Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate she has made of the timeline for meeting cancer screening uptake targets for (a) breast, (b) cervical, (c) bowel and (d) prostate cancer.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government is committed to improving uptake in all screening programmes, including for breast, bowel, and cervical screening. There is no national screening programme for prostate cancer. The improvement in cancer screening programmes is not predicated on a specific timeline, but is focusing on targeting specific groups where uptake is low.

NHS England has developed a national improvement plan in collaboration with key stakeholders to improve uptake within the breast screening programme. This plan will encompass a series of evaluative projects, which are expected to report in April 2024

A range of improvements and innovations have been brought in to help improve uptake in the NHS Cervical Screening Programme. For example, appointments are being made available during evenings and weekends, and in some areas cervical screening appointments can be made in any primary care setting, rather than just at one’s own general practice.

In addition, we are also working to test the effectiveness of human papillomavirus infection self-sampling as a primary cervical screening option, with individuals taking their own cervical screening sample. The findings from this evaluation will be used to inform a UK National Screening Committee recommendation, and it is expected that self-sampling could lead to an increase in uptake as it will reduce some of the barriers that prevent people from attending a screening.

Uptake in the NHS Bowel Cancer Screening Programme is currently above the achievable threshold of 60%, between 1 July and 30 September 2023 it was 67.4%, and therefore the focus for this screening programme is on gradually reducing the age of the eligible cohort from 60 years old down to 50 years old, to increase to numbers eligible for this programme.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to increase the uptake of screening for (a) breast, (b) cervical, (c) bowel and (d) prostate cancer.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government is committed to improving uptake in all screening programmes, including for breast, bowel, and cervical screening. There is no national screening programme for prostate cancer. The improvement in cancer screening programmes is not predicated on a specific timeline, but is focusing on targeting specific groups where uptake is low.

NHS England has developed a national improvement plan in collaboration with key stakeholders to improve uptake within the breast screening programme. This plan will encompass a series of evaluative projects, which are expected to report in April 2024

A range of improvements and innovations have been brought in to help improve uptake in the NHS Cervical Screening Programme. For example, appointments are being made available during evenings and weekends, and in some areas cervical screening appointments can be made in any primary care setting, rather than just at one’s own general practice.

In addition, we are also working to test the effectiveness of human papillomavirus infection self-sampling as a primary cervical screening option, with individuals taking their own cervical screening sample. The findings from this evaluation will be used to inform a UK National Screening Committee recommendation, and it is expected that self-sampling could lead to an increase in uptake as it will reduce some of the barriers that prevent people from attending a screening.

Uptake in the NHS Bowel Cancer Screening Programme is currently above the achievable threshold of 60%, between 1 July and 30 September 2023 it was 67.4%, and therefore the focus for this screening programme is on gradually reducing the age of the eligible cohort from 60 years old down to 50 years old, to increase to numbers eligible for this programme.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent discussions she has had with the General Medical Council on (a) regulating (i) physician and (ii) anaesthesia associates and (b) ensuring that increased use of these roles in hospitals does not impact (A) the professional competence of other healthcare professionals and (B) patient safety.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department has been working closely with the General Medical Council (GMC) since 2019, on the regulation of Anaesthesia Associates (AAs) and Physician Associates (PAs). Regulation with the GMC will provide set standards of practice, education, and training for AAs and PAs, as well as requirements around continual professional development (CPD) and conduct. Regulation with the GMC will mean that individual AAs and PAs can be held to account if serious concerns are raised.

The NHS Long Term Workforce Plan commits to growing these roles alongside recruiting and training more doctors, nurses, and allied health and other professionals. NHS England is working with partners, including the GMC, royal colleges, trade unions, doctors, and medical associate professional groups to develop comprehensive curricula, core capability frameworks, standards for CPD, assessment and appraisal, and supervision guidance for AAs and PAs, ensuring the roles are expanded safely and effectively.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions she is having with professional bodies on ensuring that the public have a clear understanding of (a) professional titles and (b) the services they can expect from the holders of such titles.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

It is the responsibility of professionals and their employers to ensure professional titles are used appropriately, and are not misleading to patients. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines set out that all healthcare professionals directly involved in a patient's care should introduce themselves and explain to the patient: who is responsible for their clinical care and treatment; the roles and responsibilities of the different members of the healthcare team; and the communication about their care that takes place between members of the healthcare team.

Professions that are regulated in statute have titles that are protected by law, and professionals must be registered with a statutory regulator to use them. It is an offence for a person to use a title they are not legally permitted to use, or to otherwise hold themselves out to be a regulated professional.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of her policies on social care on (a) staff recruitment and retention and (b) service user outcomes.

Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Preliminary findings for the Department's workforce reform programme have indicated that workers with multiple positive employment factors, including increasing access to training and qualifications, were more likely to stay in employment. Planned evaluation of the reforms will aim to measure the impact on intention to leave, and actual turnover, along with other outcomes.

We anticipate benefits from the workforce reform programme will include a reduction in staff turnover, improved quality of care from a better trained and more stable workforce, increased workforce productivity, and an increase in efficiency savings for social care providers as they reduce the amount of retraining and recruitment needed. These all contribute to our wider goals of improvements in the quality-of-care provision and improved access to care.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make representations to Cabinet colleagues on enabling the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman to initiate investigations into the NHS.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

Whilst responsibility for any changes to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) lies with the Cabinet Office, we are not persuaded about the need for the PHSO to initiate investigations into the National Health Service. This could result in reduced contact with individual complainants, reduced PHSO capacity to handle individual complaints, increased costs, and the potential for the PHSO to stray into policy matters and duplicate the work of the Select Committee. The PHSO may already investigate systemic issues where individual complaints suggest more widespread problems and the healthcare system itself already includes organisations that can initiate investigations, including the Health Services Safety Investigations Body, who investigate patient safety concerns across England to improve NHS care at a national level.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what her planned timetable is to respond to the report entitled Leadership for a collaborative and inclusive future, published on 8 June 2022.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Leadership for a Collaborative and Inclusive Future made seven recommendations, which were accepted by the Government. NHS England is leading on implementation of all seven recommendations, with progress made on all the recommendations, and is working in partnership with Skills for Care, where they apply to the social care workforce.

A Review Implementation Office (RIO), comprising of stakeholders from across the Department, NHS England, NHS Employers, Skills for Care, and local government, is providing oversight for the implementation of recommendations one and two, which apply across both health and social care.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to help improve the accountability of NHS leaders.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Systems and processes are already in place to ensure the accountability of National Health Service Directors. NHS England has strengthened these through the introduction of the Fit and Proper Person (FPP) Framework. This introduces a set of standard competencies for board Directors, a means of retaining information regarding individual Directors, and a new board member reference template. The framework is effective from 30 September 2023, and should be implemented by all boards by 31 March 2024.

NHS England has reminded all NHS organisations of their obligations not to appoint any individual as a board Director unless they satisfy all FPP requirements, including that they have not been responsible for, been privy to, contributed to, or facilitated any serious misconduct or mismanagement. The Department and NHS England are considering whether further mechanisms are needed to hold senior NHS managers accountable, including the possibility of a disbarring system.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will bring forward legislation to protect whistleblowers in the NHS complaints process.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

The Government recognises how valuable it is that whistleblowers can shine a light on wrongdoing, and believes that they should be able to do so without fear of recriminations. There are legal provisions within the Public Interest and Disclosure Act 1998 that protect workers against detrimental treatment for speaking up in the public interest. In March 2023, the Department for Business and Trade announced a review of the whistleblowing framework, which aims to examine the effectiveness of the framework in meeting its original objectives, which are to facilitate whistleblowing, protect whistleblowers against detriment and dismissal, and to facilitate wider cultural change around whistleblowing. The review is still ongoing, and the Government will publish the evidence, and set out the next steps this year.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she has had recent discussions with York District Hospital on the potential merits of building a new hospital in York in the next 15 years.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Secretary of State has not had discussions with York District Hospital on the potential merits of building a new hospital in York.

No expressions of interest were received from York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust in respect of York District Hospital to join the New Hospital Programme. Going forward, new schemes will be considered through a rolling programme of capital investment in hospital infrastructure, with details to be agreed periodically to provide greater future certainty. The government will set out robust plans at future Spending Reviews, including when and how it will seek to invite further projects to join the New Hospital Programme and other major capital investment opportunities.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he is taking steps to ensure that young offenders are provided therapeutic support (a) in the community and (b) in secure settings.

Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

Youth Offending Teams (YOTs) are central to supporting children in the community who are on the cusp of offending, as well as those who have already offended. Working as multi-agency teams, with representatives from police, probation, education, health and social services, and specialist workers, such as accommodation officers and substance misuse workers, they are able to tailor their interventions and referrals based on an assessment of a child's vulnerabilities, risk and needs. YOTs are increasingly moving towards becoming a ‘trauma-informed’ service, and most have access to a Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services practitioner who will assess children and provide early intervention to young people coming into contact with the justice system.

In secure settings, in collaboration with Health partners, the Youth Custody Service is committed to the delivery of an individualised, trauma-informed model of care for every child in custody across England and Wales. This approach ensures every child has access to a needs-based programme of therapy, interventions, treatment, and education. Interventions include a range of cognitive behavioural programmes, counselling psychology services and Family Therapy to promote desistance from future offending.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he has made an estimate of the number of probation officers required to support prisoners granted early release.

Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

We have increased funding for the Probation Service by an extra £155 million a year and onboarded over 4,000 trainee probation officers over the last three years.

As announced on 11 March, we will reset probation so that practitioners prioritise early engagement at the point where offenders are most likely to breach their licence conditions, allowing frontline staff to maximise supervision of the most serious offenders.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many equines with passports issued by Weatherbys passport issuing agencies were registered as being in training when they were slaughtered in (a) 2021, (b) 2022 and (c) 2023.

Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

548 horses were slaughtered in 2022, and 721 horses were slaughtered in 2023. Tables showing the number of horses slaughtered in abattoirs in 2022 and 2023 by passport issuing agency and age are attached, due to the size of the data. The information requested on the number of equines registered as being in training when slaughtered is not held.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will publish a breakdown by passport issuing agency and age of horses slaughtered in abattoirs in (a) 2022 and (b) 2023.

Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

548 horses were slaughtered in 2022, and 721 horses were slaughtered in 2023. Tables showing the number of horses slaughtered in abattoirs in 2022 and 2023 by passport issuing agency and age are attached, due to the size of the data. The information requested on the number of equines registered as being in training when slaughtered is not held.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will publish a breakdown by passport issuing agency of horses slaughtered in abattoirs in (a) 2022 and (b) 2023.

Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

548 horses were slaughtered in 2022, and 721 horses were slaughtered in 2023. Tables showing the number of horses slaughtered in abattoirs in 2022 and 2023 by passport issuing agency and age are attached, due to the size of the data. The information requested on the number of equines registered as being in training when slaughtered is not held.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many horses were slaughtered in abattoirs in (a) 2022 and (b) 2023.

Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

548 horses were slaughtered in 2022, and 721 horses were slaughtered in 2023. Tables showing the number of horses slaughtered in abattoirs in 2022 and 2023 by passport issuing agency and age are attached, due to the size of the data. The information requested on the number of equines registered as being in training when slaughtered is not held.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he has had discussions with the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities on the (a) number of housing placements available for prisoners on early release and (b) potential impact of the early release scheme on social housing waiting lists.

Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) is committed to preventing homelessness and works closely with the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) and the Welsh Government to do so. Prisons and probation have a statutory duty to refer someone at risk of homelessness to a local authority for assistance, and we have worked closely with DLUHC on the design and delivery of their Accommodation for Ex-Offenders scheme. We have set up a Cross-Whitehall Accommodation Board, attended by officials from MoJ, HMPPS, Welsh Government and DLUHC, to ensure collaboration across policy and operational areas.

In July 2021, we launched our groundbreaking Community Accommodation Service Tier-3, to guarantee up to 12-weeks temporary accommodation to prison leavers subject to probation supervision who are at risk of homelessness on release, including those released under the End of Custody Supervised Licence measure. From July 2023 the service was expanded across all probation regions in England and Wales and continues to bring new beds online as the service embeds.

In 2022-23, 86% of prison leavers were in accommodation on their first night of release from custody.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to help encourage individuals out of work to undertake (a) digital and (b) IT qualifications.

Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Jobcentre Plus Work Coaches will engage with customers to better understand the steps needed to support their work search ambitions. Where digital skills are identified as a barrier to securing or progressing in employment, customers can be referred to available local provision. For customers in England, we have ongoing collaboration at a national and local level with the Department for Education who fund adult education provision via the Adult Education Budget (AEB). Learning providers, many of which are Further Education colleges, deliver training to address claimant skills needs in line with Labour Market demand. As skills is a devolved matter, similar discussions take place with key stakeholders in the Scottish and Welsh Governments to help ensure the employment and skills support offered to customers in the devolved nations is aligned.

In addition, Work Coaches in England can use the additional flexibility available through DWP Train and Progress to signpost claimants to the Department for Education’s Digital Skills Bootcamps, which can last up to 16 weeks.

For digitally excluded working age out-of-work and in-work Universal Credit customers, Work Coaches can also use the Flexible Support Fund (FSF) to procure devices, dongle, talk time, and 6 months superfast broadband in the home where the Work Coach believes this will support Labour Market progression. DWP has also ensured that all operational staff in Jobcentres, Universal Credit service centres, Pension Centres, and partnership managers who engage with customers and stakeholders are able to signpost to information promoting broadband social tariffs made accessible to claimants through DWP’s Application Programme Interface.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of young offender institutions; and whether he has made a comparative assessment with secure children's homes.

Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The secure estate for children and young people is composed of different types of establishment, in order to provide for the differing needs and risks of individual children and young people remanded or sentenced to custody. The effectiveness of all establishments in the estate is continually assessed through internal and external quality audits and performance metrics, which are published regularly.

Our Children and Young People Strategy, which is in development, will be based on an assessment of the range of provision currently and potentially available. It will set out our longer-term goals for the future of the youth estate, and delivery of services and support to children. These aims include investing in smaller settings, such as the secure children’s home sector, and the new secure school.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he has had discussions with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on steps to help prisoners on early release find employment.

Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice works closely with the Department of Work and Pensions to improve employment outcomes for prison leavers.

We know that employment reduces the chance of reoffending significantly, by up to nine percentage points. That is why I am pleased to say that the rate of prison leavers in employment six months after release has more than doubled in the two years to March 2023, from 14% to over 30%.

All offenders released on End of Custody Supervised Licence will have a release plan put together by probation that helps support them in their journey into employment.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to help ensure that job centres work with Further Education colleges to support adult learners to gain skills and qualifications.

Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

For customers in England, we have ongoing collaboration at a national and local level with the Department for Education who fund adult education via the Adult Education Budget (AEB). Learning providers, many of which are Further Education colleges, deliver training to address customer skills needs in line with labour market demand. As skills is a devolved matter, similar discussions take place with stakeholders in the Scottish and Welsh Governments.

Local Jobcentre Plus partnership teams work directly with colleges and training providers in their area to ensure claimants have access to the right skills support. In England, this partnership is facilitated in part by the Department for Education’s employer representative body led Local Skills improvement Partnerships.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to help individuals out of work improve their (a) numeracy and (b) literacy skills.

Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Jobcentre Plus Work Coaches engage with customers to better understand the steps needed to support their work search. Where essential skills needs are identified as a barrier to securing or progressing in employment, customers can be referred to available local provision which can include essential maths and numeracy training available through Multiply, English (literacy and English as a Second Language, ESOL) and digital skills, as well as other key vocational focussed opportunities.

Through DWP Train and Progress the length of time Universal Credit (UC) customers can undertake work-focused training has been extended. UC claimants are now able to attend full-time work-related training for up to 16 weeks.

For customers in England, we have ongoing collaboration at a national and local level with the Department for Education who fund adult education through the Adult Education Budget (AEB). Learning providers, many of which are Further Education colleges, deliver training to address customer skills needs in line with labour market demand. As skills is a devolved matter, similar discussions take place with key stakeholders in the Scottish and Welsh Governments to help ensure the employment and skills support offered to claimants in the devolved nations is aligned.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help improve adult (a) numeracy and (b) literacy skills.

Answered by Luke Hall - Minister of State (Education)

This government recognises the importance of literacy and numeracy skills in both work and everyday life. Securing good levels of literacy and numeracy has a positive impact on participation in society, improves earnings and employment opportunities and opens doors to further learning.

That is why the department is continuing to support participation in English and mathematics provision through its essential skills entitlements which provide the opportunity of free study for adults who do not have essential literacy and numeracy skills up to and including Level 2.

This allows learners who have not previously attained a GCSE grade 4 or higher to undertake a range of courses fully funded through the Adult Education Budget (AEB) including GCSEs, Functional Skills and other relevant qualifications from entry level to Level 2.

The department also supports adults in England who are non-native speakers to access English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) provision, which is funded through the AEB.

Further training for adults is available in community settings through the AEB. Prioritised for disadvantaged learners, Community Learning can provide a stepping stone for those adults who are not ready for formal accredited learning or who would benefit from learning in a more informal way.

Currently approximately 60% of the AEB is devolved to nine Mayoral Combined Authorities (MCAs) and delegated to the Mayor of London acting through the Greater London Authority (GLA). These authorities are responsible for the provision of adult education and the allocation of the AEB in their local areas.

The Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) is responsible for the remaining AEB in non-devolved areas where colleges and training providers have the freedom and flexibility to determine how they use their AEB to meet the needs of their communities.

​​In addition, the department funds all apprentices, including adults, to achieve up to a Level 2 in English and maths by the end of their apprenticeship, where they do not already hold a suitable equivalent qualification. In January, the department increased funding by a minimum of 54%, from £471 to £724, for new apprentices to help them gain these vital skills.

The department have also launched the Multiply Programme to improve adult numeracy. The programme is funded through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, which is the government’s flagship fund for supporting people and places across the UK. Up to £270 million is directly available for local areas in England to deliver innovative interventions to improve adult numeracy. Delivery is now well underway. Multiply Programme provision is available across the country, with over 113,000 course starts in England since the programme began to the end of January 2024.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps her Department is taking to help increase business investment (a) outside London and (b) in (i) York and (ii) north Yorkshire.

Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)

The Government-owned British Business Bank is supporting business investment across the UK including through its Nations and Regions Investment Funds. This includes the £660m Northern Powerhouse Fund II programme, supporting growing businesses across the North of England.

Our Growth Hub network is also supporting businesses of all sizes and sectors across England. The Department for Business and Trade is working across the UK, including in York and North Yorkshire to showcase strong, commercial investment opportunities to potential investors and support business to grow. The Government has also agreed a £540 million mayoral devolution deal for York and North Yorkshire to support growth and business investment.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to improve NHS England's handling of complaints made by (a) staff, (b) patients and (c) carers.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

On complaints made by patients and carers, we have worked closely with the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman on their work to develop the NHS Complaint Standards. These standards set out how National Health Service organisations that handle NHS complaints, such as NHS England, should approach complaint handling to ensure they are handled and resolved effectively.

