theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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James Naish:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that parking enforcement debt collection practices are equitable. \p Lilian Greenwood: Local authorities may only charge reasonable costs in relation to fees for enforcement agents, these are clearly set out in the Taking Control of Goods (Fees) Regulations 2014. Enforcement agents responsible for executing warrants of control on behalf of local authorities are obliged to follow the code set out in part 3 of, and schedule 12 to, the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007 and the Taking Control of Goods Regulations 2013. In addition, the Department issues statutory guidance to local authorities on the use of enforcement agents. Debt collection in respect of private parking operators is a matter for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.
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Mr Richard Holden:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 16 December 2024 to Question 19468 on Special Escort Group, on what statutory basis the police are able to (a) stop and direct traffic and (b) exceed speed limits in non-emergency situations. \p Lilian Greenwood: Powers for police to stop and direct traffic are set out in sections 35, 37 and 163 of the Road Traffic Act 1988.

The exemption for speed is set out in section 87(1) of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984. The exemption to speed does not require there to be an emergency to apply; the relevant requirements are that:

The vehicle is being used for police purposes, and

Compliance with the speed limit would be likely to hinder the purpose to which the vehicle is being put at the relevant time.
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Mike Reader:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make an asssessment of the potential merits of identifying a National Freight Network. \p Lilian Greenwood: The UK has a complex national freight system handling millions of transactions every day. The merits of increasing our understanding of this system to inform policy making, regulation and investment interventions are well understood, and this Government is improving its data and analytical capabilities to do so. This will enable stronger interventions, including those that may be delivered through spatial corridor and network approaches.
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Alex Burghart:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when the Prime Minister plans to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar dated 29 November 2024. \p Georgia Gould: A response will be sent in due course.
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Mr Richard Holden:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the answer of 5 December 2024 to Question 16596 on Cabinet Office: Senior Civil Servants, how he plans to publish details of the panel members. \p Georgia Gould: Details of panel members will be published on Gov.uk.
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Mr Richard Holden:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, Pursuant to the answer of 10 December 2024 to Question 16595 on Cabinet Office: Pay, what the mean salary is of a civil servant in the (a) Women's Equality Unit, (b) Race Disparity Unit and (c) Disability Unit. \p Georgia Gould: Salaries ranges for each civil servant grade are set by the Cabinet Office and are not at the discretion of the individual business units such as the Office for Equality and Opportunity. Details of Cabinet Office structure and salaries are due to be published on the 30th of January 2025 as part of transparency reporting.
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Mr Richard Holden:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to Question 28 of the oral evidence to the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee on 4 December 2024 on The work of the Cabinet Office, HC 463, what his planned timetable is for publishing the modernised public directory of Arm’s Length Bodies. \p Georgia Gould: The Cabinet Office's Arm's Length Bodies Landscape Analysis 2023 was published on 17 December 2024.
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Mr Richard Holden:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, Pursuant to the Answer of 14 November 2024 to Question 14352 on Government Departments: X Corp, and with reference to the SAFE Framework: the 4 principles for HMG Brand Safety, how many platforms have been removed from the HMG Inclusion List in the last 12 months; what the reasons for their removal were; and what appeals process is available for platforms seeking reinstatement. \p Georgia Gould: HMG operates an inclusion list of websites for programmatic advertising that meet the existing HMG acceptable standards. This inclusion list does not cover platforms, which are assessed separately. No platforms have been removed in the last 12 months.
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Mr Richard Holden:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to Question 28 of the oral evidence to the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee on 4 December 2024 on The work of the Cabinet Office, HC 463, if he will publish a breakdown of the £105 million of potential savings; and which of those savings have been implemented. \p Georgia Gould: The details of the savings identified by each public body review under the Public Bodies Review Programme are already published individually on gov.uk. Each department is responsible for ensuring the implementation of the relevant savings by its public bodies.
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Jayne Kirkham:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will introduce the Future Homes and Building Standards as soon as possible. \p Alex Norris: The Future Homes and Buildings Standards consultation was published in December 2023 and closed in March 2024; a government response, including implementation plans, has not yet been issued.

