Asked by: Sarah Hall (Labour (Co-op) - Warrington South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to fill vacant consultant posts in Paediatric and Perinatal Pathology working in the South West and the Midlands.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Decisions about recruitment are a matter for individual National Health Service employers, who manage this at a local level to ensure they have the staff they need to deliver effective care.
The Government is committed to publishing a 10 Year Workforce Plan to set out action to create a workforce ready to deliver the transformed service set out in the 10-Year Health Plan. The 10 Year Workforce Plan will ensure the NHS has the right people in the right places, with the right skills when needed.
Asked by: Sarah Hall (Labour (Co-op) - Warrington South)
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 the diagnosis waiting time for Endometriosis.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to prioritising women’s health, including endometriosis care. The Department, through the National Institute for Health and Care Research, has commissioned studies focused on endometriosis diagnosis, treatment, and patient experience.
Diagnosis may involve magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or ultrasound, but laparoscopy remains the definitive diagnostic and treatment method. We are taking action to transform diagnostic services and increase capacity, including MRI and ultrasound. This includes expanding existing community diagnostic centres (CDCs) and building up to five new ones in 2025/26. Our Elective Reform Plan also committed to CDCs opening 12 hours per day, seven days a week, delivering more same-day tests and consultations.
Surgical hubs are helping endometriosis patients get quicker treatment. National Health Service surgical hubs deliver high-volume, low-complexity elective surgeries, including gynaecological procedures. Currently, over half of the 123 operational elective surgical hubs in England provide gynaecology services, and laparoscopies are a key part of this offering. The Elective Reform Plan commits to expand the number of hubs over the next three years to increase surgical capacity and reduce waiting times.
From 2027, a new “online hospital” will also offer patients the choice to access specialist care, including for menstrual problems potentially indicating endometriosis or fibroids from home, providing additional appointments to cut waiting times.
Asked by: Sarah Hall (Labour (Co-op) - Warrington South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will meet with the hon. Member for Warrington South, colleagues and representatives of Royal College of Pathologists about the recruitment of Paediatric and Perinatal Pathology consultants in the South West and the Midlands.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Decisions about recruitment are a matter for individual National Health Service employers, who manage this at a local level to ensure they have the staff they need to deliver effective care.
The Government is committed to publishing a 10 Year Workforce Plan to set out action to create a workforce ready to deliver the transformed service set out in the 10-Year Health Plan.
The 10 Year Workforce Plan will ensure the NHS has the right people in the right places, with the right skills when needed.
We are engaging with partners throughout this process. As we continue the open and wide-ranging conversations we’ve been having with staff, patients, and organisations, including royal colleges across the country, we will ensure that the engagement is robust and representative of different stakeholder groups.
Asked by: Sarah Hall (Labour (Co-op) - Warrington South)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to help reduce regional inequalities with standing charge rates.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Regional variations in standing charges arise from differences in electricity distribution costs and reflect the different costs of maintaining and upgrading the distribution network in a specific area, and the number of consumers those costs are spread across.
The Government is committed to bearing down on standing charges. Ofgem has also been working to ensure that domestic consumers can choose tariffs with lower standing charges. Ofgem’s consultation on these proposals closed on 23 October 2025, and they will provide a further update in due course.
In addition, through their Cost Allocation and Recovery Review, Ofgem has also been reviewing how ‘fixed’ costs, which tend to be funded through standing charges, should be recovered in the future energy system. This includes whether those fixed costs could be recovered in more progressive ways, and we are working closely with the regulator on this.
Asked by: Sarah Hall (Labour (Co-op) - Warrington South)
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 waiting times for gynaecology services.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Women’s health is a priority for the Government, including tackling gynaecology waiting lists. We are committed to returning to the National Health Service constitutional standard that 92% of patients are treated within 18 weeks of referral to consultant-led care by March 2029.
Our Elective Reform Plan, published January 2025, sets out a number of ways which we will improve gynaecology waiting times. This includes innovative models of care that offer care closer to home and in the community, piloting gynaecology pathways in community diagnostic centres for patients with post-menopausal bleeding, and increasing the relative funding available to incentivise providers to take on more gynaecology procedures. These reforms will mean shorter waits and more convenient gynaecological care for patients.
We are also introducing an “online hospital” through NHS Online. This will give people on certain pathways the choice of getting the specialist care they need from their home, providing additional appointments to cut waiting times. Women’s health issues, including severe menopause symptoms and menstrual problems that may be a sign of endometriosis or fibroids, will be among the conditions available for online referrals from 2027.