On complaints made by staff, NHS England has published information about how people can speak to NHS England’s Freedom to Speak Up Team. Whilst there is a network of over 1,000 local Freedom to Speak Up Guardians across healthcare in England to support staff in speaking up, the information published by NHS England makes it clear that staff across the NHS can speak up to NHS England about anything that gets in the way of patient care, or affects their working life. My Rt hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care speaks regularly to NHS England about its performance, responsibilities, and activity, including complaints.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps is she taking to address defensive culture in the handling of NHS complaints.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

We have worked closely with the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman on their work to develop the NHS Complaint Standards, which set out how organisations providing services in the National Health Service should approach complaint handling. The standards place a strong focus on several aspects of complaint handling to avoid defensiveness, including emphasising the importance of actively listening and demonstrating a clear understanding of what the main issues are for the complainant, as well as the outcomes they seek, being thorough and fair, and identifying suitable ways to put things right for people.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she is taking steps to ensure that people with low agency have an opportunity to raise concerns and complaints within the NHS; and what recent discussions she has had with NHS leaders on this matter.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

There is a range of support available for people who may need help when making a complaint. This includes the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS), which is available in most hospitals. The PALS offers confidential advice, support, and information to help resolve concerns or problems, as well as information about the National Health Service complaints procedure, including how to get independent help. Support is also available from the Independent Complaints Advocacy Service. Advocates can provide a range of support, such as help writing a complaint letter, and attending meetings with complainants. People can get advice from a complaints advocate at any stage of the process, so it is never too late to ask for help.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of offering one-off payments to dentists that agree to work in under-served areas on the morale of other dentists.

Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

We want to encourage all professionals to commit more of their time to National Health Service work, and to work in areas of the country with low provision of NHS dental care. That is why we are introducing Golden Hellos, as set out in our plan to reform and recover NHS dentistry. A golden hello of £20,000 will be offered per dentist, for a total of up to 240 dentists. The Golden Hellos will support practices in areas where recruitment is particularly challenging and make a real difference to those patients needing dental care.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps he is taking to help ensure compliance with UN Security Council resolution S/RES/2728 (2024) on The situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question.

Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)

The UK welcomes UN Security Council Resolution 2728 which reflects international consensus behind the UK's position including a demand for the unconditional release of all hostages. The United Kingdom has long been calling for an immediate humanitarian pause leading to a sustainable ceasefire without a return to destruction, fighting and loss of life, as the fastest way to get hostages out and aid in. That is what this resolution calls for and why the United Kingdom voted yes on this text.

On 5th April Israel committed to significant steps to increase the amount of aid getting to Gaza, including allowing the delivery of humanitarian aid through the Port of Ashdod and the Erez checkpoint.

The UK has urged Israel to take these steps for a long time and they are welcome. We are resolved that the international community will work with Israel to see these vital changes fully implemented.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of a rebate scheme for the cost of pharmaceuticals for community pharmacies.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Community pharmacies are responsible for purchasing the medicines and other products that they supply as part of National Health Service pharmaceutical services. The purchase price, including rebates schemes available to them, is a commercial decision for the pharmaceutical wholesalers and manufacturers who sell to them.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the prices available to (a) large companies and (b) independent pharmacies for the purchase of pharmaceuticals from wholesalers.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Through the medicine margin survey, the Department assesses whether the reimbursement arrangements pay pharmacy contractors as agreed, as part of the community pharmacy contractual framework. The medicine margin survey considers what a sample of independent pharmacies paid, by looking at their invoices compared to the amount reimbursed by the National Health Service. As large companies are considered to have greater buying power, they are not sampled in the medicine margin survey.

Furthermore, where pharmacies cannot purchase products at or below the Drug Tariff NHS reimbursement price, Community Pharmacy England can request that the Department reassesses the reimbursement price. If a new reimbursement price is issued, it is known as a concessionary price.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to ensure that patients at high risk of developing breast cancer are recalled for MRI screening.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Women at very high risk (VHR) of breast cancer are eligible to be screened from the age of 25 years old upwards, and should be invited every year. The screening includes mammography or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), depending on age and risk criteria.

In March, NHS England wrote to a small number of VHR women who had not been referred for annual MRI surveillance, and the National Health Service has been working hard to ensure these women are checked as a matter of urgency, as described in their individual letters. To support screening of VHR women, a new central database is planned to ensure all referrals reach NHS breast screening services.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of NHS speak up guardians in (a) primary and (b) secondary care settings.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Freedom to Speak Up Guardians are a valued channel through which concerns can be raised, and have handled over 100,000 cases since the National Guardian’s Office first started collecting data in 2017. This represents over 100,000 opportunities for learning and improvement. In 2022/23 alone over 25,000 cases were raised with Freedom to Speak Up Guardians and over four-fifths, or 82.2% of those who gave feedback to their Freedom to Speak Up Guardian, said they would speak up again.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of the new minimum rate for units of dental activity on NHS dentists.

Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Dentistry Recovery Plan will make dental services faster, simpler and fairer for patients and will fund around 2.5 million additional appointments, or more than 1.5 million additional courses of dental treatment. We will further support dentists by raising the minimum Units of Dental Activity (UDA) rate to £28 this year, making National Health Service work more attractive and sustainable. This has meant that almost 1,000 contracts will see an uplift to their UDA rate this year, supporting them and making treatment of NHS patients more sustainable.

We have also developed guidance to support local commissioning by ICBs, including how they can consider addressing UDA rates locally to support better delivery of dental care for patients. I will report to the House on impact shortly.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what recent discussions he has had on opening crossing points into Gaza for medical and humanitarian aid.

Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)

The British Government has pressed with Israeli counterparts the urgency of getting significantly more aid into Gaza to alleviate the desperate situation.

On 5th April Israel committed to significant steps to increase the amount of aid getting to Gaza, including allowing the delivery of humanitarian aid through the Port of Ashdod and the Erez checkpoint.

The UK has urged Israel to take these steps for a long time and they are welcome. We are resolved that the international community will work with Israel to see these vital changes fully implemented.

The Foreign Secretary has also called on Israel to reform its deconfliction mechanism to ensure the safety of aid workers, and to make progress on the UN's minimal operating requirements, including more visas and driver approvals granted, as well as more trucks permitted to cross into Gaza.

Palestinians are facing a devastating and growing humanitarian crisis. The UK is playing a leadership role in alleviating that suffering. We are doing everything we can to get more aid in as quickly as possible by land, sea and air.

150 tonnes of more UK aid arrived in Gaza on 13 March, including 840 family tents, 13,440 blankets, almost 3,000 shelter kits, and shelter-fixing kits, 6,000 sleeping mats and more than 3,000 dignity kits.

A field hospital, provided by UK Aid funding to UK-Med, has arrived in Gaza. This facility, staffed by UK and local medics, will be able to treat over 100 patients a day.

On 20 March, the Foreign Secretary announced the UK has funded WFP to provide 2000 tons of food aid, enough to feed 275,000 people in Gaza.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will make an estimate of the amount of aid that will enter Gaza before the end of Ramadan, in the context of UN Security Council resolution 2728.

Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)

On 5th April Israel committed to significant steps to increase the amount of aid getting to Gaza, including allowing the delivery of humanitarian aid through the Port of Ashdod and the Erez checkpoint.

The UK has urged Israel to take these steps for a long time and they are welcome. We are resolved that the international community will work with Israel to see these vital changes fully implemented.

We are doing everything we can to get more aid in as quickly as possible by land, sea and air.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what recent discussions he has had on the provision of security protection for aid convoys in Gaza.

Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)

It is imperative that those doing life-saving work are properly protected. The Foreign Secretary has called on Israel to reform its deconfliction mechanism to ensure the safety of aid workers, and to make progress on the UN's minimal operating requirements, including more visas and driver approvals granted, as well as more trucks permitted to cross into Gaza.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to ensure that the IT systems used by (a) GPs and (b) community pharmacists enable the provision of one set of patient records.

Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Delivery plan for recovering access to primary care announced plans to significantly improve the digital infrastructure between general practices (GPs) and community pharmacies. This will see GPs and community pharmacies viewing and contributing to a single patient record via their respective IT systems. For example, the functionality to update the GP patient record will see pharmacy consultation outcomes arriving directly into the GP’s workflow for review and action, which will be rolled out in April and May 2024. The functionality to view all required information from the GP patient record from within the community pharmacy clinical system, will be rolled out in summer.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of trends in the level of (a) complaints and (b) litigation claims against the NHS; and what steps she is taking to support the resolution of those complaints.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

There are a range of factors that affect trends in the level of complaints and litigation claims against the National Health Service, that go beyond the Department’s policies. On complaints, factors that affect trends include things like how well NHS organisations resolve concerns before they escalate to written complaints, and how well publicised and accessible their complaints handling processes are. To support effective resolution of complaints, we have worked closely with the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman on their work to develop the NHS Complaint Standards, which set out how organisations providing services in the NHS should approach complaint handling to ensure they are handled and resolved effectively.

NHS Resolution (NHSR) manages clinical negligence and other claims against the NHS in England. NHSR is committed to helping the NHS learn from claims. It is working directly with providers of healthcare services, alongside other national and local bodies working on patient safety, to share learning and best practice across the NHS, to drive safety improvement. In 2022, NHSR published a new three-year strategy which extends and enhances its focus on prevention, learning, and early intervention following incidents of harm. NHSR is committed to improving the claims process, including innovative approaches to dispute resolution. This work includes a number of pilots exploring various dispute resolution techniques which can result in faster resolution and reduced legal costs for both sides.

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps he is taking to monitor the interventions made by social housing providers to tackle damp and mould in residential properties.

Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

The Secretary of State wrote to all providers of social housing setting out his expectations that they tackle dangerous damp and mould in their properties. We have now introduced ‘Awaab’s Law’, which will set new requirements for social landlords to address hazards such as damp and mould.

We have given local authorities strong enforcement powers that they must use if they identify dangerous damp and mould in privately rented homes and, through the Renters (Reform) Bill, are legislating to apply the Decent Homes Standard to the private rented sector for the first time. Guidance for local authorities on how to ensure accommodation for homeless applicants is suitable can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/homelessness-code-of-guidance-for-local-authorities/chapter-17-suitability-of-accommodation.

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what guidance he provides to local authorities on the provision of suitable accommodation when private landlords fail to tackle damp and mould in residential properties.

Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

The Secretary of State wrote to all providers of social housing setting out his expectations that they tackle dangerous damp and mould in their properties. We have now introduced ‘Awaab’s Law’, which will set new requirements for social landlords to address hazards such as damp and mould.