Government fully supports the need for low carbon homes and buildings, fit for a net zero future. We are reviewing proposals and feedback from the Future Homes and Buildings Standards consultation and will publish the government response in due course.
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Mr Richard Holden:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 9 December 2024 to Question 17300 on Muslim Council of Britain, what her policy is on engagement with (a) Cage, (b) MEND and (c) the Muslim Association of Britain. \p Alex Norris: I refer the Hon Member to the answer given to Question UIN 20228 on 24 December 2024.
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David Simmonds:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will publish any correspondence sent to councils on local government restructuring since 16 December 2024. \p Jim McMahon: I wrote immediately after the publication of the English Devolution White Paper on 16 December to leaders of all councils in areas where there is a two-tier structure of local government, and to leaders of neighbouring unitary councils. My letter set out further details on the Government's ambitions for local government reorganisation and next steps in the process of moving to simpler structures in all those areas. I will make arrangements for that letter to be published on gov.uk shortly. I will write to this group again by the end of January to invite unitary proposals for their area.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to her Department's English Devolution White Paper, published on 16 December 2024, whether the decision to suspend councillors will be taken by (a) the full council or (b) the local authority's standards committee; and what right of appeal will there be. \p Jim McMahon: On 18 December the Government launched a consultation to seek views from local authorities, sector bodies, and the public on a range of proposals to strengthen the local government standards regime and ensure there is a stronger, more consistent, and more accountable framework for addressing member misconduct.

The results of this consultation will help to inform any policy and legislative change, including in relation to the possible introduction of the sanction of suspension and related safeguards, and the appropriate arrangements for an appeals process.
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James McMurdock:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to clear Thurrock council's debt following the proposed merger of councils in Essex. \p Jim McMahon: The Government has a framework to support councils in financial difficulty. In addition, the previous Secretary of State used statutory powers to intervene in a small number of councils failing their Best Value Duty partly associated with high levels of unsustainable debt. In the case of Thurrock, the Government will continue to work with the Best Value Commissioners and the Council to support Thurrock in its financial recovery.

The English Devolution White Paper published on 16 December announced that the Government will facilitate local government reorganisation for two-tier areas and for unitary councils where there is evidence of failure, or where their size or boundaries may be hindering their ability to deliver sustainable and high-quality public services.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the population sizes in the English Devolution White Paper refer to (a) electorate and (b) total population. \p Jim McMahon: The population sizes outlined in the English Devolution White Paper for creating new unitary councils and new devolution geographies refer to total population.
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Andy MacNae:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of removing the requirement for a national insurance number on postal vote registration forms. \p Rushanara Ali: The requirement to provide a National Insurance Number when applying for a postal vote acts to ensure that the person making the application is the same individual entitled to apply for the postal vote and mirrors the longstanding practice when registering to vote. There are no plans to change the requirements for an absent vote application.
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Euan Stainbank:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of providing additional funding to Returning Officers to cover the costs of accessible voting devices that exceed the new burdens funding. \p Rushanara Ali: The Elections Act 2022 requires Returning Officers to consider and provide support for electors with all forms of disability, including varying degrees of sight loss. The Tactile Voting Device, introduced in 2001, has proven effective for some voters with sight loss but we are aware that other options, such as magnifiers, digital reading applications and lighting aids, are also used to support individual elector’s preferences.

For local elections, costs incurred by Returning Officers to support voters with sight loss are typically met by local authorities, with new burdens funding made available where new burdens are imposed by legislation.

For UK Parliamentary and Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) elections, costs are met by the Consolidated Fund and Returning Officers can claim reimbursement for necessary and reasonable expenses incurred in delivering these polls, including expenditure incurred in the provision of accessible voting equipment. For equipment that will be used at both local and UK Parliamentary/PCC elections, costs can be shared between the funding sources.
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Alicia Kearns:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the English Devolution White Paper, published on 16 December 2024, whether unitary local authorities will be required to merge with neighbouring councils to meet the 500,000 target. \p Jim McMahon: On 16 December, I wrote to all councils in two-tier areas and to neighbouring small unitaries alongside the White Paper, to set out our plans. I intend to formally invite unitary proposals in January 2025 from all these councils. I will ask for interim plans in March and I am open to hearing from other councils who consider reorganisation will put them on a more sustainable footing. I will take a phased approach to delivery, taking into account where reorganisation can unlock devolution, where areas are keen to move quickly or where it can help address wider failings.

