theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-14)

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Claire Hanna:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether Northern Ireland will receive funding from Cyber Local in 2025-26. \p Feryal Clark: As of April 2025, the way that Devolved Administrations (DAs) receive funding for cyber security has changed. Previously ringfenced cyber budgets will be absorbed into departmental baselines and provided directly to DAs in their overall HM Treasury settlement.

The revised funding arrangements further support DAs, including the Northern Ireland Executive, to make their own choices about how to champion the cyber sector in each part of the UK. DSIT will continue to engage with the Northern Ireland Executive on how to assist the cyber sector, including through the Cyber Local programme.

DSIT continues to support the successful cyber ecosystem in Northern Ireland with key investments such as the Cyber AI Hub programme at Queen’s University Belfast.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-14)

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Robin Swann:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending Cyber Local 2025-26 to Northern Ireland. \p Feryal Clark: As of April 2025, the way that Devolved Administrations (DAs) receive funding for cyber security has changed. Previously ringfenced cyber budgets will be absorbed into departmental baselines and provided directly to DAs in their overall HM Treasury settlement.

The revised funding arrangements further support DAs, including the Northern Ireland Executive, to make their own choices about how to champion the cyber sector in each part of the UK. DSIT will continue to engage with the Northern Ireland Executive on how to assist the cyber sector, including through the Cyber Local programme.

DSIT continues to support the successful cyber ecosystem in Northern Ireland with key investments such as the Cyber AI Hub programme at Queen’s University Belfast.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-14)

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Maya Ellis:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to support innovation in areas without mayoral devolution agreements. \p Feryal Clark: We want to support local leaders to unlock their regions’ innovation potential – ensuring everyone benefits from innovation-led growth. Regardless of whether they have a Mayor or are a local authority. That’s why UK Research and Innovation invests in innovation across the UK, including through the £316 million Strength in Places Fund and £80 million Launchpads programmes. These are bolstering clusters in areas with and without devolution agreements. UKRI has awarded £85,000 to Ultraframe UK in the Ribble Valley, to develop high quality retrofit solutions.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-14)

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Sean Woodcock:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to ensure the accessibility of Government digital services in Banbury. \p Feryal Clark: The Government Digital Service (GDS) role is to ensure the delivery of digital services that work for all of our citizens. That includes monitoring the services each departments delivers online - to make sure they are providing support for citizens with low technical skills.

Additionally, there is strong regulation in place to provide technical specifications to improve the accessibility of websites and many other digital experiences to ensure that no citizen is left behind during this government's digital revolution.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-14)

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Matt Bishop:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to the Answer of 30 April 2025 to Question 47133 on Mobile Broadbands, whether the implementation of part two of the Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure Act 2022 will be included in the review of the telecommunications market. \p Chris Bryant: The Government is continually engaged with developments in the mobile sector. This involves considering sector-wide investment challenges and technological innovations and their impact on the market and rollout of high-quality infrastructure, as well as mobile signal and coverage issues and the quality of service afforded to mobile customers. This is separate to the Government’s work on the Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure Act 2022. The Government monitors the impacts of the PSTI Act reforms through ongoing tracking of progress against connectivity targets and stakeholder engagement.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-14)

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Adam Jogee:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he has taken to protect people in (a) Newcastle-under-Lyme constituency, (b) Staffordshire and (c) the UK from cyber attack. \p Feryal Clark: The cyber security of the UK is a priority for the government. We are taking a range of action to protect people, businesses and the economy from cyber threats. This year the government will introduce the Cyber Security and Resilience Bill to improve UK cyber defences and better secure our essential services and the IT infrastructure they rely upon. In Staffordshire, the Cyber Resilience Centre for the West Midlands is part of a nationwide police-led collaboration helping strengthen cyber resilience in small and medium-sized businesses, while the Cyber PROTECT Network operates in every police force area, providing advice and guidance to individuals to help protect against a range of threats and provide support to victims. The government’s Stop! Think Fraud campaign provides the public with advice on how to prevent fraud and cyber crime.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-14)