We have given local authorities strong enforcement powers that they must use if they identify dangerous damp and mould in privately rented homes and, through the Renters (Reform) Bill, are legislating to apply the Decent Homes Standard to the private rented sector for the first time. Guidance for local authorities on how to ensure accommodation for homeless applicants is suitable can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/homelessness-code-of-guidance-for-local-authorities/chapter-17-suitability-of-accommodation.

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps he is taking to help ensure people who have to leave a property due to mould and damp are rehoused.

Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

The Secretary of State wrote to all providers of social housing setting out his expectations that they tackle dangerous damp and mould in their properties. We have now introduced ‘Awaab’s Law’, which will set new requirements for social landlords to address hazards such as damp and mould.

We have given local authorities strong enforcement powers that they must use if they identify dangerous damp and mould in privately rented homes and, through the Renters (Reform) Bill, are legislating to apply the Decent Homes Standard to the private rented sector for the first time. Guidance for local authorities on how to ensure accommodation for homeless applicants is suitable can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/homelessness-code-of-guidance-for-local-authorities/chapter-17-suitability-of-accommodation.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress NHS Property Services Ltd has made on the disposal of Bootham Park Hospital.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The sales process for the former Bootham Park Hospital is progressing, and is subject to final legal agreements with City of York Council. This sale would provide a range of public benefits, which include ensuring public access through the site, the provision of a formal cycle path, a publicly accessible park, and additional sports facilities which will be available for use by local schools.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he has had recent discussions with his (a) Palestinian and (b) Israeli counterparts on the reunification of Palestinian families.

Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)

I refer the honourable Member to the answer given on 12 March to Question 16815, which can be found on the Q&A webpages: https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2024-03-04/16815.

Palestinians who wish to join family members in the UK must do so via the existing range of routes available.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he is taking steps to ensure that people who are arrested are tested to see if their drink has been spiked.

Answered by Laura Farris - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Ministry of Justice) (jointly with Home Office)

The Home Office has no plans to implement mandatory spiking testing for arrestees.

We urge anyone who believes they or someone around them has been spiked to contact the police as soon as possible to report the incident and submit a urine sample for testing through the approved lab-based process. Incidents can also be reported online - including anonymously.

Individuals who have been arrested by the police but believe they have been spiked can raise this with them and submit a sample for testing.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he has had discussions with the British Council on the reunification of families of Palestinians in the UK on a British Council(a) programme and (b) scholarship.

Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)

I refer the honourable Member to the answer given on 12 March to Question 16815, which can be found on the Q&A webpages: https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2024-03-04/16815.

Palestinians who wish to join family members in the UK must do so via the existing range of routes available.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he has had recent discussions with the (a) Palestinian and (b) Israeli ambassadors on the reunification of Palestinian families.

Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)

I refer the honourable Member to the answer given on 12 March to Question 16815, which can be found on the Q&A webpages: https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2024-03-04/16815.

Palestinians who wish to join family members in the UK must do so via the existing range of routes available.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Levelling Up on the obligations of developers to repair roads (a) adjacent to development sites and (b) on routes where used by trucks accessing development sites.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

This is a matter for Local Authorities and developers, who must agree any works that are needed to be made to the public road network resulting from developments. This is usually formalised in agreements under section 278 of the Highways Act 1980. Highway authorities will also agree traffic management and routes for Heavy Good Vehicles accessing development sites. Highway authorities are empowered to manage their own networks in line with their duties.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what recent representations he has made to his Israeli counterpart on steps Israel is taking to ensure aid is able to reach citizens in Gaza.

Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)

The British Government has pressed with Israeli counterparts the urgency of getting significantly more aid into Gaza to alleviate the desperate situation.

The Foreign Secretary visited Israel on 17 April and met with Israeli counterparts. During his visit he said to Prime Minister Netanyahu and Foreign Affairs Minister Katz that we must maintain focus on getting more aid into Gaza and getting hostages out.

On 5th April Israel committed to significant steps to increase the amount of aid getting to Gaza, including allowing the delivery of humanitarian aid through the Port of Ashdod and the Erez checkpoint.

The UK has urged Israel to take these steps for a long time and they are welcome. We are resolved that the international community will work with Israel to see these vital changes fully implemented.

The British Government has also called on Israel to reform its deconfliction mechanism to ensure the safety of aid workers, and to make progress on the UN's minimal operating requirements, including more visas and driver approvals granted, as well as more trucks permitted to cross into Gaza.

Palestinians are facing a devastating and growing humanitarian crisis. The UK is playing a leadership role in alleviating that suffering. We are doing everything we can to get more aid in as quickly as possible by land, sea and air.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the new Living Wage rate on community pharmacies.

Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Pharmacy First was launched on 31 January 2024, and as the service embeds, we will monitor and evaluate the service and keep the conditions covered by Pharmacy First under review, but it is too early to consider expanding the clinical pathways.

In the Delivery plan for recovering access to primary care, we estimated that Pharmacy First, together with the expanded blood pressure check and contraception service, once fully scaled, could remove up to 10 million general practice (GP) appointments. We are monitoring the number of Pharmacy First consultations in community pharmacy but it is not possible to monitor the number of GP appointments Pharmacy First frees up. However, we know that Pharmacy First will enable GPs to see patients with more complex needs quicker.

Since 2019, GPs and their teams have already been referring patients to community pharmacies for minor illnesses and Pharmacy First builds on this. NHS England has engaged with GPs during the development and launch of Pharmacy First and Community Pharmacy England has launched a dedicated website for GPs supporting them with Pharmacy First referrals.

Pharmacies are not paid an establishment grant. Contractors who have signed up to deliver Pharmacy First received a £2,000 set-up fee, they receive £15 per consultation and £1,000 for each month they reach an agreed minimum number of consultations. Funding for community pharmacies, including the funding for Pharmacy First, is expected to pay for all their costs in providing the service. There are no delays to Pharmacy First payments. All payments are made in line with the usual schedule of payments.

The statutory National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage is based on advice of the Low Pay Commission, which takes into account the impact on business and the wider economy, as well as the living standards of workers.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to tackle delays to payments to community pharmacies operating Pharmacy First.

Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Pharmacy First was launched on 31 January 2024, and as the service embeds, we will monitor and evaluate the service and keep the conditions covered by Pharmacy First under review, but it is too early to consider expanding the clinical pathways.

In the Delivery plan for recovering access to primary care, we estimated that Pharmacy First, together with the expanded blood pressure check and contraception service, once fully scaled, could remove up to 10 million general practice (GP) appointments. We are monitoring the number of Pharmacy First consultations in community pharmacy but it is not possible to monitor the number of GP appointments Pharmacy First frees up. However, we know that Pharmacy First will enable GPs to see patients with more complex needs quicker.

Since 2019, GPs and their teams have already been referring patients to community pharmacies for minor illnesses and Pharmacy First builds on this. NHS England has engaged with GPs during the development and launch of Pharmacy First and Community Pharmacy England has launched a dedicated website for GPs supporting them with Pharmacy First referrals.

Pharmacies are not paid an establishment grant. Contractors who have signed up to deliver Pharmacy First received a £2,000 set-up fee, they receive £15 per consultation and £1,000 for each month they reach an agreed minimum number of consultations. Funding for community pharmacies, including the funding for Pharmacy First, is expected to pay for all their costs in providing the service. There are no delays to Pharmacy First payments. All payments are made in line with the usual schedule of payments.

The statutory National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage is based on advice of the Low Pay Commission, which takes into account the impact on business and the wider economy, as well as the living standards of workers.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that children with SEND are provided with the (a) educational and (b) wider support required by their education, health and care plan in school.

Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The department shares the ambition that children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) should receive the vital support they need across Education, Health and Care (EHC). As set out in the Children and Families Act 2014, the local authority has a legal duty to ensure that the special educational provision specified in an EHC plan is delivered. The department also has a number of measures in place to ensure that children receive the educational and wider support they need.

Where local authorities are failing to deliver consistent outcomes for children and young people with SEND, the department works with them using a set of improvement programmes and SEND specialist advisors to address weaknesses. The department is also investing heavily in the SEND system, including £2.6 billion between 2022 and 2025 to fund new special and alternative provision (AP) places and improve existing support, including the announcement of 41 new special free schools.

The department is also taking steps to improve the SEND system in the longer term, so that EHC plans can be issued as quickly as possible when needed and enable children and young people to access the support they require. In March 2023, the government set out its plans to reform and improve the SEND system through its SEND and AP Improvement Plan. This plan commits to establishing a single national system that delivers for every child and young person with SEND so that they enjoy their childhood, achieve good outcomes and are well prepared for adulthood and employment. The department is currently testing measures which it believes will make the biggest improvements to both the quality of plans, the experience of getting a plan and the quality and speed with which support is put in place.

The department is strengthening accountability across the system so that everyone is held to account for supporting children and young people. This includes the new Ofsted and Care Quality Commission Area SEND inspection framework, which gives more prominence to the quality integration and commissioning of EHC services, and a national and local dashboard, which gives parents the opportunity to monitor the performance of their local systems.

If a child or young person does not receive the support detailed in their EHC plan, the young person or parent can raise their concern with the school or local authority directly. Families can appeal to the First-Tier SEND Tribunal if they are unhappy with a local authority’s decision regarding an EHC assessment or plan. The Tribunal can also hear appeals and make non-binding recommendations about health and social aspects of EHC plans.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what guidance she issues tor GPs on working with Pharmacy First to reduce their workloads.

Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Pharmacy First was launched on 31 January 2024, and as the service embeds, we will monitor and evaluate the service and keep the conditions covered by Pharmacy First under review, but it is too early to consider expanding the clinical pathways.

In the Delivery plan for recovering access to primary care, we estimated that Pharmacy First, together with the expanded blood pressure check and contraception service, once fully scaled, could remove up to 10 million general practice (GP) appointments. We are monitoring the number of Pharmacy First consultations in community pharmacy but it is not possible to monitor the number of GP appointments Pharmacy First frees up. However, we know that Pharmacy First will enable GPs to see patients with more complex needs quicker.

