Shivani Raja MP: written questions 2025
131 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Special Educational NeedsDepartment for EducationTabled 11 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99296More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent estimate she has made of the average waiting time for SEND assessments in each local authority in England.
Answer: Information on the number and percentage of education, health and care (EHC) plans issued within the statutory 20 week deadline, with and without statutory exceptions to that deadline applying, is part of the latest statistical release published on 26 Jun...
Answered 19 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordLocal Government FinanceMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 11 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99295More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to i) support local authorities in managing temporary accommodation costs and ii) ensure value for money in capital investment programmes.
Answer: The government has increased funding for homelessness services to over £1 billion, including a £50 million top up to the Homelessness Prevention Grant announced in December 2025. We are also investing £3.5 billion in homelessness and rough sleeping servic...
Answered 22 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordLocal Government FinanceMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 11 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99294More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment he has made of the financial sustainability of local authorities projecting significant drawdowns from reserves within the next three years.
Answer: The government considers reserves to be an important part of the resources available to local authorities.We encourage local authorities to consider how they can use their reserves to maintain services in the face of pressures, taking account, of course, ...
Answered 22 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordCouncil TaxMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 11 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99293More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of above inflation council tax increases on the delivery of local public services in a) England and b) Leicester.
Answer: The Department has not made specific assessments on the impacts of council tax increases on the delivery of local public services. It is for individual councils to set their own level of council tax. The government intends to maintain a core 3% referendum...
Answered 22 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordAgriculture: SubsidiesDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 10 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 98972More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many Basic Payment Scheme 2023 claimants have accessed support through the Farming Resilience Fund since October 2021.
Answer: We do not hold the information in a form that allows us to identify Basic Payment Scheme 2023 claimants specifically. However, the scale-up phase of the Farming Resilience Fund ran from late 2022 to early 2025. During this phase, over 17,000 beneficiaries...
Answered 6 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordTaxis: LicensingDepartment for TransportTabled 10 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 88916More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that local authority taxi and private hire licensing enforcement policies are brought into line with the Statutory Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Standards.
Answer: We are currently reviewing licensing authorities’ compliance with existing guidance issued by the Department on actions they should take on licensing matters including safety. Where key safety recommendations from the guidance are not being followed, lice...
Answered 17 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordMaternity Services: SexDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 5 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 88424More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to review NHS communications to ensure that language on (a) pregnancy and (b) breast feeding reflects biological sexes.
Answer: We are committed to working with NHS England to ensure health communications are as clear as possible and appropriately reflect sex as a protected characteristic in the Equality Act 2010. This includes communications about pregnancy and breast feeding. In...
Answered 21 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordBlood: DonorsDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 4 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 87962More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that NHS Blood and Transplant donor exclusion policies (a) reflect up-to-date medical evidence and (b) do not unnecessarily restrict donor participatio
Answer: NHS Blood and Transplant’s (NHSBT) donor selection criteria are based on advice provided by the Joint United Kingdom (UK) Blood Transfusion and Tissue Transplantation Services’ Professional Advisory Committee (JPAC). JPAC regularly reviews its guidelines ...
Answered 14 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordBlood: DonorsDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 4 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 87961More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when his Department last reviewed NHS Blood and Transplant’s donor eligibility policy on the use of unlicensed injectable substances.
Answer: The safety of blood is of the upmost importance. The Blood Safety and Quality Regulations 2005 mandate permanent deferral from blood donation for anyone with a history of non-prescribed intravenous or intramuscular drug use, with further information avail...
Answered 14 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordBlood: DonorsDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 4 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 87960More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the permanent exclusion of people who have used tanning injections is consistent with the current evidence base on the persistence of bloodborne infection risks.
Answer: The safety of blood is of the utmost importance. Donor exclusion policies are in place to maintain safety and are mandated in the Blood Safety and Quality Regulations 2005: The Blood Safety and Quality Regulations 2005, which are available at the followin...
Answered 1 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordBlood: DonorsDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 4 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 87959More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of replacing the lifetime blood donation deferral for people who have used tanning injections with a fixed-term exclusion period similar to tho
Answer: There are no plans to update the deferral policy for tanning injections. Unlike tattooing and piercing, tanning injections are not well regulated. Given injectable tanning products work internally, they do not meet the definition of a cosmetic product and...
Answered 14 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordBlood: DonorsDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 4 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 87958More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether NHS Blood and Transplant has made an assessment of the potential impact of the use of tanning injections more than (a) 12 months (b) three months prior to donating on blood safety.
Answer: The safety of blood is of the upmost importance. Patients that receive blood donations can be particularly vulnerable to infections. In the United Kingdom, the Blood Safety and Quality Regulations 2005 mandate permanent deferral from blood donation for an...
