Andrew Snowden MP: written questions 2025
1670 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Hearing Impairment: BabiesDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 18 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 101512More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps are being taken to ensure that families of babies identified as deaf through the newborn hearing screening programme receive timely and appropriate support from birth.
Answer: Newborn babies whose hearing screening suggests they may have deafness and hearing impairment are referred for an audiological assessment within four weeks.A family centred approach underpins all recall processes to prioritise clear communication and supp...
Answered 15 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordSpecial Educational Needs: Hearing ImpairmentDepartment for EducationTabled 18 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 101511More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 15 December 2025 to Question 85962 on Special Educational Needs: Hearing Impairment, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of making support for families available fro
Answer: The department is committed to ensuring that all children, including deaf and hard of hearing children, have the best possible start in life. The NHS Newborn Hearing Screening Programme aims to identify permanent moderate, severe, and profound deafness an...
Answered 12 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordMeat: LabellingDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 16 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 100621More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has considered the potential merits of introducing mandatory labelling of meat products to indicate the method of slaughter.
Answer: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 17 December 2025 to PQ UIN 99375.
Answered 6 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordSlaughterhousesDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 16 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 100620More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many enforcement actions relating to breaches of animal welfare regulations at slaughterhouses were taken by the Food Standards Agency in each of the last five years; and how many of those rela
Answer: Between April 2020 and March 2025, 1,935 animal welfare breaches posing potential or imminent animal welfare risk were recorded in slaughterhouses in England and Wales, requiring 2,320 enforcement actions. Some breaches required multiple actions, such as ...
Answered 6 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordCharities: MembersDepartment for Culture, Media and SportTabled 15 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 100173More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what guidance the Government provides to membership-based charities to ensure compliance with charity law where benefits are restricted to members.
Answer: All charities in England and Wales must have wholly charitable purposes that are for the public benefit, in order to enjoy the advantages of charitable status. Unless the purpose is for the relief (and in some cases the prevention) of poverty, a charitabl...
Answered 22 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordPre-school Education: Pupil PremiumDepartment for EducationTabled 15 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 100149More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children (i) in Fylde and (ii) across Lancashire are expected to benefit from the increased Early Years Pupil Premium.
Answer: On the 15 December we announced the local authority funding rates for 2026/2027. From April 2026, the Early Years Pupil Premium (EYPP) will be increased by an additional 15% to £1.15 an hour, equivalent to up to £655 a year. Statistics at a parliamentary ...
Answered 18 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordChildcareDepartment for EducationTabled 15 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 100148More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how the expansion of school-based nurseries will contribute to increasing access to funded childcare, particularly in areas with limited provision.
Answer: High quality early years is central to our mission to break down the barriers to opportunity, give every child the best possible start in life and is essential to our Plan for Change. This government is boosting availability and access through the school-...
Answered 6 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordChildcare: LancashireDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 15 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 100145More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many families (i) in Fylde and (ii) across Lancashire are expected to receive the additional £736.06 per child in childcare support as a result of changes to universal credit rules.
Answer: The requested information is not readily available and to provide it would be at disproportionate cost. The monthly statistics for the number of Children in households on Universal Credit in Great Britain by Parliamentary Constituency and Local Authority ...
Answered 18 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordPre-school Education: FinanceDepartment for EducationTabled 15 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 100144More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what action her Department will take where local authorities are found to be retaining more than the permitted 3% of early years funding.
Answer: The passthrough requirement ensures that the great majority of government funding for the early years entitlements reaches providers so that they can deliver the entitlement offers. The passthrough rate is a statutory requirement set out in the Schools an...
Answered 7 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordEnglish Language: AssessmentsDepartment for EducationTabled 15 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 100142More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what safeguards are now in place to prevent malpractice in English language proficiency tests used for university entrance, following the issues identified by Ofqual with Pearson’s PTE Academic Online test.
Answer: Universities are autonomous bodies, independent from government, and responsible for their own admissions decisions. Where English is not an applicant's first language, it is right that a provider assures themselves that the applicant has a reasonable lik...
Answered 7 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordLanguages: AssessmentsDepartment for EducationTabled 15 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 100141More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps are being taken to ensure that modern foreign language qualifications are set and marked in line with Ofqual requirements and do not unfairly disadvantage particular groups of students.
Answer: Ofqual, the independent regulator of examinations and assessments in England, expects awarding organisations to manage risk in line with its General Conditions of Recognition, which are available here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/ofqual-handbook.The matte...
Answered 22 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordQualificationsDepartment for EducationTabled 15 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 100140More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions her Department has had with Ofqual regarding the risk management processes used by awarding organisations when introducing new qualifications.
Answer: Ofqual, the independent regulator of examinations and assessments in England, expects awarding organisations to manage risk in line with its General Conditions of Recognition, which are available here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/ofqual-handbook.The matte...