Asked by: Sarah Hall (Labour (Co-op) - Warrington South)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent assessment he has made of the cumulative impact of property taxes, staffing costs, food and drink inflation and energy prices on the financial sustainability of hospitality businesses.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Government recognises the significant pressures facing the hospitality sector and the Government is providing support through various measures to help ease these pressures.
We aim to permanently reduce business rates for RHL properties with a rateable value of less than 500,000 and we have announced a new Zero Carbon Services Hospitality trial which aims for Pubs, cafes, restaurants and hotels to receive free energy and carbon cutting advice to slash their energy bills as part of the government’s Plan for Change.
Additionally, the Employment Allowance has been increased to £10,500, meaning 865,000 employers will pay no National Insurance Contributions enabling businesses to employ up to four full-time staff on the National Living Wage without incurring employer NIC costs.
The Department will continue to engage with the sector, including through the Hospitality Sector Council with an aim to co-create solutions to the issues impacting the sector.
Asked by: Sarah Hall (Labour (Co-op) - Warrington South)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to improve the process in which domestic abuse cases reach the family court in a) the north west and b) Warrington.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
This Government is committed to improving the experience of victims of domestic abuse in the family courts across England and Wales, including in the north west and Warrington.
In early 2026, His Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) plans to roll out a new digital service for applications for non-molestation orders and occupation orders. This service will make it easier and quicker for applicants to submit applications for these protective orders via an online portal.
Additional support is available to litigants in person via CourtNav, a free online tool operated by RCJ Advice, a citizens advice and law centre dedicated to improving access to justice. CourtNav guides individuals through applying for non-molestation and occupation orders, assisting with drafting applications and supporting statements. Applicants also have the option to have their application checked by a legal adviser, who can help identify the most appropriate course of action.
To streamline the process, the CourtNav system can automatically direct applications to HMCTS’s digital service. This enables information entered in CourtNav to transfer directly into the HMCTS system, ensuring better integration and efficiency when applications are submitted to the court.
Asked by: Sarah Hall (Labour (Co-op) - Warrington South)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps his Department is taking to tackle rogue traders and protect consumers.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Consumer legislation sets out protections for consumers.
The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 strengthens consumer law enforcement by giving the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) new administrative powers, and the CMA and courts the ability to impose significant monetary penalties of up to 10% of turnover.
DBT provides additional funding through the National Trading Standards Board and Trading Standards Scotland to prioritise and coordinate national and regional consumer enforcement in England, Wales and Scotland respectively.
DBT also funds Citizens Advice to provide the consumer service which supports consumers to assert their rights. Citizens Advice also run an annual Scams Awareness campaign.
Asked by: Sarah Hall (Labour (Co-op) - Warrington South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential benefits of allowing men who require Hormone Replacement Therapy in the form of testosterone to be added to the HRT Prescription Prepayment Certificate.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The hormone replacement therapy prescription prepayment certificate (HRT PPC) was introduced to support women in accessing hormone replacement therapy medicines on the National Health Service as part of their care during menopause. The equalities impact assessment is available at the following link:
Testosterone products are not in scope for the HRT PPC because, even though they can be used "off-label" to treat menopause symptoms, they are not licensed for this purpose. No United Kingdom licensed testosterone products for the treatment of menopause symptoms have been launched in the UK.
Anyone can purchase the HRT PPC if they feel that it is the most appropriate product for them. The three-month or 12-month PPC, which cover all medicines prescribed on the NHS, may be more appropriate for patients who are prescribed medicines not covered by the HRT PPC.
Asked by: Sarah Hall (Labour (Co-op) - Warrington South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the NHS 10 year plan commitment to carry out DNA mapping on all new born babies, what steps he is taking to protect personal health data.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The 10-Year Health Plan set out an ambition to “implement universal genomic testing” within the next decade. Delivering against this ambition will be subject to evidence gathered through the Generation Study, delivered by Genomics England and the National Health Service. This research programme is evaluating the effectiveness of using whole genome sequencing to test 100,000 newborns for genetic mutations associated with more than 200 rare genetic conditions. The study is asking parents for consent to securely store their baby’s genomic and health data, with strict safeguards to protect identities. With consent, data is stored securely in the National Genomic Research Library, run by Genomics England, to support research on the causes of genetic conditions. Access is tightly controlled, overseen by an independent committee, and only permitted within a secure environment.