New unitary councils must be the right size to achieve efficiencies, improve capacity and withstand financial shocks. For most areas this will mean creating councils with a population of 500,000 or more, but there may be exceptions to ensure new structures make sense for an area, including for devolution, and decisions will be on a case-by-case basis.
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Sarah Smith:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to tackle online disinformation. \p Feryal Clark: Our immediate focus is getting the Online Safety Act (OSA) implemented quickly and effectively. The OSA sets out a clear regulatory framework to tackle both mis- and disinformation where it constitutes illegal content or harmful content to children.

In addition, through our work on media literacy, we are taking steps to empower users with the skills they need to engage critically with online content. Since 2022, we have provided almost £3million in funding to projects helping citizens make safer, more informed decisions online.

Officials also regularly meet with major social media platforms to discuss disinformation activity, emerging risks and platforms’ responses.
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Sarah Smith:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to support families of (a) missing and (b) deceased individuals that are experiencing online abuse. \p Feryal Clark: The government is committed to supporting families who have endured unimaginable losses. The Online Safety Act will help address challenges faced by bereaved parents when engaging with online services following a child’s death. The Act gives Ofcom the power to require information from regulated services about a deceased child’s online activity following a coroner’s request.

In terms of horrific abusive content, under the Act social media platforms must take responsibility for users’ safety by removing illegal abusive content. These duties on platforms to tackle illegal content are expected to come into effect in Spring 2025.
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James Naish:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department is planning to review the role of waste incineration in the management of residual waste in England; and what his plans are for proposed incineration facilities that have not yet begun construction. \p Mary Creagh: Over the last 14 years, recycling rates stalled, meaning too much waste is dealt with unnecessarily through incineration or thrown in landfill.

On 30 December, Defra published the Residual waste infrastructure capacity note and an accompanying statement, in which we have set out that government will only back new waste incineration projects that meet strict new conditions. Proposals for new facilities will have to maximise efficiency and support the delivery of economic growth, net zero and the move to a circular economy.

By publishing this analysis we are supporting decisions makers and local communities to engage directly with developers on new proposals and ow these will benefit local communities.

The analysis published shows that there remain certain areas in England where significant volumes of household waste are sent to landfill. There is also a need to divert non-household wastes away from landfill. Waste incineration should not compete with greater waste prevention, preparation for re-use, or recycling; and we are committed to ensuring only necessary facilities are consented in the future.

Incineration plays an important role in diverting waste from landfill and is usually the best management option for most residual waste and existing approvals for facilities that have not yet begun construction are unaffected by this announcement. However, this Government has publicly urged developers and investors to review the data published and the Government’s ambitions and what this means for proposals at all stages in the process, including those that have already secured the necessary permissions.
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Joe Robertson:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether any (a) grant scheme, (b) core departmental and (c) other funding for local authorities is linked to their recycling rates of household waste. \p Mary Creagh: From 1 January 2025, the Producer Responsibility (Packaging and Packaging Waste) Regulations 2024, alongside simpler recycling and the deposit return scheme, will deliver transformational change, creating thousands of new jobs, helping communities to clean up their local areas, and stimulating billions of pounds’ worth of investment.

This will require obligated producers to pay the full end of life costs including managing the efficient and effective collection and disposal costs of waste associated with the packaging that they place on the market. That will bring more than £1 billion of investment into local Government waste collections.

The majority of the funding provided from central Government to councils through the Local Government Finance Settlement is un-ringfenced, including funding for waste management. For 2025-26, funding that local authorities receive from the Extended producer responsibility scheme will be additional income that is separate to income received through the local government finance settlement.

The Government will assess the impact of additional pEPR income on the relative needs and resources of individual local authorities, and how we factor it into our measurement of local authority spending power, ahead of the 2026-27 Settlement. We will consult local councils on any expected changes.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to his Department's guidance entitled Ensuring good waste collection services for households, published on 29 November 2024, and the consultation outcome on exemptions and statutory guidance for simpler recycling in England entitled Government response, published on 9 May 2024, for what reason that guidance does not specify minimum levels of service frequency for residual waste collections. \p Mary Creagh: This Government is simplifying the rules to make recycling easier for people in England, while stimulating growth and maximising environmental benefits.

