Asked by: Cat Eccles (Labour - Stourbridge)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the press release of 19 June 2025 entitled Game changer for the nation, if she will provide a breakdown of the £900 million funding for sports by grant; and what funding will be allocated to the West Midlands.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
High-quality, inclusive facilities help people get active. Everyone, no matter who they are or where they live, should have access to them and opportunities to participate in sport and physical activity. That is why, in June, we committed another £400 million to transform facilities across the whole of the UK over the next four years. This funding will be invested in new and upgraded grassroots sport facilities that promote health and wellbeing and remove the barriers to physical activity for under-represented groups. We are now working closely with sporting bodies and local leaders to establish what communities need, before setting out further plans on how future funding will be allocated across the UK.
Asked by: Cat Eccles (Labour - Stourbridge)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of constructing an indoor Velodrome in Birmingham; and whether she plans to allocate funding from the £900 million funding for sport announced on 19 June 2025.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
High-quality, inclusive facilities help people get active. Everyone, no matter who they are or where they live, should have access to them and opportunities to participate in sport and physical activity. That is why, in June, we committed another £400 million to transform facilities across the whole of the UK over the next four years. This funding will be invested in new and upgraded grassroots sport facilities that promote health and wellbeing and remove the barriers to physical activity for under-represented groups. We are now working closely with sporting bodies and local leaders to establish what communities need, before setting out further plans on how future funding will be allocated across the UK.
Asked by: Cat Eccles (Labour - Stourbridge)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that essential NHS staff in Band 2 and Band 3 roles are eligible for inclusion on the (a) Health and Care Worker visa and (b) the Immigration Salary List.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
National Health Service staff working in Agenda for Change band 2 roles have never been eligible for the Health and Care Worker visa as they do not meet the skills threshold of the Regulated Qualifications Framework (RQF) level 3 diploma.
On 9 April, the minimum salary for Health and Care Worker visa holders increased to £25,000 per year. This applies to new Certificates of Sponsorship assigned on or after that date.
Entry-level band 3 roles do not meet the new minimum salary threshold for a Health and Care Worker visa. However, band 3 staff currently on the Health and Care Worker visa are not required to meet the new minimum salary threshold until the point at which they need to renew their visa. At that point, we expect the majority of staff to have accrued two or more years of experience, and therefore be at the top of band 3, which is above the new minimum salary threshold.
The expanded Immigration Salary List allows time-limited access to the United Kingdom’s immigration system for selected occupations of skill levels RQF 3 to 5 until the end of 2026, with restrictions on bringing dependants. The list includes occupations that the independent Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) identified as being in shortage in its 2023 review and 2024 rapid review.
No new roles will now be added to the list, as it is being phased out at the end of 2026. The MAC has been commissioned to advise on a future Temporary Shortage List.
Asked by: Cat Eccles (Labour - Stourbridge)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make his policy to introduce a Long service and good conduct medal for (a) doctors and (b) nurses.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Employers across the National Health Service are best placed to identify and reward staff for either long service or excellence in the delivery of healthcare. Most organisations have developed a wide range of schemes to celebrate long service in the NHS and these include celebratory events, commemorative badges, and monetary awards and gifts.
For NHS employees who have made an outstanding contribution, the honours system celebrates those who go above and beyond to change the world around them for the better. Nominations can be made online via the Cabinet Office website.
There is also the opportunity for members of Parliament to acknowledge the work of NHS staff in their constituency through the NHS Parliamentary Awards, with further information available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/nhs-parliamentary-awards/about/
Asked by: Cat Eccles (Labour - Stourbridge)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure the operation of NHS Practitioner Health beyond March 2026.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Looking after the mental health of our hardworking National Health Service staff is a priority for the Government.
The National Staff Mental Health Treatment Service currently supplied by NHS Practitioner Health is funded until March 2026, and work is being completed to re-commission this service for the next three years, aligned to the Multi-Year Spending Review, from 2026 to 2029.
More recently, the 10-Year Health Plan committed to roll out Staff Treatment Hubs. These hubs will provide a high-quality occupational health service for all NHS staff.