Since 2019, GPs and their teams have already been referring patients to community pharmacies for minor illnesses and Pharmacy First builds on this. NHS England has engaged with GPs during the development and launch of Pharmacy First and Community Pharmacy England has launched a dedicated website for GPs supporting them with Pharmacy First referrals.

Pharmacies are not paid an establishment grant. Contractors who have signed up to deliver Pharmacy First received a £2,000 set-up fee, they receive £15 per consultation and £1,000 for each month they reach an agreed minimum number of consultations. Funding for community pharmacies, including the funding for Pharmacy First, is expected to pay for all their costs in providing the service. There are no delays to Pharmacy First payments. All payments are made in line with the usual schedule of payments.

The statutory National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage is based on advice of the Low Pay Commission, which takes into account the impact on business and the wider economy, as well as the living standards of workers.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will take steps to monitor the number of GP appointments that are freed up as a result of Pharmacy First.

Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Pharmacy First was launched on 31 January 2024, and as the service embeds, we will monitor and evaluate the service and keep the conditions covered by Pharmacy First under review, but it is too early to consider expanding the clinical pathways.

In the Delivery plan for recovering access to primary care, we estimated that Pharmacy First, together with the expanded blood pressure check and contraception service, once fully scaled, could remove up to 10 million general practice (GP) appointments. We are monitoring the number of Pharmacy First consultations in community pharmacy but it is not possible to monitor the number of GP appointments Pharmacy First frees up. However, we know that Pharmacy First will enable GPs to see patients with more complex needs quicker.

Since 2019, GPs and their teams have already been referring patients to community pharmacies for minor illnesses and Pharmacy First builds on this. NHS England has engaged with GPs during the development and launch of Pharmacy First and Community Pharmacy England has launched a dedicated website for GPs supporting them with Pharmacy First referrals.

Pharmacies are not paid an establishment grant. Contractors who have signed up to deliver Pharmacy First received a £2,000 set-up fee, they receive £15 per consultation and £1,000 for each month they reach an agreed minimum number of consultations. Funding for community pharmacies, including the funding for Pharmacy First, is expected to pay for all their costs in providing the service. There are no delays to Pharmacy First payments. All payments are made in line with the usual schedule of payments.

The statutory National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage is based on advice of the Low Pay Commission, which takes into account the impact on business and the wider economy, as well as the living standards of workers.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she plans to expand the number of clinical pathways under Pharmacy First services.

Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Pharmacy First was launched on 31 January 2024, and as the service embeds, we will monitor and evaluate the service and keep the conditions covered by Pharmacy First under review, but it is too early to consider expanding the clinical pathways.

In the Delivery plan for recovering access to primary care, we estimated that Pharmacy First, together with the expanded blood pressure check and contraception service, once fully scaled, could remove up to 10 million general practice (GP) appointments. We are monitoring the number of Pharmacy First consultations in community pharmacy but it is not possible to monitor the number of GP appointments Pharmacy First frees up. However, we know that Pharmacy First will enable GPs to see patients with more complex needs quicker.

Since 2019, GPs and their teams have already been referring patients to community pharmacies for minor illnesses and Pharmacy First builds on this. NHS England has engaged with GPs during the development and launch of Pharmacy First and Community Pharmacy England has launched a dedicated website for GPs supporting them with Pharmacy First referrals.

Pharmacies are not paid an establishment grant. Contractors who have signed up to deliver Pharmacy First received a £2,000 set-up fee, they receive £15 per consultation and £1,000 for each month they reach an agreed minimum number of consultations. Funding for community pharmacies, including the funding for Pharmacy First, is expected to pay for all their costs in providing the service. There are no delays to Pharmacy First payments. All payments are made in line with the usual schedule of payments.

The statutory National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage is based on advice of the Low Pay Commission, which takes into account the impact on business and the wider economy, as well as the living standards of workers.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the adequacy of the establishment grant for pharmacies extending into Pharmacy First for (a) consulting and (b) waiting facilities.

Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Pharmacy First was launched on 31 January 2024, and as the service embeds, we will monitor and evaluate the service and keep the conditions covered by Pharmacy First under review, but it is too early to consider expanding the clinical pathways.

In the Delivery plan for recovering access to primary care, we estimated that Pharmacy First, together with the expanded blood pressure check and contraception service, once fully scaled, could remove up to 10 million general practice (GP) appointments. We are monitoring the number of Pharmacy First consultations in community pharmacy but it is not possible to monitor the number of GP appointments Pharmacy First frees up. However, we know that Pharmacy First will enable GPs to see patients with more complex needs quicker.

Since 2019, GPs and their teams have already been referring patients to community pharmacies for minor illnesses and Pharmacy First builds on this. NHS England has engaged with GPs during the development and launch of Pharmacy First and Community Pharmacy England has launched a dedicated website for GPs supporting them with Pharmacy First referrals.

Pharmacies are not paid an establishment grant. Contractors who have signed up to deliver Pharmacy First received a £2,000 set-up fee, they receive £15 per consultation and £1,000 for each month they reach an agreed minimum number of consultations. Funding for community pharmacies, including the funding for Pharmacy First, is expected to pay for all their costs in providing the service. There are no delays to Pharmacy First payments. All payments are made in line with the usual schedule of payments.

The statutory National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage is based on advice of the Low Pay Commission, which takes into account the impact on business and the wider economy, as well as the living standards of workers.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she plans to develop vaping cessation programmes.

Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Vaping can be an effective tool for adult smokers to quit smoking. However, the health advice is clear, if you don’t smoke, don’t vape, and children should never vape. We are concerned about the worrying rise in vaping among children, with youth vaping tripling in the last three years, and one in five children having now used a vape.

Whilst anyone smoking should focus on giving up cigarettes before giving up vaping, giving up vaping is an important step in overcoming nicotine dependence. We are working with the NHS Better Health website to provide advice for people who want to quit vaping. The National Centre for Smoking Cessation and Training has produced guidance for local Stop Smoking Service staff on how best to support vapers to quit. We are also exploring further ways to support people to quit vaping, as part of the national Swap to Stop programme.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help ensure the availability of childcare (a) before and (b) after school.

Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The government is investing £289 million in a new wraparound childcare programme to support local authorities in England to work with primary schools and providers to set up and deliver more wraparound childcare before and after school in the term time. The government’s ambition is for all parents of primary school children who need it to be able to access childcare in their local area from 8am to 6pm by September 2026. This will help to ensure that parents have enough childcare to work full time, more hours and with flexible hours.

In October 2023, the department published guidance for local authorities on their role to support the expansion of wraparound childcare along with local authority funding allocations. This guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/wraparound-childcare-guidance-for-local-authorities. In February 2024, the department also published guidance for schools and trusts setting out the expectations of schools in supporting parents to access wraparound childcare. This guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/wraparound-childcare-guidance-for-schools/responding-to-requests-for-wraparound-childcare.

This month, the local authorities of Cambridgeshire, Central Bedfordshire, Kensington and Chelsea, Norfolk and Westminster will be rolling out expanded wraparound provision, five months ahead of the national programme launch in September. These local authorities are forming part of a test and learn phase as ‘early adopters’ to strengthen the delivery of the full rollout.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that family hubs have adequate funding to help support all children that require their services.

Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The department is investing around £300 million in 75 local authorities to transform their family support services to family hubs. Funding has been targeted to the most deprived local authorities to ensure that families get the support they need. This will fund a network of family hubs and specific support within those hubs for parent–infant mental health, infant feeding services, parenting support, home learning environment, and to establish parent-carer panels. In addition, all 75 local authorities will publish their Start for Life offer and the department is providing funding for trials of innovative workforce models to a smaller number of local authorities.

Family hubs provide services for children of all ages, and from 0 to 19 for families who have children with SEND, with a great Start for Life offer at their core.

In allocating funding to each local authority, the department has balanced the variable costs that local authorities face due to different population sizes, such as greater service demand resulting from a bigger population, against the fact that some costs will be similar regardless of these differences, for example the costs of establishing a parent carer panel. Each local authority’s total funding allocation therefore consists of two elements. The first is a fixed amount for each of the programme’s strands. The second element is a variable amount for each strand based on each local authority’s relative population size.

As outlined in the 'Family Hubs and Start for Life programme: local authority guide' each element of the programme focuses on a specific age range. Further information can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/family-hubs-and-start-for-life-programme-local-authority-guide. The variable amounts were, therefore, based on the most relevant population age ranges for the objectives of each programme strand.

For further information please see the following link: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/62ed30f98fa8f5033275fce8/Family_Hubs_and_Start_for_Life_programme_-_methodology_for_allocating_funding_to_local_authorities.pdf.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help support (a) pre-school, (b) primary school and (c) secondary school-aged children living in poverty other than through the provision of free school meals.

Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

Spreading opportunity and ensuring every child can reach their potential no matter their background or where they live remains a key priority for the department. The department has a range of support in place for pupils, families and schools.

Low-income families and children experiencing other forms of disadvantage can qualify for 15 hours free early education for 2 year olds, a year before all children become eligible for 15 hours at ages 3 and 4. These entitlements support children’s development and helps prepare them for school.

Within schools, the department has consistently taken steps to help economically disadvantaged pupils, including improving the quality of teaching and curriculum resources, strengthening the school system and providing targeted support where needed. Underpinning this is pupil premium, worth over £2.9 billion this year. In 2024/25, the department has targeted a greater proportion of schools National Funding Formula towards disadvantaged pupils than ever before; 10.2% (over £4.4 billion) of the formula has been allocated according to deprivation in 2024/25.

To offer children from low-income families a free nutritious breakfast, the department is investing up to £35 million in the National School Breakfast Programme until the end of July 2025. This funding is reaching up to 2,700 primary and secondary schools in disadvantaged areas to better support attainment, wellbeing and readiness to learn.

