theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Joe Robertson:To ask the Solicitor General, what assessment she has made of the likely outcome of the arbitration on the sandeel fishing ban; and what steps she is taking to prepare for an unfavourable outcome. \p Lucy Rigby: Paragraph 21.27 of Erskine May states:

“By long-standing convention, observed by successive Governments, the fact of, and substance of advice from, the law officers of the Crown is not disclosed outside government. This convention is referred to in paragraph [5.14] of the Ministerial Code [updated on 6 November 2024]. The purpose of this convention is to enable the Government to obtain frank and full legal advice in confidence.”

This is known as the Law Officers’ Convention and it applies to your questions.
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Carla Denyer:To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for the Home Department on the potential impact of restrictions on the right to work on women seeking asylum. \p Seema Malhotra: This Government remains determined to restore order to the asylum system and clear the backlog of claims as quickly as possible.

Asylum seekers can apply for permission to work if their claim has been outstanding for 12 months or more, through no fault of their own. Those granted permission, can seek employment in roles on the Immigration Salary List.

We are also committed to delivering an asylum process that is gender sensitive – building on the Government’s wider strategy to tackle violence against women and girls.
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Rachel Hopkins:To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, whether she has had discussions with the Secretary of State for Justice on legally binding humanist marriages in England and Wales. \p Dame Nia Griffith: I pay tribute to my Hon. Friend for her long-standing work in support of humanist issues, and I am aware that humanists have long been campaigning for legally binding humanist weddings. The Law Commission published a report on weddings in July 2022 containing 57 recommendations to reform weddings law. We are considering these recommendations and will confirm our position in the coming months.
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Jessica Morden:To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of making care experience a protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010. \p Anneliese Dodds: The Equality Act 2010 already protects many care leavers under the indirect discrimination provisions, because a disproportionately high number are likely to be from particular sub groups within characteristics such as race, disability and age.

This Government is delivering for care leavers; younger care leavers will be exempt from rules which require a connection to a local area before accessing social housing. We have also established a care leaver Ministerial Board, which brings together Ministers from key Departments, to improve support for care leavers across Government.
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Patrick Spencer:To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what steps the Government is taking to improve opportunities for white working-class boys. \p Bridget Phillipson: Too often white working-class boys face barriers that hold them back. Disadvantaged white British boys are one of the lowest attaining groups in our schools with only 37% reaching the expected standard in reading writing and maths at KS2 and 17.5% achieving grade 5 or above in maths and English at GCSE. This is not acceptable.

We are committed to driving high and rising standards for all children, delivered through excellent teaching, a high- quality curriculum, new RISE teams and a system which removes the barriers to learning that holds too many children back.
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Mrs Sarah Russell:To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to tackle workplace sexual harassment. \p Anneliese Dodds: The Office for Equality and Opportunity is working closely with the Home Office to deliver on our landmark mission to halve violence against women and girls in a decade.

We are also working with the Department for Business and Trade to progress the Employment Rights Bill. As part of this, we will strengthen protections against harassment and sexual harassment in the course of employment, by introducing three amendments to the Equality Act 2010.
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Sarah Dyke:To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help tackle LGBT discrimination in care homes. \p Dame Nia Griffith: It is essential that everyone living in a care home is kept safe, including those who may be more likely to experience discrimination, such as LGBT+ people. They must be treated with dignity, listened to and have their needs understood and met by their local authority.

The Government recently launched a new Adult Social Care Qualification to provide those working in care with the skills and knowledge they need to support people well. This includes guidance on how to provide appropriate care which covers being sensitive to an individual's sexuality or gender identity.
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Graham Stuart:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether it is his policy to continue the Green Industries Growth Accelerator; and how much has been spent on the scheme. \p Sarah Jones: The Government recognises the need for strong, home-grown clean energy supply chains to support sustainable jobs and secure growth as we decarbonise our economy.