Asked by: Cat Eccles (Labour - Stourbridge)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help ensure that children have access to a (a) full and (b) balanced curriculum; and what steps she is taking to help ensure that children have access to the creative arts (i) up to and (ii) after GCSE level.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell
The department wants every child, regardless of background, to have a rich and broad, inclusive and innovative curriculum.
Art and design, music, dance (included in physical education) and drama (included in English) are in the national curriculum and are compulsory in all maintained schools. From key stages 1-3 for art and design, music, and dance; and key stages 1-4 for drama. At key stage 4, all pupils in maintained schools have an entitlement to study an arts subject, if they wish.
The independent Curriculum and Assessment Review aims to ensure that all pupils gain knowledge and skills that set them up for life. The Review will publish its final report in the autumn, and the government will respond.
Alongside the Review, we have announced our intention to launch a new National Centre for Arts and Music Education, to help meet the government’s ambitions for improved and more equitable arts education.
Asked by: Cat Eccles (Labour - Stourbridge)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent representations has he made to his Israeli counterpart on the humanitarian situation in Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Prime Minister spoke to Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu on 29 July. He said that the situation in Gaza was intolerable and that the need for humanitarian access is now more pressing than ever before. He urged him to take immediate action to lift all restrictions on aid access and get those suffering in Gaza the food they need. Further to this, the Prime Minister made a statement on 29 July in which he outlined the need for an immediate ceasefire, the release of all hostages still held by Hamas, and that the UN be allowed to send humanitarian assistance into Gaza on a continuing basis to prevent starvation in Gaza. We recognise Israel's decision to allow temporary pauses and partially unblock aid; however, we have been clear with our Israeli counterparts that this is not enough to alleviate the suffering of the people in Gaza. Restrictions on aid must be permanently removed, and the UN must be enabled to deliver aid safely and at-scale.
Asked by: Cat Eccles (Labour - Stourbridge)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of the post- (a) 16 and (b) 18 support for young people raised in kinship.
Answered by Janet Daby
This government is committed to ensuring more children are supported in a strong kinship care arrangement, avoiding care where possible, because we know that this leads to better outcomes.
We are legislating through the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill to require local authorities to publish a local offer for children and families in kinship arrangements and requiring local authorities to offer family group decision making to families with children on the edge of care. These measures will ensure more children are supported within their family networks, and with kinship carers instead of entering care.
Some children in kinship care, such as those placed with kinship foster carers, are entitled to leaving care support if they have been in care for a minimum of 13 weeks, some of which was after they reached age 16, when they cease to be looked after. This includes support from a Personal Adviser up to the age of 25, and support to engage in education, employment or training, including a £2,000 bursary if they attend higher education.
This support will also include providing continuity of support and relationships when care leavers reach age 18 through the ‘Staying Put’ programme and investing in family-finding, mentoring and befriending programmes.
Asked by: Cat Eccles (Labour - Stourbridge)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of oral nicotine pouches on public health.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Nicotine is the active ingredient in oral nicotine pouches, which is a highly addictive drug. Unlike vapes, nicotine pouches currently have no set nicotine limits, and nicotine strengths can be extremely high. The use of nicotine pouches is increasing, particularly among young men. Among adults in Great Britain, 5.4% tried nicotine pouches in 2024.
The Government is committed to protecting future generations from the harms of nicotine addiction. That is why, alongside vapes, we are taking action to control these products through the Tobacco and Vapes Bill. The bill will ban the advertising and sponsorship of all consumer nicotine products, ban their sale to anyone under 18 years old, and prohibit free distribution. The bill also provides powers to regulate the flavours, ingredients, which includes nicotine strength, packaging, and displays of vapes and nicotine products.
Asked by: Cat Eccles (Labour - Stourbridge)
Question
To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what steps is she taking to tackle misogyny against girls and young women.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Tackling misogyny is central to our mission to halve violence against women and girls (VAWG) in a decade and we will address the drivers and root causes of VAWG as part of our upcoming cross-Government Strategy, due to be published this year.
Education has an important role to play in reducing misogyny; statutory guidance on Relationships, Sex and Health Education makes clear that schools must build a culture where issues such as everyday sexism, misogyny, and gender stereotyping are not tolerated. The Department for Education is reviewing this guidance to ensure that it enables schools to tackle harmful behaviour, as this Government is determined to ensure that misogyny and sexual violence are stamped out.