Local authorities are already legally required to deliver waste collection services to all households in their area. Simpler Recycling in England will go further by mandating weekly food waste collections ensuring that the most unpleasant waste is dealt with quickly and reliably.

Local authorities are best placed to determine the effective delivery of local services. As is currently the case, authorities will continue to decide collection frequency of waste collections in a way that suits the needs of their local community. There has never been a statutory requirement regarding the frequency of bin collections for local authorities, under any Government.

We recognise that as recycling services are expanded and improved under Simpler Recycling in England, local authorities may choose to review residual waste services to ensure they are providing best value for money in line with local need. The government’s priority is ensuring that households’ needs are met, and we expect local authorities to continue to provide services to a reasonable standard, as they do now.

Defra recently published guidance to ensure that local authorities consider certain factors when they review services, to ensure that reasonable standards are maintained. These include ensuring that there are no disamenity impacts, such as the build-up of odorous waste at the kerbside or an increase in fly-tipping of residual waste. We expect local authorities to monitor any changes to collection frequencies to ensure there are no unintended adverse consequences.
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Adam Jogee:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department plans to mark World Wetlands Day in 2025. \p Mary Creagh: The theme for World Wetlands Day 2025 is ‘Protecting Wetlands for Our Common Future’ and Defra plans to mark World Wetlands Day. In 2021 the UK co-sponsored the United Nations Resolution to designate 2 February as World Wetlands Day and we have since undertaken activities or supported other organisations in their activities to celebrate wetlands where appropriate. World Wetlands Day is an important opportunity to reflect on the value of wetlands in supporting biodiversity and delivering other public benefits.

This Government is committed to delivering our legally binding biodiversity targets, including to halt the decline in species abundance by 2030 and to restore or create more than 500,000 hectares of wildlife-rich habitat by 2042. Wetlands will be vital in achieving these.
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Alicia Kearns:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much funding has been allocated to support areas at risk of flooding; and when he plans to announce these. \p Emma Hardy: To ensure we protect the country from the devastating impacts of flooding, we will invest £2.4 billion in 2024/25 and 2025/26 to improve flood resilience, by building, maintaining, and repairing flood defences.

The list of projects to receive Government funding in 2025/26 will be agreed by the Environment Agency over the coming months in the usual way through Regional Flood and Coastal Committees, with local representation.
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Steff Aquarone:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of trends in levels of costs for statutory external audit fees levied on National Park authorities on those authorities; and if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of the (a) levels of those fees and (b) breadth of those statutory requirements. \p Mary Creagh: Defra acknowledges that rising costs, including to fees required to fulfil statutory obligations, increase the funding pressures on National Park authorities.

Public Sector Audit Appointments Limited (PSAA) independently sets fees for eligible bodies defined in the Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014, including National Park authorities. PSAA is responsible for setting the scales of fees for the audit of accounts of authorities who have opted into its services. PSAA consults on and publishes its fee scales - 99% of eligible local bodies opted into its national scheme for the appointing period 2023/24 to 2027/28, including all National Park authorities in England.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government launched a strategy in December to overhaul the local audit system in England. The strategy commits to a series of measures to fix the broken system and consults on several specific proposals.

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/local-audit-reform-a-strategy-for-overhauling-the-local-audit-system-in-england
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Laurence Turner:To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what recent progress she has made on enactment of the socio-economic duty under Section 1 of the Equality Act 2010. \p Anneliese Dodds: The Government is committed to commencing the socio-economic duty in the Equality Act 2010. The duty will require public bodies, when making strategic decisions, to consider actively how their decisions might help to reduce the inequalities associated with socio-economic disadvantage.

We will work closely with public authorities and civil society in order to ensure effective implementation of the duty and will provide an update on our work in due course.
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Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi:To ask the hon. Member for Blaenau Gwent and Rhymney, representing the House of Commons Commission, when the Director of Parliamentary Digital Services plans to provide a substantive reply to the correspondence of 27 November 2024 from the hon. Member for Slough. \p Nick Smith: The Managing Director of the Parliamentary Digital Service replied on 6 January 2025.
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Julia Lopez:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 23 April 2025 to Question 45093 on Alan Milburn, whether Mr Milburn has initiated the process outlined in that Answer. \p Karin Smyth: Any updates to a declaration of interest will be published in the Register of Interests in the Department’s Annual Report and Accounts, and on the GOV.UK website, in alignment with Government policy.
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Andrew Gwynne:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to help improve levels of public understanding of how (a) personal medical data can be and (b) people can opt out of having their data used for health research. \p Karin Smyth: Ensuring public understanding of the use of health data is critical to building trust. The Department and NHS England co-fund an independent organisation called Understanding Patient Data which provides objective information about how patient data is used, including for research, via the development of creative, accessible resources.

