Blake Stephenson MP: written questions
865 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Gift Aid: RegulationTreasuryTabled 4 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 44310More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she will take steps to amend Gift Aid regulations to allow charitable (a) zoos and (b) aquariums to claim on the price of admission.
Answer: The Government recognises the important work the charity sector does in the UK, which is why we currently provide tax reliefs to charities and their donors worth over £6 billion per year, including over £1.6 billion in Gift Aid.Gift Aid is intended to be ...
Answered 10 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordBanks: ClosuresTreasuryTabled 4 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 44309More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 13 March 2025 to Question 35858 on Banks: closures, whether she has had discussions with retail banks on keeping high street bank branches open since 5 July 2024.
Answer: The Chancellor of the Exchequer meets regularly with all major banks to discuss a wide variety of topics. Banking has changed significantly in recent years with many customers benefiting from the ease and convenience of remote banking. While branch closur...
Answered 9 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordTree Planting: BedfordshireDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 4 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 44307More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2025 to Question 38205 on Tree Planting: Bedfordshire, if he will publish county level statistics.
Answer: The Government has no plans to publish county level statistics.
Answered 17 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordTree Planting: BedfordshireDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 4 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 44306More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2025 to Question 38205 on Tree Planting: Bedfordshire, what the range of sensitives are.
Answer: The Forestry Commission provides guidance on the common constraints and designations that might be relevant to tree planning – this is available at Forestry project checks: constraints - GOV.UK.
Answered 17 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordForests: AccessDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 4 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 44305More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 19 March 2025 to Question 35439 on Forests and Rivers: Access, what plans he has considered for other national forests.
Answer: Defra launched the Western Forest on 21 March 2025 and is considering its approach to the creation of further national forests.
Answered 17 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordEnvironmental Delivery PlansMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 4 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 44304More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 24 March 2025 to Question 38447 on Environmental Delivery Plans, whether uncompleted conservation projects will lapse at the end of the Environmental De
Answer: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 38477 on 24 March 2025.
Answered 16 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordGovia Thameslink Railway: FaresDepartment for TransportTabled 3 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 44055More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 13 March 2025 to Question 35853 on Govia Thameslink Railway: Fares, if she will make an estimate of the first year in which rail fares will go down under Great British Railways.
Answer: We are committed to the biggest overhaul of our railways in a generation, delivering a range of improvements, from more reliable services to simpler ticketing. Through public ownership and the transition to Great British Railways, it is also our ambition ...
Answered 11 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordHospitals: BedfordshireDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 3 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 44054More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the provisions outlined in his Department's press release entitled Crack teams get patients off waiting lists at twice the speed, published on
Answer: The Government is committed to putting patients first, and we have wasted no time in getting to work cutting National Health Service waiting lists and ensuring people have the best possible experience during their care.Further Faster 20 (FF20) is a scheme...
Answered 9 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordNHS EnglandDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 3 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 44053More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of closing NHS England on integrated care boards.
Answer: Ministers and senior Department officials will work with the new executive team at the top of NHS England, led by Sir Jim Mackey, to jointly lead this transformation. As we work to bring the two organisations together, we will ensure that we continue to e...
Answered 17 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordNHS EnglandDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 3 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 44051More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will publish his Department’s impact assessment on closing NHS England.
Answer: The abolition of NHS England will strip out the unnecessary bureaucracy and cut the duplication that comes from having two organisations doing the same job. By the end of the process, we estimate that these changes will save hundreds of millions of pounds...
Answered 17 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordAgriculture: Inheritance TaxTreasuryTabled 3 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 44050More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 13 February 2025 to Question 29188 on Agriculture and Business: Inheritance Tax, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of reviewing her Department's data collection methods
Answer: HMRC guidance sets out that woodland is only agricultural property, and therefore qualifies for agricultural property relief, if it is occupied with, and that occupation is ancillary to, agricultural land or pasture. It will include woodland shelter belts...
Answered 11 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordAffordable Housing: ConstructionMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 3 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 44049More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the press release entitled £2 billion new investment to support biggest boost in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation, published on 25 March 2025
Answer: At Spring statement, the government announced an immediate injection of £2 billion to support delivery of the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation and contribute to our ambitious Plan for Change milestone of building 1.5...
Answered 22 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordEnvironmental Delivery PlansMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 3 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 44048More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 24 March to Question 38446 on Environmental Delivery Plans, whether Natural England will be required to pay for ongoing maintenance of conservation proj
Answer: Natural England will secure and deliver conservation measures as part of an Environmental Delivery Plan to address the environmental impact of the development in question. Conservation measures will be maintained for as long as is necessary to address the...
