Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the national cancer plan for England will include targets to improve the diagnosis of myeloma.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

It is a priority for the Government to support the National Health Service to diagnose cancer, including blood cancers such as myeloma, as well as other unstageable cancers, as early and quickly as possible, and to treat it faster, in order to improve outcomes.

To tackle late diagnoses of blood cancers, the NHS is implementing non-specific symptom pathways for patients who present with symptoms such as weight loss and fatigue, which do not clearly align to a tumour type. Blood cancers are one of the most common cancer types diagnosed through these pathways.

We will get the NHS diagnosing blood cancer earlier and treating it faster, and we will support the NHS to increase capacity to meet the demand for diagnostic services through investment, including for magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography scanners.

The National Cancer Plan will include further details on how we will improve outcomes for cancer patients, including speeding up diagnosis and treatment and ensuring patients have access to the latest treatments and technology, ultimately driving up this country’s cancer survival rates.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions her Department has had with local authorities on ensuring the availability of support for parents of children with severe SEND needs who require two-to-one support during the school holidays.

Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

Local authorities have a legal duty to complete an annual childcare sufficiency assessment. In this assessment, they must have regard to the needs of parents in their area for the provision of childcare which is suitable for disabled children. Where adequate childcare provision is not available, parents have the right to request a wraparound or holiday childcare place for their child.

The holiday activities and food (HAF) programme funding is primarily for school-aged children from reception to year 11 who receive benefits-related free school meals (FSM). Local authorities have discretion to use up to 15% of their funding to provide free holiday club places for children who are not in receipt of benefits-related FSM but who the local authority believes could benefit from HAF provision.

The department regularly meets with local authorities to discuss HAF provision and encourages them to engage with local and national organisations, including special schools with expertise in working with children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or additional needs. Local authorities are obligated to include the numbers of children with SEND or additional needs who have participated in their programme in their post provision reporting to us.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of reminding parents who are claiming free childcare for working parents to reconfirm their details by (a) telephone call and (b) letter.

Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

It is the government’s ambition that all families have access to high quality, affordable and flexible early education and care, giving every child the best start in life and delivering on our Plan for Change. The department is delivering more support to working families than ever with the rollout of 30 hours government-funded childcare. Reconfirmation ensures that parents continue to meet the eligibility criteria. Eligibility for 30 hours is based on expected income for the next three months.

Parents receive an email and/or text prompt four weeks before their reconfirmation deadline and again two weeks before the deadline if they still have not reconfirmed. This email will remind parents that they will need to confirm their details are up to date and will provide instructions on how to reconfirm.

Parents who do not have access to a mobile phone or email address will receive letters reminding them to reconfirm.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of issuing further reminders to parents who claim free childcare for working parents to reconfirm their details after the deadline has passed.

Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

It is our ambition that all families have access to high quality, affordable and flexible early education and care, giving every child the best start in life and delivering on our Plan for Change. We are delivering more support to working families than ever with the rollout of 30 hours government-funded childcare. Reconfirmation ensures parents continue to meet the eligibility criteria, which is based on expected income for the next three months. To reconfirm, parents receive an email and/or text prompt four weeks and two weeks before the reconfirmation deadline.

A notification is also sent on deadline date to notify a parent they are no longer eligible and to reconfirm as soon as possible.

If a child is already in a funded place, they will enter a ‘grace period’ which allows the child to continue their place temporarily. If the parent becomes eligible again during this period, the child can continue to access their place. Specific grace period dates are set out in the department’s statutory guidance.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether her Department plans to establish an award scheme to recognise people overseas (a) fostering and (b) strengthening cultural links with the United Kingdom.

Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

We value the many individuals, both British and foreign, who foster cultural links between the UK and other countries. Exceptional and sustained achievements in this area are already recognised through the UK Honours System, including through regular honorary awards for foreign and Commonwealth nationals. Anyone may nominate an individual for a UK Honour for consideration by the independent honours committees.

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 prevent children from illegally purchasing vapes.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Selling nicotine vapes to under 18-year-olds is illegal, yet one in four 11 to 15-year-olds tried vaping in 2023. It is unacceptable that vapes are deliberately branded and advertised to appeal to children.

The Tobacco and Vapes Bill will reduce the appeal and availability of vapes to children by banning vapes and nicotine products from being deliberately branded, promoted, and advertised to children, and by providing powers to limit flavours and packaging, and how vapes are displayed in shops.

The bill also takes bold action to strengthen enforcement. It will introduce £200 fixed penalty notices in England and Wales to empower Trading Standards to take swifter action to fine those who choose to break the law and sell to anyone underage, putting the public’s health at risk. The bill will also enable ministers in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland to introduce a licensing scheme for the retail sale of tobacco, vapes, and nicotine products. This will strengthen enforcement, support legitimate businesses, and crack down on rogue retailers who breach tobacco and vape regulations.

