Pippa Heylings MP: written questions
258 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Nature ConservationDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 7 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 44663More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support the delivery of local nature recovery strategies by responsible authorities.
Answer: The Secretary of State for the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has appointed 48 responsible authorities to prepare Local Nature Recovery Strategies (LNRSs) across England. Responsible authorities must follow the LNRS regulations when pre...
Answered 25 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordMental Health Services: Waiting ListsDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 7 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 44662More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to announce further steps to help reduce waiting times for mental health treatment.
Answer: Nationally, we plan to recruit an additional 8,500 mental health workers across children and adult mental health services in England to reduce delays and provide faster treatment. We will also introduce access to a specialist mental health professional in...
Answered 29 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordDrax Power Station: TimberDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 2 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 43730More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether the trees burnt at the Drax power station are imported and transported on diesel freighters.
Answer: Drax sources the vast majority of its supply of biomass pellets from the US, with a small percentage from Canada, and elsewhere. It transports pellets to the UK by shipping them on bulk carriers, unloading at ports including Immingham, Liverpool and Port ...
Answered 11 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordDrax Power Station: SubsidiesDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 2 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 43727More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether his proposed extension of subsidies for the Drax power station would raise the guaranteed strike price for the company from £100 MW/h to £113 MW/h.
Answer: The new CfD arrangement caps the volume of supported generation to an annual load factor of 27% compared to Drax’s current 65%. This incentivises dispatchable biomass generation only when the system needs it, ensuring consumers can benefit from cheaper wi...
Answered 11 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordDrax Power Station: TimberDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 2 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 43726More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether his Department has issued a response to BBC Panorama’s reports that the Drax powerplant has burned wood from primary forest sites.
Answer: Following the Panorama reports, Ofgem, as the independent regulator, conducted a comprehensive investigation into Drax’s sustainability arrangements and concluded that, whilst no subsidies were issued for unsustainable biomass, there was an absence of ade...
Answered 11 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordDrax Power Station: TimberDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 2 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 43725More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, when he plans to stop unabated burning of wood at Drax power station.
Answer: The Government has agreed Heads of Terms with Drax for time-limited support from 2027 to 2031. The National Energy System Operator advised that without Drax we would face increased security of supply risks from 2027 to 2031. No decisions have been made on...
Answered 11 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordDrax Power Station: TimberDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 2 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 43724More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he plans to legislate to prevent the Drax power station burning wood from primary forests for producing non-subsidised electricity.
Answer: The Government only provides support for biomass sourced from forests which are sustainably managed.Under the agreed Heads of Terms for short term support from 2027-2031, Drax must source 100% of its biomass from sustainable sources, and must exclude prim...
Answered 11 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordCarbon Emissions: TimberDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 2 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 43723More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of allowing hon. Members to access (a) the KPMG interim report of December 2022 and (b) the full NESO report on the alternatives to b
Answer: The KPMG report is an internal fact-finding document, commissioned by Drax to review their biomass supply chain against the sustainability requirements of existing arrangements. Whilst DESNZ Officials were granted time limited access to view the report, w...
Answered 11 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordCarbon BudgetsDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 2 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 43722More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking to ensure the Climate Change Committee assesses the upcoming sixth carbon budget plan before it is published.
Answer: We value the CCC’s independent advice and expertise on progress against our targets. We will deliver an updated plan that sets out the policy package out to the end of Carbon Budget 6 in 2037 for all the sectors in due course. This will outline the polici...
Answered 9 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordHeat Pumps and Insulation: Low IncomesDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 2 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 43721More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking to support low-income households with the costs of installing (a) insulation and (b) heat pumps.
Answer: As the first step towards the Warm Homes Plan, the Government has committed an initial £3.4 billion over the next 3 years towards heat decarbonisation and household energy efficiency.Government energy efficiency schemes such as the Energy Company Obligati...
Answered 11 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordElectricity: PricesDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 2 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 43720More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he is taking steps (a) reduce and (b) remove policy costs on electricity bills.
Answer: The Government believes that our mission to deliver clean power by 2030 is the best way to break our dependence on global fossil fuel markets and protect billpayers permanently. With this, the Government is also committed to ensuring a fair and affordable...
Answered 11 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordClean Energy: Risk AssessmentDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 31 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 42789More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he has made an assessment of the potential implications for the Government’s Clean Power 2030 target of limiting the supply of solar and battery storage projects as a result of the 20
Answer: The Clean Power Action Plan (CPAP) sets out regional capacities for solar and battery storage required to achieve Clean Power by 2030. Regional capacities out to 2035 are also included to provide a 10-year time horizon for connections offers. 2035 capacit...