As part of the Industrial Strategy, the Government is developing plans, aligned with the multi-year Spending Review, for each of the key growth sectors, which include Clean Energy technologies.
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Mike Amesbury:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the resilience of power lines in the event of extreme weather. \p Michael Shanks: The Energy Emergencies Executive Committee (E3C) work to identify lessons after all large energy incidents to ensure continuous improvement to the network. Network operators have completed a significant number of improvements to the resilience of Great Britain’s electricity network which means the electricity system is in a much better place to mitigate power disruption during extreme weather events such as those seen during Storm Darragh and Storm Eowyn.
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Nick Timothy:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will take steps to provide additional support to the (a) Planning Inspectorate, (b) statutory consultees, (c) local planning authorities, and (d) government consenting teams on taking forward grid infrastructure for new data centres. \p Michael Shanks: Reforming the planning system is key to unlocking our country’s economic growth, to deliver the critical infrastructure that we need. The Government has announced a £46 million package of investment into the planning system to support capacity and capability. The Government will deliver workforce reform, enhanced training, and reformed career development packages. Resourcing in key organisations, including the Planning Inspectorate and Government consenting teams are currently being reviewed to determine the required support.
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Nick Timothy:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of his policies on the construction of off-grid infrastructure for new data centres, including on (a) gas-fired power plants, (b) nuclear power plants, (c) small modular reactors, and (d) renewables. \p Michael Shanks: Data centres are normally connected to the transmission and distribution grid rather than off-grid connection as this gives them resilience to planned and forced outages of an individual power source. Consequently, my Department has not made any assessment of off-grid infrastructure requirements.
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Nick Timothy:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of building new data centres on (a) sites of decommissioned power stations and (b) other brownfield sites. \p Michael Shanks: The suitability of any site for a data centre depends on a number of factors including grid capacity, state of grid infrastructure and availability of data connectivity. Future AI Growth Zones will be selected taking into account these factors.
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Nick Timothy:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will take steps to allow the National Policy Statements for Energy and Planning Policy Guidance to approve grid infrastructure for new data centres. \p Michael Shanks: The Planning and Infrastructure Bill will provide the powers to accelerate the infrastructure needed to deliver on the Government’s ambitions. The Government published a working paper [1] on the proposals on the 26th January 2025 and more detail will be available in due course.

[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/planning-reform-working-paper-streamlining-infrastructure-planning/planning-reform-working-paper-streamlining-infrastructure-planning
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Nick Timothy:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent discussions (a) ministers, (b) special advisers and (c) officials within his Department have had with technology companies on the energy infrastructure needed for new data centres. \p Michael Shanks: Details of Ministers' and Permanent Secretaries' meetings with external individuals and organisations are published quarterly in arrears on GOV.UK.
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Mark Pritchard:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will meet with the US Energy Secretary to discuss (a) importing US-produced (i) Liquefied Natural Gas and (ii) oil and (b) imports from volatile regions. \p Michael Shanks: The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero looks forward to meeting the new US Energy Secretary to discuss our shared values and interests across a full range of energy issues.
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Sadik Al-Hassan:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what plans he has to implement a national system to monitor petrol prices. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: The Government gave the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) statutory information gathering powers which commenced on 1 January 2025 so that it can monitor and scrutinise petrol and diesel prices. The CMA will be able to assess how well competition is working in the road fuel market and advise government if further actions are needed to protect consumers.

The Government has also committed to implement Fuel Finder to increase price transparency, so consumers can compare prices to find the best deal and incentivise greater competition. Subject to legislation and parliamentary timings, we aim to launch Fuel Finder by the end of 2025.
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Tristan Osborne:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of (a) the UK's nuclear energy capacity on delivering the AI Opportunities Action Plan, (b) the costs of regulatory processes on building new nuclear and (c) existing plants being decommissioned without replacement on AI. \p Michael Shanks: As outlined in the AI Opportunities Action Plan, AI datacentres are a potential new consumer of nuclear power. We see the potential benefits of nuclear-powered datacentres and are considering how to unlock this potential.

Regulatory processes involve multiple steps to demonstrate the nuclear power plant will be safe, secure and can manage its waste, non-proliferation, and environmental obligations. There are multiple variables that drive timelines and costs.

The Department undertakes regular modelling on future energy scenarios, including on demand changes driven by new technology and plans for generating assets. This forms part of the considerations on the wider AI sector.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what meetings (a) he, (b) his special advisers, (c) Departmental officials and (d) Ofcom have had with (i) Centre for Countering Digital Hate and (ii) Stop Funding Hate since 4 July 2024. \p Feryal Clark: Ministers, special advisers, and officials have regular meetings with a range of stakeholders, details of ministerial meetings are published quarterly on the gov.uk website.