Since 2021, the department has also provided more than £200 million of funding every year to local authorities across England for holiday provision for school-aged children from reception to year 11 (inclusive) who receive benefits-related free school meals and other families that most need it. The department has also published statutory guidance on the cost of school uniform to ensure uniform is affordable for all families.

Family hubs are a one stop shop for families to get the help they need. They provide services for children of all ages, or between 0 to 19 or 0 to 25 for families with children who have special educational needs and disabilities, with a great Start for Life offer at their core.

To support families with the cost of living in recent years, the government has provided one of the most generous support packages in Europe. The total support over 2022 to 2025 to help households and individuals with higher bills amounts to £108 billion, which is on average £3,800 per UK household.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to provide support for children living in poverty who are at risk of being taken into the care system.

Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

This government published ‘Stable Homes, Built on Love’ in February 2023. ‘Stable Homes, Built on Love’ is an implementation strategy and consultation that sets out the department’s plans to reform children’s social care. It set out how the department will help families overcome challenges, keep children safe and make sure children in care have stable loving homes, long-term loving relationships and opportunities for a good life.

This government has announced over £1 billion for programmes to improve early help services, including delivering on Family Hubs and helping families facing multiple disadvantage through the Supporting Families programme and Holiday Activities and Food programme.

The Strengthening Families, Protecting Children programme is investing £84 million over five years between 2019 and 2024 to support 17 local authorities to adopt improvement approaches that have strong evidence of reducing the numbers of children requiring statutory support and entering care.

The department is also testing innovative new approaches to provide earlier help to families when they face challenges through the Families First for Children Pathfinder.

Over recent years, this government has demonstrated its commitment to supporting the most vulnerable with one of the largest support packages in Europe. The total support over 2022 to 2025 to help households and individuals with higher bills amounts to £108 billion, which is an average of £3,800 per UK household.

Through an extension of the Household Support Fund, local authorities in England will receive an additional £421 million to support those in need locally, including supporting vulnerable households with the cost of essentials such as food and utilities.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what information her Department holds on the primary category of need for children in care aged (a) under one year, (b) one to four years, (c) five to nine years, (d) aged ten to 15 years and (e) 16 to 17 years in each of the last five years.

Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The figures requested can be found in the attached table.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she has made an assessment of the implications for her policies of research by Professor Martin Schwendler and Dr Chiara Herzog on changes to epithelial cells caused by vaping.

Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Vaping is never recommended for children, and carries the potential harms of future addiction while their lungs and brains are still developing. The health advice is clear, vapes can be an effective tool to help smokers quit, but young people and those who have never smoked should not vape, or be encouraged to vape.

As stated by Cancer Research UK, this study contributes to our understanding of e-cigarettes, also known as vapes, but does not show that e-cigarettes cause cancer. Decades of research has proven the link between smoking and cancer, and studies have so far shown that e-cigarettes are far less harmful than smoking, and can help people quit. This paper does, however, highlight that vapes are not risk-free, and so we need additional studies to uncover their potential longer-term impacts on human health.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of banning the use of vapes in (a) public spaces, (b) bars and (c) vehicles with child passengers.

Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Vaping can be an effective tool for adult smokers to quit smoking. However, the health advice is clear, if you don’t smoke, don’t vape, and children should never vape. This is why the Tobacco and Vapes Bill will give us powers to crack down on child friendly flavours and packaging, and to change the way vapes are displayed in shops, measures on which we will shortly consult.

Inhaling anything other than fresh air may have long term health effects. Evidence on the harm from exposure to second-hand tobacco smoke is well established and because of its carcinogenic content there is no safe level of exposure. Breathing in other people’s tobacco smoke is known to cause a range of health issues. However, there is currently no evidence to suggest that second-hand vapour causes wider health harms in the way tobacco smoke does. Therefore, the Government has no plans to introduce restrictions on where people can vape.

However, many public venues and spaces have their own policies on vaping. For example, most hospitals and public transport have banned vaping. Employers or operators of indoor spaces would be within their rights to implement policies banning the use of vapes in their premises and many do so.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of a full advertising ban on companies promoting vaping products.

Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The health advice is clear, if you don’t smoke, don’t vape and children should never vape. Advertising of vapes is already restricted by existing regulations. This includes a ban on advertising on television and radio, and through internet advertising, or commercial email. However, products can still be promoted elsewhere, such as on digital billboards.

Whilst we are not currently planning on making any further changes to the rules regarding vape advertising, we are taking action to protect children from the harms of vaping by taking new regulation making powers that can be used to limit vape flavours, how vapes are packaged, and where and how they can be displayed in retail settings. Collectively, these actions will reduce the appeal and accessibility of vapes to children, whilst ensuring vapes remain an effective smoking cessation tool for adult smokers.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she has made an assessment of the risk of people moving from non-nicotine to nicotine vapes.

Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Our health advice regarding vapes covers both non-nicotine as well as nicotine vapes, that while vaping can play a useful role in helping adult smokers to quit, non-smokers and children should never vape. The long-term health impacts of vaping are unknown, and the nicotine contained within nicotine vapes can be highly addictive.

We recognise the risk of non-nicotine vapes being used as a gateway to nicotine vapes by children. That is why the Tobacco and Vapes Bill includes new regulation making powers that will cover all vapes, nicotine as well as non-nicotine, to reduce their appeal and availability to children and non-smokers.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help ensure childcare provision is available for (a) night workers and (b) shift workers working anti-social hours.

Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The department is providing over £4.1 billion by the 2027/28 financial year to fund 30 hours of free childcare per week (38 weeks per year) for working parents with children aged nine months to three years in England. This will remove one of the biggest barriers to parents working by vastly increasing the amount of free childcare that working families can access. This is set to save working families who use the full 30 funded hours up to £6,900 per year from when their child is nine months until they are five years old by September next year.

Already, hundreds of thousands of children aged three and four are registered for a 30-hour place, which can save eligible working parents up to £6,000 per child per year. Expanding this entitlement will help even more eligible working parents with the cost of childcare and make a real difference to the lives of those families.

To be eligible for the expanded 30 hours entitlement, as with the current 30 hours offer, parents will need to earn the equivalent of 16 hours a week at national minimum wage or living wage, which is £183 per week or £9,518 per year in 2024-2025, and less than £100,000 adjusted net income per year. For families with two parents, both must be working to meet the criteria, unless one is receiving certain benefits. In a single-parent household, the single parent must meet the threshold. This offer aims to support parents to return to work or to work more hours, if they wish.

In addition to the expanded entitlements, the government has also taken action to support parents on Universal Credit with childcare costs upfront when they need it, rather than in arrears. The department has increased support for these parents by increasing the childcare cost maximum amounts to £950 for one child and £1629 for two children.

Tax-Free Childcare remains available for working parents of children aged 0-11, or up to 17 for eligible disabled children. This can save parents up to £2,000 per year, or up to £4,000 for eligible children with disabilities and has the same income criteria as 30 hours free childcare.

The department is committed to improving the cost, choice, and availability of childcare and government funding schemes are designed to be flexible enough to support families’ different situations, including parents who are night workers and shift workers.

The government is investing £289 million in a new wraparound childcare programme. The government’s ambition is for all parents of primary school children who need it to be able to access childcare in their local area from 8am to 6pm. Parents will still be expected to pay to access this provision but support will be available to eligible parents through Universal Credit childcare and Tax Free Childcare.

Parents should expect to see an expansion in the availability of wraparound care from September 2024, with every parent who needs it able to access term-time wraparound childcare by September 2026. The department is also providing over £200 million a year for the continuation of the Holiday Activities and Food programme and the department is investing a transformational £560 million in youth services in England over the next three years. This is part of a wider package the government has provided long term to support young people facing the greatest challenges.

The department will also continue to monitor the sufficiency of childcare places across the sector. The department’s Childcare and Early Years Provider Survey shows that both the number of places available and the workforce has increased since 2022.

Local authorities are responsible for ensuring that the provision of childcare is sufficient to meet the requirements of parents in their area. Where local authorities report sufficiency challenges, the department discusses what action the local authority is taking to address those issues and where needed support the local authority with any specific requirements through its childcare sufficiency support contract.

The department has regular contact with each local authority in England about their sufficiency of childcare and any issues they are facing.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help ensure the affordability of anti-social hours' childcare.

Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The department is providing over £4.1 billion by the 2027/28 financial year to fund 30 hours of free childcare per week (38 weeks per year) for working parents with children aged nine months to three years in England. This will remove one of the biggest barriers to parents working by vastly increasing the amount of free childcare that working families can access. This is set to save working families who use the full 30 funded hours up to £6,900 per year from when their child is nine months until they are five years old by September next year.

Already, hundreds of thousands of children aged three and four are registered for a 30-hour place, which can save eligible working parents up to £6,000 per child per year. Expanding this entitlement will help even more eligible working parents with the cost of childcare and make a real difference to the lives of those families.

To be eligible for the expanded 30 hours entitlement, as with the current 30 hours offer, parents will need to earn the equivalent of 16 hours a week at national minimum wage or living wage, which is £183 per week or £9,518 per year in 2024-2025, and less than £100,000 adjusted net income per year. For families with two parents, both must be working to meet the criteria, unless one is receiving certain benefits. In a single-parent household, the single parent must meet the threshold. This offer aims to support parents to return to work or to work more hours, if they wish.

In addition to the expanded entitlements, the government has also taken action to support parents on Universal Credit with childcare costs upfront when they need it, rather than in arrears. The department has increased support for these parents by increasing the childcare cost maximum amounts to £950 for one child and £1629 for two children.

Tax-Free Childcare remains available for working parents of children aged 0-11, or up to 17 for eligible disabled children. This can save parents up to £2,000 per year, or up to £4,000 for eligible children with disabilities and has the same income criteria as 30 hours free childcare.

The department is committed to improving the cost, choice, and availability of childcare and government funding schemes are designed to be flexible enough to support families’ different situations, including parents who are night workers and shift workers.

The government is investing £289 million in a new wraparound childcare programme. The government’s ambition is for all parents of primary school children who need it to be able to access childcare in their local area from 8am to 6pm. Parents will still be expected to pay to access this provision but support will be available to eligible parents through Universal Credit childcare and Tax Free Childcare.

