Alison Bennett MP: written questions
131 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Immigration: ChildrenHome OfficeTabled 8 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 98129More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the proposed new earnings requirement for settlement on British children in families where one parent is a non-UK national with prima
Answer: The earned settlement model is currently subject to a public consultation, running until 12 February 2026. Details of the earned settlement scheme will be finalised following that consultation. However, the May 2025 Immigration White Paper and the command...
Answered 22 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordImmigration: FamiliesHome OfficeTabled 8 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 98127More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the proposed minimum earnings requirement for settlement applications will apply to family migration routes, including partners and spouses of British citizens.
Answer: The earned settlement model is currently subject to a public consultation, running until 12 February 2026. Details of the earned settlement scheme will be finalised following that consultation. However, the May 2025 Immigration White Paper and the command...
Answered 22 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordCarer's Allowance: OverpaymentsDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 5 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 97704More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will ensure that carers are not being pursued for overpayments where this was incurred due to incorrect operational guidance.
Answer: I refer the hon. Member to my Written Statement of 25 November HCWS1092 and (at Col 22WS) Carer's Allowance Overpayments Review - Hansard - UK Parliament where I set out that the department will be reassessing historical and existing Carer’s Allowance cas...
Answered 10 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordCarer's Allowance: OverpaymentsDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 5 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 97703More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what is the planned timetable for the reassessment of carers allowance overpayments as a result of incorrect operational guidance.
Answer: I refer the hon. Member to my Written Statement of 25 November HCWS1092 and (at Col 22WS) Carer's Allowance Overpayments Review - Hansard - UK Parliament where I set out that the department will be reassessing historical and existing Carer’s Allowance cas...
Answered 10 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordGlyphosate: RegulationDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 27 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 95284More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if the government plans to further regulate use by local authorities of glyphosate herbicides.
Answer: Defra is not planning on further regulating glyphosate use by local authorities. There is a legal requirement to minimise the use of pesticides along roads and in areas used by the public. It is for each Local Authority to decide the best way of deliverin...
Answered 2 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordCarer's Allowance: OverpaymentsDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 26 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 94916More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the outstanding level of carers allowance overpayments debt is in relation to carers breaching the earnings limit.
Answer: As of June 2025, just under £166 million was outstanding from just under 93,500 CA debtors due to earnings over the limit which was classed as claimant error. Further information can be found on the Carer’s Allowance statistical release which was publishe...
Answered 2 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordUnadopted RoadsDepartment for TransportTabled 26 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 94904More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she is taking steps to encourage developers to build roads that meet standards for adoption by the highways authority.
Answer: The Government expects developers to design and construct roads in line with the design standards set by local highway authorities. These standards ensure that roads are suitable for adoption, enabling them to be maintained at public expense. The Departme...
Answered 1 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordFurther Education: AdmissionsDepartment for EducationTabled 13 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 90886More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 11 November 2025 to Question 88105, how many 16 to 19 year olds are enrolled on each of the 900 non-A level Level 3 qualifications referenced in the Department’s consultation document
Answer: The government’s vision for the 16-19 education system is to create a clear and coherent system with distinct pathways leading to further study, training or employment, including apprenticeships.At level 3, this includes introducing V Levels, a new pathwa...
Answered 2 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordFurther Education: AdmissionsDepartment for EducationTabled 4 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 88105More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many 16 to 19 year olds are currently enrolled on each Level 3 qualification.
Answer: Official statistics showing Participation in education, training and employment age 16 to 18 are published annually, with the latest estimates being for end 2024, and accessible at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/parti...
Answered 11 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordCarer's allowance: OverpaymentsDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 4 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 88104More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many carers have Carer’s Allowance overpayment debts as a result of breaching the earnings limit in (a) England, (b) Wales, (c) Scotland and (d) Northern Ireland in the last six years for which data
Answer: Data on fraud and error overpayments is published annually and can be found using the following link: Fraud and error in the benefit system - GOV.UK. 2024/25 estimates show that Carer's Allowance Overpayments relating to earnings / employment represented ...
Answered 11 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordCarer's allowance: OverpaymentsDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 4 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 88103More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many (a) men and (b) women are in debt to his Department through overpayments of Carers Allowance in relation to earnings.
Answer: Data on fraud and error overpayments is published annually and can be found using the following link: Fraud and error in the benefit system - GOV.UK. 2024/25 estimates show that Carer's Allowance Overpayments relating to earnings / employment represented ...
Answered 11 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordCarer's allowance: OverpaymentsDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 4 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 88102More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Carer’s Allowance overpayments there have been in relation to earnings in each year for the last five years.
Answer: Data on fraud and error overpayments is published annually and can be found using the following link: Fraud and error in the benefit system - GOV.UK. 2024/25 estimates show that Carer's Allowance Overpayments relating to earnings / employment represented ...
Answered 11 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordCarer's allowance: OverpaymentsDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 4 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 88101More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many overpayments of Carer’s Allowance in relation to earnings there are in the value brackets (a) £0.01.00 - £500.00, (b) £501.00 - £1000.00, (c) £1,001.00 - £5,000.00, (d) £5,000.01 - £20,000 and
Answer: Data on fraud and error overpayments is published annually and can be found using the following link: Fraud and error in the benefit system - GOV.UK. 2024/25 estimates show that Carer's Allowance Overpayments relating to earnings / employment represented ...
