Lisa Smart MP: written questions
321 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Legal Profession: InsolvencyMinistry of JusticeTabled 26 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 34022More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will make an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of the impact of the administration of (a) SSB Law and (b) other firms on the finances of claimants whose legal cases were disrupted;
Answer: The legal profession in England and Wales together with its regulators, operate independently of government. The responsibility for regulating the sector sits with the approved regulators, overseen by the Legal Services Board (LSB). Given the sector’s ind...
Answered 10 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordHousing: InsulationMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 26 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 34021More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to support homeowners with the cost of removing closed-cell spray foam insulation in order to secure a mortgage.
Answer: We are aware of the issues some homeowners are facing in obtaining finance where spray foam insulation has been installed. Officials in the department have previously consulted UK Finance and the Building Societies Association, the trade bodies for lender...
Answered 7 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordInsulation: HousingMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 26 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 34020More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking with the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors to review current guidance on closed-cell spray foam insulation and its impact on mortgage l
Answer: We are aware of the issues some homeowners are facing in obtaining finance where spray foam insulation has been installed. Officials in the department have previously consulted UK Finance and the Building Societies Association, the trade bodies for lender...
Answered 7 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordPuberty Suppressing Hormones: Clinical TrialsDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32362More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to his Oral Statement of 11 December 2024 on Puberty-suppressing Hormones, Official Report, column 914-916, whether the clinical trial into the use of puberty suppressing hormones fo
Answer: The PATHWAYS study proposal, including the clinical trial of puberty-suppressing hormones, is going through all the usual review and approval stages. These include an independent academic peer review and consideration by the National Institute for Health ...
Answered 5 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordHate Crime: Transgender PeopleHome OfficeTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32361More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to reduce the number of hate crimes against transgender people.
Answer: Transgender identity hate crimes are completely unacceptable and this Government is determined to tackle hate crime in all its forms. We have a robust legislative framework in place in England and Wales to respond to hate crimes, including those which tar...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordHate Crime: Transgender PeopleHome OfficeTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32360More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the most recent statistics for hate crimes against transgender people are.
Answer: Transgender identity hate crimes are completely unacceptable and this Government is determined to tackle hate crime in all its forms. We have a robust legislative framework in place in England and Wales to respond to hate crimes, including those which tar...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordCarer's AllowanceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 6 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 29575More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department has specific time targets for processing Carer’s Allowance claims for individuals with an underlying entitlement.
Answer: The Department does not have any processing targets for Carer’s Allowance claims when there is an underlying entitlement element. The current average clearance time for all Carer’s Allowance claims is 16.5 working days. This includes claims when there is ...
Answered 13 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordProperty Rights: Flood ControlMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 6 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 29574More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions she has had with the Chief Land Registrar on ensuring that adverse possession claims are not granted for land designated as public open space or held for flood m
Answer: HM Land Registry has operational responsibility for considering land registration applications based on adverse possession. It publishes guidance about this matter at gov.uk here and here.
Answered 18 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordProperty Rights: Flood ControlDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 6 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 29573More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the impact of land lost through adverse possession on local flood resilience.
Answer: The new National Flood Risk Assessment data published on 28 January 2025 uses the best currently available data to provide a single picture of current and future flood risk from rivers, the sea and surface water for England. The Environment Agency has not...
Answered 27 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordSpecial Educational Needs: Extracurricular ActivitiesDepartment for EducationTabled 6 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 29572More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that (a) childminders, (b) after-school clubs, (c) holiday clubs and schemes and (d) other childcare services are accessible to children with Special Educational Ne
Answer: Local authorities and early years providers, including early years childminders, have duties via the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) code of practice, the Equality Act 2010, and the early years foundation stage (EYFS) statutory framework...
Answered 20 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordDeath CertificatesDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 6 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 29570More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the process of issuing death certificates following the change to the responsibilities of medical examiners on 9 September 2024 does not lead to u
Answer: The Government is monitoring the impact of the death certification reforms, including the Medical Certificate of Cause of Death Regulations 2024, which came into legal effect on 9 September 2024. Early data indicates the median time taken to register a de...
Answered 17 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordPolice: Mental IllnessHome OfficeTabled 6 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 29565More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will take steps with police forces to review the (a) effectiveness of policies to place police officers potentially experiencing mental ill-health on restricted duties and (b) adequacy of (i) t
Answer: It is the responsibility of Chief Officers to effectively manage their workforce, including ensuring appropriate health and wellbeing support is in place for all officers and staff. The Government has been clear that the health and wellbeing of our police...
Answered 13 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordPolice: Mental Health ServicesHome OfficeTabled 6 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 29564More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department plans to introduce mandatory mental health support for police officers who have been exposed to distressing or traumatic incidents.
