Samantha Niblett MP: written questions 2025
153 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Department of Health and Social Care: SoftwareDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 15 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99951More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 11 December 2025 to Question 97018, what proportion of his Department expenditure on Microsoft Software licenses and services was allocated to (a) new service implementati
Answer: The following table shows the information requested:YearNew Service ImplementationsRenewal and Maintenance of existing Systems4 December 2024 – 5 December 202515.2%84.8%4 December 2023 – 5 December 20240%100%Source: Department of Health and Social Care
Answered 22 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordDepartment for Business and Trade: SoftwareDepartment for Business and TradeTabled 15 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99950More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 9 December 2025 to Question 97021, what proportion of his Department's expenditure on Microsoft Software licenses and services was allocated to a) new service implementations
Answer: The Department does not hold this information in the format requested. We do not routinely capture or report expenditure on Microsoft software licences and services split between new service implementations and renewal or maintenance of existing systems. ...
Answered 18 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordMinistry of Justice: SoftwareMinistry of JusticeTabled 15 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99949More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Answer of 8 December 2025 to Question 97022, how much and what proportion of his Department's expenditure on Microsoft Software licenses and services was allocated to (a) new service impleme
Answer: The information requested is not held centrally.
Answered 18 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordSoftware: LicensingDepartment for Business and TradeTabled 15 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99948More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions he has had with small and medium-sized enterprises on the potential impact of restrictive software licensing practices on their businesses.
Answer: Ministers regularly meet with businesses of all sizes. Government is committed to delivering a competitive and prosperous digital economy. That is why we implemented the new digital markets regime on 1 January 2025. The Competition and Markets Authority n...
Answered 19 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordGovernment Departments: MicrosoftCabinet OfficeTabled 15 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99947More
Question: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what mechanisms are in place under the Strategic Partnership Arrangement 2024 with Microsoft to (a) monitor price changes for existing services and (b) assess the potential impact of prior purchasing decisions o
Answer: The Strategic Partnership Arrangement 2024 (SPA24) provides discounts and favourable terms to UK public sector customers. Contract prices are locked at the time of each authority's contract, for the duration of that contract. Any global price changes impl...
Answered 18 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordDepartment of Health and Social Care: MicrosoftDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 12 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99601More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of spending on Microsoft software licenses and services between (a) 4 December 2024 and 5 December 2025 and (b) 4 December 2023 and 5 December 2024 was allocated to (i) new service
Answer: The following table shows the proportion of spending on Microsoft software licenses and services between 4 December 2024 and 5 December 2025, and between 4 December 2023 and 5 December 2024 that was allocated to new service implementations and renewal, an...
Answered 18 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordVeterinary ServicesDepartment for Business and TradeTabled 10 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99007More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that veterinary clients are able to make informed choices in a market where many practices trade under local-sounding names despite corporate ownership.
Answer: The CMA is currently conducting a market investigation into veterinary services for household pets. The final report is expected early next year and will set out the actions the CMA has decided to take. As the UK’s independent competition authority, the C...
Answered 17 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordVeterinary ServicesDepartment for Business and TradeTabled 10 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99006More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of vertical integration within large veterinary groups, including ownership of pharmacies, laboratories, out-of-hours providers, crematoria and refer
Answer: Responsibility for investigating individual and market-wide competition issues, including vertical integration, falls to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) as the UK’s independent competition authority. The CMA is currently conducting a market in...
Answered 17 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordMinistry of Justice: SoftwareMinistry of JusticeTabled 10 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 98985More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department has (a) renewed and (b) upgraded digital services and software licensing contracts with Microsoft in the last 12 months.
Answer: The Ministry of Justice has not renewed or upgraded digital services and software licensing contracts with Microsoft in the preceding 12 months from 16 December 2025.
Answered 16 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordVeterinary ServicesDepartment for Business and TradeTabled 9 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 98643More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether he has had recent discussions with the Competition and Markets Authority on the decision not to (a) require divestments and (b) impose penalties following its investigation into the veterinary
Answer: The Competition and Markets Authority’s market investigation into veterinary services for household pets is on-going. The final report is expected early next year and will set out the actions the CMA has decided to take. As the UK’s independent competitio...
Answered 15 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordVeterinary ServicesDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 9 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 98642More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she plans to introduce requirements for veterinary practices to display in-clinic and online information about ownership beyond listings on the RCVS website.
Answer: Defra welcomes the Competition and Markets Authority’s (CMA’s) market investigation into veterinary services for household pets and continues to engage with the CMA throughout this process. The CMA’s responsibilities include enforcing the law against anti...
Answered 15 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordVeterinary ServicesDepartment for Business and TradeTabled 9 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 98641More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of veterinary market consolidation by large veterinary groups on client choice, pricing and local competition.
Answer: Responsibility for investigating individual and market-wide competition issues, including consolidation, falls to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) as the UK’s independent competition authority. The CMA is currently conducting a market investiga...
