Asked by: Caroline Johnson (Conservative - Sleaford and North Hykeham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of people had a personal health budget in each of the year since 2012.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The information is not available in the format requested, as national personal health budget data prior to 2019 is not held. The following table shows the uptake of personal health budgets in England by the end of Quarter 4 in each financial year from 2019/20 to 2024/25:
2019/20 | 2020/21 | 2021/22 | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
89,953 | Not available | 124,964 | 175,859 | 188,489 | 182,360 |
Source: NHS England Digital, available at the following link:
https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/personal-health-budgets
The data under each financial year is cumulative in-year data, and for each financial year the figure shown is the number of people who had received a personal health budget in England by the end of Quarter 4.
2019/20 only includes cumulative data up to Quarter 3 due to COVID-19. No cumulative data was published up to Quarter 4 2020/21 due to COVID-19.
Asked by: Lord Dodds of Duncairn (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the legal protections of unborn children in the event that abortion is decriminalised through the repeal of sections 58 and 59 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 and the Infant Life (Preservation) Act 1929; and whether any alternative legal provisions would remain in place to provide protection to unborn children.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Existing criminal offences relating to fetuses are contained in the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 and the Infant Life Preservation Act 1929.
The House of Commons has voted to add a clause to the Crime and Policing Bill which disapplies the criminal offences related to abortion for a woman acting in relation to her own pregnancy. These offences would still apply to medical professionals and third parties who do not abide by the rules set out in the Abortion Act 1967. The Government has no plans to change these.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what information her Department holds on the number of properties owned by (a) local authorities and (b) His Majesty’s Government that contain asbestos in England.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The department does not hold this information.
Asked by: Lord Kamall (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the announcement that they will accept all recommendations of an independent review into physician associates (PAs) and anaesthesia associates (AAs) on 16 July, what additional support and training they will provide to existing PAs and AAs to ensure that they can continue to care for patients while addressing concerns about patient safety.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England has written to National Health Service trusts, integrated care boards, and primary care networks to reiterate their responsibilities to their staff as employers, including providing pastoral support where required. Importantly, NHS England has also written directly to staff most affected by the recommendations, in the Response to Recommendations from the Independent Review of Physician Associates and Anaesthesia Associates (the Leng Review), available on the NHS.UK website, setting out where they can find support if required.
Implementing the recommendations will require organisations to work together and take action. Some actions will be implemented immediately, whilst others will require wider input, with benefits being fully realised over time. The Department and NHS England will work to ensure that both patient and staff needs are met throughout this process. We will also work collaboratively with other key partners to set out a clear implementation plan for making the required changes, in advance of publishing a fuller response.
Asked by: Lord Kamall (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the expected remit of the proposed Health Data Research Service includes providing direct care.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
On 7 April 2025 the Prime Minister announced that the Government and the Wellcome Trust will invest up to £600 million to create a new Health Data Research Service, co-designed through engagement with the public and patients, data users, and stakeholder organisations.
Providing access to data for direct care purposes is not one of the Health Data Research Service’s planned capabilities. The Health Data Research Service will deliver a single point of access to health data for research from multiple sources, National Health Service and non-NHS. This service will bring new treatments and cures to patients by safely enabling the use of patient data to super-charge research, attracting investment and making the United Kingdom one of the best places in the world to conduct ground-breaking medical research.
The Health Data Research Service will be delivered across the UK to provide a single, integrated system for approved researchers across all sectors to access health, social care, and public health data safely. The service will streamline and simplify current processes, ensuring the safety and security of the data, allowing researchers to spend less time talking to different NHS bodies around the country and more time unlocking new insights that will transform our understanding of health.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to (a) monitor and (b) respond to threats to religious freedom for Christian and other minority faith communities in Iraq.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is committed to championing freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) for all. On 8 July, the Government publicly set out its approach to FoRB, providing a framework for UK engagement, including for countries navigating the impact of conflict, both past and present, such as Iraq.
In July 2025, the Minister for Human Rights and the UK Special Envoy for FoRB met with Mir Hazem Tahsin Beg, the Prince of the Yazidis. We also raise threats to minority faith communities into regular engagements with the Government of Iraq, the Kurdistan Regional Government, and in multilateral fora. For example, at Iraq's Universal Periodic Review at the UN Human Rights Council in June, we recommended that Iraq upholds the right for minorities to freely practice their religion or belief, without fear of persecution.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the (a) cost of abolishing NHS England and (b) resulting redundancy package will be paid for from his Department’s settlement at the Spending Review 2025.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We have recently announced the Spending Review settlement, which provides an additional £29 billion of annual day-to-day spending in real terms by 2028/2029 compared to 2023/2024. Ahead of asking the National Health Service to commence a multi-year planning round, we are now carefully reviewing how the settlement is prioritised, including making provision for redundancy costs. At this stage, it is too early to say what the upfront costs of integration are, including any redundancy, while transition planning is ongoing.
While there will be some upfront costs, we expect the reform to eliminate duplication and drive a smaller centre, based in a single organisation, that will generate significant savings in the long run, which can be diverted to the front line.
Asked by: Sorcha Eastwood (Alliance - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to make changes to the Foundation Programme allocation process, following the most recent application round.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England is due to review the Foundation Programme allocation process. The review is aiming to commence in 2026. NHS England will advise stakeholders, including the British Medical Association, on how they can input in due course.
As set out in our 10-Year Health Plan, published on 3 July, we will work across Government to prioritise United Kingdom medical graduates for foundation training, and to prioritise UK medical graduates and other doctors who have worked in the National Health Service for a significant period, for specialty training.
Asked by: Sorcha Eastwood (Alliance - Lagan Valley)
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 monitor the (a) fairness and (b effectiveness of the Foundation Programme allocation process.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England is due to review the Foundation Programme allocation process. The review is aiming to commence in 2026. NHS England will advise stakeholders, including the British Medical Association, on how they can input in due course.
As set out in our 10-Year Health Plan, published on 3 July, we will work across Government to prioritise United Kingdom medical graduates for foundation training, and to prioritise UK medical graduates and other doctors who have worked in the National Health Service for a significant period, for specialty training.
Asked by: Baroness Browning (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they intend to take to improve education and training opportunities for disabled people with complex needs under the age of 22.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)
This government’s ambition is that all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life. This includes:
As announced in the spending review, we are investing over £1 billion annually in skills by 2028/29. This will support and grow the wide range of options available for everyone to succeed.