Steve Darling MP: written questions 2025
347 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Carers: FinanceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 12 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99555More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to help ensure that local carer services are able to provide Income Maximisation services and crisis support to unpaid carers.
Answer: Overall Government responsibility for support for unpaid carers in England sits with the Department for Health and Social Care. DWP can provide financial support to qualifying unpaid carers through Carer’s Allowance, the Carer Element in Universal Credit ...
Answered 19 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordCrisis and Resilience Fund: CarersDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 12 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99554More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether unpaid carers will be classified as a financially vulnerable group eligible for the Crisis and Resilience Fund.
Answer: My Department has engaged with stakeholders on the design of the Fund through a structured co-design process, including eligibility requirements. We are considering feedback received through this process, and we plan to publish guidance in January 2026.
Answered 18 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordCarer's Allowance: OverpaymentsDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 12 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99553More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many carers have been convicted of fraud since 2015 due to Carer’s Allowance overpayments.
Answer: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has prosecuted cases of benefit fraud since 2012. DWP will refer cases where there is evidence that a claimant has deliberately claimed benefits they are not entitled to or provided false information. The decision to pr...
Answered 22 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordArtificial Intelligence: RegulationDepartment for Science, Innovation and TechnologyTabled 11 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 906996More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to regulate artificial intelligence.
Answer: AI is already regulated in the UK. A range of existing rules already apply to AI systems, such as data protection, competition, equality legislation and other forms of sector regulation. The Government will act where these laws are not enough to ensure sa...
Answered 18 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordOphthalmic Services: Community Health ServicesDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 11 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99306More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to expand the use of community optometry services.
Answer: Integrated care boards are responsible for assessing the health needs of their local population and commissioning primary and secondary eye care services to meet them. This can include the commissioning of enhanced eye care services from high street optic...
Answered 30 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordOphthalmic ServicesDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 11 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99304More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to create capacity in hospital eye services by expanding the use of optometry-led diagnostic and treatment pathways.
Answer: Integrated care boards are responsible for assessing the health needs of their local population and commissioning primary and secondary eye care services to meet them. This can include the commissioning of enhanced eye care services from high street optic...
Answered 30 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordOphthalmic ServicesDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 11 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99303More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential implications for his policies of the October 2024 report entitled Key Interventions to Transform Eye Care & Eye Health; and what estimate hi
Answer: Integrated care boards are responsible for assessing the health needs of their local population and commissioning primary and secondary eye care services to meet them. This can include the commissioning of enhanced eye care services from high street optic...
Answered 30 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordOphthalmic ServicesDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 11 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99302More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of (a) eye care services provision and (b) steps taken by Integrated Care Boards to ensure equality of access to eye care services in each re
Answer: Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning primary and secondary eye care services to meet local need. NHS sight tests are widely available across the country. The decision to commission enhanced eye care services will be determined b...
Answered 30 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordOphthalmic ServicesDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 11 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99300More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the efficacy of the (a) Minor Eye Conditions Service and (b) Community Urgent Eyecare Service.
Answer: Integrated care boards are responsible for assessing the health needs of their local population and commissioning primary and secondary eye care services to meet them. This can include the commissioning of enhanced eye care services from high street optic...
Answered 30 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordOphthalmic ServicesDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 11 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99299More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the regional provision of Minor Eye Conditions Services.
Answer: Integrated care boards are responsible for assessing the health needs of their local population and commissioning primary and secondary eye care services to meet them. This can include the commissioning of enhanced eye care services from high street optic...
Answered 30 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordGovernment Departments: MigrantsHome OfficeTabled 10 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 98928More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which Departments and schemes will include families with No Recourse to Public Funds within their eligibility criteria following the introduction of new guidance; and what steps she will take to monit
Answer: The new guidance being produced by the Home Office is designed to assist local authorities in supporting families with NRPF, as set out in the Child Poverty Strategy. The guidance will provide clarity around statutory duties and key safeguards for local a...
Answered 17 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordChildren: PovertyDepartment for EducationTabled 10 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 98927More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when she plans to publish a fuller equalities impact assessment of the Child Poverty Strategy, including its impact on groups at highest risk of poverty.
Answer: A full summary equalities analysis was published alongside the Child Poverty Strategy and is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/child-poverty-strategy-summary-equalities-analysis.The impacts of policies contributing to the Child Pove...
Answered 5 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordMetamaterialsDepartment for Science, Innovation and TechnologyTabled 10 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 98926More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether she has a strategy to accelerate the development and adoption of metamaterials.
Answer: The government is committed to support the development and adoption of metamaterials, as part of our wider ambition to strengthen the UK’s advanced materials ecosystem. In June 2025, the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy prioritised advanced materials as a ...
