Scott Arthur MP: written questions 2025
334 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Mental Health ServicesDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 15 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 82524More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress his Department has made on re-establishing a central capacity for co-ordinating preventative mental health work.
Answer: The 10-Year Health Plan sets out ambitious plans to transform mental health services to improve access and treatment, and to promote good mental health and wellbeing for the nation. This includes improving assertive outreach, investment into mental health...
Answered 22 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordParental Leave: Terminal IllnessesDepartment for Business and TradeTabled 13 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 81632More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of reducing the time to consult on Hugh’s Law to ensure earlier legislative consideration.
Answer: Government recognises the significant challenges and distress that serious childhood illness can cause. The department will consult on Hugh’s Law in 2026. In line with the Consultation Principles, we will ensure that the consultation lasts a proportionate...
Answered 21 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordMotor Vehicles: EdinburghDepartment for TransportTabled 13 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 81631More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many vintage cars were registered in Edinburgh in each year since 2010.
Answer: The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) does not capture information on whether a vehicle is classed as “vintage”. However, vehicles that were first registered or constructed more than 40 years ago may be able to be licensed in the “Historic Vehicl...
Answered 20 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordStem Cells: DonorsDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 13 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 81630More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to increase the availability of donors for stem cell transplants.
Answer: The United Kingdom aligned stem cell registry (a national register managed collaboratively by Anthony Nolan, DKMS UK, NHS Blood and Transplant and the Welsh Bone Marrow Donor Registry) has over 2.3 million potential stem cell donors registered.The Departm...
Answered 27 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordAlcoholic Drinks: Excise DutiesTreasuryTabled 13 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 81629More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has considered increasing alcohol duty; and if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of doing so on (a) the hospitality sector and (b) levels of excessive drinking.
Answer: On the Government’s consideration of alcohol duty rates, I refer the hon member to the answer that I gave to PQ UIN 78321. Following the Budget decision, the Government will publish a tax information and impact note (TIIN) to give account of the policy’s ...
Answered 17 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordBone Marrow: DonorsDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 10 Oct 2025WithdrawnUIN 80387More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to increase the availability of donors for bone marrow transplants.
Answer: No published answer in this record yet.
Original Parliament recordPalestine: Overseas StudentsForeign, Commonwealth and Development OfficeTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80386More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if she will consider allowing Palestinian students starting studies at UK universities in 2025 to apply to bring dependent children to the UK.
Answer: On 27 October, the Government updated our guidance on scholarships for students from Gaza to confirm that it was now also seeking to support the departure of the dependents of those students who are eligible under immigration rules. Full details can be fo...
Answered 5 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordCancer: ResearchDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80385More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the (a) findings of and (b) recommendation on alcohol and breast cancer in the World Cancer Research Fund's 2025 report entitled
Answer: The Government and the National Health Service recognise that a healthy lifestyle can help reduce the biggest risk factors of certain cancers. The Government welcomes the recent publication of the World Cancer Research Fund's 2025 report. The UK Chief Med...
Answered 5 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordBreast Cancer: Alcoholic DrinksDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80384More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of the annual cost to the NHS of treating breast cancer cases in the UK that are attributable to alcohol consumption.
Answer: The Government and the National Health Service recognise that a healthy lifestyle can help reduce the biggest risk factors of certain cancers. The Government welcomes the recent publication of the World Cancer Research Fund's 2025 report. The UK Chief Med...
Answered 5 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordBreast Cancer: Alcoholic DrinksDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80383More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many breast cancer cases in the UK are estimated to be caused by alcohol consumption each year; and what percentage of total breast cancer cases this represents.
Answer: The Government and the National Health Service recognise that a healthy lifestyle can help reduce the biggest risk factors of certain cancers. The Government welcomes the recent publication of the World Cancer Research Fund's 2025 report. The UK Chief Med...
Answered 5 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordBreast Cancer: Alcoholic DrinksDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80382More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to increase levels of public awareness on the potential impact of alcohol consumption on levels of breast cancer risk.
Answer: The Government and the National Health Service recognise that a healthy lifestyle can help reduce the biggest risk factors of certain cancers. The Government welcomes the recent publication of the World Cancer Research Fund's 2025 report. The UK Chief Med...
Answered 5 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordAlcoholic Drinks: LabellingDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80381More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to publish a timeline for strengthening voluntary guidelines for alcohol labelling.
Answer: In Fit for the Future: 10 Year Health Plan for England, the Government committed to strengthening and expanding existing voluntary guidelines for alcohol labelling by introducing a mandatory requirement for alcoholic drinks to display consistent nutrition...
Answered 27 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordAlcoholic Drinks: AdvertisingDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80380More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on the role of industry advertising in reducing the rate of alcohol harms.
Answer: As highlighted in the Fit for the Future: 10-Year Health Plan for England, the Government recognises that alcohol harms are increasing in the United Kingdom, and that to help tackle these harms a multi-faceted approach that includes prevention, harm reduc...
