Freddie van Mierlo MP: written questions
280 published records · newest first.
Written questions
National Landscapes: Environment ProtectionDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 24 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 11126More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of the implementation of further protections for (a) nature and (b) biodiversity in National Landscapes.
Answer: The new Government is committed to making Protected Landscapes (National Parks and National Landscapes) greener, wilder, and more accessible. We are currently considering the best way to do this. To support this, Defra is working with Protected Landscapes...
Answered 1 Nov 2024
Original Parliament recordGreen Belt: OxfordMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 24 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 11124More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will include greater protection of the Oxford Green Belt in the National Planning Policy Framework.
Answer: The Government has no plans to include in the National Planning Policy Framework additional protections for Oxford Green Belt beyond those that apply to all green belts in England.
Answered 1 Nov 2024
Original Parliament recordFood: VATTreasuryTabled 22 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 10607More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the adequacy of VAT rules applying to (a) cakes, (b) confectionary and (c) food; and if she will take steps to increase levels of business understanding of VAT ratings for new produ
Answer: The Government’s policy on the VAT rules relating to a) cakes b) confectionary and c) food is well established and guidance is readily available on GOV.uk for businesses to consult when deciding on the VAT liability of a product. The Government keeps all ...
Answered 29 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordDriving Tests: Employment and TrainingDepartment for TransportTabled 22 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 10565More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of expedited tests for people who require a driving license to secure (a) training or (b) employment in key worker roles.
Answer: The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA’s) main priority is to reduce car practical driving test waiting times, whilst upholding road safety standards. For practical driving test candidates, DVSA is still offering the Mobile Emergency Worker (MEW)...
Answered 29 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordInfant FoodsDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 22 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 10561More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made a recent assessment of the potential merits of bringing forward regulations on the composition of (a) toddler and (b) other so-called growing up formula milks.
Answer: The Government has not made a recent assessment of the potential merits of introducing legislation on the composition of ‘toddler’ or ‘growing up’ milks. The Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition’s (SACN) 2023 report, called Feeding young children ag...
Answered 30 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordAgriculture: Inheritance TaxTreasuryTabled 21 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 10359More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of agricultural property relief on the financial sustainability of farms.
Answer: The Government does not speculate on tax changes outside of fiscal events. Where changes are made, information about impacts is published in the usual way.
Answered 29 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordDriving Tests: StaffDepartment for TransportTabled 21 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 10314More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if her Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of allowing driving instructors to temporarily work as examiners, in the context of recent trends in the availability of driving tests.
Answer: The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA’s) main priority is to reduce car practical driving test waiting times, whilst upholding road safety standards.As of 21 October 2024, there were 567,344 car practical driving tests booked, and 84,092 driving...
Answered 28 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordDriving Tests: ApplicationsDepartment for TransportTabled 21 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 10313More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if her Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of reducing the number of times a driving test can be re-booked, in the context of recent trends in the usage of automated bots to block book dr
Answer: The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA’s) main priority is to reduce car practical driving test waiting times, whilst upholding road safety standards.As of 21 October 2024, there were 567,344 car practical driving tests booked, and 84,092 driving...
Answered 28 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordDriving Instruction: PayDepartment for TransportTabled 21 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 10311More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make an assessment of the adequacy of (a) pay and (b) incentives for driving examiners (a) in Oxfordshire, (b) in other high-cost areas and (c) generally.
Answer: The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA’s) main priority is to reduce car practical driving test waiting times, whilst upholding road safety standards.As of 21 October 2024, there were 567,344 car practical driving tests booked, and 84,092 driving...
Answered 28 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordInfant Foods: NutritionDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 17 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 9897More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions his Department has had on the impact of the nutritional labelling and packaging of infant and baby products on children's dietary health and consumption of excess (a) sugar, (b) sa
Answer: We face a childhood obesity crisis, and the Government is committed to raising the healthiest generation of children ever. The Department speaks with many stakeholders about its policies to improve the diets and associated public health outcomes for the p...
Answered 23 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordInfant Foods: NutritionDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 17 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 9896More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of taking steps to improve the nutritional content of commercial baby food.
Answer: A 2019 evidence review showed that babies and young children are exceeding their energy intake requirement and are eating too much sugar and salt. Some commercial baby foods, particularly finger foods, had added sugar or salt, or contained ingredients tha...
Answered 23 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordBoiler Upgrade SchemeDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 17 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 9847More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending the boiler upgrade scheme to include (a) heat batteries and (b) other low carbon heating technologies.
Answer: The Government is committed to incentivising properties to transition to cleaner, affordable heating. At present, the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, does not apply to alternative electric heating technologies, such as heat batteries. We are targeting support at t...
Answered 23 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordADHD: DrugsDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 17 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 9846More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of shortages of ADHD medication on (a) children and (b) their families.
