of whether current local authority funding for adult social care will be sufficient for projected demand over the next three years.

The Department regularly assesses the demand and cost pressures facing adult social care. These pressures were taken into account as part of the wider consideration of spending within the Spending Review process.The Government is making additional funding available for adult social care to support the sector in making improvements. The total additional funding available for adult social care in 2026/27 compared to 2025/26 is over £1.6 billion, rising to over £4.6 billion in 2028/29.This includes additional grant funding, growth in other sources of income available to support adult social care, and an increase to the National Health Service contribution to adult social care via the Better Care Fund, in line with the Department’s Spending Review settlement.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of changes to employer National Insurance contributions on providers of council-commissioned adult social care services.

The Government took the cost pressures facing adult social care, including changes to employer National Insurance contributions and increases to the National Living Wage, into account as part of the wider consideration of local government spending.To enable local authorities to deliver key services such as adult social care, the Government has made available up to £3.7 billion of additional funding for social care authorities in 2025/26. The Government also made an extra £502 million of support for local authorities in England to manage the impact of changes to employer National Insurance Contributions announced at the Autumn Budget for 2025/26.In addition, the final Local Government Finance Settlement has confirmed an increase of over £4.6 billion of funding available for adult social care in 2028/29 compared to 2025/26. Under the Care Act 2014, local authorities are responsible for shaping their care markets to meet local needs. In doing so, they should have an understanding of the local market, work effectively with local providers, and maintain oversight of local workforce pressures. It is for them to determine what is a sustainable rate, suitable to their local circumstances.

What assessment his Department has made of the (a) prevalence of respiratory disease and (b) number of emergency hospital admissions for respiratory conditions in Newbury constituency compared with the national average; and what steps he is taking to prioritise respiratory health nationally.

Data is available for emergency Finished Admission Episodes (FAEs) where there was a primary diagnosis of 'respiratory conditions’. The following table shows the number of FAEs where there was a primary diagnosis of 'respiratory conditions’ for the Newbury constituency, for activity in English National Health Service hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector, for 2024/25 and provisionally for 2025/26: Westminster Parliamentary Constituency of Residence2024/25 (August 2024 to March 2025)2025/26 (April 2025 to November 2025)Newbury895695England612,855511,558Source: Hospital Episode Statistics, NHS England. Available data on trends in respiratory conditions can be found on the Department’s Fingertips dataset. Data is not available by parliamentary constituency. Data is available at regional, county, unitary authority, and integrated care board level. Information for Newbury can be found under the West Berkshire county at the following link: https://fingertips.phe.org.uk/search/Respiratory#page/1/gid/1/pat/15/ati/502/are/E06000037/iid/40701/age/163/sex/4/cat/-1/ctp/-1/yrr/1/cid/4/tbm/1

Communities and Local Government, whether his Department has considered introducing an exemption from the Community Infrastructure Levy for householders.

Householders building residential extensions and residential annexes to their homes can obtain an exemption from the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL), subject to completing the procedural process for obtaining the exemption within required timescales. The CIL guidance, which can be found on gov.uk here, sets out all the criteria that must be met and procedures that must be followed to obtain an exemption. I otherwise refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 105228 on 21 January 2026.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing a householder exemption to the Community Infrastructure Levy.

Householders building residential extensions and residential annexes to their homes can obtain an exemption from the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL), subject to completing the procedural process for obtaining the exemption within required timescales. The CIL guidance, which can be found on gov.uk here, sets out all the criteria that must be met and procedures that must be followed to obtain an exemption. I otherwise refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 105228 on 21 January 2026.

What discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the potential impact of reforms to integrated care boards, including staffing reductions, on their role in SEND commissioning.

The department will continue to work closely with the Department of Health and Social Care as well as NHS England to ensure that special educational needs and disabilities reforms are co-ordinated across education and health, and local leaders are supported to manage the transition effectively.The government is also providing substantial, targeted investment to help local areas grow and strengthen their specialist workforce. Over the next three years, £1.8 billion will be made available to local area partnerships to develop and roll out the Experts at Hand offer.We have also announced over £40 million to expand the specialist workforce, including £15 million for new advanced speech and language therapy practitioner roles, and £26 million to train at least 200 educational psychologists per year from 2026 and 2027.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of tax changes on high street businesses in Newbury.

