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Campaigns in Barking & Dagenham

Barking station(2)-2

Campaigning for a better Barking Station

A7R03434 (1)

Campaigning for a GP surgery in Barking Riverside

Your voice in Parliament

Questions

  • 07 Sep 2026
    Right to Buy Scheme: Barking
    To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many council homes have been sold under Right to Buy in Barking constituency in each year since 2010.
    Response from Rt Hon Matthew Pennycook MP (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
    Data on the number of Right to Buy sales is not collected by Parliamentary constituency. Information by local authority can be found in Live Table 691 on gov.uk here.
  • 28 Oct 2026
    Energy: Debts
    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps her Department is taking to protect energy customers from being charged for historic debt arising from estimated billing where a meter was incorrectly installed by the energy suppl
    Response from Ms Polly Billington MP (Energy Security and Net Zero)
    The Government expects suppliers to treat customers fairly and resolve billing complaints promptly. Ofgem’s back-billing rules protect domestic customers from charges for energy used more than 12 months ago where they were not accurately billed or notifie... [Read More]
  • 28 Oct 2026
    Care Workers: Training
    To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to improve training for social care staff.
    Response from Alison McGovern MP (Health and Social Care)
    Care providers registered with the Care Quality Commission are required under Regulation 18 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 to deploy suitably qualified, competent, skilled and experienced staff.Improving the... [Read More]
  • 28 Oct 2026
    Ataxia and Dysphagia
    To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will introduce mandatory training on ataxia and dysphagia conditions for social care staff.
    Response from Alison McGovern MP (Health and Social Care)
    Care providers registered with the Care Quality Commission are required under Regulation 18 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 to deploy suitably qualified, competent, skilled and experienced staff.Improving the... [Read More]
  • 01 Sep 2026
    Leasehold: Reform
    To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans she has to reform the leasehold system.
    Response from Rt Hon Matthew Pennycook MP (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
    I refer the hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statements on 27 January 2026 (HCWS1278) and on 15 July 2026 (HCWS270).
  • 28 Oct 2026
    Prescriptions: Exemptions
    To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will review the eligibility criteria for NHS prescription charge medical exemptions.
    Response from Mr James Frith MP (Health and Social Care)
    We keep all aspects of prescription charging policy under regular review.
  • 19 Oct 2026
    High Rise Flats: Insulation
    To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will publish the average time taken for cladding remediation to be completed following its identification for government remediation programmes.
    Response from Florence Eshalomi MP (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
    The department publishes a range of data about remediation progress via the monthly Building Safety Data Release, including the proportion of buildings identified with unsafe cladding that are expected to be remediated as part of MHCLG's remediation progr... [Read More]
  • 19 Oct 2026
    General Practitioners: Barking and Dagenham
    To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to improve access to GP appointments in Barking and Dagenham.
    Response from Rt Hon Dame Diana Johnson MP (Health and Social Care)
    We are expanding capacity in general practices (GPs) which will help deliver more appointments to patients across England, including in Barking and Dagenham.Since October 2024, we have funded primary care networks with an additional £160 million to recrui... [Read More]
  • 19 Oct 2026
    Building Safety Regulator
    To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Building Safety Regulator.
    Response from Florence Eshalomi MP (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
    The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) has made significant progress over the last year following substantial reform of its leadership and operations. Under new leadership, it has strengthened capability, improved engagement with industry, streamlined proces... [Read More]
  • 19 Oct 2026
    Empty Dwelling Management Orders
    To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many Empty Dwelling Management Orders have been issued, each year, since 2015 in a) London and b) nationally.
    Response from Rt Hon Matthew Pennycook MP (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
    My Department does not collect data on the number of Empty Dwelling Management Orders issued by local authorities in London or nationally.
  • 19 Oct 2026
    Housing Ombudsman Service
    To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Housing Ombudsman.
    Response from Rt Hon Matthew Pennycook MP (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
    The Housing Ombudsman is an independent, impartial, and free service for social housing residents. My Department monitors it against its strategic objectives and agreed performance measures. Demand for the Housing Ombudsman’s services has increased by 500... [Read More]
  • 13 Oct 2026
    Social and Affordable Homes Programme
    To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate she has made of the potential impact of the Social and Affordable Homes Programme on expenditure on housing support over the lifetime of that programme.
    Response from Rt Hon Matthew Pennycook MP (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
    We have assessed the impacts of the Social and Affordable Homes Programme on housing benefit spending and they will be included in the Economic Case of the Social and Affordable Homes Programme Business Case, which remains under development. A summary of ... [Read More]
  • 13 Oct 2026
    Planning
    To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, following the publishing of the new National Planning Policy Framework, what steps she is taking to support a) health, b) education and c) transport infrastructure alongside hous
    Response from Rt Hon Matthew Pennycook MP (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
    I refer the hon. Member to policies HC1, HC3, HC4, and TR1 of the new National Planning Policy Framework published on 17 August.
  • 19 Oct 2026
    Carers
    To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when she will appoint the Unpaid Carers Champion.
    Response from Alison McGovern MP (Health and Social Care)
    On 30 September 2026, my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, announced plans to appoint a Champion for Unpaid Carers. Work to establish the role is underway and further information will be announced in due course.
  • 19 Oct 2026
    Food: Waste
    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when she plans to respond further to the 2023 consultation on food waste reporting.
    Response from Emma Hardy MP (Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
    The Government recognises the importance of improving food waste data to help reduce food waste and improve resource efficiency. The Department is engaging with industry to improve reporting and data quality, while considering a range of policy options. P... [Read More]
  • 19 Oct 2026
    Food: Waste
    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of a public food waste reporting requirement for large businesses in reducing food prices through increased supply chain efficiency
    Response from Emma Hardy MP (Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
    The Government recognises the importance of improving food waste data to help reduce food waste and improve resource efficiency. The Department is engaging with industry to improve reporting and data quality, while considering a range of policy options. P... [Read More]
  • 13 Oct 2026
    Special Educational Needs: Reform
    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will publish the Local SEND Reform Plans submitted by local area partnerships to her Department.
    Response from Georgia Gould MP (Education)
    Local special educational needs and disabilities reform plans are live, operational documents owned by Local Area Partnerships, which decide whether to publish. The department will publish confirmation of areas with approved and deferred reform plans, alo... [Read More]
  • 13 Oct 2026
    Schools: Admissions
    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she plans to publish a strategy on falling pupil numbers in schools.
    Response from Josh MacAlister MP (Education)
    We recognise that falling pupil numbers can present difficult strategic choices for local areas. Local authorities have a statutory duty to ensure that sufficient school places are available. We expect local authorities, academy trusts and other partners ... [Read More]
  • 13 Oct 2026
    Schools: Admissions
    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what support her Department is providing to (a) schools and (b) local authorities experiencing falling pupil numbers.
    Response from Josh MacAlister MP (Education)
    We recognise that falling pupil numbers can present difficult strategic choices for local areas. Local authorities have a statutory duty to ensure that sufficient school places are available. We expect local authorities, academy trusts and other partners ... [Read More]
  • 13 Oct 2026
    Inheritance Tax
    To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential distributional impact of reducing inheritance tax; and what proportion of the financial benefit of such a reduction would accrue to households in each (a) income and (b)
    Response from Rt Hon James Murray MP (Treasury)
    The combination of nil-rate bands, exemptions, and reliefs means less than 10 per cent of estates across the UK are currently forecast to have an inheritance tax liability in 2030-31. Inheritance tax makes an important contribution to the public finances ... [Read More]

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