Mark Sewards MP: written questions
59 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Cervical Cancer: ScreeningDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 20 Jun 2025AnsweredUIN 61657More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to expand access to smear tests.
Answer: NHS England launched its first ever cervical cancer elimination creative campaign and communications toolkit for Cervical Screening Awareness Week, from 16 June 2025 to 24 June 2025. The campaign included digital resources that create a strong sense of sh...
Answered 30 Jun 2025
Original Parliament recordHormone Replacement TherapyDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 17 Jun 2025AnsweredUIN 60784More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of increasing levels of access to hormone replacement therapy treatment on the NHS.
Answer: While menopause is a natural part of a woman’s life course, we recognise that menopause symptoms can be wide-ranging and debilitating, affecting a woman’s physical and mental health.Women should not have to suffer in silence and any woman concerned about ...
Answered 1 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordIndia: PakistanForeign, Commonwealth and Development OfficeTabled 2 Jun 2025AnsweredUIN 56666More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to ensure the safety of British nationals located on the India-Pakistan border.
Answer: The safety of British nationals will always be our priority. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) continues to monitor developments closely and is ready to support British nationals 24/7. Any British nationals in the region should follo...
Answered 4 Jun 2025
Original Parliament recordMotor Vehicles: Anti-Social BehaviourHome OfficeTabled 2 Jun 2025AnsweredUIN 56665More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to prevent dangerous car racing.
Answer: Tackling anti-social behaviour is a top priority for the Government and a key part of the Safer Streets Mission.On 25 February 2025, the Crime and Policing Bill was introduced to Parliament. The Bill includes proposals to give the police greater powers to...
Answered 10 Jun 2025
Original Parliament recordCivil Servants: London AllowanceCabinet OfficeTabled 2 Jun 2025AnsweredUIN 56482More
Question: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will take steps to ensure that London weighted salaries for civil servants only apply to employees that live in London.
Answer: Decisions on pay, including London weighting, are delegated to individual departments for grades below the Senior Civil Service (SCS). The SCS pay framework is managed centrally and only operates a national pay range.
Answered 10 Jun 2025
Original Parliament recordPackaging: RecyclingDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 28 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 48692More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the introduction of Extended Producer Responsibility packaging taxation will ensure that the cost of recycling is passed to manufacturers.
Answer: Packaging Extended Producer Responsibility (pEPR) implements the polluter-pays principle by obligating brands and packaging producers to pay the costs of managing household packaging waste.
Answered 6 May 2025
Original Parliament recordTax Avoidance: Multinational CompaniesTreasuryTabled 17 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 46337More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she plans to introduce measures to help tackle (a) profit shifting and (b) other corporation tax avoidance methods used by multinational corporations.
Answer: The UK is tackling profit shifting and multinational tax avoidance through measures including Corporate Interest Restriction, Country by Country Reporting, and the Global Minimum Tax. The most recent Finance Bill, introduced by this Government, put legisl...
Answered 29 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordNurses: RegistrationDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 8 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 45281More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will have discussions with the Nursing and Midwifery Council on the potential merits of reducing or removing the annual registration fee for nurses.
Answer: The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) is the independent regulator of nurses and midwives in the United Kingdom, and nursing associates in England. The UK's model of healthcare professional regulation is founded on the principle of regulators operating ...
Answered 22 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordRight to Buy SchemeMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 8 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 45280More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of allowing Council Housing tenants to sell their property to buyers other than their Local Authority if the
Answer: Former council tenants who have purchased their home under the Right to Buy scheme but wish to resell or dispose of it within a 10 year period, must first offer the property for sale at the full market value to either the former landlord or to another soc...
Answered 22 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordElectric Vehicles: ParkingDepartment for TransportTabled 8 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 45279More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department plans to make it an offence for non-electric vehicles to park in an electric vehicle charging space.
Answer: Parking enforcement on local highways is a local authority matter. Local authorities can use traffic regulation orders to designate and enforce electric vehicle (EV) only bays. For private land, enforcement falls to the landowner.
Answered 22 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordMusic and Dance SchemeDepartment for EducationTabled 7 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 44756More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department plans to (a) continue to fund the Music and Dance Scheme and (b) ensure that all Centres for Advanced Training continue to operate.
Answer: The department will inform Music and Dance Scheme providers about funding for the 2025/26 academic year following the conclusion of the spending review in the spring.
Answered 28 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordPublic Transport: InfrastructureDepartment for TransportTabled 31 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 42638More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department is taking steps to reduce private car ownership and improve the connectivity of public transport.
Answer: This Government recognises the importance of improving public transport to ensure that people have greater choice around how they travel and has recently confirmed its commitment to phasing out new cars that rely solely on internal combustion engines from...
