Lisa Smart MP: written questions 2025
413 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Community OrdersMinistry of JusticeTabled 26 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 34034More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether her Department plans to take steps to ensure individuals subject to a community order are able to complete their unpaid work in a neighbouring local authority area.
Answer: Community Payback allows offenders to pay recompense to the communities they have harmed by completing between 40 and 300 hours of unpaid work. The work primarily takes place in the local area to where the offender resides. This allows for reduced travel ...
Answered 6 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordDangerous Driving: SentencingMinistry of JusticeTabled 26 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 34033More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will undertake a review of sentencing guidelines for causing serious injury by careless driving.
Answer: The Sentencing Guideline for the offence of causing serious injury by careless or inconsiderate driving was published by the Sentencing Council in June 2022 and came into force in July 2023.The Council is independent of Parliament and Government. As an in...
Answered 6 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordLand Banking: Business RatesTreasuryTabled 26 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 34032More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make it her policy to replace Business Rates with a Land Value Tax collected by local authorities to disincentivise land banking by developers.
Answer: We are creating a fairer business rates system that protects the high street, supports investment, and is fit for the 21st century. At the Autumn Budget, we published a Discussion Paper setting out priority areas for reform and invites stakeholders to hav...
Answered 7 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordGeneral Practitioners: Workplace PensionsDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 26 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 34031More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of issues with the reconciliation of pension contributions by Capita on GPs.
Answer: General practitioners (GPs) are required to submit either a type one or type two annual certificate each year to Primary Care Support England (PCSE). Each certificate received by PCSE is reconciled on an individual basis, and the GP’s record is updated ac...
Answered 11 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordGeneral Practitioners: Workplace PensionsDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 26 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 34030More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to hold Capita accountable where it fails to provide GPs with accurate annual pension statements under the Primary Care Support England scheme.
Answer: Capita, who delivers Primary Care Support England (PCSE), does not issue pension statements to general practitioners (GPs), as this is the responsibility of NHS Pensions, which is managed by the NHS Business Services Authority (NHS BSA). PCSE updates GP p...
Answered 7 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordUniversal Credit: DeductionsDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 26 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 34029More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department plans to review the priority order of Universal Credit deductions; and if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of ensuring that child maintenance payments have prio
Answer: The Government is committed to a sustainable long-term approach to tackling poverty and supporting people on lower incomes, and in support of this the Chancellor announced at the Autumn Budget, the Fair Repayment Rate (FRR), this measure is a permanent ch...
Answered 4 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordBank Services: Direct DebitsTreasuryTabled 26 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 34028More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 18 December 2024 to Question 20062 on Bank Services: Direct Debits, whether her Department is taking steps to ensure that organisations receiving payments via Direct Debit always (a) verify
Answer: I refer the Honourable Member to the answer given on 18 December 2024 to PQ UIN 20062.
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordUniversal CreditDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 26 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 34027More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether any redress mechanisms are available for claimants who were misadvised by Jobcentre Plus staff to claim Universal Credit before their official migration date and consequently lost entitlement to
Answer: Customers who are unhappy with the service provided by DWP can contact us by phone, in person or in writing. Universal Credit claimants can also use their journal. Complaints procedure - Department for Work and Pensions - GOV.UK
Answered 6 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordUniversal CreditDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 26 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 34026More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that Jobcentre Plus advisers provide (a) accurate and (b) comprehensive advice to claimants on (i) entitlement to transitional protection and (ii) other asp
Answer: All Jobcentre advisers are given key information about Move to UC. We have a network of Transformation Leads attached to each Area who represent our Jobcentre and Service Centre network within Move to UC to ensure that our colleagues are getting the upski...
Answered 6 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordDangerous Driving: AnimalsDepartment for TransportTabled 26 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 34025More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of amending sections 1 to 3A of the Road Traffic Act 1988 to extend dangerous driving offences to include incidents causing the (a) death and (b) serious i
Answer: The Government has no plans to consider amending the Road Traffic Act 1988 in the way suggested.
Answered 5 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordPersonal Independence Payment: Mental HealthDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 26 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 34024More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department plans to make Personal Independence Payment application forms more accessible for people with mental health issues; and if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of (
Answer: It is a fundamental principle that the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) assessment should not just consider whether an individual can complete an activity, but the way they can do it. When formulating their advice to the decision maker, health profess...
Answered 6 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordLegal Profession: InsolvencyMinistry of JusticeTabled 26 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 34023More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether her Department is taking steps to support people who have been left personally liable for legal costs following the collapse of no-win-no-fee law firms.
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 recordLegal 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 record
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