Bob Blackman MP: written questions
67 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Local Housing Allowance: HomelessnessDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 17 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 45585More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of freezing Local Housing Allowance rates on levels of homelessness.
Answer: The causes of homelessness are multi-faceted and often complex, they interact dynamically making it very difficult to isolate the relative importance of individual factors. We do however work closely with other departments, including MHCLG, to ensure the ...
Answered 28 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordCorruption: BangladeshCabinet OfficeTabled 17 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 45584More
Question: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Propriety and Ethics Team has (a) carried out investigations into and (b) provided the Prime Minister with advice on (i) allegations of and (ii) the alleged involvement of Ministers in corruption in
Answer: Following a self-referral by the former Economic Secretary to the Treasury, the Hon Member for Hampstead and Highgate, the Independent Adviser on Ministerial Standards undertook a fact-finding process relating to recent media allegations about the former ...
Answered 2 May 2025
Original Parliament recordBangladesh: Corruption and Money LaunderingForeign, Commonwealth and Development OfficeTabled 17 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 45583More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had recent discussions with his Bangladeshi counterpart on the potential impact of (a) corruption and (b) money laundering on the economy of that country.
Answer: The UK is committed to assisting investigative, prosecuting and judicial authorities in combating international crime. Whilst we cannot comment on any individual asset recovery cases, we have robust illicit finance legislation and instruments which can be...
Answered 29 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordAnimal ExperimentsDepartment for Science, Innovation and TechnologyTabled 17 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 45582More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether his Department plans to increase funding for the development of non-animal human-relevant testing methods.
Answer: The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology are considering funding into alternatives for animal testing as part of the Spending Review and cannot commit funding amounts in advance of this process.The Government already invests £10m annually in ...
Answered 29 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordAutism Employment ReviewDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 17 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 45581More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to her Department's report entitled The Buckland review of autism employment: report and recommendations, published 28 February 2024, how many recommendations of that report have been imp
Answer: The independent Buckland Review of Autism Employment reported to the last Government with recommendations to employers, third sector organisations and government on addressing barriers autistic people face when seeking and remaining in employment.This was...
Answered 28 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordEmployment: AutismDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 17 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 45580More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make it her policy to publish a target for the autism employment gap.
Answer: We recognise the current disability employment gap. As set out in the King’s Speech last July, the government is committed to making the right to equal pay effective for ethnic minority and disabled people and introducing mandatory ethnicity and disabilit...
Answered 28 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordSocial Security Benefits: NeurodiversityDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 17 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 45579More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of her Department's proposed reforms to health and disability benefits on people who are (a) autistic and (b) neurodivergent.
Answer: Information on the impacts of the Pathways to Work Green Paper will be published in due course, and some information was published alongside the Spring Statement. These publications can be found in ‘Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get ...
Answered 28 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordPersonal Independence Payment: NeurodiversityDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 17 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 45578More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people claiming the standard level of the Personal Independence Payment who did not score four points in any of the 10 descriptors are (a) autistic and (b) neurodivergent.
Answer: In January 2025 (latest available data), there were 8,200 claimants of Personal Independence Payment in England and Wales receiving the Standard Daily Living component who did not score at least four points in any of the 10 descriptors and had autism as t...
Answered 28 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordPersonal Independence Payment: NeurodiversityDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 17 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 45577More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many (a) autistic and (b) neurodivergent people will no longer be eligible to Personal Independence Payment following the proposed reforms.
Answer: The number will not be known until those affected have gone through their first award review after the reforms take effect, starting in November 2026. Information on the impacts of the Pathways to Work Green Paper will be published in due course, and some...
Answered 28 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordAnimal Products: Import ControlsDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 17 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 45576More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will take legislative steps to introduce an immediate moratorium on import permits for hunting trophies of cheetahs.
Answer: The government committed to a ban on the import of hunting trophies of endangered animals in its manifesto and will deliver on this. Defra is currently engaging with a range of stakeholders in order to decide on the most effective approach.
Answered 30 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordSchool Milk: Waste DisposalDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 2 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 43448More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will meet with representatives of the school milk supply chain to discuss the classification of school milk as a household waste.
Answer: I am responding to these PQs as the Minister who is responsible for Extended Producer Responsibility for packaging (pEPR). In autumn last year my department published an assessment of the impacts of implementing pEPR, including on inflation, when the regu...
Answered 8 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordSchool Milk: PackagingDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 2 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 43447More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of including school milk cartons in the Extended Producer Responsibility obligations on (a) Government and (b) school sp
Answer: I am responding to these PQs as the Minister who is responsible for Extended Producer Responsibility for packaging (pEPR). In autumn last year my department published an assessment of the impacts of implementing pEPR, including on inflation, when the regu...
Answered 8 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordIran: ChristianityForeign, Commonwealth and Development OfficeTabled 18 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 38968More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the potential impact of (a) suppression of the freedom of (i) religion or (ii) belief, (b) persecution of people who convert to Christia
Answer: We condemn Iran's severe repression of Freedom of Religion or Belief including against Christians. The UK was integral to the delivery of the Iran human rights resolution, adopted by the UN Third Committee in November 2024, which called on Iran to cease m...