Answered 24 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordLocal Government: Employers' ContributionsMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 3 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 44047More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to her Department's publication entitled Employer National Insurance Contributions Grant – Explanatory Note, published on 3 February 2025, which councils were invi
Answer: When determining allocations for the 2024-25 Employer National Insurance Contributions grant, government lacked the relevant, published Revenue Outturn (RO) data for a small number of councils, and we have therefore used councils’ self-submitted expenditu...
Answered 10 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordParish and Town Councils: Employers' ContributionsMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 3 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 44046More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will make an estimate of the number of (a) parish, (b) town and (c) community councils which will pay additional employers’ National Insurance in 2025-26.
Answer: The government recognises the important role town and parish councils have in improving the quality of life and wellbeing of their communities but has no direct role in funding parish and town councils, and therefore has not provided compensation, consist...
Answered 10 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordVoting Rights: Young PeopleMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 3 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 44045More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2025 to Question 37781 on Voting Rights: Young People, whether her Department plans to instruct the Boundary Commissions to perform an early bo
Answer: The Government has no plans to amend the timing of the next Parliamentary Boundary Review.
Answered 9 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordFree School Meals: CostsDepartment for EducationTabled 2 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 43762More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the average cost to a school of providing a meal to a child eligible for Universal Infant Free School Meals.
Answer: All pupils in reception, year 1 and year 2 in England’s state-funded schools are entitled to universal infant free school meals. The department spends approximately £600 million per year ensuring that around 1.3 million infant pupils receive a nutritious ...
Answered 10 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordBedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust: Solar PowerDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 2 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 43761More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, for what reason Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust was not included in the Great British Energy Solar project.
Answer: NHS England received an extremely positive response to this scheme, with over 300 bids (covering 140 trusts) that could potentially have been taken forward.The Department worked closely with NHS England and our partners at Great British Energy to apply a ...
Answered 8 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordEndometriosis: DiagnosisDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 2 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 43760More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the current average diagnosis time for endometriosis.
Answer: The Government is committed to prioritising women’s health and improving the care for gynaecological conditions, including endometriosis.The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence published an update to the guideline on endometriosis diagnosis ...
Answered 17 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordUrinary Tract Infections: Mid BedfordshireDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 2 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 43759More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support people who suffer with chronic urinary tract infections in Mid Bedfordshire constituency.
Answer: There are nine pharmacists in the Mid Bedfordshire constituency area, and all offer the Pharmacy First service. This service builds on the NHS Community Pharmacist Consultation Service which has run since October 2019. The consultation service enables pat...
Answered 8 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordNHS EnglandDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 2 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 43758More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will estimate the cost to the public purse of (a) redundancies and (b) all other costs arising from the proposed abolition of NHS England.
Answer: We recognise that there may be some short-term upfront costs as we undertake the integration of NHS England and the Department, but these costs and more will be recouped in future years because of a smaller and leaner centre. By the end of the process, we...
Answered 9 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordAquariums and Zoos: TourismDepartment for Culture, Media and SportTabled 2 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 43757More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment her Department has made of the economic contribution of (a) zoos and (b) aquariums to the tourism sector.
Answer: The government acknowledges the significant impact that zoos and aquariums have on the Visitor Economy. Iconic and cultural attractions like Chester zoo, which was the third most visited paid attraction in England in 2023, draw in visitors from across the...
Answered 11 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordAquariums and Zoos: Departmental ResponsibilitiesDepartment for Culture, Media and SportTabled 2 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 43756More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of her Department taking responsibility for (a) zoos and (b) aquariums.
Answer: The government acknowledges the significant impact that zoos and aquariums have on the Visitor Economy. Iconic and cultural attractions like Chester zoo, which was the third most visited paid attraction in England in 2023, draw in visitors from across the...
Answered 11 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordLondon Stock ExchangeTreasuryTabled 2 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 43753More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 11 March 2025 to Question 35444 on London Stock Exchange, if she will make an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of the 6.6% reduction in the number of firms listed o
Answer: The UK has recently attracted several high-profile listings from firms taking advantage of our reforms to make it easier to raise capital and fund growth on UK markets. This includes IPOs from high-growth UK firms such as Applied Nutrition, as well as lis...
Answered 7 Apr 2025
Original Parliament record5G: Business RatesTreasuryTabled 2 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 43752More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of business rates on the rate at which new (a) 5G and (b) 5GSA infrastructure is being rolled out.
Answer: Digital infrastructure will play a key role in the Government’s forthcoming 10 Year Infrastructure Strategy, which will set out the long-term ambitions for rollout of 5G and Standalone 5G. Eligible plant and machinery used on 5G are exempt from business r...
Answered 10 Apr 2025
Original Parliament record
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