Answered 22 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordStudents: AssessmentsDepartment for EducationTabled 15 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 100138More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the press notice of 15 December 2025 entitled Ofqual fines Pearson £2 million for rule breaches affecting thousands of students, how many students were affected by each of the three cases for
Answer: This is a matter for Ofqual, the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation. I have asked its Chief Regulator, Sir Ian Bauckham, to write to the hon. Member for Fylde directly, and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Hous...
Answered 18 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordEducation: StandardsDepartment for EducationTabled 12 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99589More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of the performance of free schools compared with maintained schools and academies in terms of educational outcomes.
Answer: Many free schools, run by strong trusts, have contributed to raising standards and achieved strong outcomes for their pupils. However, too many children and young people are still being left behind due to their educational needs or their background. The d...
Answered 10 Feb 2026
Original Parliament recordBus Services: FyldeDepartment for TransportTabled 12 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99588More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate she has made of the potential impact of increasing the bus travel fare cap from £2 in July 2024 to £3 on the accessibility of services in Fylde constituency.
Answer: The Department is currently undertaking an evaluation of the £3 bus fare cap and its impacts. This will include analysis of bus usage. The evaluation will focus on understanding the national impacts of the scheme. The final monitoring and evaluation repor...
Answered 18 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordDoctors: Industrial DisputesDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 12 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99587More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of Resident Doctor strikes on the delivery of healthcare services in Lancashire.
Answer: The Department has not made a formal assessment of the potential impact of resident doctor strikes on the delivery of healthcare services in Lancashire specifically.The National Health Service makes every effort through rigorous contingency planning to mi...
Answered 22 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordMeat: LabellingDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 11 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99375More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that consumers are provided with sufficient information to make informed choices regarding the method of slaughter used in producing meat
Answer: The Government expects industry to provide consumers with information on which to make an informed choice about their food. Any information provided on the method of slaughter must be accurate and not misleading to the consumer.
Answered 17 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordGeneral Practitioners: Prescription DrugsDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 11 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99374More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the Department has assessed the potential benefits of enabling GPs to issue automatic repeat prescriptions for patients on stable, long-term medication.
Answer: Responsibility for prescribing, including the issue of repeat prescribing and the duration of prescriptions, rests with the prescriber who has clinical responsibility for that particular aspect of a patient’s care.Electronic repeat dispensing is already i...
Answered 18 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordUndocumented Migrants: English ChannelHome OfficeTabled 11 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99367More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many small boat crossings have taken place in each of the last ten years, including 2025.
Answer: The Home Office publishes daily statistics on detected small boat arrivals to the UK in the Small boat activity in the English Channel - GOV.UK(opens in a new tab) release.More detailed published data on small boat arrivals to the UK are provided in the ‘...
Answered 22 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordSri Lanka: StormsForeign, Commonwealth and Development OfficeTabled 11 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99366More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what engagement her Department has had with counterparts in Sri Lanka regarding Storm Ditwah.
Answer: I refer the Hon. Member to the answer provided on 18 December in response to Question 99464.
Answered 18 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordAssessments: Digital TechnologyDepartment for EducationTabled 11 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99352More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps will be taken to ensure that school leaders, exam officers, teachers, parents and students are fully consulted during the 12-week consultation on regulating on-screen assessments.
Answer: The department recognises the importance of securing responses from teachers, school leaders, exams officers, parents and students, and Ofqual is committed to achieving diverse representation. To support this, Ofqual is engaging these groups through targe...
Answered 29 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordAssessments: Digital TechnologyDepartment for EducationTabled 11 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99351More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what measures will be put in place to prevent any widening of attainment gaps between students with differing levels of access to digital technology when on-screen assessments are introduced.
Answer: Ofqual is consulting on a controlled approach to any further adoption of on-screen assessment that protects standards, fairness and teachers’ ability to prepare students effectively. Under its proposals, most GCSEs, AS and A levels will continue to be ass...
Answered 19 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordInfluenza: LancashireDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 11 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99331More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to reduce transmission of influenza in Lancashire.
Answer: Our flu vaccination campaign started in September, and is helping to keep people out of hospital. The UK Health Security Agency is also working closely with colleagues in NHS North West and local integrated care boards (ICBs). There continues to be sustai...
Answered 19 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordInfluenza: LancashireDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 11 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99330More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of hospital admissions due to acute influenza across Lancashire; and how this compares to the same period last year.
Answer: Data on hospital admissions due to flu at a county level is not published. Between 25 November and 7 December 2025, there was a daily average of 346 adult general and acute beds occupied by flu patients in acute trusts in the North West. This was higher t...
Answered 17 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordListed Places of Worship Grant SchemeDepartment for Culture, Media and SportTabled 10 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 98971More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when she expects to announce whether the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme will be renewed beyond 31 March 2026.
Answer: Future funding beyond March 2026 will be considered as we work through the output of the Spending Review and Departmental business planning process. An announcement will be made once this decision is finalised.
Answered 18 Dec 2025
Original Parliament record
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