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Kate Osamor:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether he has had recent discussions with animal protection groups on phasing out animal experiments. \p Feryal Clark: The Labour Manifesto includes a commitment to “partner with scientists, industry, and civil society as we work towards the phasing out of animal testing”, which is a long-term goal. The government will publish a strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods later this year. The Government will also be hosting a roundtable shortly with representatives from animal welfare organisations to discuss the strategy.
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Stuart Andrew:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the retrospective impact of the implementation of Sections (a) 58, (b) 59 and (c) 61-64 of the Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure Act 2022 and if he will list the limited retrospective effects identified by his Department. \p Chris Bryant: The principle of collective responsibility requires that the privacy of ministerial discussions at cabinet and its committees be maintained. It is a long standing precedent that details of these proceedings are not disclosed publicly.

Sections 58 and 59 introduced limited retrospective rights to upgrade and share apparatus situated under land in specific circumstances. Sections 61 – 64 may have limited retrospective effect once in force: potentially affecting the terms on which affected agreements are renewed on expiry, but not directly altering the terms of any existing agreements. A consultation on draft regulations to commence sections 61-64 is open until 2 July.
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Sally Jameson:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will provide a multi-year funding settlement for early intervention services in local government. \p Jim McMahon: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 40059 on 27 March 2025.
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Liz Saville Roberts:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of continuing thank you payments following the end of the Ukraine Permission Extension scheme. \p Alex Norris: The Ukraine Permission Extension (UPE) scheme allows existing Ukraine scheme visa holders to apply for further permission to remain in the UK for an additional 18-months. To support Ukrainians who are still in Homes for Ukraine sponsorship arrangements as they transition to living independently, the government has also extended thank you payments for 18-months under the UPE scheme only.

The UPE visa period provides guests and sponsors with time to plan to live independently and, if needed, to secure independently funded accommodation.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department has made changes to the thresholds for publishing spending data since 4 July 2024. \p Alex Norris: MHCLG made changes to its thresholds for publishing spending date in January 2025. This change bought MHCLG’s publication of spending data in line with Cabinet Office requirements and in line with the rest of government.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will make it her policy to publish declarations of interest for non-Ministerial board members on her Department's webpage entitled Our governance: Information on the MHCLG board and its sub-committees. \p Alex Norris: The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government published an updated register of board members’ interests on Gov.uk on 07 May 2025.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Employment Rights Bill on facility time processes in her Department. \p Alex Norris: As with any changes to employment legislation, the department will review the position on facility time as appropriate and in line with the Employment Rights Bill 2024 and any applicable Cabinet Office guidance.

As the Impact Assessment accompanying the Employment Rights Bill highlighted, facility time provides significant benefits to employers and employees.
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Siân Berry:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to Building Regulation Approved Document T: Toilet Accommodation, last updated on 1 October 2024, if she will take legislative steps to (a) ensure that new buildings include the provision of universal toilets and (b) permit universal toilets in addition to or in place of single-sex provision. \p Alex Norris: Requirement T1 of the Building Regulations calls for universal toilets to be provided where space allows and is also clear that universal toilets may be provided in addition to single-sex toilets.

The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) have a duty under the Building Safety Act 2022 to keep the safety and standard of buildings under review. The BSR continually reviews the suite of Approved Documents to ensure the statutory guidance remains relevant, as well as advising government on the safety and standards of all buildings.

This Government is always keen to receive feedback on the real-world application of the Building Regulations and will consider comments received, monitor stakeholder experience, and keep the new Approved Document T under review.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether Non-Executive Board Members in her Department's interests are published bi-annually. \p Alex Norris: In line with established practice under successive administrations, the relevant interests of Non-Executive Board Members are updated and published bi-annually. This is consistent with the approach set out in previous responses (15 January 2025, Question 22321, and 22 January 2023, Question 25697). Further information is available on Non-Executive Board Member declaration of interests process - GOV.UK.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to provide transitional funding to support local authorities undergoing reorganisation. \p Jim McMahon: The £7.6 million will be made available in the form of local government reorganisation proposal development contributions, to be split across the 21 areas that have been invited to submit proposals for unitary local government. This is the first time that capacity funding has been made available for reorganisation proposals, recognising the priority that this government attaches to this. Further information will be provided on how this will be allocated soon, and we intend to make payments as soon as possible.