NHS England also publishes a breadth of transparency information including a website for the National Data Opt-out, which provides information on how people can opt-out, and a dashboard indicating opt-out rates. Links to opt out choices are also available on the NHS App.

The Department and NHS England are conducting large-scale public engagement on health data, which includes discussing the national Data Opt-out, and what choices people would like to make about how their data is used. This will help to inform future policy on opt-outs.
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Jim Shannon:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what his plans are for the future (a) scope, (b) role and (c) responsibilities of National Clinical Directors. \p Karin Smyth: NHS England and the Department are strongly supportive of clinical leadership and recognise the critical need to incorporate clinical expertise into our work. The national clinical directors are a key part of this approach and play an important role in policy development and implementation.

Ministers and senior Department officials are working with the new executive team in NHS England, led by Sir Jim Mackey, to determine the leadership, structure, and requirements needed to support the creation of a new centre for health and care. As part of this process, we are carefully considering the future role of national clinical directors. While no specific decisions have been made yet regarding their scope and responsibilities within the new organisation, their expertise and leadership will continue to be pivotal in shaping the future of healthcare in our country.
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Melanie Onn:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential need for Commissioner intervention in Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust, in the context of the absence of senior leadership. \p Karin Smyth: There are currently temporary senior leadership arrangements in place at Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust. Humber and North Yorkshire Integrated Care Board and NHS England’s North East and Yorkshire Regional Team continue to provide ongoing support to the trust, ensuring that the temporary acting arrangements are successfully in place and offering any additional support that is required.

NHS England will continue to provide ongoing support to the trust and its senior leadership team to ensure that our patients and public continue to receive the highest quality of care possible across the Humber region.
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Liz Jarvis:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure proactive management of medicine shortages. \p Karin Smyth: There are approximately 14,000 licensed medicines and the overwhelming majority are in good supply. Where supply issues do arise, we know how frustrating and distressing these can be for patients, and we work closely with industry, the National Health Service, and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency to resolve the issues as quickly as possible, to ensure patients can access the medicines they need.

Medicine supply chains are complex, global, and highly regulated and there are a number of reasons why supply can be disrupted, many of which are not specific to the United Kingdom and outside of Government control, including manufacturing difficulties, access to raw materials, sudden demand spikes or distribution issues, and regulatory issues.

While we can’t always prevent supply issues from occurring, we have a range of well-established processes and tools to manage them when they arise and mitigate risks to patients. These include close and regular engagement with suppliers, use of alternative strengths or forms of a medicine to allow patients to remain on the same product, expediting regulatory procedures, sourcing unlicensed imports from abroad, adding products to the restricted exports and hoarding list, and use of Serious Shortage Protocols. In addition, we will issue communications to the NHS which provides management advice and information on the issue to healthcare professionals, including pharmacists, so they can advise and support their patients.

The resilience of UK supply chains is a key priority, and we are committed to helping to build long term supply chain resilience for medicines. We are continually learning and seeking to improve the way we work to both manage and help prevent supply issues and avoid shortages. The Department, working closely with NHS England, is taking forward a range of actions to improve our ability to mitigate and manage shortages and to strengthen our resilience.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many GP surgeries there are in Huntingdon constituency. \p Karin Smyth: The Government is committed to delivering a National Health Service that is fit for the future. This means we need to see world class NHS infrastructure across the entire NHS estate. Beyond hospitals, we know we need the right infrastructure in the right place to deliver a true Neighbourhood Health Service, to ensure that all patients receive the care they deserve.

Hinchingbrooke Hospital in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire is part of Wave 1 of the New Hospital Programme, with construction of the new hospital expected to commence in 2027/28.

The Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Integrated Care Board (ICB) is working towards a further four facilities in the constituency. In Alconbury Weald, the Glade health facility is due to be operational from late 2025. In addition, the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough ICB is currently working with local councils to support the delivery of the Alconbury Weald Hub Health Facility over the next five years, along with similar health infrastructure developments in both Wintringham and Great Staughton.

