Asked by: Will Forster (Liberal Democrat - Woking)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps is she taking to reduce the backlog for Ankara Agreement (ECAA settlement) extension applications.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
A higher than forecast intake on the ECAA route over the period from approximately April 2025 to March 2026 led to delays in the processing of applications. To address this additional resource has been assigned to this route and the Home Office expect to see increasing output and a reduction in the average wait time throughout the second half of 2026 as that takes effect.
Asked by: Will Forster (Liberal Democrat - Woking)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has reviewed the average wait time for an Ankara Agreement (ECAA settlement) extension application.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
A higher than forecast intake on the ECAA route over the period from approximately April 2025 to March 2026 led to delays in the processing of applications. To address this additional resource has been assigned to this route and the Home Office expect to see increasing output and a reduction in the average wait time throughout the second half of 2026 as that takes effect.
Asked by: Will Forster (Liberal Democrat - Woking)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress has been made in securing new funding for the Modern Service Framework for Palliative Care and End of Life Care.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are developing a Modern Service Framework (MSF) for Palliative Care and End-of-Life Care. An interim update has now been published in the form of a Written Ministerial Statement, accompanied by a Further Information for Interested Parties letter. The Written Ministerial Statement is available at the following link:
https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2026-06-04/hcws88
The MSF was never intended to introduce new, ring‑fenced funding. Its primary purpose is to set the strategic direction for improving palliative care and end-of-life care, including reducing variation in access, quality, and outcomes across the system.
In the context of wider fiscal pressures, the focus is on ensuring that existing resources are used as effectively as possible, supported by a shift towards more strategic, population‑based commissioning.
Asked by: Will Forster (Liberal Democrat - Woking)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the potential impact on the public purse of meeting the target to cut unplanned hospital admissions and bed days of one or over by 10% for people at the end of life, as set out in the Neighbourhood Health Framework, by March 2029.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
It is widely recognised that reducing hospital admissions, and instead supporting patients in the community, is both more cost-effective, and, importantly, in line most with people’s preferences at the end of life.
Recently published research from the National Institute for Health and Care Research’s (NIHR) Policy Research Unit estimates that the total healthcare costs in the last year of life was, in 2024, approximately £24,000 per person in England. Acute hospital care alone accounted for nearly £19,000, representing nearly 80% of the total healthcare costs in the last year of life.
We recognise that there is currently a high number of hospital admissions and bed days of those in the last year of life, which creates added pressure on acute services and for most patients at the end of life, this would not be their preferred place of care or death. As set out in the Government’s 10-Year Health Plan, we are determined to shift more care out of hospitals and into the community, to ensure patients and their families receive personalised care in the most appropriate setting.
We are developing a Modern Service Framework (MSF) for Palliative Care and End-of-Life Care for England. We recently published an interim update on the MSF in the form of a Written Ministerial Statement. This is available at the following link:
https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2026-06-04/hcws88
The MSF will build on the ambitions set out in the Neighbourhood Health Framework.
Asked by: Will Forster (Liberal Democrat - Woking)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions has she had with the Secretary of State for Justice about the potential merits of implementing a Domestic Abuse and Stalkers Register.
Answered by Natalie Fleet - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
In the Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy we committed to improving the criminal justice system response to ensure perpetrators are managed robustly across all criminal justice agencies to stop future harm.
In the Sentencing Act 2026, the Government announced the introduction of a new domestic abuse marker in the criminal court. For the first time, we will be able to identify all domestic abuse offenders, and support HM Prisons and Probation Service to manage these offenders. The Home Office will continue to work with the Ministry of Justice to implement this and other VAWG Strategy commitments to ensure robust management of domestic abuse and stalking offenders.
Furthermore, the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme, also known as ‘Clare’s Law’, allows police to disclose information about a partner or ex-partner’s past abusive or violent behaviour with someone at risk, using police common law powers to prevent crime.
Asked by: Will Forster (Liberal Democrat - Woking)
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 Integrated Care Boards are held to account over the Modern Service Framework for Palliative Care and End of Life Care.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are developing a Modern Service Framework (MSF) for Palliative Care and End-of-Life Care. An interim update has now been published in the form of a Written Ministerial Statement, accompanied by a Further Information for Interested Parties letter. The Written Ministerial Statement is available at the following link:
https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2026-06-04/hcws88
NHS England’s National Director for Primary Care and Community Services has also written to integrated care boards (ICBs), setting out two actions that those ICBs need to take to ensure progress is made towards the strategic commissioning of palliative care and end-of-life care services, specifically: action 1, to produce an integrated needs assessment and understand service provision and utilisation; and action 2, to move to sustainable contracting of hospice services.
NHS England has the legal duty to annually assess the performance of each ICB each financial year and to publish a summary of the findings. This assessment assesses how well each ICB has discharged its functions. The last report was published in December 2025 for 2024/25. Future assessments will continue to consider how ICBs are discharging their statutory palliative care duties.
As we develop the MSF further, we will continue to co-design the metrics and accountability framework with people with lived experience and sector partners, and will set out further detail in the full report.
Asked by: Will Forster (Liberal Democrat - Woking)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will set out the key performance indicators her Department uses to assess changes in the level of performance for train operators following nationalisation; and whether she has set targets for improvement.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Working with the industry, the new Services Agreements for public sector operators consolidate the myriad of performance measures so that both track and train can focus on the same measures of success. The most important indicators are train cancellations and punctuality (as measured by how many trains arrive within three minutes of schedule). Targets are negotiated each year as part of the Annual Business Planning process with each operator, taking into account the particular circumstances foreseen in the year ahead. In addition, there are a number of measures and key performance indicators covering customer, operations and finance.
Asked by: Will Forster (Liberal Democrat - Woking)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate his Department has made of the financial savings arising from local government reorganisation.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 77631 on 13 October 2025.
Asked by: Will Forster (Liberal Democrat - Woking)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Education on the steps her Department is taking to (a) address the ageing construction workforce and (b) prevent shortages of skilled workers over the next decade.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government announced a £625 million Construction Skills Package (CSP) to support the training of up to 60,000 additional skilled construction workers by 2029. The package will help address skills shortages in the construction industry by increasing training capacity, strengthening the workforce pipeline and improving employer engagement in skills development.
This package includes:
While the package is not specifically targeted at workforce ageing, it will help mitigate workforce pressures by increasing the flow of new entrants into the sector and supporting their progression into skilled construction careers.
Asked by: Will Forster (Liberal Democrat - Woking)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Education on a) improving the transition from training into sustained employment and b) the evidential basis for assessing the potential impact of current interventions on dropout rates among trainees.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government has regular discussions with the Secretary of State for Education and the Home Secretary on a range of issues, including the housebuilding workforce.