The Government has announced a support package worth £4.3bn to support high street businesses with their business bills, including new, permanently lower multipliers for eligible retail, hospitality, and leisure businesses. Every pub and live music venue will also get 15% off its new bill.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of being charged commercial electricity tariffs where the supply account is held in the name of a business on residential leaseholders.

The Government is committed to support domestic households with a non-domestic energy supply with their energy costs, and are very clear that resellers such as landlords should not profit from the act of reselling energy to consumers. Ofgem’s Maximum Resale Price (MRP) rules protect consumers from being overcharged by limiting the price of energy charged to consumers to the price paid by those procuring the energy. This includes tenants who pay their landlord for their energy. To ensure that businesses, are not being overcharged for energy, Ofgem is monitoring contracts in the non-domestic energy market.

Communities and Local Government, whether he made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a right for leaseholders to manage their own electricity supply arrangements.

The rights of leaseholders in respect of electricity supply arrangements are governed by the terms of their leases. The government is committed to implementing measures in the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 to make enfranchisement cheaper and easier. The Act sets the method for calculating the price of a statutory lease extension or freehold acquisition, known as the valuation process. It removes the requirement for marriage value to be paid, caps the treatment of ground rents in the valuation calculation at 0.1% of the freehold value, and allows government to prescribe the rates used to calculate the enfranchisement premium. Valuation rates used to calculate the enfranchisement premium will be set by the Secretary of State in secondary legislation. We will consult on valuation rates and commence the relevant provisions as soon as possible. As per my Written Ministerial Statement of 21 November 2024 (HCWS244), primary legislation will be required to rectify a small number of specific flaws in the 2024 Act before the Act’s enfranchisement provisions are commenced. Once brought into force, these measures, together with the already implemented removal of the two-year qualifying rule for enfranchisement, will mean leaseholders will be able to buy their freehold at any time, at a fair price. This will allow them to manage the electricity supply in their building.

What assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of consumer and small business protections when parcels are lost or delayed by couriers; and whether he plans to review the refund and reimbursement processes between couriers, sellers, and consumers in such cases.

When a consumer purchases a product, the contract is with the seller, not the delivery company. Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, the seller is responsible for delivery of goods bought online until they are in the consumer's possession. This removes the burden of the consumer having to raise the issue with both the delivery company and the retailer. My department currently has no plans to review this process.

Whether his Department plans to require parcel delivery companies to publish regular data on a) delivery success rates, b) complaints volumes, c) compensation claims and d) average resolution times.

Ofcom is the independent regulator for the postal sector. The government does not have a role in Ofcom’s regulatory decisions. Ofcom last reviewed postal regulation in 2022 and considered extending the requirement on Royal Mail to publish complaints handling reports to the wider parcels sector. It concluded the market, then, was working well. Following recent market developments, Ofcom is gathering evidence of operator’s compliance levels with their applicable Consumer Protection Conditions.

Whether he has had recent discussions with Ofcom regarding its monitoring and enforcement activity in respect of Evri.

Ministers have regular discussions with Ofcom in its capacity as the independent regulator for the postal sector with the responsibility and powers to regulate postal services. The government does not have a role in Ofcom’s regulatory decisions. Following market developments, Ofcom are gathering evidence of operator’s compliance levels with their applicable Consumer Protection Conditions.

Whether he has held discussions with relevant stakeholders on the adequacy of the operations of major parcel delivery operators during seasonal demands.

Ministers have regular discussions with Ofcom in its capacity as the independent regulator for the postal sector with the responsibility and powers to regulate postal services. The government wants to see all operators provide a good level of service, including during peak seasons. However, parcel delivery companies are independent businesses, and the government has no role in their operational decisions.

Whether he has had discussions with Evri on measures to support frontline delivery staff, including a) training, b) working conditions and c) pay.

All businesses must comply with relevant laws and employers must comply with their legal obligations to ensure that their workforce receive the rights and protections to which they are entitled. Evri, and other parcel delivery operators, are independent businesses and the government does not have a role in their operational decisions. Ofcom, the independent regulator for postal services, does not regulate the employment or remuneration models of Evri or other parcel delivery companies.