Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to para. 266 of the White Paper entitled Restoring control over the immigration system, published on 12 May 2025, what her Department's timetable is for the consultation on changes to the (a) points-based system and (b) qualifying period for visas.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
We will be consulting on the earned settlement scheme later this year and further details on the proposed scheme will be provided at that time.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to support GPs in Nottinghamshire to spend more time with patients.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is determined to ensure that general practitioners (GPs) are able to spend more time doing what they do best, spending time with their patients.
That’s why, in October 2024, we invested £82 million into the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme to support the recruitment of 1,700 newly qualified GPs across England, helping to increase appointment availability and improve care for thousands of patients.
We delivered the biggest boost to GP funding in years, an £889 million uplift, with GPs now receiving a growing share of National Health Service resources. We have also announced that over £100 million of funding will be used to unlock new capacity in over 1,000 GP surgeries, which will enable more appointments.
We have launched a Red Tape Challenge, and scrapped unnecessary targets in our new GP Contract, to cut down on bureaucracy and free up time to spend with patients.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she has had discussions with the Secretary of State for the Home Department on the potential impact of the proposed Chinese embassy at Royal Mint Court on (a) policing and (b) public order.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
As has been the case under successive administrations, government does not normally disclose details of internal discussions.
An independent Inspector held a public inquiry into the proposals, at which interested parties were able to put forward evidence and representations.
All material planning considerations will be taken into account in reaching a decision on this case.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she has made an estimate with the Secretary of State for the Home Department on the potential impact of granting the application for a Chinese Embassy at Royal Mint Court on costs for policing protests.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
An independent Inspector held a public inquiry into the proposals in question, at which interested parties were able to put forward evidence and representations. All material planning considerations will be taken into account in reaching a decision on this case.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to consider the potential costs for policing protests when making her decision on the planning application for the Chinese embassy at Royal Mint Court.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
An independent Inspector held a public inquiry into the proposals in question, at which interested parties were able to put forward evidence and representations. All material planning considerations will be taken into account in reaching a decision on this case.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 12 March 2025 to Question 36235 on Oppression: China, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of the redevelopment of a Chinese embassy in London on the ability of Hong Kong nationals in the UK to exercise their right to (a) free speech and (b) peaceful protest since 6 March 2025.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Home Office)
The management and safety of demonstrations is an operational matter for the police, and the Metropolitan Police Service have provided their assessment of the potential management of protests outside Royal Mint Court in their submission to the Planning Inquiry.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to reduce A&E waiting times in Nottinghamshire.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises that urgent and emergency care performance has fallen short in recent years and is committed to restoring accident and emergency waiting times to the NHS Constitutional standard across England, including in Nottinghamshire.
Our new Urgent and Emergency care plan, published on 6 June, sets out a fundamental shift in the approach to urgent and emergency care. It will drive collaboration across the system to deliver improvements for patients this year, backed by nearly £450 million of capital investment.
The Government’s 10-Year Health Plan will be published later this summer, setting out major National Health Service reforms moving healthcare from hospital to community, from analogue to digital, and from sickness to prevention.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
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 reduce hospital backlogs in Nottinghamshire.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Tackling waiting lists is a key priority for the Government, including in Nottinghamshire. We have now exceeded our pledge to deliver an additional two million appointments, tests, and operations, having delivered 3.6 million more since July. As announced in the Spending Review, annual National Health Service day-to-day spending will increase by £29 billion in real terms from 2023/24, taking spending to £226 billion by 2028/29.
Waiting lists are expected to reduce significantly over the Spending Review period, as the Government works towards delivery of the Plan for Change commitment that 92% of patients will start consultant-led treatment within 18 weeks of referral by the end of Parliament.
This is supported by record capital investment for health which will help to repair NHS estates, enable productivity improvements, and deliver additional capacity, as well as the Government’s Elective Reform Plan, published in January. The plan includes wide ranging reforms to improve patients’ access to and experience of care, from reducing unnecessary appointments to faster and more local diagnostics.
Community diagnostic centres (CDC) are providing a broad range of elective diagnostics away from acute facilities, reducing pressure on hospitals and giving patients quicker and more convenient access to tests. Both the Nottingham City CDC and the Mansfield CDC are already delivering key diagnostic tests ahead of opening new facilities in 2026.
It is encouraging to see that local systems, including the Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, are taking action to make efficiencies and improve productivity, including through their digital workstream and improvements to the estate. We look forward to following progress and seeing real benefits for patients.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that individuals prosecuted under the Hong Kong National Security Law are not unfairly excluded from access to the British Nationals (Overseas) visa scheme.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The Home Office considers all applications for UK visas on their individual merits. Suitability requirements apply to all routes and must be met in addition to validity and eligibility requirements.
The Immigration Rules part 9: grounds for refusal (Immigration Rules - Immigration Rules part 9: grounds for refusal - Guidance - GOV.UK) has further detail as to when an application for entry clearance, permission to enter or permission to stay must be refused on criminality grounds.
In addition, further information on how overseas convictions and offences not recognised in the UK are considered for applications submitted specifically under the Hong Kong British National (Overseas) route can be found in the published casework guidance - Hong Kong British National (Overseas) route. Guidance for caseworkers provides flexibility to ensure that overseas convictions and offences not recognised in the UK do not result in the automatic refusal of a HK BN(O) route application.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will relax the 90-day absence rule for British National (Overseas) visa holders for exceptional circumstances for visa holders from Hong Kong.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
British Nationals (Overseas) who wish to become British citizens can apply for registration under section 4(2) of the British Nationality Act 1981. There is some discretion over the requirement not to have been outside the UK for more than 90 days in the final year of the residential qualifying period. Published guidance sets out when that discretion would normally be exercised.