There are 16 general practices in the Huntingdon constituency.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-30)

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Daisy Cooper:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 4 April 2025 to Question 42316 on NHS: Buildings, if he will take steps to publish further data on the (a) occupancy and (b) utilisation rates of all clinical rooms in the NHS estate in addition to the Estates Returns Information Collection data showing which organisation space is allocated to. \p Karin Smyth: No decision has been made to publish further data on the occupancy and utilisation rates of all clinical rooms in the National Health Service estate in addition to the Estates Returns Information Collection data showing which organisation space is allocated to.

There are no plans to make an assessment of the potential merits of adopting intelligent booking systems to maximise the utilisation of the NHS property estate. NHS trusts and integrated care boards decide locally how best to manage their estate; we expect them to do this using technology in the efficient management of the estate.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-30)

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Rupert Lowe:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what (a) religious and (b) cultural holidays are observed by their Department. \p Karin Smyth: The Department is in line with the Civil Service approach in offering employees eight public bank holidays plus one privilege day each year, pro-rated for part-time workers. Of these, Good Friday, Easter Monday and Christmas Day are deemed religious holidays.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-30)

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Dr Caroline Johnson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans his Department has to ensure that biological women can access single-sex healthcare provision in NHS hospital wards. \p Karin Smyth: We have always supported the protection of single-sex spaces based on biological sex. The Supreme Court ruling about the meaning of ‘sex’ in the Equality Acy 2010 case has provided much needed confidence and clarity to service providers.

The National Health Service is reviewing its ‘delivering same-sex accommodation’ guidance and will ensure it reflects the Supreme Court ruling. Single-sex spaces are protected in law and will always be protected by the Government.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-30)

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Helen Morgan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 9 April 2025 to Question 43516: Maternity Services, and with reference to the Final report of the Ockenden Review, published on 30 March 2022, which (a) Trusts and (b) systems have implemented (i) immediate and (ii) essential actions. \p Karin Smyth: It is for integrated care boards to oversee local progress in implementing the immediate and essential actions from the Ockenden Review.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-30)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-04-30 conversation_11

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he is taking steps to ensure that all remaining integrated care boards set up a Women’s Health Hub. \p Karin Smyth: Women’s health hubs have a key role in shifting care out of hospitals and reducing gynaecology waiting lists.

As of March 2025, 41 out of 42 integrated care boards (ICBs) reported to NHS England that they had a women’s health hub. The Dorset ICB reported to NHS England that they do not have a women’s health hub.

The Government is committed to encouraging ICBs to further expand coverage of women’s health hubs and to use the learning from existing women’s health hubs to improve local delivery of services to women. ICBs are responsible for commissioning services that meet the health care needs of their local population, including women’s health hubs. NHS England has asked ICBs to set out their plans for their women’s health hubs in 2025/26.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-30)

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Lisa Smart:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of differing pay and conditions between people employed by NHS Professionals Ltd and people directly employed by the NHS on (a) recruitment, (b) retention and (c) staff morale. \p Karin Smyth: No such assessment has been made. National Health Service trusts will locally identify the mix of permanent and temporary staffing that fits their workforce requirements and delivers value for money. This can include the use of NHS professionals.

The Government values the dedicated staff we have working in the NHS, and is committed to supporting them so that they can continue to thrive, and we can retain their valuable skills and experience within the NHS. NHS England is leading a national NHS retention programme to drive a consistent, system-wide approach to staff retention across NHS trusts. This ensures trusts have access to proven retention strategies, data-driven monitoring, and can foster a more stable, engaged, productive, and supported workforce.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-30)

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Adam Jogee:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to reduce musculoskeletal condition waiting times in Newcastle-under-Lyme constituency; and if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of using chiropractors as regulated and qualified healthcare professionals already embedded in (a) Newcastle-under-Lyme and (b) other constituencies to help reduce reduce those waiting times. \p Karin Smyth: There are no current plans to have discussions with my Rt Hon. Friend, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on the research specified, or for the Department for Health and Social Care to assess the use of chiropractors to reduce waiting times in Newcastle-under-Lyme. Cutting waiting lists forms a key part of the Government’s mission to reform the National Health Service.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-30)

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Lisa Smart:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of not including Stepping Hill Hospital in the New Hospital Programme on (a) patient and staff safety, (b) quality of care and (c) the condition and adequacy of the infrastructure at that hospital. \p Karin Smyth: The Stockport Foundation NHS Trust submitted an expression of interest (EOI) to join the New Hospital Programme (NHP) in 2021, alongside other National Health Service trusts. The Department worked with NHS England on a joint prioritisation exercise assessing the EOIs in detail.