Answered 19 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordBlood: DonorsDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 4 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 87957More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, for what reason people who have used tanning injections are permanently unable to donate blood.
Answer: The safety of blood is of the upmost importance. Patients that receive blood donations can be particularly vulnerable to infections. In the United Kingdom, the Blood Safety and Quality Regulations 2005 mandate permanent deferral from blood donation for an...
Answered 19 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordOverseas Students: Fees and ChargesDepartment for EducationTabled 4 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 87956More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the proposed international students levy on economic growth in (a) Leicester, (b) the East Midlands and (c) the United Kingdom; and if she will ensure the
Answer: The international student levy will fund the reintroduction of targeted maintenance grants for disadvantaged students to break down barriers to opportunity through our Plan for Change.This will help support more students from the lowest income households ...
Answered 14 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordOverseas Students: Fees and ChargesDepartment for EducationTabled 4 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 87955More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the proposed international students levy on the competitiveness of UK universities.
Answer: The international student levy will fund the reintroduction of targeted maintenance grants for disadvantaged students to break down barriers to opportunity through our Plan for Change.This will help support more students from the lowest income households ...
Answered 14 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordMaternity Services: SexDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 30 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 86802More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of not referencing biological sexes in some maternity care guidance on the safeguarding of patients.
Answer: The Department’s longstanding position is that health information should be as clear as possible and language should be used that appropriately reflects sex as defined in the Equality Act 2010.National maternity guidance and key documents, such as the Thr...
Answered 24 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordVaccination: Integrated Care BoardsDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 30 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 86801More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to delegate the commissioning of vaccination and immunisation services to integrated care boards from April 2026.
Answer: I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave on 29 September 2025 to Question PQ76374.
Answered 5 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordCulture: East MidlandsDepartment for Culture, Media and SportTabled 16 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 82767More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has made an assessment of the adequacy of national cultural funding for (a) Leicester and (b) the East Midlands compared with other regions.
Answer: The Department has carried out internal policy work to ensure there is a clear understanding of the publicly funded arts, culture and heritage sectors, including looking at national and local government funding. This work ensures future policy development...
Answered 22 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordCulture: Festivals and Special OccasionsDepartment for Culture, Media and SportTabled 16 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 82766More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will publish a breakdown of departmental funding allocated to major cultural festivals in the last five years.
Answer: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) provided funding for some cultural festivals and events. For example, Coventry UK City of Culture 2021 received £18.41 million of support, and Bradford UK City of Culture 2025 received £15 million. Many o...
Answered 22 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordFaith Schools: InspectionsDepartment for EducationTabled 16 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 82765More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of removing the subsidy for Ofsted inspections on independent religious schools in (a) Leicester and (b) England.
Answer: The department launched an eight-week consultation on 25 September 2025 on the subject of reducing the subsidy for Ofsted inspection fees. The consultation document is publicly available and sets out how Ofsted-inspected private schools will be affected b...
Answered 30 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordSchools: InspectionsDepartment for EducationTabled 16 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 82764More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of removing the subsidy for Ofsted inspections on (a) small and (b) specialist independent schools.
Answer: The department launched an eight-week consultation on 25 September 2025 on the subject of reducing the subsidy for Ofsted inspection fees. The consultation document is publicly available and sets out how Ofsted-inspected private schools will be affected b...
Answered 30 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordBreastfeedingDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 16 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 82763More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has allocated funding to (a) initiatives and (b) organisations that promote the use of the term chestfeeding.
Answer: The Department funds infant feeding services and support through the National Health Service, local authorities, and the National Breastfeeding Helpline.We want all families to be able to achieve their infant feeding goals, regardless of their circumstanc...
Answered 13 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordHospices: ChildrenDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 79012More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to reduce the variation in integrated care board (ICB) funding for children's hospices; and if he will commit to holding ICBs to account for the way in which they (a) commission c
Answer: Palliative care services are included in the list of services an integrated care board (ICB) must commission. ICBs are responsible for the commissioning of palliative care and end of life care services, to meet the needs of their local populations. To sup...
Answered 22 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordHospices: ChildrenDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 79011More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to Together for Short Lives’ report entitled Overstretched and Underfunded: The State of Children’s Hospice Funding in 2025, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of cu
Answer: Children and young people’s hospices do incredible work to support seriously ill children and their families and loved ones when they need it most, and we recognise the incredibly tough pressures they are facing.We are providing £26 million in revenue fun...
Answered 22 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordTrade Agreements: South AmericaDepartment for Business and TradeTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 79010More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what his policy is on seeking a UK-Mercosur free trade agreement.
Answer: Mercosur countries are important partners for the UK and I am personally committed to strengthening our bilateral trading relationships to remove barriers to trade and help grow UK exports. I recently visited Brazil, where I signed agreements on customs, ...
Answered 16 Oct 2025
Original Parliament record
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