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 ensure that patients with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome have access to (a) specialist (i) clinicians, (ii) nurses, (iii) physiotherapists, (iv) occupational therapists, (v) dieticians and (vi) clinical psychologists and (b) (A) equipment and (B) clinic space in Harpenden and Berkhamsted constituency.

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

Services for people with postural tachycardia syndrome (PoTS) are commissioned locally by integrated care boards (ICBs). ICBs have a statutory responsibility to provide a health service to the local population, subject to local prioritisation and funding, which includes access to specialist medical services for people with PoTS as appropriate.

The treatment of patients with PoTS in the Harpenden and Berkhamsted constituency area is managed on an individual, case-by-case basis. A multi-disciplinary team approach has been adopted, involving specialists such as physiotherapists, cardiologists, and neurologists. Patients are referred into specialist centres in London if their diagnosis or treatment requires a more specialist approach or facilities.

More widely, the Government is committed to publishing a 10 Year Workforce Plan which will ensure that the National Health Service has the right people in the right places, with the right skills to care for patients, when they need it, including for patients with PoTS.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of increasing fuel duty on (a) consumer price inflation and (b) household living costs.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

At Autumn Budget 2024, the Government announced continued support for people and businesses by extending the temporary 5p fuel duty cut and cancelling the planned increase in line with inflation for 2025/26. The temporary 5p cut is scheduled to expire in March 2026. The Government carefully considers the impact of fuel duty on households and businesses, with decisions on rates made at fiscal events.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to issue guidance to police forces on responding to (a) thefts from vans and (b) tool theft, in the context of the implementation of the Equipment Theft (Prevention) Act 2023.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Government is currently bringing forward legislative proposals to extend the Equipment Theft (Prevention) Act 2023 to include tradespeople’s power tools. As set out in the recently published Government Response to the Call for Evidence on the scope of the legislation, concerns were raised by stakeholders that property marking tools would be impractical and costly. The economic impact assessment findings indicate that the total cost to business would be disproportionate to the benefits of implementing this proposal.

We recognise the devastating impact theft of tools can have for tradespeople. We are working with the police-led National Business Crime Centre and industry via the Combined Industries Theft Solutions forum to explore ways to tackle and prevent the theft of tools.

We encourage tradespeople to use existing guidance such as the NBCC and Police Crime Prevention Initiatives (Secured By Design) crime prevention guidance to help prevent theft.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing mandatory suicide preventing training for emergency service workers.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Office only has responsibility for territorial police forces.

The College of Policing set the professional standards for police in England and Wales. The College’s core guidance includes the initial training for officers under the Policing Education Qualifications Framework which incorporates autism, learning disabilities, mental health and vulnerabilities. Through this, officers are taught to assess vulnerability and amend their approaches as required.

The College further promotes the need for frameworks to assess vulnerability, to aid in consistent identification, support decision making, and to trigger appropriate safeguarding action. Such principles and practices are set out in a number of college products, including the Detention and Custody Authorised Professional Practice.

Policing is operationally independent, and it is a matter for the chief constables of each force to decide which additional training their officers should undertake.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department plans to bring forward legislative proposals to extend the Equipment Theft (Prevention) Act 2023 to include tradespeople’s power tools.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Government is currently bringing forward legislative proposals to extend the Equipment Theft (Prevention) Act 2023 to include tradespeople’s power tools. As set out in the recently published Government Response to the Call for Evidence on the scope of the legislation, concerns were raised by stakeholders that property marking tools would be impractical and costly. The economic impact assessment findings indicate that the total cost to business would be disproportionate to the benefits of implementing this proposal.

We recognise the devastating impact theft of tools can have for tradespeople. We are working with the police-led National Business Crime Centre and industry via the Combined Industries Theft Solutions forum to explore ways to tackle and prevent the theft of tools.