Answer: Chief Officers have a duty of care to manage their workforce effectively, including ensuring the wellbeing of all their officers and staff. This Government has been clear that the wellbeing of our police is a priority. We will continue to work with police...
Answered 13 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordHague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction: Domestic AbuseMinistry of JusticeTabled 28 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 26929More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to advocate reform of the Hague Convention of 25 October 1980 on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction to better protect victims of domestic violence.
Answer: The UK supports the work of the Hague Conference on Private International Law on their multilateral Conventions, including the 1980 Hague Child Abduction Convention, and works with other States Party to that Convention to improve its operation. The UK is ...
Answered 4 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordAbduction: ChildrenMinistry of JusticeTabled 28 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 26928More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to Article 13(b) of the Hague Convention of 25 October 1980 on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction, what steps she is taking to ensure the definition in UK law of "grave risk of harm
Answer: There is no legal definition of “grave risk of harm” in England and Wales. In the 1980 Hague Child Abduction Convention court cases about the return of a child where one of the parties seeks to demonstrate there is a grave risk of harm under Article 13(b)...
Answered 4 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordMembers: CorrespondenceDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 28 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 26885More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when the Minister for Health and Secondary Care plans to respond to the correspondence of 6 November 2024 from the hon. Member for Hazel Grove on funding for Stepping Hill Hospital.
Answer: I replied to the hon. Member on 29 January 2025.
Answered 4 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordSemaglutideDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 22 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 25777More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to (a) support and (b) encourage Integrated Care Boards to prescribe semaglutide for weight management.
Answer: Obesity medicines can be effective for some patients living with obesity when prescribed alongside diet, physical activity, and behavioural support. Exactly what is most appropriate for an individual is down to health care professionals to advise, in disc...
Answered 29 Jan 2025
Original Parliament recordSemaglutide: Hazel GroveDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 22 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 25776More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to increase the supply of semaglutide in Hazel Grove constituency.
Answer: The Department monitors and manages medicine supply at a national level so that stocks remain available to meet regional and local demand. Information on stock levels within individual constituencies is not held centrally. The Department is not aware of a...
Answered 29 Jan 2025
Original Parliament recordNon-native Species: Weed ControlDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 22 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 25775More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will require landowners to remove invasive plant species including those listed under schedule 9 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 from their land.
Answer: The Government takes invasive species seriously and has legislated to tackle the spread of invasive plants. The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 does not impose an explicit obligation for landowners to manage plant species listed under Schedule 9 not int...
Answered 28 Jan 2025
Original Parliament recordCourt of ProtectionMinistry of JusticeTabled 16 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 24534More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to reduce delays in processing times for Deputyship applications by the Court of Protection.
Answer: HM Courts & Tribunals Service is focused on increasing outputs to reduce the overall timeliness on all types of applications and to reduce delays in processing times. HMCTS has implemented a number of different measures which includes a targeted actio...
Answered 21 Jan 2025
Original Parliament recordAfghanistan: Women's RightsForeign, Commonwealth and Development OfficeTabled 8 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 902157More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what diplomatic steps he is taking to help support the rights of women in Afghanistan.
Answer: We condemn the Taliban’s destruction of nearly every element of women and girls’ freedoms. FCDO officials engage with the Taliban to urge them to reverse their barbaric decisions and we work with our international partners to maintain collective pressure....
Answered 14 Jan 2025
Original Parliament recordFood: LabellingDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 6 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 22127More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to include Annatto (E160b) on the list of allergens that must be labelled under UK food labelling regulations.
Answer: There are many potential food ingredients that may cause an allergic reaction to sensitised people. The current 14 regulated allergens are recognised as being the most common and potent allergens of public health concern across Europe. Further informati...
Answered 13 Jan 2025
Original Parliament recordLyme Disease: DiagnosisDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 6 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 22126More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve the diagnosis and recognition of Lyme Disease.
Answer: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for South Cambridgeshire on 12 November 2024 to Question 13156.
Answered 14 Jan 2025
Original Parliament recordListed Places of Worship Grant SchemeDepartment for Culture, Media and SportTabled 6 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 22125More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the scheduled ending of the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme in March 2025 on local projects aimed at restoring listed plac
Answer: The Department monitors the implementation and impact of the grant scheme through the regular reporting of the grant administrator. Since 2010, the grant scheme has returned over £350 million to listed places of worship. We are aware of the importance of ...
Answered 14 Jan 2025
Original Parliament recordCourt of ProtectionMinistry of JusticeTabled 6 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 22124More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate her Department has made of the average processing times for deputyship applications by the Court of Protection.
Answer: Data on the average processing time for deputyship applications, from receipt to disposal by the Court of Protection, is not currently available.The court has recently migrated to a new case management system and work is in hand as part of the HMCTS data ...
Answered 14 Jan 2025
Original Parliament record
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