Parents should expect to see an expansion in the availability of wraparound care from September 2024, with every parent who needs it able to access term-time wraparound childcare by September 2026. The department is also providing over £200 million a year for the continuation of the Holiday Activities and Food programme and the department is investing a transformational £560 million in youth services in England over the next three years. This is part of a wider package the government has provided long term to support young people facing the greatest challenges.

The department will also continue to monitor the sufficiency of childcare places across the sector. The department’s Childcare and Early Years Provider Survey shows that both the number of places available and the workforce has increased since 2022.

Local authorities are responsible for ensuring that the provision of childcare is sufficient to meet the requirements of parents in their area. Where local authorities report sufficiency challenges, the department discusses what action the local authority is taking to address those issues and where needed support the local authority with any specific requirements through its childcare sufficiency support contract.

The department has regular contact with each local authority in England about their sufficiency of childcare and any issues they are facing.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information his Department holds on the number of accidents there have been involving (a) cars and (b) cyclists due to potholes in the last 12 months.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department publishes road casualty statistics based on personal injury road collisions reported to the police via the STATS19 reporting system.

STATS19 does not identify the cause of collisions, but reporting police officers can identify up to 6 factors which in their opinion may have contributed to the collision.

In 2022 (the most recent year for which figures are available) there were 215 cars and 42 pedal cycles involved in injury collisions where the contributory factor ‘poor or defective road surface’ was assigned.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information his Department holds on the amount that local authorities have spent on repairing potholes (a) nationally and (b) in York in the latest period for which data is available.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

Under the 1980 Highway Act, it is the responsibility of the local highway authority, such as the City of York Council, to maintain and manage the highway network they are responsible for. The Government provides highway maintenance and other funding to local authorities but does not collect data on how much each one spends on repairing potholes: this is a matter for each local highway authority.

In 2023/24, the Government provided the City of York Council with £3.69 million of capital funding for local highway maintenance. This represents an increase of around 30% compared to the previous year, made possible in part by reallocating funding that would otherwise have been spent on the HS2 programme.

The Department annually collects and publishes statistics on gov.uk that detail the condition and maintenance of the highways in England. This includes total expenditure on the local highway network in England, broken down by structural maintenance, routine treatments, and highways planning and strategy on different categories of road:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/road-condition-statistics-data-tables-rdc

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Trussell Trust and Joseph Rowntree Foundation report entitled Guarantee our Essentials, published on 27 February 2024, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of that report's findings on levels of essential costs for single parent families claiming Universal Credit.

Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

No assessment has been made.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to assess the potential impact of the cost of childcare on single parents.

Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The department is providing over £4.1 billion by the 2027/28 financial year to fund 30 hours of free childcare per week (38 weeks per year) for working parents with children aged nine months to three years in England. This will remove one of the biggest barriers to parents working by vastly increasing the amount of free childcare that working families can access. This is set to save working families who use the full 30 funded hours up to £6,900 per year from when their child is nine months until they are five years old by September next year.

Already, hundreds of thousands of children aged three and four are registered for a 30-hour place, which can save eligible working parents up to £6,000 per child per year. Expanding this entitlement will help even more eligible working parents with the cost of childcare and make a real difference to the lives of those families.

To be eligible for the expanded 30 hours entitlement, as with the current 30 hours offer, parents will need to earn the equivalent of 16 hours a week at national minimum wage or living wage, which is £183 per week or £9,518 per year in 2024-2025, and less than £100,000 adjusted net income per year. For families with two parents, both must be working to meet the criteria, unless one is receiving certain benefits. In a single-parent household, the single parent must meet the threshold. This offer aims to support parents to return to work or to work more hours, if they wish.

In addition to the expanded entitlements, the government has also taken action to support parents on Universal Credit with childcare costs upfront when they need it, rather than in arrears. The department has increased support for these parents by increasing the childcare cost maximum amounts to £950 for one child and £1629 for two children.

Tax-Free Childcare remains available for working parents of children aged 0-11, or up to 17 for eligible disabled children. This can save parents up to £2,000 per year, or up to £4,000 for eligible children with disabilities and has the same income criteria as 30 hours free childcare.

The department is committed to improving the cost, choice, and availability of childcare and government funding schemes are designed to be flexible enough to support families’ different situations, including parents who are night workers and shift workers.

The government is investing £289 million in a new wraparound childcare programme. The government’s ambition is for all parents of primary school children who need it to be able to access childcare in their local area from 8am to 6pm. Parents will still be expected to pay to access this provision but support will be available to eligible parents through Universal Credit childcare and Tax Free Childcare.

Parents should expect to see an expansion in the availability of wraparound care from September 2024, with every parent who needs it able to access term-time wraparound childcare by September 2026. The department is also providing over £200 million a year for the continuation of the Holiday Activities and Food programme and the department is investing a transformational £560 million in youth services in England over the next three years. This is part of a wider package the government has provided long term to support young people facing the greatest challenges.

The department will also continue to monitor the sufficiency of childcare places across the sector. The department’s Childcare and Early Years Provider Survey shows that both the number of places available and the workforce has increased since 2022.

Local authorities are responsible for ensuring that the provision of childcare is sufficient to meet the requirements of parents in their area. Where local authorities report sufficiency challenges, the department discusses what action the local authority is taking to address those issues and where needed support the local authority with any specific requirements through its childcare sufficiency support contract.

The department has regular contact with each local authority in England about their sufficiency of childcare and any issues they are facing.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the road network is safe for (a) cyclists and (b) cars in the context of trends in the number of potholes.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

Under the 1980 Highway Act, it is the responsibility of the local highway authority to maintain and manage the highway network that it is responsible for.

The Government allocates funding to local highways authorities so that they can most effectively spend it on maintaining and improving their respective network for all road users, based upon their local knowledge, circumstances and priorities. The Government has recently announced an £8.3 billion funding uplift for the resurfacing of local roads over the period 2023/24 to 2033/34, which will allow local authorities to make their roads smoother and safer for cyclists and drivers alike.

To assist local authorities in treating potholes and other road defects, in March 2019 the Department worked with the Association of Directors, for Environment, Economy, Planning and Transport to publish Potholes: a repair guide. The Government has also worked with the UK Roads Leadership Group’s Footway & Cycletrack Management Group to produce guidance on maintaining assets for cycleways and footways. This can be found on the CIHT website.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of trends in the number of potholes on the number of people cycling.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The number of people cycling depends on a range of factors including the availability and maintenance of safe, high-quality routes for cycling. Active Travel England and the Department are undertaking joint research to better understand journey quality which would consider the impact of potholes. In the meantime, the Department has announced an unprecedented £8.3 billion funding uplift for roads resurfacing over the next decade, which will enable local highway authorities to transform the state of their local roads.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much his Department spent on repairing potholes (a) nationally and (b) in York in the latest period for which data is available.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

Under the 1980 Highway Act, it is the responsibility of the local highway authority, such as the City of York Council, to maintain and manage the highway network it is responsible for.

The Government allocates funding to local highways authorities so they can most effectively spend this funding on maintaining and improving their respective network, based upon their local knowledge, circumstances and priorities. It is up to the respective highway authority how best to spend this funding to fulfil their statutory duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980. In 2023/24, the Department for Transport provided £1.3 billion of Highway Maintenance Block capital funding to local highway authorities in England outside London and the Mayoral Combined Authority areas, of which the City of York Council received £3.699 million. This was 30% higher than the equivalent figure for 2022/23.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the BALM programme.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

NHS England is currently undertaking a review of how health and wellbeing support could be delivered more effectively. As part of this review, the team will: assess NHS England’s current contracts; work with integrated care boards, National Health Service trusts, and primary care organisations to understand the scale and impact of locally provided provision; and work with system partners and stakeholders including royal colleges, the voluntary sector, and the independent sector to understand how demand for these services has changed over recent years.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what criteria her Department uses to assess the adequacy of funding for each school (a) nationally and (b) in York.

Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)

This government is committed to providing a world class education system for all children and has invested significantly in education to achieve that.

Including the additional funding for teachers’ pay and pensions, funding for both mainstream schools and high needs is £2.9 billion higher in 2024/25, compared to 2023/24. The overall core school budget will total £60.7 billion in 2024/25, which is the highest ever level in real terms per pupil. This means school funding is set to have risen by £11 billion by 2024/25, compared to 2021/22.

Each year, the government publishes an assessment of schools’ costs and funding increases in the Schools’ Costs Technical Note. In the most recent publication, the department’s analysis shows mainstream school funding rising by 7.6% in 2023/24 compared to the previous year, while costs were estimated to have risen by 6.7% at the national level. This analysis reflects averages across all schools in England.

Through the Dedicated Schools Grant, York is receiving an extra £2.0 million for mainstream schools in 2024/25 compared to 2023/24, taking total school funding to over £125.5 million. This represents an increase of 2.0% per pupil compared to 2023/24, and an increase of 13.4% per pupil compared to 2021/22 (excluding growth funding). On top of this, all schools will receive additional funding through the Teachers’ Pay Additional Grant and Teachers' Pension Employer Contribution Grant.

The precise funding and cost increases that individual schools in York, and across the country, will face depend on each school’s unique circumstances and the decisions that it has made about how to deploy its funding. The national funding formula is designed to fund each school according to its relative needs, and is updated annually to reflect how those needs change over time.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what information her Department holds on how many homes were retrofitted for energy efficiency in the (a) social and (b) private sector in each of the last five years.

Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

The Department publishes information on the number of homes retrofitted for energy efficiency in the last five years through the following government schemes: Energy Company Obligation (ECO), Great British Insulation Scheme (GBIS), Green Homes Grant Vouchers Scheme, Local Authority Delivery, Home Upgrade Grant, and Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund (SHDF).

SHDF retrofits social housing only. A breakdown of the number of homes retrofitted in the social and private sector can be found in the ECO and GBIS statistical releases.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will review the effectiveness of the Energy Company Obligation flex scheme.

Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

The Department monitors and is evaluating all aspects of ECO4, including ECO Flex.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps she is taking to ensure that homes owned by private landlords achieve an energy performance certificate rating of C or above.

Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

The Government will not raise Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) to EPC Band C for privately rented homes, but continues to encourage homeowners to improve the energy performance of their homes where they can.

We are spending £6bn this Parliament on making buildings cleaner and warmer. That is in addition to the £5bn that will be delivered through the Energy Company Obligation (ECO4) and the Great British Insulation Scheme up to March 2026. We have also announced a further £6bn worth of support up to 2028 to help around a million families cut their energy use.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she plans to take steps to use technology to help improve (a) boys' and (b) men's mental health.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

Digitally enabled therapies and other technological innovations are already used in the provision of mental health support in England. We are building on the progress made by services in using digital approaches and remote delivery during the pandemic, to give people a greater choice in the way they access care, and to enable services to be more productive. For many people, digitally enabled support through apps or online will mean that they might receive help earlier, or in a way that is easier for them to fit into their lives.

The NHS Long Term Plan included several commitments on the use of technology in mental health, including that: 100% of mental health providers will meet required levels of digitisation; local systems will offer a range of self-management apps, digital consultations, and digitally enabled models of therapy; and that systems utilise digital clinical decision-making tools.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to help men identify poor mental health symptoms.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

Between 2018/19 and 2023/24, National Health Service spending on mental health has increased by £4.7 billion in cash terms, as compared to the target of £3.4 billion in cash terms set out at the time of the Long Term Plan. Almost £16 billion was invested into mental health in 2022/23, enabling 3.6 million people, including men, to be in contact with mental health services, a 10% increase on the previous year.

In addition, our campaign on dealing with loneliness as part of the Better Health: Every Mind Matters campaign, encouraged people, including men, to reach out and support others who may be feeling lonely, helping themselves to also feel more connected. We will continue to work across the Government and with our Tackling Loneliness Network to explore how we can support further action to tackle men’s loneliness.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to help improve men's mental health services.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

Between 2018/19 and 2023/24, National Health Service spending on mental health has increased by £4.7 billion in cash terms, as compared to the target of £3.4 billion in cash terms set out at the time of the Long Term Plan. Almost £16 billion was invested into mental health in 2022/23, enabling 3.6 million people, including men, to be in contact with mental health services, a 10% increase on the previous year.

In addition, our campaign on dealing with loneliness as part of the Better Health: Every Mind Matters campaign, encouraged people, including men, to reach out and support others who may be feeling lonely, helping themselves to also feel more connected. We will continue to work across the Government and with our Tackling Loneliness Network to explore how we can support further action to tackle men’s loneliness.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has made an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of the recommendations of Child of the North APPG's report entitled Children in Care in the North of England, published on 17 April 2024.

Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

DWP recognises the challenges care leavers face as they move out of the care system and has in place a series of easements aimed at simplifying and improving their interaction with the benefit system. In addition to the intensive tailored support the Youth Offer provides for young people with additional barriers to work, we are working with employers through the Care Leaver Covenant to help care leavers find more employment opportunities; and with DfE to ensure care leavers can access the right skills, opportunities and wider support, to move towards sustained employment and career progression.

Furthermore, to help achieve the missions set out in the Department for Education’s response to the independent review of children’s social care 'Stable Homes, Built on Love' DWP has already committed to proactively explore additional easements to enhance the support offer for care leavers and work with DfE officials to explore how to improve transition for care leavers entering the benefit and employment support system.

The Government is committed to supporting families on lower incomes and expects to spend around £306bn through the welfare system in Great Britain in 2024/25 including around £138bn on people of working age and children. We have uprated working age benefits by 6.7% and raised the Local Housing Allowance rates to the 30^th percentile of local market rents, benefiting 1.6 million low-income households.

We have consistently set out a sustainable, long-term approach to tackling child poverty based on evidence about the important role of work, particularly where it is full-time, in substantially reducing the risk of child poverty. The latest statistics show that in 2022/23, children living in workless households were over 6 times more likely to be in absolute poverty (after housing costs) than those where all adults work. This is why, with over 900,000 vacancies across the UK, our focus is firmly on supporting people into and to progress in work.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help ensure the availability of childcare placements in school holidays.

Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

In the government’s Spring Budget 2023, my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, announced transformative reforms to childcare for parents, children and the economy. This included £289 million to support the expansion of wraparound childcare for primary school-aged children. By 2026, all parents and carers of primary school-aged children, who need it, will be able to access term time wraparound childcare in their local area from 8am to 6pm.

Since 2021, the department has provided more than £200 million of funding per year to local authorities across England, who take responsibility for the provision of the Holidays Activities and Food programme (HAF) in their area.

The HAF programme provides heathy meals, enriching activities and free childcare places to children from low-income families, benefiting their heath, wellbeing and learning.

School holidays can be particular pressure points for some families because of increased costs, such as food and childcare, and reduced incomes. For some children that can lead to a holiday experience gap, with children from disadvantaged families less likely to access organised out-of-school activities, more likely to experience ‘unhealthy holidays’ in terms of nutrition and physical health and are more likely to experience social isolation.

Free holiday clubs are a response to this issue and evidence suggests that they can have a positive impact on children and young people. It also shows they work best when they provide consistent and easily accessible enrichment activities, when they offer more than just breakfast or lunch, and when they involve children and parents in food preparation.

Local authorities are responsible for understanding the needs of the children and families in their area and ensuring that the programme reaches those who need it.

While the majority of funding that local authorities receive should be used for holiday club places for children in receipt of free school meals (FSM), local authorities have discretion to use up to 15% of their funding to provide free or subsidised holiday club places for children who are not in receipt of benefits-related FSM but who the local authority believe could benefit from HAF provision.

In deciding which children should benefit from the 15% flexible funding, local authorities are asked to ensure that these places are aligned to their local priorities.

A number of local authorities across England have secured additional funding or resources that has allowed them to expand the reach of their programme.

The HAF programme is delivered during longer school holidays, Easter, summer and the Christmas break, in all 153 local authorities in England.

Since 2022, the HAF programme has provided 11.3 million HAF days to children and young people in this country. Across 2023, a total of 5.3 million HAF days were provided during Easter, summer and winter delivery.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what steps he plans to take through the UN Security Council to improve the humanitarian situation of people in Gaza.

Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)

The Government recognises the need to respond to the growing humanitarian crisis and welcomed the adoption of UNSCR 2720, which calls for expanded humanitarian access in Gaza, as well as the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages.

More recently, the passing of UN Security Council Resolution 2728 on 25 March reflected international consensus behind the UK's position that we need an immediate pause in the fighting to get aid into Gaza, secure the release of hostages and make progress towards a permanent, sustainable ceasefire. We continue to use public and private diplomatic channels as well as multilateral fora to underline this.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what impact the under occupancy penalty has had on levels of (a) child poverty and (b) child poverty for children with a disability.

Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

No assessment has been made of the impact of the Removal of the Spare Room Subsidy (RSRS) on child poverty. It is not possible to produce a robust assessment of the impact of RSRS on child poverty because we do not have the data to fully measure behavioural impacts that may have resulted from the policy.

The latest statistics show that in 2022/23 there were 100,000 fewer children in absolute poverty after housing costs than in 2009/10.

Statistics on the number of Children living in absolute and relative poverty by disability in the UK are published annually in the “Households Below Average Income” publication in “table 1_7c” and “table 1_7d” (respectively) of “summary-hbai-timeseries-1994-95-2022-23-tables” found here. The latest statistics published on 21 March 2024 are for the financial period 2022/23. The latest available data can also be found on Stat-Xplore here.

The RSRS policy applies to claims for housing support where the claimant is living in a social rented sector property that is considered to have more bedrooms than the household requires.

The policy helps to encourage mobility within the social rented sector to make better use of the existing social housing stock and strengthens work-incentives.

There are easements available which allow for the provision of an additional bedroom in certain circumstances, such as to support families of disabled children, foster carers and parents who adopt.

For individuals who may require additional support, Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs) may be available. DHPs are paid entirely at the discretion of the local authority and since 2011 the Government has provided nearly £1.7 billion to local authorities.

Childcare for working parents

Drug and alcohol treatment services for women

Public ownership of water

Diversion schemes for drug-related offending

Alcohol-related deaths

The cost of private rent in England and rent controls

Stage two report of the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman on women's state pension age

Women Against State Pension Inequality (WASPI)

The Big Plastic Count

No Falls Week 2024

British Youth Council

Let Girls Play campaign

Access to State Pension for people with a terminal illness

Food price inflation and the Easter festive period

Female genital mutilation legislation in The Gambia

Immigration changes for carers and Ukrainians

50th anniversary of the Free Presbyterian Church of Ulster Mission Board

Baha'i, Iran

Trapped podcast on IPP sentences

Found: Over to Rachael Maskell.

Found: by Wendy Chamberlain , Mrs Flick Drummond , Mr Tobias Ellwood , Richard Foord , Tim Loughton , Rachael

Found: _NC15 Caroline Ansell Sally-Ann Hart Rachael Maskell Ms Marie Rimmer Robin Millar Bob Blackman

Found: _NC15 Caroline Ansell Sally-Ann Hart Rachael Maskell Ms Marie Rimmer Robin Millar Bob Blackman

Found: _NC15 Caroline Ansell Sally-Ann Hart Rachael Maskell Ms Marie Rimmer Robin Millar Bob Blackman

Found: _NC15 Caroline Ansell Sally-Ann Hart Rachael Maskell Ms Marie Rimmer Robin Millar Bob Blackman

Found: _NC15 Caroline Ansell Sally-Ann Hart Rachael Maskell Ms Marie Rimmer Robin Millar Bob Blackman

Found: _NC15 Caroline Ansell Sally-Ann Hart Rachael Maskell Ms Marie Rimmer Robin Millar Bob Blackman