We encourage tradespeople to use existing guidance such as the NBCC and Police Crime Prevention Initiatives (Secured By Design) crime prevention guidance to help prevent theft.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department plans to take steps to help support the development of covered (a) tennis, (b) padel and (b) multi-sport facilities in Harpenden and Berkhamsted constituency.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

The Government is determined to ensure that everyone has access to quality sport and physical activity opportunities. That is why we have committed another £400 million to transform facilities across the whole of the UK following the Spending Review. We are now working closely with sporting bodies and local leaders to establish what communities need and will then set out further plans. I have met with the Lawn Tennis Association, the National Governing Body for tennis and padel, along with representatives from other sports, to discuss this.

The Government provides the majority of support for grassroots sport through Sport England, which annually invests over £250 million in Exchequer and Lottery funding. This includes long term investment in the Lawn Tennis Association, which receives up to £10.2 million for five years from 2022 to 2027 to invest in community tennis and padel initiatives in England that will benefit as many people as possible.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans her Department has to support the development of (a) affordable and (b) accessible padel courts in (i) Harpenden and Berkhamsted constituency and (ii) England.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

The Government is determined to ensure that everyone has access to quality sport and physical activity opportunities. That is why we have committed another £400 million to transform facilities across the whole of the UK following the Spending Review. We are now working closely with sporting bodies and local leaders to establish what communities need and will then set out further plans. I have met with the Lawn Tennis Association, the National Governing Body for tennis and padel, along with representatives from other sports, to discuss this.

The Government provides the majority of support for grassroots sport through Sport England, which annually invests over £250 million in Exchequer and Lottery funding. This includes long term investment in the Lawn Tennis Association, which receives up to £10.2 million for five years from 2022 to 2027 to invest in community tennis and padel initiatives in England that will benefit as many people as possible.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department plans to provide funding for (a) indoor and (b) covered tennis facilities in Harpenden and Berkhamsted constituency.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

The Government is determined to ensure that everyone has access to quality sport and physical activity opportunities. That is why we have committed another £400 million to transform facilities across the whole of the UK following the Spending Review. We are now working closely with sporting bodies and local leaders to establish what communities need and will then set out further plans. I have met with the Lawn Tennis Association, the National Governing Body for tennis and padel, along with representatives from other sports, to discuss this.

The Government provides the majority of support for grassroots sport through Sport England, which annually invests over £250 million in Exchequer and Lottery funding. This includes long term investment in the Lawn Tennis Association, which receives up to £10.2 million for five years from 2022 to 2027 to invest in community tennis and padel initiatives in England that will benefit as many people as possible.

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 people who need it have access to palliative care services in Harpenden and Berkhamsted constituency.

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

Palliative care services are included in the list of services an integrated care board (ICB) must commission. To support ICBs in this duty, NHS England has published statutory guidance and service specifications.  The statutory guidance states that ICBs, including the Hertfordshire and West Essex ICB, the Surrey Heartlands ICB, and the Frimley ICB, must work to ensure that there is sufficient provision of care services to meet the needs of their local populations.

NHS England has also developed a palliative care and end of life care dashboard. The dashboard helps commissioners understand the palliative care and end of life care needs of their local population, including the ability to filter the available information, such as by deprivation or ethnicity, enabling ICBs to put plans in place to address and track the improvement of health inequalities, and ensure that funding is distributed fairly, based on prevalence.

The Department and NHS England are currently working at pace to develop plans on how best to improve the access, quality, and sustainability of all-age palliative care and end of life care in line with the 10-Year Health Plan.

Additionally, through the National Institute for Health and Care Research, the Department has invested £3 million in a Policy Research Unit in Palliative and End of Life Care. This unit is building the evidence base on palliative care and end of life care, with a specific focus on inequalities.

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 hospice contracts reflect the (a) cost of the services they provide and (b) needs of the local population in Harpenden and Berkhamsted constituency.

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

Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for the commissioning of palliative care and end of life care services, to meet the needs of their local populations. To support ICBs, including the NHS Hertfordshire and West Essex ICB, which covers the Harpenden and Berkhamsted constituency, in this duty, NHS England has published statutory guidance and service specifications. NHS England has also developed a palliative care and end of life care dashboard, which brings together all relevant local data in one place.

Whilst the majority of palliative care and end of life care is provided by National Health Service staff and services, we recognise the vital part that voluntary sector organisations also play.