Answered 18 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordSTEM Subjects: South WestDepartment for Science, Innovation and TechnologyTabled 10 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 98925More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to improve the availability of high-quality STEM skills and support innovation in the South West, particularly in sectors critical to defence, ICT, and energy s
Answer: The Government is committed to strengthening STEM skills and driving innovation across the UK, including the South West. DSIT has launched the TechFirst programme to deliver tech and AI learning to 1 million young people by 2029. This builds on CyberFirst...
Answered 18 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordMembers: CorrespondenceHome OfficeTabled 4 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 97426More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to respond to the urgent correspondence from the hon. Member for Torbay dated 12 November 2025 on the potential closure of the custody suite in Torbay.
Answer: A response to this letter has been sent.
Answered 10 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordEmbassies: TrainingForeign, Commonwealth and Development OfficeTabled 2 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 96430More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether her Department provides trauma informed training to their Embassies and Consulates.
Answer: We prioritise maintaining a global network of internally trained Trauma Risk incidence Management assessors through a regular training programme which is open to all staff, UK and Country-Based. We have also begun to offer Type 2 trauma courses to both ho...
Answered 9 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordCommunity Health Services: LocationDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 1 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 95909More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the selection criteria was for the location of the 43 new neighbourhood hubs.
Answer: We have launched wave 1 of the National Neighbourhood Health Implementation Programme (NNHIP) in 43 places across England, including Cornwall and the Isle of Scilly.This is a large-scale change programme for all partners involved in delivering neighbourho...
Answered 25 Feb 2026
Original Parliament recordHospitals: StandardsDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 1 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 95907More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Wait 45 policy for ambulance wait times, including on corridor care and patients being looked after in sub-optimal areas.
Answer: NHS England continues to regularly monitor trust performance.We are tackling unacceptable ambulance handover delays by introducing a maximum 45-minute standard, supporting the quicker release of ambulances, helping them get back on the road to treat patie...
Answered 4 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordIdentity Cards: Overseas VisitorsHome OfficeTabled 27 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 95265More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to extend arrangements allowing UK-bound group travellers to use national identity cards to other major sending countries such as Italy, Spain and Switzerland.
Answer: EU national children are permitted to use their national identity cards instead of a passport when travelling to the UK as part of an organised French school group accompanied by documentation which has been authenticated by the relevant French authoritie...
Answered 2 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordHospitality Industry: TaxationMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 19 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 92770More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport and combined Mayoral Authorities on taxes relating to
Answer: The Government has announced powers for Mayors to introduce a visitor levy on short-term overnight accommodation in their region, to drive economic growth including through support for the local visitor economy. We have published a consultation running un...
Answered 28 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordVisitor LevyTreasuryTabled 19 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 92769More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether officials in her Department have worked on proposals to provide Mayors with powers to introduce a visitor levy.
Answer: The Government has announced powers for Mayors to introduce a visitor levy on short-term overnight accommodation in their region, to drive economic growth including through support for the local visitor economy, if they so choose.We have published a consu...
Answered 27 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordVisitor LevyTreasuryTabled 19 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 92768More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether her Department has carried out modelling on a visitor levy.
Answer: The Government has announced powers for Mayors to introduce a visitor levy on short-term overnight accommodation in their region, to drive economic growth including through support for the local visitor economy, if they so choose.We have published a consu...
Answered 27 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordVisitor LevyTreasuryTabled 19 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 92766More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the oral contribution of the Minister for Creative Industries, Arts and Tourism during the debate on Hospitality Sector of 3 September 2025, Official Report, column 351WH, whether she plans to intr
Answer: The Government has announced powers for Mayors to introduce a visitor levy on short-term overnight accommodation in their region, to drive economic growth including through support for the local visitor economy, if they so choose.We have published a consu...
Answered 27 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordHospital Beds: TorbayDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 17 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 91667More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the (a) number of patients in Torbay NHS Foundation Trust who had no criteria to reside but who were not discharged by the end of the day and (b) what proportion of acu
Answer: Data on the daily number of patients who no longer meet the criteria to reside is published monthly by NHS England, and is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/discharge-delays/acute-discharge-situat...
Answered 25 Nov 2025
Original Parliament recordGaza: ReconstructionForeign, Commonwealth and Development OfficeTabled 14 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 91195More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to ensure the participation of Palestinian representatives in post-ceasefire governance arrangements for Gaza.
Answer: I refer the Hon. Member to the statement made on Gaza and Sudan by the Foreign Secretary on 18 November and the statement on the Middle East by the Prime Minister on 14 October, following his participation in the Gaza Peace Summit in Egypt on 13 October, ...
Answered 20 Nov 2025
Original Parliament record
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