As set out in the invitation to areas, considering the efficiencies that are possible through reorganisation, we expect that areas will be able to meet transition costs over time from existing budgets, including from the flexible use of capital receipts that can support authorities in taking forward transformation and invest-to-save projects. We asked areas to include indicative costs in their interim plans.
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Amanda Martin:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of (a) devolution and (b) local government reorganisation. \p Jim McMahon: The overall case for devolution and local government reorganisation is set out the English Devolution White Paper.

The White Paper sets an ambitious new framework for English devolution, moving power out of Westminster and back to those who know their areas best. The government is committed to expanding devolution across England, devolving further powers to local leaders, those with local knowledge to drive economic growth and empower communities.

Devolution must be built upon strong foundations. That means creating clearer, more sustainable local government structures to unlock crucial efficiency savings, with more resources directed to the frontline. This reform will mean more accountable structures, making it much clearer for residents who they should look to on local issues, with fewer, but more empowered local political leaders, who can focus on delivering for residents. This government will not waste this opportunity to achieve stability for local government across England and increase value for money for council taxpayers, so they are no longer paying an inefficient two-tier premium.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-14)

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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department plans to hold district council elections in 2027. \p Jim McMahon: Under the local government reorganisation programme, we anticipate that, on the most ambitious timelines, there could be elections to ‘shadow’ unitary councils in May 2027, ahead of “go live” of new councils on 1 April 2028. For Surrey, our expectation is that the only elections that will take place in May 2026 are elections to new shadow unitary local government, with a view to going live in April 2027.

We have no plans to postpone the elections which councils are scheduled to hold, whether to new unitary authorities, or to district councils in 2027. We will work with areas to move to elections to new ‘shadow’ unitary councils as soon as possible as is the usual arrangement in the process of local government reorganisation. The exact timings and detail of elections will depend on the proposals received and the decision taken on which proposal, if any, to implement.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what her Department's timetable is for responding to submissions from local authorities in relation to local government reorganisation, received by 21 March 2025. \p Jim McMahon: The government’s invitation on 5 February 2025 to two-tier authorities asked them to develop interim plans by 21 March 2025 for local government reorganisation. All proposals will be assessed against all the criteria in the invitation.

We are currently reviewing the interim plans that were submitted and providing feedback to support councils as they progress work on developing final proposals. Once a full proposal has been submitted it will be for the government to decide on taking a proposal forward and to consult as required by statute.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans she has made to ensure that any final local government reorganisation proposals reflect the views of local residents and stakeholders. \p Jim McMahon: On 5 February, the government issued invitations to councils in two-tier areas in England and neighbouring unitary councils to prepare proposals for local government reorganisation.

The invitation is clear on the importance of engagement in developing proposals for strong, stable unitary councils that are fit for the future. This engagement should include local residents and stakeholders, including public service providers, workforce and their representatives, Members of Parliament and businesses.

Final proposals put forward should include evidence of local engagement, an explanation of the views that have been put forward and how concerns will be addressed.

Once a proposal has been submitted it will be for the government to decide on taking a proposal forward and to consult as required by statute.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what criteria she plans to use to assess local government reorganisation proposals which fall below the 500,000 population threshold. \p Jim McMahon: The English Devolution White Paper, and the Statutory Invitation set a guiding principle that new unitary councils should have a population size of 500,000 or more. This is not a hard target and it is recognised that there should be flexibility, especially given our ambition to build out devolution and take account of housing growth, alongside local government reorganisation.

All proposals, whether they are at the guided level, above it, or below it should clearly set out the rationale for the proposed approach. Decisions on the most appropriate option for each area will be judgements in the round, having regard to the guidance and the available evidence.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of local government reorganisation since 2009. \p Jim McMahon: As set out in the answer to Question UIN 32149 on 3 March 2025, we set out in the English Devolution White Paper that we will learn from the experience and successes of others who have been through the local government reorganisation process.

