The Government is investing up to £10 million of new funding per year in Trading Standards until 2028/29, including to the Trading Standards team in Leicester, to support the enforcement of illicit and underage tobacco and vape sales, and the implementation of the measures in the Tobacco and Vapes Act. The requested information on the number of non-compliant single-use vapes seized by Trading Standards officers in Leicester over the past twelve months is not held by the Department.

We’re investing nearly £100 million in the biggest upgrade of national resilience capabilities in nearly twenty years, part of which includes more specialist equipment and wildfire training for firefighters that can deploy nationally to support in wildfires across the country, including in Leicester.

We also work closely with fire and rescue services to ensure they can prepare for and manage local risks. Decisions on how fire and rescue authorities use their resources and equipment to meet those risks are a matter for each fire and rescue authority.

On 9 February, the Ministry published the 2026/27 Local Government Finance Settlement which sets out funding allocations for all local authorities including fire and rescue. This financial year, Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Authority will have a core spending power of £55.56 million, an increase of 7.29% compared to 2025/26. Decisions on how their resources are best deployed to meet their core functions are a matter for each fire and rescue authority.

No such estimate has been made. NHS England publishes monthly attendance figures for National Health Service trusts, which are available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/ae-waiting-times-and-activity/

The Government is committed to reducing health inequalities and ensuring people can access high-quality healthcare services regardless of where they live. In support of this, annual capital health spending will rise to £15 billion by the end of the Spending Review period, 2029/30, the highest level on record.

Our 10 Year Capital Plan sets out how we will bring care closer to home with a £200 million investment over this Spending Review period to support the development of neighbourhood health centres (NHCs), alongside a further £200 million to continue upgrading the primary care estate. Nationwide coverage will take time, but we will start in the areas of greatest need, targeting places where healthy life expectancy is lowest and delivering healthcare closer to home for those that need it the most. In March 2026, we announced the first wave of NHC upgrade schemes, with 27 sites across England selected to bring care closer to home, backed by up to £50 million.

More broadly, we are empowering local National Health Service organisations to invest in infrastructure that best meets local needs by introducing multi-year capital budgets, devolving more decision making to the frontline, and streamlining approvals to speed up delivery. This will support local systems to prioritise capital investment where it can have the greatest impact on patient outcomes and reducing inequalities.

The Government is committed to reducing health inequalities and ensuring people can access high-quality healthcare services regardless of where they live.

Launched in 2025/26, the Primary Care Utilisation and Modernisation Fund, provides capital funding to deliver upgrades to general practice (GP) surgeries across England. In 2025/26, the fund supported approximately 780 capital investment projects, bringing unused space into clinical use to enable approximately nine million additional clinical appointments. The Government has committed a further £400 million over the Spending Review period to continue upgrades to GP surgeries and to develop neighbourhood health centres.

The 10-Year Health Plan states that we will establish a neighbourhood health centre in every community, beginning in places where healthy life expectancy is lowest. Government has committed to deliver 250 neighbourhood health centres by 2035, with approximately 120 centres operational by 2030.

In Leicester and other areas of the country wildfires pose multiple health risks, including injuries, respiratory and cardiovascular impacts from smoke exposure, and mental health impacts. Smoke from wildfires can degrade air quality significantly and can lead to increased risk of air pollution mortality.

I refer the Hon Member to the report published by the UK Health Security Agency on the Health Effects of Climate Change, with a focus on the impact of heat on wildfires and health, available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/heat-summary-chapter-10-wildfires-and-health

For Leicester City Council, the multi-year Settlement makes available up to £555.2 million in Core Spending Power by 2028-29, an above average increase of 36.1% compared to 2024-25, equivalent to £147.3 million.

The government is making good on long overdue promises to fundamentally update the way we fund local authorities. We are delivering fairer funding, targeting money where it is needed most through the first multi-year Settlement in a decade.

As a result of the fair funding review reforms, nine in ten councils will receive funding that broadly matches their assessed relative need by the end of the multi-year Settlement, up from around a third before our reforms.

The Department monitors passenger satisfaction across the rail network through a range of measures, including independent passenger research, operator surveys, complaints data and other customer feedback. The Department recognises that recent reductions in East Midlands Railway (EMR) intercity services serving Leicester, together with poorer reliability, are likely to have adversely affected passengers' satisfaction with their journeys.

These issues have been driven in part by delays to the introduction of EMR's new Aurora trains, which have reduced resilience during the transition period and led EMR to introduce a temporary reduced intercity timetable from 20 July 2026 to minimise short-notice cancellations and improve reliability. The Department, through DfT Operator Ltd. (DFTO), is working closely with EMR and Network Rail to improve performance and passenger experience. From 31 August 2026, EMR will increase its intercity services from 87 per cent to 92 per cent of the planned timetable, restoring a number of previously withdrawn services and representing a significant step towards returning to normal operation.

The Department does not hold the data for 2021/22 centrally. Average cancellation rate for East Midlands Railway services calling at Leicester station in each of the last four financial years is set out in the table below.

The Department recognises that the recent reliability of East Midlands Railway (EMR) services serving Leicester and the Midland Main Line has not been adequate. The Department, through DFTO, has been clear to EMR that the current service is unacceptable and is working closely with EMR and industry partners to urgently improve performance.

From 31 August 2026, EMR will increase its Intercity services from 87% to 92% of the full planned timetable, this represents a significant step towards restoring services for passengers. This improved timetable has been designed around the trains currently available and will restore a number of previously withdrawn services, while improving overall reliability and resilience. It is expected to reduce planned weekly cancellations across the Intercity route by approximately 45% compared with the temporary timetable introduced in July. The enhanced timetable will also increase capacity on EMR’s Intercity services from 81% to 84% of the full planned timetable.

The Department recognises that the recent reliability of East Midlands Railway (EMR) services serving Leicester and the Midland Main Line has not been adequate. The Department, through DFTO, has been clear to EMR that the current service is unacceptable and is working closely with EMR and industry partners to urgently improve performance.

From 31 August 2026, EMR will increase its Intercity services from 87% to 92% of the full planned timetable, this represents a significant step towards restoring services for passengers. This improved timetable has been designed around the trains currently available and will restore a number of previously withdrawn services, while improving overall reliability and resilience. It is expected to reduce planned weekly cancellations across the Intercity route by approximately 45% compared with the temporary timetable introduced in July. The enhanced timetable will also increase capacity on EMR’s Intercity services from 81% to 84% of the full planned timetable.

While no assessment of Operation Pedalfast has been made, the Government welcomes the steps taken by Leicestershire Police to clamp down on illegally modified e-bikes and e-scooters.

Police forces across the country are undertaking similar activities, but the detail of how this is done and the level of resource involved are of course operational matters for the police.

The Government is providing local leaders in England with £21bn of local transport funding until 2029/30, through consolidated, multi-year settlements, including £9.6bn in non-mayoral areas, which they can use to deliver their local transport priorities, including transport infrastructure. The majority of local transport funding is allocated by formula to give a fair share of funding for all areas.

Leicester City Council has been awarded £148 million transport funding to invest in their local transport priorities.