Andrew Snowden MP: written questions
1837 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Employment: Mental Health ServicesDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 26 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13613More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the average cost per participant of the Support Conversations programme.
Answer: Support Conversations are voluntary, one-off hour-long discussions to help disabled people and people with health conditions receiving Universal Credit to discuss their support needs and identify extra help they may need. This personalised support is desi...
Answered 6 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordBoiler Upgrade Scheme: StandardsDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 26 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13612More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how long households wait on average between approval of a Boiler Upgrade Scheme application and completion of installation.
Answer: Installers apply for a voucher on behalf of property owners, once issued, vouchers remain valid for three or six months, depending on the technology being installed. Ofgem, as scheme administrator, have agreed Key Performance Indicators to monitor deliver...
Answered 6 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordBoiler Upgrade Scheme: CostsDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 26 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13611More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate his Department has made of the total additional cost to the public purse of increasing the Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant from £7,500 to £9,000.
Answer: The Boiler Upgrade Scheme was allocated a budget of £400 million in 2026/27 as set out in the Government’s Warm Homes Plan. Following the announcement that the grant available to eligible oil and LPG heated homes will increase from £7,500 to £9,000, no ad...
Answered 6 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordDomestic SafetyMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 26 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13610More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the impact of the revised Housing Health and Safety Rating System on (a) inspection times and (b) enforcement outcomes.
Answer: On 23 June 2026, my Department laid new statutory guidance on the operation and enforcement of the revised Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS). It can be found on gov.uk here.We will monitor the implementation of the revised HHSRS and seek fee...
Answered 20 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordLandlords: FinesMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 26 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13609More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to ensure consistency between local authorities in the application of financial penalties for landlords found to have serious hazards in their
Answer: A new financial penalty of up to £7,000 for a failure to take reasonably practicable steps to remove a category 1 hazard came into force on 22 June. Statutory guidance on new financial penalties is included within revised Housing Health and Safety Rating ...
Answered 20 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordLandlords: FinesMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 26 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13608More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the capacity of local authority environmental health teams to enforce the new financial penalties on landlords who do not repair Category 1 hazards
Answer: A new financial penalty of up to £7,000 for a failure to take reasonably practicable steps to remove a category 1 hazard came into force on 22 June. Statutory guidance on new financial penalties is included within revised Housing Health and Safety Rating ...
Answered 20 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordHousing: Air ConditioningMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 26 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13607More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of current regulations on air conditioning systems in newbuild properties.
Answer: Part O of the Building Regulations requires that new residential buildings are built to mitigate the risk of overheating. Part O encourages passive design measures, such as limiting solar gain and enabling heat to be removed naturally, before relying on m...
Answered 1 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordDoctors: RecruitmentDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 26 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13606More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has issued guidance to NHS employers on providing meaningful feedback to unsuccessful applicants for medical posts.
Answer: All candidates applying for posts as part of national medical recruitment undertaken by NHS England are provided feedback at each stage of the process where they are unsuccessful. Information about the application process is set out on the UK Foundation P...
Answered 2 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordDoctors: UnemploymentDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 26 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13605More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of the number of doctors with full General Medical Council registration and a licence to practise who are (a) unemployed and (b) underemployed while seeking su
Answer: The Department has made no assessment of the number of General Medical Council licenced doctors who are unemployed or underemployed while seeking substantive National Health Service medical posts.
Answered 6 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordFiresDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 26 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13604More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to mitigate the risk of wildfires during periods of extreme heat.
Answer: Defra with its executive agencies, ALBs and through the Protected Landscapes, encourage landscape scale land management to help increase wildfire resilience, including through the adoption of good quality wildfire management plans. We are also working clo...
Answered 2 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordNature Conservation: Public SectorDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 26 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13603More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how the £4.1 million allocated to lighthouse projects for nature recovery on the public estate has been distributed between participating departments and agencies.
Answer: The £4.1 million lighthouse project funding under the Government Estate Nature Plan is not allocated as fixed departmental budgets. Funding is awarded on a project-by-project basis, with delivery led by the departments responsible for individual sites. Fu...
Answered 2 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordDepartment for Work and Pensions: BlackpoolDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 25 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13277More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what alternative locations are being considered for staff currently based at Blackpool Peel Park.
Answer: On 25 June 2026, I made a Written Statement (HCWS153) to announce the department’s intention to relocate around 750 colleagues and the services they provide, from Peel Park to Fylde View by April 2027. Approximately 1,180 colleagues will remain in Peel Pa...