We welcome the partnership approach that is being taken across the sector to respond to the ambitious plans set out in the White Paper, including sharing expertise on delivering reorganisation effectively given each area’s unique circumstances. For example, unitarisation has helped North Yorkshire Council, established in April 2023 to manage financial pressures through structural changes and service transformation which are expected to achieve more than £40 million in savings by March 2026.
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Amanda Martin:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what the evidential basis is that (a) growing and (b) reorganising Portsmouth City Council will increase it's financial stability. \p Jim McMahon: The government was elected on a manifesto that pledged to fix the foundations of local government alongside a transfer of power and funding out of Westminster through devolution. Local government reorganisation is central to this pledge, and we have set out the rationale for reorganisation in the English Devolution White Paper.

The local government reorganisation programme invites all councils in two tier areas and their neighbouring small unitary authorities to put forward reorganisations proposals. Accordingly, Portsmouth City Council, together with the twelve two tier councils in Hampshire, Isle of Wight Council and Southampton City Council, were invited to submit proposals for unitary local government. Existing district areas should be considered the building blocks for proposals, but where there is a strong justification more complex boundary changes will be considered. Ultimately it is for councils to develop robust and sustainable proposals that are in the best interests of their whole area.
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Andrew Rosindell:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to increase the recruitment and retention of trading standards officers within local councils. \p Jim McMahon: Local authorities are independent employers responsible for the recruitment and retention of their own workforces.
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Stuart Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to increase the (a) skills and (b) capacity of planning authorities in rural areas. \p Matthew Pennycook: Supporting local planning authorities to attract, retain and develop skilled planners is crucial to ensuring they provide a proactive, efficient planning service for local communities and that new developments are well designed and facilitate local growth.

The government appreciates that planning departments across the country, including in rural areas, are experiencing challenges with recruitment, retention, and skills gaps and that in many cases these issues are having a negative impact on service delivery.

At the Budget, the Chanceller announced a £46 million package of investment into the planning system as a one-year settlement for 2025-2026.

Our manifesto committed us to appointing 300 new planning officers into LPAs. We are on track to meet that commitment through two routes, namely graduate recruitment through the Pathways to Planning scheme run by the Local Government Association and mid-career recruitment through Public Practice.

On 27 February, the government announced funding to support salaries and complement graduate bursaries. Further information can be found in the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 27 February 2025 (HCWS480).

On 25 February, the draft Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications, Deemed Applications, Requests and Site Visits) (England) (Amendment and Transitional Provision) Regulations 2025 were agreed. These regulations increase planning fees for householder and other applications, with a view to providing much-needed additional resources for hard-pressed LPAs.

More broadly, the Department’s established Planning Capacity and Capability programme is also developing a wider programme of support, working with partners across the planning sector, to ensure that LPAs have the skills and capacity they need, both now and in the future, to modernise local plans and speed up decision making, including through innovative use of digital planning data and software.

Lastly, the Planning and Infrastructure Bill which was introduced on 11 March includes provisions that will allow LPAs to set planning fees or charges at a level that reflects the individual costs to the LPA to carry out the function for which it is imposed and to ensure that the income from planning fees or charges is applied towards the delivery of the planning function.
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James Naish:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department has taken to communicate changes to voter eligibility to EU voters resident in the UK. \p Rushanara Ali: The Electoral Commission, as the independent electoral regulator, holds responsibility for issuance of guidance for local authorities on electoral registration and voting.

This can be found at - Our guidance | Electoral Commission.

The Electoral Commission also worked (and has continued to work) with voter groups and civil society organisations by providing information and raising awareness on changes to voter registration and eligibility requirements following the passage of the Elections Act 2022.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the (a) second homes and (b) higher empty homes premium on retirement flats which estates inherit but are unable to sell. \p Jim McMahon: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 48979 on 7 May 2025. It is for individual councils to consider the local impact of council tax premiums and their appropriateness. The government has published guidance on the implementation of premiums and exceptions which councils are expected to consider when making their decisions.
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James Naish:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the introduction of e-visas on voters reliant on physical immigration documentation as voter ID. \p Rushanara Ali: An e-Visa is accepted as a form of identification at the polling station, as a digital version of ‘a biometric immigration document issued in accordance with regulations under section 5 of the UK Borders Act 2007’.