Answered 15 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordHorticulture and Parks: Skilled WorkersDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 9 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 98610More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how their department can work with others across Government to ensure there are the right skills and workforce in place to support local authorities in developing careers in amenity horticulture and par
Answer: DWP is working alongside sector-owning departments to ensure people have access to training to acquire the skills needed by employers, including Local Authorities.Local agencies and local government are well placed to understand their local labour market,...
Answered 16 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordRecreation Spaces: FinanceMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 9 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 98609More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will consider commissioning a piece of work to review all the existing evidence on the return of funding for parks and green spaces to support central and local government
Answer: We commissioned Keep Britain Tidy to conduct a rapid evidence review on the returns on investment for parks funding, using a combination of up MHCLG programme budget and underspend from the Green Flag Award. There is substantial evidence outlining the inv...
Answered 15 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordSugar BeetDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 5 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 97706More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to ensure that farmers are protected from the monopsony sugar beet processor.
Answer: The Government recognises the importance of sugar beet farmers and their vital contribution to UK sugar production. Also, that sugar beet itself, used in crop rotations, is beneficial to soil and crop health and allows arable farms a season of “rest” from...
Answered 11 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordSuicide: CurriculumDepartment for EducationTabled 5 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 97657More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans she has to include education on suicide and suicide prevention as a mandatory topic within the national curriculum.
Answer: The statutory guidance relationships and sex education (RSE) and health education already applies to all schools, including academies and independent schools. The updated guidance, published on 15 July 2025, will be implemented in schools from September 2...
Answered 11 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordHousing: ConstructionMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 4 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 97461More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what (a) planning policy and (b) precedent prevents (i) land promoters and (ii) developers from materially altering an agreed development layout at a site allocated within a Loca
Answer: The National Planning Policy Framework makes clear that site allocation policies should be deliverable over the plan period. Planning practice guidance states that where sites are proposed for allocation, sufficient detail should be given to provide clari...
Answered 9 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordMinistry of Justice: SoftwareMinistry of JusticeTabled 3 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 97022More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much his Department has spent on software licenses from Microsoft in the last 12 months; and what proportion this represents of his Department’s total technology spend.
Answer: In the last 12 months, the Ministry of Justice has spent £68 million on software licenses from Microsoft. This represents approximately 11% of the Department’s total technology spend.
Answered 8 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordDepartment for Business and Trade: SoftwareDepartment for Business and TradeTabled 3 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 97021More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how much his Department has spent on software licences from Microsoft in the last 12 months; and what proportion this represents of his Department’s total technology spend.
Answer: The Department for Business and Trade has spent £4.8m on software licences from Microsoft in the last 12 months, December 2024 to November 2025. This represents 5% of the Department's total Digital, Data & Technology spend.
Answered 9 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordDepartment for Science, Innovation and Technology: MicrosoftDepartment for Science, Innovation and TechnologyTabled 3 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 97020More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how much her Department has spent on software licences from Microsoft in the last 12 months; and what proportion this represents of her Department’s total technology spend.
Answer: DSIT spend of £3,044,084.14 for DSIT Microsoft Licences in the last 12 months. We have not provided the proportion of the total technology spend as it is not a separate reporting category within Annual Report and Accounts (ARA).
Answered 16 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordGovernment Departments: MicrosoftDepartment for Science, Innovation and TechnologyTabled 3 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 97019More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of the value achieved through recent contract negotiations with Microsoft; and what assurances are in place regarding future pricing.
Answer: The government holds a number of contracts with resellers of Microsoft products, which includes Office tools, Copilot and Azure.Value for money is typically assessed through the Department’s internal governance processes for awarding a new contract. The D...
Answered 10 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordDepartment of Health and Social Care: MicrosoftDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 3 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 97018More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much his Department has spent on software licences from Microsoft in the last 12 months; and what proportion this represents of his Department’s total technology spend.
Answer: For the period 4 December 2024 to 5 December 2025, the Department spent £4.8 million on Microsoft Software licenses and services. During this period this spend accounted for 25.2% of the overall internal technology spend.
Answered 11 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordFood: Waste DisposalDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 1 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 95922More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much new burdens funding she plans to allocate for food waste collections; and if she will (a) allocate that funding based on costs incurred by WCAs and (b) apply the New Burdens D
Answer: We have invested over £340 million to support waste collection authorities on weekly food collections. While local authorities will have the flexibility to deliver these reforms in the best way for their council areas and residents, we still expect them t...
Answered 4 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordPlanning: Public ConsultationMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 1 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 95850More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department issues guidance to local planning authorities on ensuring that public consultation and plan-making processes do not appear (a) biased and (b) predetermined
Answer: The National Planning Policy Framework is clear that local development plans should be shaped by early, proportionate, and effective engagement between plan-makers and communities, local organisations, and businesses.Regulations under the Planning and Com...
Answered 4 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordEggs: ImportsDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 1 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 95849More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to ensure imported eggs are (a) salmonella free and (b) raised to the same standards as UK produced eggs.
Answer: The UK has detailed legislation on marketing standards for eggs, which also covers imported eggs, to protect our food standards.
Answered 4 Dec 2025
Original Parliament record
Published records only — not a full account of an MP’s work. How we work →