Ofcom is an independent regulator, and the Department does not record Ofcom’s meetings with external organisations.
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Preet Kaur Gill:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to help promote the creation of AI infrastructure including (a) data centres and (b) high-performance computing to support the growth of AI technologies in (i) Birmingham and (ii) the West Midlands. \p Feryal Clark: The government recognises the critical role of AI infrastructure in supporting advanced AI technologies. The AI Opportunities Action Plan outlines how the UK can build the cutting-edge compute infrastructure needed to lead in AI development and deployment, securing long-term economic growth and staying at the forefront of AI innovation.

We are ramping up compute capacity to deliver game-changing innovation for businesses, public services, and to drive growth across the whole of the UK. We will partner with devolved administrations, regional and local authorities to establish AI Growth Zones, ensuring substantial regional and national benefits, such as upskilling and employment opportunities, are felt across the country.
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Preet Kaur Gill:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to help establish international partnerships in AI research and development. \p Feryal Clark: The UK is committed to working closely with our international partners to promote the development and use of AI, including by driving collaboration on shared research and development initiatives. We will deliver on the recommendations recently announced AI Opportunities Action Plan, including expanding the Turing AI Fellowships offer, doubling the capacity of the AI Research Resource (AIRR) and strengthening the UK’s participating in the European High-Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC). This will facilitate joint AI research by broadening the compute resources that UK researchers and businesses can access.
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Preet Kaur Gill:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to help promote the development of AI infrastructure including (a) data centres and (b) high-performance computing facilities to support the growth of AI technologies. \p Feryal Clark: The government recognises the critical role of AI and data centre infrastructure as the backbone of the AI ecosystem and the importance of supporting its growth.

The AI Opportunities Action Plan, which was developed by Matt Clifford, sets out how the UK can lay the foundations for AI growth, by building the cutting-edge compute infrastructure needed to lead in AI development and deployment.

New purpose-built, modern AI data centres will be built in the newly announced AI Growth Zones. The Growth Zones will help secure the UK’s position as a global leader in AI innovation and will deliver substantial regional and national benefits.
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Preet Kaur Gill:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to help improve AI skills in the workforce. \p Feryal Clark: Lifelong learning and adaptability are key to ensuring everyone can prosper in an increasingly technology-driven world.

Matt Clifford’s AI Opportunities Action Plan outlines the steps the UK must take to build a strong, diverse talent pipeline, realising AI benefits across sectors and the government has agreed to take forward its recommendations.

Skills England will work closely with DSIT and the Industrial Skills Council. They will bring together businesses, training partners, and unions with national and local government to assess the country’s AI skills needs and map pathways to fill them.
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Preet Kaur Gill:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment has he made of the potential impact of AI Growth Zones on AI capabilities in the UK. \p Feryal Clark: The AI Growth Zones (AIGZs) will help secure the UK’s position as a global leader in AI innovation, ensuring benefits for the whole of the UK. AI infrastructure is the backbone of the AI ecosystem, and is crucial to supporting its growth. AIGZs are closely aligned with wider government initiatives, including Local Growth Plans.

AIGZs will deliver substantial regional and national benefits, such as upskilling and employment opportunities. The investment in AI-enabled data centres will have a spillover effect in local communities, providing jobs, enhancing skills, rejuvenating areas, and driving the UK’s ambition to become a global hub for AI talent and investment.
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Preet Kaur Gill:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what recent assessment has he made of the AI skills gap. \p Feryal Clark: Reducing the AI skills gap is critical for increasing the UK’s productivity and delivering long-term growth. DSIT regularly reviews the status of the UK’s AI labour market, and most recently commissioned Gardiner & Theobald LLP to conduct a survey of the labour market, which we will publish this year. In response to the recommendations set out in the AI Opportunities Action Plan developed by Matt Clifford, DSIT will also work closely with DfE and Skills England to assess the size of the AI skills gap and map pathways to fill it. Skills England will publish its first assessment in the spring.
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Nick Timothy:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to Clean Power 2030 Action Plan, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the AI Opportunities Action Plan on future (a) instances of judicial review, (b) environmental impact assessments and (c) local planning decisions on grid infrastructure for new data centres. \p Feryal Clark: The AI Opportunities Action Plan sets out measures to support AI infrastructure development, including tackling challenges like planning and energy access. As part of this, the Government is considering how best to ensure an efficient regulatory and planning framework while maintaining high environmental and legal standards. This includes engagement with local authorities and relevant regulators to explore ways to manage planning processes effectively, including for grid infrastructure linked to new data centres.
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Mr James Frith:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to ensure that a rights reservation mechanism has been (a) trialled and (b) proven before a copyright exception for text and data mining is brought into law. \p Feryal Clark: The Government published a consultation on Copyright and AI in December 2024.