Answered 3 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordGovernment Departments: Land UseDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 25 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13276More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how the principles of the Land Use Framework will be applied across Government-owned land.
Answer: The Government is applying Land Use Framework principles across its estate by taking a more strategic, whole‑estate approach to land. It will ensure that land use change is evidence based and considered holistically across the whole estate to deliver the ...
Answered 2 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordGovernment Departments: Nature ConservationDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 25 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13275More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many hectares of Government-owned land are covered by the Government Estate Nature Plan.
Answer: The Government Estate Nature Plan covers over 560,000 hectares of government-owned land in England.
Answered 2 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordHigher Education: English LanguageDepartment for EducationTabled 25 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13274More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the written statement of 25 June 2026 on Student outcomes in higher education, HCWS150, what level of English language proficiency is being considered as part of the proposed consultation.
Answer: The department’s consultation will seek views on whether and if so, how, a clear, consistent baseline of English language proficiency could be used as a condition of access to student finance to strengthen protections across the system. Our aim is to prot...
Answered 9 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordGraduates: EmploymentDepartment for EducationTabled 25 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13273More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to improve the accessibility of information on graduate destinations and outcomes for prospective students.
Answer: Access to high-quality information is essential for applicants to make confident and well-informed decisions about what and where to study.The department is working with the Office for Students (OfS), UCAS, and sector partners to improve the quality and a...
Answered 3 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordHigher Education: FinanceDepartment for EducationTabled 25 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13272More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what form the proposed legislative measures to limit the growth of courses with poor earnings outcomes will take.
Answer: Our higher education (HE) sector is world leading, and most graduates are significantly better off as a result of undertaking HE. However, analysis recently published by the Institute for Fiscal Studies highlights variation in outcomes, with negative retu...
Answered 3 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordChildren: MaintenanceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 25 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13271More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Justice on the interaction between child maintenance rules and family court child arrangement orders.
Answer: The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) is limited to calculating, collecting and enforcing child maintenance payments. Decisions about child care or access arrangements, including where a child lives and the time they spend with each parent, are a matter for...
Answered 3 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordChildren: MaintenanceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 25 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13270More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of whether the child maintenance calculation accurately reflects the costs incurred by the parent with primary day-to-day responsibility for a child.
Answer: The child maintenance calculation amount is usually calculated as a percentage of the paying parent's gross income and sourced directly from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) for the latest tax year available. That calculation can be adjusted to reflect certa...
Answered 8 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordHousing Associations: TenantsMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 25 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13269More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 24 June 2026 to Question 10293 on Housing Associations: Tenants, when he plans for the consultation to close.
Answer: My Department will announce details of the consultation, including how prospective consultees can contribute, in due course.
Answered 20 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordHousing Associations: TenantsMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 25 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13268More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 24 June 2026 to Question 10293 on Housing Associations: Tenants, how the consultation will be advertised to prospective consultees.
Answer: My Department will announce details of the consultation, including how prospective consultees can contribute, in due course.
Answered 20 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordJuriesMinistry of JusticeTabled 25 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13267More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to reduce unnecessary waiting times for jurors attending court.
Answer: Jurors are integral to the efficient, effective and fair running of the Crown Court system. The Ministry of Justice and HM Courts and Tribunals Service recognise the importance of making optimal use of jurors’ time, and of minimising unnecessary or avoida...
Answered 1 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordJuries: AllowancesMinistry of JusticeTabled 25 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13266More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of jury service loss-of-earnings allowances in meeting the cost of living of jurors.
Answer: Jury service is an important civic duty, and the Government is committed to ensuring jurors feel supported throughout their service. All support for jurors is kept under review to ensure that it remains appropriate and accessible. Where jury service is li...
Answered 1 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordChild Arrangements OrdersMinistry of JusticeTabled 25 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13265More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether guidance issued to family courts on child arrangements includes consideration of a child's routines, friendships, extracurricular activities and educational commitments.
Answer: The Family Court considers the welfare of the child to be paramount in any decisions regarding child arrangements. In determining the child’s welfare needs, the court will consider a wide range of factors relevant to the child’s best interests as set out ...
Answered 2 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordEmployment: Young PeopleDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 25 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13264More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what support his Department provides to help young people develop budgeting and money-management skills when entering employment.
Answer: We recognise that the ability to manage money confidently is an important part of succeeding in work and living independently. Through Jobcentres, young people can receive support from work coaches, including advice on budgeting Universal Credit, understa...
Answered 8 Jul 2026
Original Parliament record
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