Answered 11 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordCarer's Allowance: OverpaymentsDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 3 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 87574More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate his Department has made of the value of Carer’s Allowance overpayment debts in relation to earnings.
Answer: Data on fraud and error overpayments was published earlier this year: Fraud and error in the benefit system: financial year 2024 to 2025 estimates - GOV.UK. 2024/25 estimates show that Carer's Allowance Overpayments relating to earnings / employment repre...
Answered 11 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordCarer's Allowance: OverpaymentsDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 3 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 87573More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Carer’s Allowance overpayments in relation to earnings there are.
Answer: Data on fraud and error overpayments was published earlier this year: Fraud and error in the benefit system: financial year 2024 to 2025 estimates - GOV.UK. 2024/25 estimates show that Carer's Allowance Overpayments relating to earnings / employment repre...
Answered 11 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordCarer's Allowance: OverpaymentsDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 3 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 87572More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what progress his Department has made on processing Carer's Allowance overpayments; and when that process will be completed.
Answer: DWP secured additional funding for 2025/2026 for a 27% increase in resource to clear the stock of Carer’s Allowance (CA) Verify Earnings and Pensions (VEP) alerts. VEP enables DWP to receive real time identification of changes in a claimant’s income throu...
Answered 14 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordCarer's Allowance: OverpaymentsDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 3 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 87571More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department’s plans to process all Carer’s Allowance overpayments in relation to earnings.
Answer: DWP secured additional funding for 2025/2026 for a 27% increase in resource to clear the stock of Carer’s Allowance (CA) Verify Earnings and Pensions (VEP) alerts. VEP enables DWP to receive real time identification of changes in a claimant’s income throu...
Answered 14 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordCarer's Allowance: OverpaymentsDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 3 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 87570More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what progress his Department has made on clearing the backlog of Carer’s Allowance overpayment debts in relation to earnings.
Answer: DWP secured additional funding for 2025/2026 for a 27% increase in resource to clear the stock of Carer’s Allowance (CA) Verify Earnings and Pensions (VEP) alerts. VEP enables DWP to receive real time identification of changes in a claimant’s income throu...
Answered 14 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordFood: AdvertisingDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 29 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 86527More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans his Department has to extend marketing restrictions for HFSS products to outdoor advertising.
Answer: Under the Health Mission, the Government is committed to prevention and to tackling obesity by creating a fairer, healthier food environment. We are already delivering the biggest public health reforms in a generation which includes restrictions on junk f...
Answered 17 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordSocial Services: HouseholdsDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 27 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 85596More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has considered research from The University of Manchester advocating for care support packages that target whole households.
Answer: We have not made a direct assessment of the potential merits of implementing care support packages for households, rather than for individuals requiring care. However, we recognise the importance of people’s wider support networks for those drawing on car...
Answered 31 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordSocial Services: Older PeopleDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 27 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 85595More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his Department's policies on tackling unmet needs for social care of The University of Manchester's publication entitled ‘Tackling unme
Answer: The publication by the University of Manchester raises important implications for how adult social care is delivered by local authorities. The Government recognises the long-term trend of a reduction in the number of local authority funded long-term packa...
Answered 31 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordDefibrillators: VATTreasuryTabled 27 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 85594More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will take steps to remove VAT from defibrillator sales to help improve the levels of affordability for (a) community groups and (b) small businesses.
Answer: VAT is a broad-based tax on consumption, and the 20 per cent standard rate applies to most goods and services. Exceptions to the standard rate have always been limited and balanced against affordability considerations. The Government currently provides VA...
Answered 30 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordCarer's Allowance: OverpaymentsDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 24 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 85021More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many carers have a Carer’s Allowance overpayment debt as a result of breaching the earnings limit in (a) England, (b) Wales, (c) Scotland and (d) Northern Ireland (i) for which the latest data is av
Answer: Liz Sayce OBE was commissioned to lead an Independent Review into overpayments of Carer’s Allowance (CA). The Government is carefully considering the recommendations of this Review which investigated how overpayments of CA related to earnings occurred, ho...
Answered 29 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordJimmy LaiForeign, Commonwealth and Development OfficeTabled 20 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 83708More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent diplomatic steps she has taken to secure the release of Jimmy Lai from detention in Hong Kong.
Answer: Jimmy Lai's case remains a high priority for the Government. We continue to call on the Hong Kong authorities to end their politically motivated prosecution and immediately release him. The Prime Minister, and Ministers across Government, have urged the C...
Answered 23 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordMusic and Dance Scheme: FinanceDepartment for EducationTabled 15 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 82566More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has had discussions with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on (a) increasing funding for the Music and Dance Scheme and (b) committing to a multiple-year settlement.
Answer: The government fully supports the arts and the development of a skills pipeline into the creative industries.The department is providing £36.5 million for the Music and Dance Scheme this academic year.Funding beyond the current academic year, including an...
Answered 3 Nov 2025
Original Parliament record
Published records only — not a full account of an MP’s work. How we work →