Answered 8 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordAvoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder: ChildrenDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 31 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 42636More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support families with children suffering from Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder.
Answer: Commissioning pathways for avoidant restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID) are locally determined by integrated care boards. All eating disorder teams should work collaboratively with other children and young people’s community teams to address co-occur...
Answered 22 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordPharmacy: FinanceDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 26 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 41603More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help ensure that independent community pharmacies have adequate funding to sustain their (a) businesses and (b) services.
Answer: The Government recognises that pharmacies are an integral part of the fabric of our communities. They provide an easily accessible ‘front door’ to the National Health Service, staffed by highly trained and skilled healthcare professionals.We have now conc...
Answered 3 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordElectric Bicycles: RegulationDepartment for TransportTabled 14 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 38485More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of implementing stronger regulation for e-bikes, including full registration and insurance requirements.
Answer: The Government has no intention of requiring cyclists, including those who ride Electrically Assisted Pedal Cycles, to be registered or to have insurance. This would require a national registration scheme for all cycles which would be complex and expensiv...
Answered 18 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordArtificial Intelligence: New BusinessesDepartment for Science, Innovation and TechnologyTabled 5 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 35902More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that small AI startups in the UK receive adequate support and resources to compete effectively.
Answer: The Government is committed to supporting the digital economy, removing barriers to inclusive economic growth, and ensuring that the UK remains one of the best places in the world for our great tech businesses to start, scale and stay.Programmes such as t...
Answered 13 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordArtificial Intelligence: GrantsDepartment for Science, Innovation and TechnologyTabled 5 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 35901More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of reviewing the timelines for grant disbursement to ensure that AI startups have the cash flow they need to grow.
Answer: The Government is committed to building an AI sector that can scale and win globally The AI Action Plan sets out how we will support the growth ambitions of businesses across the AI sector.Innovate UK awards the majority of DSIT’s business-facing R&D ...
Answered 17 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordArtificial Intelligence: New BusinessesDepartment for Science, Innovation and TechnologyTabled 5 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 35900More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to support AI startup businesses outside of London and the South East with investments and funding.
Answer: The Government is committed to removing barriers to growth for SMEs and ensuring that they have access to resources and expertise needed to develop and scale. Over the last 2 years, Innovate UK has awarded £5.2 billion funding to more than 7,000 businesse...
Answered 13 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordSocial Services: FinanceDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 27 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 34446More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that social care providers are receiving the £600 million pounds allocated for social care in the Autumn Budget 2024.
Answer: The Government is making available up to £3.7 billion of additional funding for social care authorities in 2025/26, which includes an £880 million increase in the Social Care Grant, £600 million of which was announced at the Autumn Budget 2024. Overall, c...
Answered 7 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordDangerous DrivingDepartment for TransportTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32359More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to tackle dangerous driving.
Answer: The Government takes road safety seriously, and we are committed to reducing the numbers of those killed and injured on our roads. We are currently considering policy options in this area.THINK! is the Government’s flagship road safety campaign. It aims t...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordElectric Vehicles: Charging PointsDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 12 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 31268More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether his Department is taking steps to ensure that there are adequate electric vehicle charging points for properties that do not have a driveway.
Answer: The Government and industry have supported the installation of over 74,000 public charging devices across the UK. The Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Fund will transform the availability of electric vehicle (EV) charging for drivers without off-stre...
Answered 28 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordFootball: DisabilityDepartment for Culture, Media and SportTabled 10 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 30338More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that football stadiums are accessible to fans with disabilities.
Answer: The government recognises the great importance of sport and physical activity for disabled people at both the grassroots and elite levels.The Government recently ratified the St Denis Convention. In doing so, we committed to providing an integrated safety...
Answered 18 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordConsumers: ProtectionDepartment for Business and TradeTabled 3 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 28184More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether his Department is taking steps to improve consumer rights protections.
Answer: The Department for Business and Trade is implementing the new consumer rights introduced by the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024. The new consumer enforcement regime – which we will commence in April – gives the CMA new direct enforceme...
Answered 11 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordHousing ImprovementTreasuryTabled 27 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 26758More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of using (a) tax incentives and (b) other methods to encourage people to renovate older properties.
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. As the first step of our Warm Homes Plan, at the Autumn Budget, the Go...
Answered 4 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordAttendance Allowance: MotabilityDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 15 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 24332More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of recommending the inclusion of Attendance Allowance recipients to the Motability scheme.
Answer: Attendance Allowance is intended to help those with a severe disability who have long term care or supervision needs which arise after reaching State Pension age. It has never included a mobility component, and so cannot be used in payment for a leased Mo...
Answered 21 Jan 2025
Original Parliament record
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