Answered 8 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordAdoption and Special Guardianship Support FundDepartment for EducationTabled 31 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 42663More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of making the adoption and special guardianship support fund permanent.
Answer: On 1 April, it was announced that the adoption and special guardianship support fund (ASGSF) would continue into 2025/26, with a budget of £50 million.All future decisions regarding the ASGSF will be considered as part of the next spending review.
Answered 9 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordIVF: LGBT+ PeopleDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 27 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 41947More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2025 to Question 38182 on LGBT+ People: Fertility, whether his Department plans to remove the requirement for female same sex couples to self-find prior to access
Answer: The Government recognises that fertility treatment across the National Health Service in England is subject to variation in access. Work continues on joint advice from the Department and NHS England about the offer around NHS-funded fertility services, in...
Answered 1 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordLarge Goods Vehicles: SafetyDepartment for TransportTabled 27 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 41946More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to prevent foreign lorries without adequate safety features using UK roads.
Answer: All lorries using GB roads must meet safety standards. The Driver and vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) conduct enforcement of this, including roadside checks. DVSA use data and intelligence to target those vehicles that present the highest risk to road saf...
Answered 1 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordPersonal Injury: CompensationMinistry of JusticeTabled 27 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 41945More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing the level of the compensation tariff for whiplash in line with inflation.
Answer: The Civil Liability Act 2018 allows the Lord Chancellor to set fixed compensation tariff amounts for whiplash injuries from road traffic accidents lasting two years or less. The tariff amounts were first set via the Whiplash Injury Regulations 2021, and t...
Answered 2 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordGeneral Practitioners: Workplace PensionsDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 27 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 41932More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that GPs are able to access their pension information.
Answer: NHS Pension Scheme members, including general practitioners (GPs), can access information about their pension via My NHS Pension, an online portal from the NHS Pension Service, which is available at the following link:https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/member-hub/...
Answered 3 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordHealth and Safety ExecutiveDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 27 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 41929More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of trends in the level of claims made to the Health and Safety Executive that are subsequently referred by the HSE to local authorities for resolution.
Answer: The Health and Safety at Work Act establishes a co-regulatory partnership between the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and local authorities (LAs). This co-regulatory partnership sees HSE and LAs working closely to ensure consistent enforcement of health...
Answered 1 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordEquitable Life Assurance Society: CompensationTreasuryTabled 27 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 41924More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the compensation provided to Equitable Life policyholders.
Answer: The Equitable Life Payment Scheme has been fully wound down and closed since 2016 and there are no plans to reopen any decisions relating to the Payment Scheme or review the £1.5 billion funding allocation previously made to it. Further guidance on the st...
Answered 2 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordMedical Records: GenderDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 24 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 40897More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of mandating changes to NHS systems to ensure that it is possible to update the gender marker associated with an NHS number.
Answer: Sex and gender identity are not always the same thing, and it is important for patients that we record both accurately. On 20 March 2025, my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care instructed the health service to immediately sus...
Answered 2 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordDevelopment Aid: CooperativesForeign, Commonwealth and Development OfficeTabled 24 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 40886More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what his Department's policy is on the use of co-operatives in supporting the Government's international development objectives.
Answer: The Government recognises the important contribution cooperatives make in serving local communities around the world. Cooperatives are a tried-and-tested model in international development, that can enable citizens and producers to access services or mark...
Answered 2 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordRoads: South CambridgeshireDepartment for TransportTabled 24 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 40878More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the (a) effectiveness and (b) cost-efficiency of pothole repair strategies in South Cambridgeshire constituency.
Answer: Cambridgeshire County Council is the local highway authority for the South Cambridgeshire constituency. Cambridgeshire is a member of the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority (CPCA). It is the responsibility of individual highway authorities...
Answered 28 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordRented Housing: StandardsMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 24 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 40986More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of strengthening the Decent Homes Standard for all forms of tenure.
Answer: The government will consult this year on a reformed Decent Homes Standard for the social and private rented sectors.
Answered 31 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordHousingMinistry of JusticeTabled 24 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 40985More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will take steps to amend the Human Rights Act 1998 to provide a legal right to access adequate housing.
Answer: The Human Rights Act (HRA) is an important part of our constitutional arrangements and fundamental to human rights protections in the UK. The Government has no plans to amend the rights protected by the HRA, which are drawn from those in the European Conv...
Answered 28 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordCarbon Emissions: TaxationDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 24 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 40795More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the potential merits of introducing a climate mitigation duty on mayoral strategic authorities.
Answer: My Rt hon Friend the Secretary of State and I have regular discussions with Ministerial Colleagues on a number of issues. We also both engage with Mayoral Strategic Authority leaders on the delivery of net zero regularly, including through roundtables.
Answered 28 Mar 2025
Original Parliament record
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