Answer: No assessment has been made. To aid ADHD service providers and prescribers further we have widely disseminated our communications and continually update a list of currently available and unavailable ADHD products on the Specialist Pharmacy Service website...
Answered 24 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordMethylphenidate: ShortagesDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 16 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 9576More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he estimates supply shortages of Methylphenidate for ADHD will be resolved.
Answer: The Department has been working hard with industry and NHS England to help resolve supply issues with some attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medicines, which are affecting the United Kingdom and other countries around the world. As a result ...
Answered 24 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordDogs: BrucellosisDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 15 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 9303More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help prevent the spread of Brucella canis.
Answer: The Government takes biosecurity seriously and has taken steps to mitigate the risk of Brucella canis. Disease risk is monitored carefully and is kept under regular review. Defra made detection of Brucella canis in dogs reportable in April 2021. The Depar...
Answered 22 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordEnergy: ConservationTreasuryTabled 15 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 9289More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has made a recent assessment with the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero of the potential merits of taking fiscal steps to help support the adoption of (a) heat batteries and (b) other e
Answer: The Government recently announced a new Warm Homes: Local Grant and confirmed the continuation of the Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund to support those with low incomes with energy performance upgrades and cleaner heating. Both support a range of energy sa...
Answered 23 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordHousing: Carbon EmissionsTreasuryTabled 15 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 9285More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment with the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero of the potential merits of (a) providing VAT relief for heat batteries and (b) taking other fiscal steps to help support th
Answer: This Government is committed to improving the quality and sustainability of our housing stock, through improvements such as low carbon heating, insulation, solar panels, and batteries. This will be vital to making the UK more energy resilient and meeting ...
Answered 23 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordDementiaDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 14 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 9042More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans his Department has to increase diagnostic capacity in memory clinics to reduce waiting times for dementia diagnosis in England.
Answer: We are committed to transforming diagnostic services and will support the National Health Service to increase diagnostic capacity to meet the demand for diagnostic services, including for the detection and diagnosis of dementia, through investment in new ...
Answered 22 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordDementiaDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 14 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 9041More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help improve public awareness of (a) the importance of early dementia diagnosis and (b) recognition of early symptoms.
Answer: Lord Darzi’s independent review showed that a timely diagnosis is vital to ensure that a person with dementia can access the advice, information, care, and support that can help them to live well and remain independent for as long as possible.The NHS Heal...
Answered 22 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordDementia: Henley and ThameDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 14 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 9040More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve dementia diagnosis rates in Henley and Thame constituency.
Answer: The Henley and Thame constituency lies within the county of Oxfordshire, where the performance in August 2024 was 63%. The performance across the Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and West Berkshire Integrated Care Board is 62.6%, and across the NHS South East...
Answered 22 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordPharmacy: Community Health ServicesDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 9 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 8378More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make it his policy to review levels of pharmacy reimbursement funding, in the context of recent trends in levels of closures of local pharmacies.
Answer: Community Pharmacy funding is kept under regular review. The Department and NHS England consult with the sector on a quarterly basis on reimbursement rates, as well as monthly on concessionary prices. Consultations are held each year about service fee lev...
Answered 17 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordBoats: Henley-on-ThamesDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 9 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 8377More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will amend the criteria relating to bathing water designation to include the (a) use of (i) non-motorised boats and (ii) paddleboards and (b) holding of (i) the Royal Regatta, (i
Answer: Ministers continue to consider possible changes to the Bathing water system. In light of this, applications for designations for the 2025 bathing season which were closed by the previous administration, remain closed.
Answered 18 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordEnergy: HousingDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 8 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 8076More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what his planned timetable is for adopting Standard Assessment Procedure 10.2, in the context of the Home Upgrade Grant 2 project; and whether residents that have missed out on solar batterie
Answer: We are introducing improvements to Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) modelling in early 2025, known as Reduced Data Standard Assessment Procedure 10 (RdSAP 10), to improve accuracy. EPC assessors will soon be able to record if a consumer has installed ...
Answered 16 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordFloods: Government AssistanceDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 8 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 8075More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to provide grants for people whose (a) property and (b) business has been (i) flooded and (ii) significantly impacted by flooding.
Answer: The Government recognises that flooding is devastating for those affected. Protecting communities from flooding is a key priority for this Government. The Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) co-ordinates the Government's Flood R...
Answered 15 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordDriving Tests: OxfordshireDepartment for TransportTabled 4 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 7243More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to (a) help tackle the use of bots and apps to bulk-buy practical driving tests, (b) increase the number of driving test examiners and (c) otherwise increase the availability
Answer: The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA) main priority is to reduce car practical driving test waiting times, whilst upholding road safety standards. Measures in place to reduce waiting times for customers at driving test centres include the recru...
Answered 11 Oct 2024
Original Parliament record
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