The amount of funding charitable hospices receive varies by ICB area, and will, in part, be dependent on the breadth of palliative care, including specialist palliative care, and end of life care provision within each ICB catchment area. It is important to note that hospices, like the NHS, provide both specialist and generalist palliative care and end of life care. Not all patients will require specialist palliative care. 

The Department and NHS England are currently looking at how to improve the access, quality, and sustainability of all-age palliative care and end of life care in line with the 10- Year Health Plan.

Additionally, we are supporting the hospice sector with a £100 million capital funding boost for eligible adult and children’s hospices in England to ensure they have the best physical environment for care.

We are also providing £26 million in revenue funding to support children and young people’s hospices for 2025/26. I am pleased to confirm the continuation of circa £26 million, adjusted for inflation, for the next three financial years, 2026/27 to 2028/29 inclusive, to be distributed again via ICBs. This amounts to approximately £80 million over the next three years.

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 ensure adequate financial support for the full range of specialist palliative care services provided by hospices.

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

Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for the commissioning of palliative care and end of life care services, to meet the needs of their local populations. To support ICBs, including the NHS Hertfordshire and West Essex ICB, which covers the Harpenden and Berkhamsted constituency, in this duty, NHS England has published statutory guidance and service specifications. NHS England has also developed a palliative care and end of life care dashboard, which brings together all relevant local data in one place.

Whilst the majority of palliative care and end of life care is provided by National Health Service staff and services, we recognise the vital part that voluntary sector organisations also play.

The amount of funding charitable hospices receive varies by ICB area, and will, in part, be dependent on the breadth of palliative care, including specialist palliative care, and end of life care provision within each ICB catchment area. It is important to note that hospices, like the NHS, provide both specialist and generalist palliative care and end of life care. Not all patients will require specialist palliative care. 

The Department and NHS England are currently looking at how to improve the access, quality, and sustainability of all-age palliative care and end of life care in line with the 10- Year Health Plan.

Additionally, we are supporting the hospice sector with a £100 million capital funding boost for eligible adult and children’s hospices in England to ensure they have the best physical environment for care.

We are also providing £26 million in revenue funding to support children and young people’s hospices for 2025/26. I am pleased to confirm the continuation of circa £26 million, adjusted for inflation, for the next three financial years, 2026/27 to 2028/29 inclusive, to be distributed again via ICBs. This amounts to approximately £80 million over the next three years.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will meet with Esther Ghey to discuss her campaign for a statutory ban on mobile phones in schools.

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

Mobile phones have no place in school.

Schools should prohibit the use of mobile phones and other smart technology with similar functionality to mobile phones throughout the school day, including during lessons, the time between lessons, breaktimes and lunchtime, as set out in the ‘Mobile phones in schools’ guidance, published in 2024.

The department expects all schools to take steps in line with this guidance to ensure mobile phones do not disrupt pupils’ learning.

My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, met with Esther Ghey at the start of November to discuss her Phone Free Education campaign.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans she has to review her Department's guidance entitled Mobile phones in schools, published in February 2024.

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

The department’s guidance on mobile phones in schools, published in February 2024, is clear that schools should prohibit the use of devices with smart technology throughout the school day, including during lessons, transitions and breaks.

We expect all schools to take steps in line with this guidance to ensure mobile phones do not disrupt pupils’ learning.

Research from the Children’s Commissioner published in April 2025, with responses from nearly all schools and colleges in England, shows that the overwhelming majority of schools (99.8% of primary schools and 90% of secondary schools) already have policies in place that limit or restrict the use of mobile phones during the school day.

We will continue to build a robust evidence base on the effectiveness of school mobile phone policies and keep the guidance under review.

Cumulative disruption proposals and the right to protest

Buying community energy locally

Neurodivergent service personnel in the armed forces

Gambling executives' profits

Fly-tipping and illegal waste dumping by criminal gangs

Conduct of Samir Zitouni and Stephen Crean on the 18.25 Doncaster to Kings Cross train on 1 November 2025

Emergency care

Tomorrow’s Engineers Week 2025

Mental health of women in farming

Implications for rural communities of the Autumn Budget 2024

Agricultural Property Relief and Business Property Relief