All EOIs were scored against a series of indicators from four categories: deliverability; better and smarter use of NHS infrastructure; fairer allocation of investment and efficient use of public resources; and stronger and greener NHS buildings. This assessment was conducted in conjunction with an analysis of metrics covering estates, finance, and quality from existing national datasets. An assessment of these EOIs against regional strategic priorities was also conducted.

In May 2023, the Government confirmed that five hospitals constructed primarily using reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) would be brought into the NHP, following a structural assessment by NHS England and the Department, which found that these hospitals would be unsafe to operate beyond 2030. Due to the size, complexity, and costs involved in rebuilding RAAC hospitals, it was not possible to invite other schemes to join.

We are supporting the Stockport Foundation NHS Trust to improve the condition of the infrastructure at Stepping Hill Hospital, with up to £11.5 million from the critical infrastructure risk fund confirmed in 2024/25 to support the replacement of outpatient capacity and to deliver much needed improvements to patient and staff safety.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-30)

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Gregory Stafford:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential cost-effectiveness of NHS insourcing as a means to reduce elective waiting lists. \p Karin Smyth: The Government supports efforts to utilise National Health Service capacity out of hours and over weekends, where it is a cost-effective and sustainable means of delivering additional activity. The most cost-effective route to do this is best determined at a local level, where integrated care boards and trusts can evaluate the options available to them.

We recognise insourcing as an opportunity to maximise productivity and efficiency and published guidance in 2024 to promote the effective utilisation of their services, available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/guidance-for-trusts-on-the-use-of-insourcing/

The guidance is clear that, to promote value for money being achieved, arrangements should be at or below the unit prices set out in the NHS payment scheme. The guidance also asks all trusts to ensure that appropriate due diligence is undertaken before utilising insourcing solutions, including ensuring pay rates are at or below NHS England’s agency price caps.

This guidance sits alongside the Insourcing of Clinical Services Framework Agreement, published by NHS Shared Business Services, which supports local NHS organisations with the timely procurement of services, and which is available at the following link:

https://www.sbs.nhs.uk/services/framework-agreements/insourcing-of-clinical-services/

We have set clear elective priorities for the system in the Elective Reform Plan and 2025/26 Planning Guidance, including that every trust will need to deliver a minimum 5% improvement by March 2026. We expect trusts to be using all levers to deliver this.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-04-30)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-04-30 conversation_16

Lisa Smart:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the maintenance and repairs backlog at Stepping Hill Hospital on the quality of patient care. \p Karin Smyth: The Government recognises that delivering high-quality National Health Service healthcare requires safe and effective infrastructure.

Integrated care systems (ICSs) are responsible for strategic infrastructure planning for their respective areas and were recently commissioned by NHS England to develop 10-year infrastructure strategies. As part of these strategies, systems assessed how the estate, digital, equipment, and workforce models contribute to the delivery of the overarching system strategy, related clinical pathways, and national priorities for delivering care. The strategies included consideration of the condition of the estate.

In 2025/26, the Greater Manchester Integrated Care Board (ICB), responsible for Stepping Hill Hospital, has been provisionally allocated £187 million for operational capital, over £36 million for estates safety, and over £30 million to support constitutional standards recovery. The Stockport NHS Foundation Trust is encouraged to discuss options with the Greater Manchester ICB to allocate some of their operational capital and national programme allocations towards tackling the backlog of maintenance and ensuring that infrastructure supports quality care at Stepping Hill Hospital.

We are pleased that despite challenging infrastructure, the Stockport NHS Foundation Trust has made progress towards reducing its waiting list. As of February 2025, there were 35,824 patient pathways waiting for a procedure. Of these, 54.3% of pathways were waiting within 18 weeks for a procedure. This compares to 50.3% of pathways waiting within 18 weeks for a procedure in February 2024.