Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many covid-19 vaccinations were available for use in England in winter (a) 2025-6, (b) 2024-5 and (c) 2023-4.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are unable to provide the information requested, as it is commercially sensitive, however adequate doses were available to deliver the programmes.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
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 increase defibrillator training in schools in North Shropshire constituency.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department for Education has published guidance on automated external defibrillators (AEDs) for schools, including on maintenance and registration with The Circuit. This guidance is available at the following link:
NHS England provides training sessions on first aid, cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), and the use of AEDs both in the community and in schools, under the under Restart a Heart initiative. NHS England has trained over 35,800 adults and children in CPR and defibrillation.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she will have discussions with Ofqual on the potential merits of requiring exam boards to give special consideration to students who are absent from school during the academic year due to exceptional circumstances.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Special consideration is any adjustment given to a student who has temporarily experienced an illness, injury, or other event outside of their control, which significantly affects their ability to either take or demonstrate what they can do in an assessment.
Special consideration can only be given for things that happen immediately before or during an exam or assessment. To be eligible for special consideration, students must have been fully prepared for the assessment and have covered the whole course. Special consideration does not apply where students miss a course due to absence, if they enrolled part way through, or if their education was disrupted.
As the exams regulator, Ofqual is clear that qualifications must represent what a student knows, understands, and can do. This is important so that qualifications maintain their value and users of qualifications, including universities and employers, have trust in the grades awarded.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department will make an assessment of the level of contingency capacity of (a) schools and (b) colleges in the event of other school settings being forced to close.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The statutory duty to provide sufficient school places sits with local authorities. The department engages with councils on a regular basis to review their plans for creating additional places and to consider alternatives where necessary. When local authorities are experiencing difficulties, we support them to find solutions as quickly as possible.
As with schools, the duty is also with local authorities to have a strategic overview of the 16-19 provision available in the area and to identify and resolve gaps in provision so that each young person receives an offer of a suitable place.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the press release titled Record investment to protect thousands of UK homes and businesses, published on 4 February 2025, how much of the £2.65 billion of funding announced for flood defences will be allocated to (a) projects along the River Perry, and (b) protecting housing and businesses in Gobowen.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
a: The Environment Agency is developing the Severn Valley Water Management Scheme. This will provide a strategic holistic approach in the Upper Severn catchment, including the River Perry, to manage flood risk and explore how natural processes can be delivered at scale, complimented by traditional engineering approaches. The total value of this strategy within the announcement (24/25-25/26) is £4.3m million.
In addition, £290k is being invested in a Demonstrator project in Oswestry, North Shropshire, to ‘de-pave’, and create new, water absorbing greenspaces. This will improve drainage and slow the flow of water in the built environment.
Also £450k is being invested to investigate the rewetting of lowland peat in the Perry catchment.
b: Shropshire Council have secured £50,000 from the English Severn and Wye Regional Flood and Coastal Committee to investigate a flood scheme to protect approximately 100 properties and rail infrastructure in Gobowen.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if her Department will carry out a risk assessment on the impact of the Environment Agency ceasing maintenance of the River Perry.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
On the River Perry, the EA has not ceased maintenance activities. The EA continues to carry out critical maintenance work, focussing on significant obstructions, like fallen trees blocking the river channel.
The EA’s maintenance approach on the River Perry is to focus on specific communities at risk of flooding as this is found to offer the greatest benefit in reducing flood risk.
The primary responsibility for river maintenance rests with individual landowners. The Environment Agency (EA) prioritises its public funded maintenance activities on main rivers, focussing efforts where they have the greatest benefit.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she plans to include Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust in the National maternity and neonatal investigation; and whether she plans to include bereaved families in Shropshire in the investigation.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Chair of the Independent Maternity and Neonatal Investigation, Baroness Amos, has removed the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust from the list of local National Health Service trust investigations for the Independent National Maternity and Neonatal Investigation following recent discussions with West Mercia Police about the details and schedule of their ongoing investigation.
The call for evidence will launch in November, and families from Shrewsbury and Telford have been encouraged to participate.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the press release titled Record investment to protect thousands of UK homes and businesses, published on 4 February 2025, how much of the £2.65 billion of funding announced for flood defences will be allocated to projects in (a) North Shropshire constituency and (b) Shropshire.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Within the current Flood Risk Management investment programme 2021–2026, over £15 million has been invested in Shropshire to reduce flood risk to people and property. Between 2024 and 2026 over £5 million of investment will benefit the North Shropshire constituency to reduce flood risk.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to protect homes and businesses in North Shropshire from flooding this winter.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Environment Agency (EA) is committed to working with partners and communities to prepare for flooding this winter. The EA responds to incidents and manages flood risk, operates a 24/7 service to warn and inform, continually monitors the weather and river networks, and issues alerts and warnings when required. Preparing for and during flooding, the EA’s teams carry out essential operational activities by checking assets and removing obstructions that increase flood risk.
Please help by encouraging people to sign up to the EA’s new and improved free flood warning service which can be accessed here: Get flood warnings by text, phone or email - GOV.UK
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 16 July 2025 to Question 67160 on Whitchurch Station: Access and with reference to the announcement on railway stations awarded Access for All accessibility funding, published on 24 May 2024, when she plans to announce the timeline for completion of Access for All construction at Whitchurch Railway Station.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
We are committed to improving the accessibility of the railway and recognise the social and economic benefits this brings to communities.
Since 2006 the Access for All programme has installed accessible, step free routes at over 270 stations plus a range of smaller scale access improvements at around 1500 stations.
In May 2024, the previous government agreed the publication of a list of 50 additional stations selected for initial feasibility work, which included Whitchurch railway station.
Network Rail have now completed all 50 feasibility studies and we will shortly be announcing which of those stations will progress.