Answered 1 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordAnimal Experiments: LicensingHome OfficeTabled 18 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 38967More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to improve the compliance of license holders with the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986.
Answer: All establishments licensed to breed or supply animals, or to carry out regulated procedures on animals under ASPA in Great Britain, are subject to the full requirements of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 (ASPA).The Regulator conducts audits ...
Answered 25 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordIndia: Religious FreedomForeign, Commonwealth and Development OfficeTabled 12 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 37546More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made representations to his Indian counterpart on (a) the alleged demolishing of properties belonging to the Hindu Nallur Mutt in Chikkamagaluru and (b) the pr
Answer: The UK Government condemns any instances of discrimination because of religion or belief, regardless of the country or faith involved. Concerns about the rights and opportunities of some religious minorities and communities in India are widely reported, a...
Answered 18 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordComputers: ImportsDepartment for Business and TradeTabled 27 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 903042More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he will take steps with Cabinet colleagues to reduce imports of software and hardware for key industries from countries that may pose a risk to national security.
Answer: Our import controls and sanctions regimes play an important role in supporting the UK's foreign policy and national security objectives including by restricting the import of controlled goods from any source country and specified goods from those countrie...
Answered 6 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordPakistan: HinduismForeign, Commonwealth and Development OfficeTabled 24 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32967More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his Pakistani counterpart in relation to reports that Hindu students in Karachi have faced disciplinary action and legal proceedings for cele
Answer: Promoting freedom of religion or belief is a key part of the UK's diplomatic engagement overseas. I underlined the importance of promoting religious tolerance and harmony when I met Pakistan's Human Rights Minister on 19 November 2024 and discussed this i...
Answered 10 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordBritish American Tobacco: FraudAttorney GeneralTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 31858More
Question: To ask the Solicitor General, with reference to the report by the University of Bath entitled New report reveals potential $28 million tax discrepancy involving British American Tobacco in Kenya, published on 12 February 2025, if the Serious Fraud Office
Answer: Following a three-year investigation, the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) determined in January 2021 that this case did not meet the evidential test as defined in the Code for Crown Prosecutors and it was closed.As is long-standing practice, the SFO can neithe...
Answered 27 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordTobacco: Excise DutiesTreasuryTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 31810More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has had discussions with Cabinet colleagues on the potential impact of recent trends in the level of tobacco bundle purchases on the taxes received via the minimum excise duty on cigarettes.
Answer: The Chancellor has not held any discussions with cabinet colleagues on this topic. As with all taxes, the Government keeps the tobacco duty system under review during its Budget process.
Answered 5 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordTobacco: AdvertisingDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 12 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 30986More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to tackle tobacco bundle packs; and whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of prohibiting the promotion of these bundles.
Answer: The Department has not made an assessment on the potential merits of prohibiting the sale of bundles, consisting of hand rolling tobacco, cigarette papers, and filters, being sold together at a discount.The Tobacco and Vapes Bill gives my Rt Hon. Friend, ...
Answered 28 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordProstate Cancer: DisadvantagedDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 6 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 29428More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help tackle health inequalities in prostate cancer.
Answer: Making improvements across different cancer types, including prostate cancer, is critical to reducing disparities in cancer survival. Early cancer diagnosis is also a specific priority within the National Health Service’s wider Core20Plus5 approach to red...
Answered 17 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordProstate Cancer: Medical TreatmentsDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 6 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 29427More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the National Prostate Cancer Audit's report entitled NPCA State of the Nation Report 2024, published in January 2025, if he will take steps to tackle inequalities in accessing NIC
Answer: Making improvements across different cancer types, including prostate cancer, is critical to reducing disparities in cancer survival. Early cancer diagnosis is also a specific priority within the National Health Service’s wider Core20Plus5 approach to red...
Answered 17 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordAkash KaramatForeign, Commonwealth and Development OfficeTabled 5 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 28919More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has made representations to the government of Pakistan on the case of Akash Karamat.
Answer: The UK Government remains deeply concerned by the use of blasphemy laws to undermine human rights in Pakistan. During my visit to Pakistan in November, I raised the issue of blasphemy-related violence with Pakistan's Human Rights Minister. The misuse of b...
Answered 12 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordMental Illness: Prisoners' ReleaseDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 4 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 28498More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the press article entitled Mind the gap: supporting prison leavers with mental illness from the University of Manchester, published on 27 March 2024, what steps he is taking to en
Answer: The National Health Service’s RECONNECT care after custody service supports prison leavers with an identified health need, including severe mental illness, to transition to community-based services, and starts working with them before they leave prison. N...
Answered 13 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordMental Health Services: OffendersDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 4 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 28497More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what funding his Department is providing to support the implementation of ongoing and holistic post-release support for prison leavers with severe mental health issues.
Answer: The NHS RECONNECT service supports people leaving prison with identified health needs to make the transition to community-based services, including mental health services, which are funded by local health and care systems.
Answered 12 Feb 2025
Original Parliament record
Published records only — not a full account of an MP’s work. How we work →