Every parliamentary written question tabled by Martin Wrigley this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 1,361–1,380 of 1,723 · this parliament
What assessment she has made of the potential role of international students with Graduate visas in tackling workforce skills shortages in key sectors.
I refer the Honourable Member to my response to his question of 24th February 2025 [33207].
What progress her Department has made on publishing a road safety strategy.
Improving road safety is one of the Department’s highest priorities. Too many people are killed and seriously injured in road traffic collisions, and this Government will work hard to prevent these tragedies for all road users. The Department is developing a road safety strategy and will set out more details in due course.
What steps his Department is taking to ensure that prescription charges do not act as a barrier to treatment for people with long-term medical conditions.
Approximately 89% of prescription items are dispensed free of charge in the community in England, and there is a wide range of exemptions from prescription charges already in place to help those with the greatest need. Eligibility depends on the patient’s age, whether they are in qualifying full-time education, whether they are pregnant or have recently given birth, whether they have a qualifying medical condition, or whether they are in receipt of certain benefits or a war pension.People with certain long-term medical conditions may qualify for a medical exemption, which entitles them to claim free prescriptions. The medical exemption is a long-standing exemption from prescription charges, which covers all the patient’s prescriptions, not just those for the qualifying condition. A list of the qualifying medical conditions and information on how to apply for a medical exemption certificate is available at the following link:www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/medexPeople who do not qualify for an exemption and who need many prescription items could save money with a prescription prepayment certificate (PPC). PPCs allow people to claim as many prescriptions as they need for a set cost, with three-month and 12-month certificates available, and the 12-month PPC can be paid for in instalments.
Communities and Local Government, when the Minister for Housing and Planning will meet with the hon. Member for Newton Abbot.
My private office has contacted the hon. Member by email to offer a meeting.
If she will make a comparative assessment of taxation on (a) bio fuel and (b) fossil fuels.
The UK taxes fuels for a variety of reasons, and tax revenues from fuel are a vital part of overall tax revenues which are used to fund public services. Tax treatment does not generally differ between biofuels and fossil fuels.The government also ensures the tax system supports climate goals through measures such as the Carbon Price Support and Climate Change Levy.
Communities and Local Government, when the Minister for Local Government and English Devolution will meet with the hon. Member for Newton Abbot.
I meet with members routinely, and am pleased to do so. My office have contacted the hon. Member.
If he will make a comparative assessment of (a) gas and (b) biofuels for home heating.
Moving away from our reliance on natural gas for home heating is essential to achieving Net Zero and increasing our energy independence. The Government expects most properties will switch to heat pumps, along with heat networks, but recognises that in homes not connected to the gas grid, renewable liquid heating fuels (RLHF) could play a limited role in decarbonising heat. However, sustainable biomass is a limited resource, so the Government expects to prioritise its use in sectors which have fewest options to decarbonise. RLHFs are also more expensive to use than other heating solutions. We will keep evidence under review.
Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has plans to ban UK firms from insuring supplies and products to and from Russia.
Together with our international partners, we have unleashed the largest and most substantial package of sanctions ever imposed on a major economy. As a result, Russian imports into the UK have fallen by more than 99 percent, and UK exports to Russia are down by more than 75 percent. Many of our trade sanctions on goods include restrictions on the provision of financial services underlying trade to and from Russia. This includes the provision of insurance.
Whether his Department has plans to ban imports from third country refineries that process Russian crude oil.
The UK has worked closely with international partners to constrain Russian oil revenues while maintaining global energy supply and security, protecting critical supply chains, and maintaining the stability of global markets. The Government does not speculate on future sanctions measures as to do so could reduce their impact. We continue to monitor the effectiveness of our sanctions.
Communities and Local Government, how new local authorities with overlapping national park authorities will (a) interact with each other, (b) have stakeholder obligations and (c) be statutory consultees to each other.
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 32529 on 3 March 2025.
Whether his Department has plans to ban the importation of oil products produced from Russian crude oil.
The UK has worked closely with international partners to constrain Russian oil revenues while maintaining global energy supply and security, protecting critical supply chains, and maintaining the stability of global markets. The Government does not speculate on future sanctions measures as to do so could reduce their impact. We continue to monitor the effectiveness of our sanctions.
Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the proposed reduction in the proportion of gross national income spent on overseas development assistance on the influence of Russia in the countries from which aid would be withdrawn.
The Prime Minister has set out a new strategic vision for government spending on defence and security, and Official Development Assistance (ODA). Detailed decisions on how the ODA budget will be used will be worked through as part of the ongoing Spending Review based on various factors including impact assessments. This government remains fully committed to a significant role on development.
Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to meet with campaigners involved with the Climate and Nature Bill.