This consultation seeks views on proposals to introduce a text and data mining exception alongside a rights reservation mechanism and transparency measures. The Government has been clear in oral answers, in both houses, that it will not introduce these measures until it has a workable system in place.

The Government recognises the vital importance of right holder feedback on a rights reservation mechanism, and how it will work in practice, and will take this feedback into account as it develops its approach.

The consultation closes on 25 February.
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Rupert Lowe:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of low skilled migrants' entitlement to benefits on the public purse. \p Sir Stephen Timms: The Department has no current plans to make such an assessment.
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Samantha Niblett:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she is taking steps with Cabinet colleagues to provide (a) funding and (b) advisory support to employers to help increase the (i) recruitment and (ii) retention of neurodivergent people. \p Alison McGovern: Neurodivergent people bring many positive benefits to businesses but face particular barriers to employment, which is reflected in a poor overall employment rate. We understand the importance of encouraging employers to adopt neuro-inclusive working practices so that everyone can thrive at work.

On 29th January, the Government launched an independent panel of academics with expertise and experiences of neurodiversity to advise us on boosting neurodiversity awareness and inclusion at work.

In keeping with the Government’s pledge to bring disabled voices closer to decision-making, at least half of the panel are neurodiverse themselves.

The panel will consider the reasons why neurodivergent people have poor experiences in the workplace, and a low overall employment rate. They will make recommendations in the Summer which consider likely mechanisms for change.

In parallel, we are working with other areas of government to promote awareness of neurodiversity amongst employers, and we recently announced Keep Britain Working, a major independent review of the employer’s role in reducing health-related inactivity and to promote healthy and inclusive workplaces, led by the former Chair of John Lewis, Sir Charlie Mayfield.
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Samantha Niblett:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to (a) support disabled people seeking to enter or return to work and (b) ensure those unable to work continue to receive financial support. \p Sir Stephen Timms: Appropriate work is generally good for health and wellbeing, so we want everyone to get work and get on in work, whoever they are and wherever they live.

Disabled people and people with health conditions, are a diverse group so access to the right work and health support, in the right place, at the right time, is key. We therefore have a range of specialist initiatives to support individuals to stay in work and get back into work, including those that join up employment and health systems.

We are committed to reforming the system of health and disability benefits so that it promotes and enables employment among as many people as possible. The system must also work to reduce poverty for disabled people and people with health conditions and support disabled people to live independently. It is also vital to ensure that the system is financially sustainable in the long term. We are working to develop proposals for reform in the months ahead and will set them out in a Green Paper in spring.

In the UK, there are over 1.9 million people who would like to work but are not participating in the labour market. Connect to Work is a new, voluntary Supported Employment programme, co-designed with Local Authorities and led by local areas, to help those disabled individuals, those with health conditions or complex barriers to employment, who want to work, to find sustainable jobs.

Backed by £240m investment, the Get Britain Working White Paper launched on 26 November will drive forward approaches to tackling economic inactivity and work toward the long-term ambition of an 80% employment rate.

We have launched “Keep Britain Working”, a review into the role of UK employers in reducing health-related inactivity and to promote healthy and inclusive workplaces, led by the former Chair of John Lewis, Sir Charlie Mayfield. The Terms of Reference were published on 24 January. The intention is for this review to partner with business and employers on how best to meet workforce needs and increase productivity by supporting more inclusive workplaces and the wider labour market.