Answered 27 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordAlcoholic Drinks: Excise DutiesTreasuryTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80379More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she plans to link alcohol duty increases to inflation.
Answer: The baseline assumption, shared by the Government and the Office for Budget Responsibility, is that alcohol duty will be increased annually in line with the Retail Price Index, so that it does not fall in real terms. As with all taxes, the Government welc...
Answered 15 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordPostural Tachycardia Syndrome: DiagnosisDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80378More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure the (a) timely and (b) consistent diagnosis and (c) treatment for people living with postural tachycardia syndrome.
Answer: We are investing in additional capacity to deliver appointments to help bring waiting lists and times down, including for those with postural tachycardia syndrome (PoTS). The Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, sets out the specific productiv...
Answered 29 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordArmed Forces: HealthMinistry of DefenceTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80377More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many members of the armed forces serving in Scotland who are considered not medically deployable are awaiting treatment; and how many have been waiting longer than six months.
Answer: As of 11 October 2025, there were 221 UK Armed Forces personnel graded as Medically Not Deployable awaiting an NHS or private healthcare appointment following a referral from a Medical Centre in Scotland. Of these, 95 have been waiting longer than six mon...
Answered 19 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordCoral ReefsDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80376More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the article by the University of Edinburgh entitled Rescuing the cities of the deep: Corals from oil platforms find new homes off Shetland, published on 16 September
Answer: The UK is home to cold-water corals off our coast and tropical coral reefs within our Overseas Territories. With 4,700 square kilometres of corals across our UK Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies, the UK is responsible for the twelfth largest are...
Answered 20 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordEnergy: WasteDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80375More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department plans to take to help prevent waste leakage offshore following the inclusion of Energy from Waste in the UK Emissions Trading Scheme; and whether his Department plan
Answer: The UK Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) Authority consulted on expanding the UK ETS to the waste sector in 2024, including asking for views on managing the risk of increased diversion of waste to export abroad. The interim Authority Response published in Ju...
Answered 20 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordCarbon Capture and Storage: FinanceDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80374More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, when his Department plans to (a) publish a revised timeline for the track-2 cluster sequencing process and (b) provide funding for non-pipeline carbon capture projects.
Answer: The Government announced its support for the Acorn and Viking clusters in the Spending Review and is providing the development funding to advance their delivery. We've been working with clusters to understand what they need to keep them progressing to a f...
Answered 20 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordElectric Vehicles: Charging PointsDepartment for TransportTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80373More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions she has had with motorway service station operators on the rollout of rapid electric vehicle charging stations across the strategic road network in England.
Answer: A reliable, accessible public charging network to support EV drivers on long journeys is essential to support the EV transition. The market has changed significantly since the Rapid Charging Fund was announced, with now over 6,000 open-access, rapid and u...
Answered 15 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordElectric Vehicles: Charging PointsDepartment for TransportTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80372More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what guidance her Department provides to local authorities on integrating electric vehicle charging infrastructure in (a) new housing developments and (b) public spaces.
Answer: In April 2023, the Department for Transport published guidance to support the installation of chargepoints in new housing developments, which includes answers to frequently asked questions. The Department also worked with the Institution for Engineering a...
Answered 16 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordElectric Vehicles: Charging PointsDepartment for TransportTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80371More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing targeted fiscal incentives to support (a) small businesses and (b) community organisations in installing electric vehicle charging point
Answer: The Government already offers targeted grant funding for local authorities, workplaces, small businesses, charities and public bodies. Grant funding can be used towards the purchase and installation of chargepoint infrastructure. The funding is available ...
Answered 16 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordElectric Vehicles: Charging PointsDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80370More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment his Department has made of the capacity of the national grid to support projected growth in electric vehicle charging demand over the next decade.
Answer: The Government is working closely with Ofgem to ensure that its price control framework supports the necessary investment in the electricity network to deliver our clean energy and growth missions. This includes ensuring that the distribution network has ...
Answered 20 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordElectric Vehicles: Charging PointsDepartment for TransportTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80369More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to ensure equitable access to public electric vehicle charging infrastructure in (a) rural and (b) low-income urban areas.
Answer: Transport, including the rollout of public EV chargepoints, is largely devolved to the Scottish Government. However, my officials regularly engage with Transport Scotland on zero emission vehicle initiatives, including charging infrastructure development....
Answered 15 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordChildren: PovertyDepartment for EducationTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 80368More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has had discussion with the Child Poverty Taskforce on the potential impact of (a) the removal and (b) reform of the two-child benefit cap on the educational outcomes for children.
Answer: As co-chair of the Child Poverty Taskforce, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, is working across government on levers to tackle child poverty and improve the lives of families across the country.This government is committed to tac...
Answered 28 Oct 2025
Original Parliament record
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