We regularly meet with campaigners on a wide range of issues, including those who support the Climate and Nature Bill.
Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to meet the hon. Member for South Cotswolds to discuss legislative proposals on climate and nature.
I met with the honourable member for South Cotswolds in January this year.
Whether her Department is taking steps to support women impacted by changes to the State Pension age with top-up contributions.
The Government seeks to support people to help them to retain, return to or progress in work. That is why the Government is reforming employment support to ensure it supports people of all ages.For those people who are unable to work but who are not eligible for pensioner benefits because of their age, financial support is available through the welfare system.The new State Pension, introduced in 2016, addresses historically poorer outcomes for women. Since the introduction of the new State Pension, National Insurance Contributions and National Insurance Credits have equal value, providing access to the same level of entitlement for all. In addition, there is a comprehensive framework of National Insurance credits available when people are out of the workforce, maybe caring for children or elderly relatives.For people with gaps in their National Insurance record, they may want to consider voluntary contributions. Many can now use the Check your State Pension forecast service to buy voluntary National Insurance contributions online.
Food and Rural Affairs, if he will take steps to provide compensation to poultry farmers who have had eggs destroyed as a result of Avian flu.
Compensation paid for birds culled by the Government for disease control purposes is designed to promote prompt reporting of suspicion of disease and is only payable for healthy birds as set out in the Animal Health Act 1981. There is no compensation available for sick birds or birds that have died. Compensation is not paid for consequential losses, including business interruption caused by control measures, or for eggs or poultry meat. We have no plans to reconsider this policy at this time.
With reference to the policy paper entitled 10-year Prison Capacity Strategy, published on 11 December 2024, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that new prison developments do not negatively impact local (a) air and (b) water quality; and whether she plans to put systems in place to monitor the environmental impact of those developments.
All new prison developments require the Ministry of Justice to submit a detailed Environment Impact Assessment. In addition, the Ministry of Justice applies the Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) policy, which requires new builds, where technically feasible, to achieve the BREEAM ‘Excellent’ accreditation as a minimum with the ambition to achieve ‘Outstanding’, the highest rating achievable. BREEAM is a third-party certification process which assesses a project’s environmental, social and economic sustainability performance, including specific consideration of water course pollution, air quality and other environmental impacts. Once construction is complete, the Ministry of Justice is committed to monitoring the environmental impact of developments throughout their lifespan in accordance with BREEAM policy and in line with planning condition requirements.
Whether her Department holds information on the proportion of Russian oil (a) imports and (b) exports insured by UK financial instruments.
The Oil Price Cap was designed to meet two core objectives: to bear down on Russian revenues that could otherwise be used to fund its illegal war, whilst also maintaining global energy security and flows of affordable oil to countries that need it. The measure has been effective partly thanks to the prevalence of highly sought after G7+ service providers, which means it is very difficult to make major oil trades or gain significant market share without using G7+ services at all. Where G7+ services are involved in the shipping of Russian oil and oil products to third countries, these trades must be conducted at or below the relevant price cap – constraining Putin’s ability to use inflated oil revenues to sustain his war machine. This is why the UK, alongside G7+ partners, has provided extensive guidance to industry to advise service providers, including insurers, on how they can move Russian oil in compliance with the price cap. While the cap allows UK service providers to continue to be involved in the shipping of Russian oil and oil products to third countries, it is important to note that since 5 December 2022 the UK has banned the import, acquisition, supply and delivery of Russian oil and oil products into the UK.
Food and Rural Affairs, if he will publish the costs to pet owners for (a) pet passports and (b) Animal Health Certificates for travel between the UK and the EU in the last ten years.
The Government does not collect data on the cost of pet passports or Animal Health Certificates. All fees are set by veterinary surgeons or veterinary practices and are a private matter between individual practices and their clients and neither the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS), the UK regulator of the veterinary profession, nor Defra intervene in the level of fees that are charged.
For what reason his Department has issued licenses for the export to Russia of (a) medicinal and pharmaceutical products, (b) beverages and tobacco, (c) organic chemicals, (d) cars, (e) toilet and cleansing preparations, (f) travel services, (g) insurance and pension products, (h) other business services, (i) financial services and (j) telecoms, computer and information services since September 2024.
Applications for licences to export goods and services to Russia otherwise covered by sanctions are assessed on a case-by-case basis, in line with the objectives of our sanctions regime, our wider international obligations, and the specific context of each application, including humanitarian considerations.Considerations for granting a licence include, but are not limited to, goods and services being provided for medical and pharmaceutical purposes for the benefit of the civilian population, or activities to support the divestment of assets with Russia, and the production or distribution of food for the benefit of the civilian population. Section 3 of the Statutory Guidance for Russia Sanctions: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/russia-sanctions-guidance provides further information.