We are fully committed to ensuring adequate support in the social security system for those who – through ill health or disability – are unable to work. Statutory sick pay is the statutory minimum that employers are required to pay employees when off work sick. Those who need additional further financial support while off sick are able to claim more help through the welfare system, for example Universal Credit and new style Employment and Support Allowance, depending on their individual circumstances.
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Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent steps she has taken to help end discrimination against disabled people. \p Sir Stephen Timms: This Government is committed to creating a more inclusive society, ensuring disabled people receive the support they need and working with them so that their views and voices are at the heart of everything we do.

Our Equality (Race and Disability) Bill will enshrine in law the full right to equal pay for disabled people, introducing disability pay gap reporting for large employers on ethnicity and disability, and extending equal pay rights to protect workers suffering discrimination on the basis of race or disability. We are taking action to support British businesses in making workplaces more inclusive and supportive of disabled people.

We have also recently announced the creation of the new Lead Ministers for Disability network, who will represent the interests of disabled people and champion disability inclusion and accessibility across each government department, as they drive forward progress on the government’s manifesto commitments and 5 missions.

These recent steps work alongside the Equality Act 2010, which is the principal means through which disabled people are protected from discrimination in Great Britain. The Equality Act 2010 provides protection against discrimination, harassment and victimisation in the workplace and in wider society. It also requires employers and service providers to make reasonable adjustments to ensure disabled people are not placed at a substantial disadvantage and the failure to do so could amount to unlawful discrimination.
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Jon Trickett:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much her Department spent on in-work benefits in the last 12 months. \p Sir Stephen Timms: There are no DWP benefits remaining that are solely payable to claimants in-work. Many allow for some element of earnings to be combined with benefit receipt, and the level of this spend on working as opposed to non-working claimants varies across different benefits.
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Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of recent trends in the level of fraud in the welfare system. \p Andrew Western: Fraud and error in the welfare system has reduced in recent years, from 4.0% in 2021/22 to 3.7% in 2023/24. This is still not good enough, so we are not resting. We agreed £8.6bn of savings at the Autumn Budget 2024, which is the biggest fraud and error package on record, which led the OBR to forecast that we will reduce fraud and error to pre-pandemic levels

The Department assesses the potential implications of fraud trends firstly by dedicating ongoing resource to understand the current fraud landscape, via annual sampling exercises to measure the level of fraud currently in the welfare system*, as well as a range of analysis into current and potential future fraud trends.   Secondly, the Department uses this insight to design strategies to reduce fraud currently in the welfare system and prevent new fraud from entering.   Finally, the Department analyses the potential interactions between fraud and any new policies before they are implemented, to allow for any risks to be identified and mitigated.   *Fraud and error in the benefit system - GOV.UK
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Neil Duncan-Jordan:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of requiring a at least 25% of all new pension contributions to be invested in social and green infrastructure projects. \p Torsten Bell: Investing in the right assets to deliver good saver returns, support growth and meet our environmental aims is key to the Government’s pensions initiatives. Proposals put forward by the November 2024 Interim Report of the Pensions Investment Review, aim to deliver a major consolidation of the defined contribution workplace market, and require 86 Administering Authorities of the Local Government Pension Scheme (of England and Wales) to delegate management of their investments to pools. Our objective is to enable schemes to invest in a wide range of assets including infrastructure, meeting social and green aims. The Government expects to publish its Final Report in Spring 2025.
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Charlotte Cane:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment she has made of the potential impact of changes to the eligibility for Winter Fuel Payment on living standards for pensioners. \p Torsten Bell: Winter Fuel Payments continue to be paid to pensioner households with someone receiving Pension Credit or certain other income-related benefits. They continue to be worth £200 for eligible households, or £300 for eligible households with someone aged over 80.

The Government also offers an array of support with energy costs for low-income groups in the winter months. This includes direct financial help to low-income pensioners through Pension Credit, the Warm Home Discount, and (in England & Wales) Cold Weather Payments.

The Warm Home Discount scheme provides eligible low-income households across Great Britain with a £150 rebate on their winter energy bill. This winter, we expect over one million pensioners to benefit under the scheme.