Alongside the bill, the Government is also investing £10 million of new funding in 2025/26 in Trading Standards, to support the enforcement of illicit and underage tobacco and vape sales and the implementation of the measures in the bill.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the backlog of claims under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme.

Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)

The Ministry of Defence is committed to improving performance and reducing delays in processing claims under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (AFCS). To achieve this, the Department has introduced several targeted measures:

Flexible resource management: Teams are now able to flex resources, and staff are being trained to be multi-skilled, maximising efficiency and building greater resilience.

Accelerated processing: Overtime and weekend working have been implemented to speed up the reduction of outstanding claims.

Increased capacity: Additional administrative and caseworker staff have been recruited to further boost processing capability.

At every stage of the AFCS process, claims from the terminally ill are given priority. In addition, the Veterans Welfare Service (VWS) remains available to all veterans, Service personnel, and their families, offering dedicated assistance and support.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 5 September 2025 to Question 72309 on NHS dental professionals, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of including areas with no NHS dentists in the Golden Hello scheme.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Golden Hello scheme aims to support dental practices in areas that are experiencing significant dental pressures, including areas with no National Health Service dentists.

The scheme is designed to encourage relocation to areas with workforce challenges, to attract new workers to the NHS, and to retain those who might have otherwise moved into private practice.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department made an assessment of the potential long-term impact of climate change on the canal network before reducing the level of funding for the Canal and River Trust.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

A comprehensive review of the current grant provision to the Canal and River Trust was conducted between 2021 and 2023. The review examined a number of forward-looking scenarios using data provided by the Trust that included consideration of potential climate change impacts.

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 that patients experiencing mental health problems are provided with comprehensive information on (a) potential side effects, (b) interactions with other medications and (c) the long-term implications of any medication they are advised to take.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Any decision to prescribe a medicine should be made following a conversation between the prescriber and patient. This is known as shared decision making and should involve discussing with the patient the risks, benefits and possible consequences of different options, along with the prescriber’s clinical judgement.

NHS England has recently published decision support tools on depression and bipolar to help individuals to compare possible treatment options, and a leaflet on the safer use of valproate. Unless the information is on the pack, all dispensed medicines must include a patient information leaflet, which provides information on using the medicine safely. Specialist mental health pharmacists are available at the majority of mental health trusts to discuss medication options with patients, and the Medicines A-Z website and NHS App provide information about medicines and mental health.

The Mental Health Bill extends access to advocacy support, currently only available to patients detained under the Mental Health Act, to all patients in mental health inpatient settings. Advocates support patients to understand and exercise their rights. The bill also introduces measures to encourage people to create an Advance Choice Document while they are well. This is a written record of their wishes, including their preferences on medication, so that these can later inform decisions during a mental health crisis. The bill also raises the threshold on when compulsory medication can be administered to a patient, by requiring that there must be a compelling reason to override the patient’s refusal, whether made at the time or in advance. Urgent and compulsory medication and electroconvulsive therapy can also only be given under a more limited set of circumstances. These measures aim to better balance patient autonomy and the ability to administer treatment at a time of mental health crisis.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to help support patients with mental health problems in exercising their right to refuse medication in NHS settings.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Any decision to prescribe a medicine should be made following a conversation between the prescriber and patient. This is known as shared decision making and should involve discussing with the patient the risks, benefits and possible consequences of different options, along with the prescriber’s clinical judgement.

NHS England has recently published decision support tools on depression and bipolar to help individuals to compare possible treatment options, and a leaflet on the safer use of valproate. Unless the information is on the pack, all dispensed medicines must include a patient information leaflet, which provides information on using the medicine safely. Specialist mental health pharmacists are available at the majority of mental health trusts to discuss medication options with patients, and the Medicines A-Z website and NHS App provide information about medicines and mental health.

The Mental Health Bill extends access to advocacy support, currently only available to patients detained under the Mental Health Act, to all patients in mental health inpatient settings. Advocates support patients to understand and exercise their rights. The bill also introduces measures to encourage people to create an Advance Choice Document while they are well. This is a written record of their wishes, including their preferences on medication, so that these can later inform decisions during a mental health crisis. The bill also raises the threshold on when compulsory medication can be administered to a patient, by requiring that there must be a compelling reason to override the patient’s refusal, whether made at the time or in advance. Urgent and compulsory medication and electroconvulsive therapy can also only be given under a more limited set of circumstances. These measures aim to better balance patient autonomy and the ability to administer treatment at a time of mental health crisis.

Electrifying the Midland Main Line

Dentists in Hazel Grove constituency

Renewable energy and coal

Fruit and Vegetable Aid Scheme

Fly camping in the Lake District

Arts for Recovery in the Community in Stockport

Farmers, growers and the supermarket supply chain