The Government and energy industry have also worked together to deliver a £500 million Winter Support Commitment for customers, which will help customers most in need by providing credit on bills, enhanced debt write-off schemes, and increased funding for charity partners to target hard to reach customers.

Low-income pensioners and others struggling with the cost of living should contact their local council to see what further support may be available to them, as they may be able to receive support from Council Tax Reduction, or through energy support programmes (such as the Homes Upgrade Grant and Energy Company Obligation) – or through the Household Support Fund (a scheme providing discretionary support to those most in need towards the cost of essentials, such as food, energy and water).

This support is all underpinned by this Government’s commitment to the Triple Lock which will see a 4.1% increase to the basic State Pension and the new State Pension in April 2025. According to the latest OBR projections, the full yearly rate of the new State Pension is forecast to increase by around £1,900 over the course of this parliament whilst the full yearly amount of the basic State Pension is forecast to increase by around £1,500.
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Sir John Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for what purposes the Money and Pensions Service has used artificial intelligence in the last 12 months. \p Torsten Bell: Artificial Intelligence (AI) is at the heart of the Government’s plan to kickstart an era of economic growth, transform how we deliver public services, and boost living standards for working people across the country.

The Money and Pensions Service monitors developments in AI policy and practice to understand the potential impact on financial guidance provision and broader financial service experience.

A limited number of people within the organisation are using Microsoft CoPilot, with strong safeguards in place.

MaPS is also testing conversational AI Copilots to support colleagues who provide our guidance services. These are not currently live.
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Zöe Franklin:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department has made an assessment of the adequacy of the time taken for the state pensions top-up process. \p Torsten Bell: People have until 5th April 2025 to fill some gaps in their National Insurance record. The original deadline was set as far back as 5 April 2023. This was extended to 12 June 2023 and then to end 5 April 25. From 6 April 2025 customers can continue to pay NICs for any of the previous 6 years. The majority of customers can check for any gaps in their record, and make payments, online. For those who are unable to use online services, they can call DWP to check whether making payment will enhance their pension, and then call HMRC to make a payment.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-05)

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Luke Akehurst:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to take steps to improve service provision for people with (a) Tourette's syndrome and (b) other tic disorders in the North East. \p Andrew Gwynne: The Government has pledged to reform the National Health Service so that it better meets the needs of patients. This includes the current engagement exercise, which will help to shape the 10-Year Health Plan. This will be published in spring 2025 and is expected to underline the large shifts in how healthcare is provided.

The NHS North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board (ICB) has begun a programme of work with our partners to consider the future efficiency requirements and potential areas of investment for the future. While a Tourette's syndrome service may be considered within this process, it is likely that we will review the alignment of specialist support within the wider children and young people's mental health service pathways, including the links with local authorities on special educational needs and disability provision.

As commissioners, the ICB also undertakes an annual planning exercise to identify pathways that may require review. The pathway for the diagnosis and management of Tourette's syndrome, not only in County Durham, but across the North East and North Cumbria, will be identified through this exercise as an area for potential review in 2025/26. This will help us to understand where there are gaps in the provision of this specialist service that may potentially need to be addressed across the region. This planning exercise will require a prioritisation exercise to consider the clinical and cost benefits of a range of potential investment opportunities.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-05)

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Edward Morello:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that people over 65 can access free health checks every five years. \p Andrew Gwynne: The NHS Health Check programme, England’s cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention programme, aims to prevent CVD in people aged 40 to 74 years old, and is offered every five years. During 2023/24, over 1.4 million people received an NHS Health Check, and through behavioural and clinical interventions, the programme prevents approximately 500 heart attacks and strokes a year.

To improve access and engagement with the NHS Health Check, we are developing a new digital service which will complement the existing face to face programme and enable people to undertake the NHS Health Check in the comfort of their own home.

The Department is developing policy proposals and advice to ministers on options to improve the uptake and impact of the NHS Health Check programme. The work will consider the recommendations of the recent National Audit Office’s report, Progress on CVD Prevention.
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Chris Coghlan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help tackle inequalities in NHS (a) care and (b) funding for patients living near county borders. \p Andrew Gwynne: Since June 2022, 42 integrated care boards (ICBs) across England have been responsible for arranging National Health Service healthcare services to meet the needs of their respective populations, reflecting the diversity of the needs within these populations. The local ICB is therefore responsible for ensuring that NHS services are accessible in their area.

NHS England is responsible for funding allocations to ICBs. This process is independent of the Government, and NHS England takes advice on the underlying formula from the independent Advisory Committee on Resource Allocation (ACRA).

The ACRA endorsed the introduction of a new community services formula, that they believe will better recognise needs for much older populations with higher needs for certain community services, which on average tend to be in some rural, coastal, and remote areas.

Work is also underway across the Department and with NHS England and the regional Directors of Public Health to develop approaches to address regional health inequalities. In line with the Government’s Health Mission, the Department’s goal is to create a more equitable healthcare system that leaves no person or community behind.
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Bobby Dean:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to expand Start for Life services to include Carshalton and Wallington constituency. \p Andrew Gwynne: In 2025/26, £57 million will be made available to 75 local authorities with high levels of deprivation to provide a range of Start for Life services.

Due to the challenging fiscal context, we have had to make difficult decisions for 2025/26, and only those areas currently in the scheme will receive Start for Life funding. We will continue to evaluate the programme and assess evidence to support wider rollout in future financial years.
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Bobby Dean:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with his counterparts in the devolved Administrations on the impact of government-funded Naloxone programmes. \p Andrew Gwynne: The Government has amended the Human Medicines Regulations 2012 to expand access to naloxone. This means that more professionals and services than ever before can give out take-home supplies of naloxone to those at-risk of overdose. This follows the Department’s public consultation, published on 24 January 2024, in which the responses were overwhelmingly supportive of our proposals. The legislation came into force on 2 December 2024.

The legislation also enables the development of a new registration service, which will further expand the number of professionals and services able to give out naloxone. This will take longer to implement, and work is ongoing across the devolved administrations to ensure alignment where appropriate.

This legislation is United Kingdom wide, and we will continue to work closely with colleagues in the devolved administrations to share learning and align our approaches where appropriate.

Health is a devolved issue, and as a result there are currently different existing arrangements for naloxone supply across the UK and each administration takes its own decisions on the provision and funding of naloxone. I have therefore not had discussions on UK wide Government-funded naloxone programmes.

These legislative changes are enabling only, meaning it will be a choice for individuals or organisations to decide whether they want to use this power and give out naloxone, which will be based on local need and capacity. Local authorities are responsible for commissioning drug treatment services as part of their public health responsibilities, and they provide funding for naloxone supplied through drug treatment services based on their assessment of local need.
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Sarah Green:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress he has made with Cabinet colleagues on implementing the recommendations of the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review 2020. \p Andrew Gwynne: Seven of the nine recommendations have been previously accepted by the Government, in full, in part, or in principle, and four of these have been successfully implemented, including:

- issuing an unreserved apology on behalf of the healthcare system;

- appointing Dr Henrietta Hughes as the first ever Patient Safety Commissioner in England in respect of medicines and medical devices; and

- establishing nine specialist mesh centres, which are in operation across England.

Work is ongoing in respect of the remaining recommendations, including working across the Government to consider the recommendations in the Hughes Report, which looked into and provided advice on redress for those affected by sodium valproate and pelvic mesh.
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Sammy Wilson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the impact assessment for the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, published on 5 November 2024, whether the specified cost of retailer staff training (a) is a one-off cost and (b) reflects ongoing costs in relation to planned secondary legislation relating to that Bill. \p Andrew Gwynne: The estimated familiarisation and staff training costs included in the Tobacco and Vapes Bill impact assessment are assumed to be one-off costs, and individual estimates are provided for each specific policy.

The bill will gradually end the sale of tobacco products across the country, so an individual born on or after 1 January 2009 will never be legally sold these products, including through proxy purchasing. Although it will mean the legal age of sale effectively increases by one year each year, the regulations will not change every year. This means it will be a one-off cost for retailers in terms of training staff.

Some indicative estimates for staff training are included for secondary legislation. This, however, will be subject to consultation and, where proportionate, further work will be completed to assess the costs and benefits of these measures.

We will continue to work closely with retailers to support them in implementing the smoke-free generation policy in the future.