All electors may also choose to apply to their local authority for a Voter Authority Certificate – an accepted form of identification available free of charge.
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Edward Morello:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many and what proportion of fire departments have inflatable crash mats. \p Alex Norris: MHCLG collects data through the Fire and Rescue Service Incident Recording System (IRS) on equipment used by Fire & Rescue Services at the scene of an incident. It does not include data for the specific equipment category of inflatable crash mat.

This data is published in a variety of publications, available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/fire-statistics and data tables here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/fire-statistics-data-tables; though no statistics are published on the equipment used at incidents.
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Dr Al Pinkerton:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans her Department has to support effective collaboration between hon. Members of Parliament and county councils in the context of local government reorganisation in Surrey. \p Jim McMahon: On 5th February I wrote to all councils in two tier areas and their neighbouring small unitaries, including Surrey, to formally invite them to submit unitary proposals. In this invitation, we set out that we expect local leaders to engage their Members of Parliament, and to ensure there is wide engagement with local partners and stakeholders, residents, workforce and their representatives, and businesses on a proposal.

We are committed to updating Parliament on the progress of local government reorganisation.
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Sir John Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what the total cost to the public purse was for the creation of the Greater Lincolnshire combined county authority. \p Jim McMahon: The costs of establishing and running Mayoral Combined (County) Authorities are managed by its constituent councils and the Authority itself once established. Government provides support to help with these costs. For Greater Lincolnshire the government provided £500k Mayoral Capacity Funding in 2024-25.

There are considerable benefits for Greater Lincolnshire from the devolution agreement, which include £24 million a year investment funding for 30 years, and the transport and adult skills budgets that were previously controlled from Whitehall.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the document by the Regulatory Policy Committee entitled Status of Post Implementation Reviews, published on 24 April 2025, when her Department plans to undertake a post-implementation review of The Town and Country Planning (Permission in Principle) Order 2017. \p Matthew Pennycook: We will meet the statutory requirement for a review of the Permission in Principle Order 2017.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to chapter 2 of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, for what reason the strategic planning authority must consider notifying bodies which represent the interests of different racial, ethnic or national groups in the strategy area. \p Matthew Pennycook: New section 12H(3) of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 as inserted by clause 47 of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill sets out a range of community-based bodies and interest groups that a strategic planning authority must consider notifying about the publication of the draft strategy. The bodies listed under this provision are by no means exhaustive nor exclusive. The decision as to which bodies and groups to ultimately notify remains at the discretion of the strategic planning authority.

This provision closely matches the equivalent provision in the Greater London Authority Act 1999 regarding the Mayor of London’s London Plan.
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Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to ensure leaseholders in buildings under 11 metres with cladding issues are not excluded from safety remediation support. \p Alex Norris: The department reviews cases brought to its attention which includes undertaking audits of fire risk appraisals of external walls to make sure that proposed works are necessary and proportionate. We engage with freeholders and managing agents to reinforce our position that leaseholders should not face cladding remediation costs.
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Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of implementing a single standard for building safety remediation set independently by her Department on the process of remediation between developers and building owners. \p Alex Norris: The developer remediation contract sets the standard that developers must meet when remediating buildings covered by the contract. Remediation of external defects must be undertaken in line with PAS 9980 and remediation of internal defects must be undertaken in line with relevant industry standards and applicable law. Remedial works must reduce life-critical fire safety defects in the building to a tolerable level, in line with these standards.
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Edward Morello:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to support local commissioning bodies during dental contract reforms. \p Stephen Kinnock: Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry, to meet the needs of the local populations and to determine the priorities for investment.

NHS planning guidance for 2025/26 confirms that dental budgets are ringfenced, and that improving access to urgent dental appointments is a key national priority. Careful consideration needs to be given to any potential changes to the complex dental system so that we deliver genuine improvements for patients and the profession, and so that ICBs are supported to commission services in line with system changes.

NHS England supports ICBs with their local commissioning responsibilities for primary dental services with the provision of nationally agreed policies and procedures. NHS England has also published guidance to support commissioners to take advantage of the opportunities offered to commission further and additional services through flexible commissioning, which enables the responsible commissioner to tailor services to meet local population oral health needs. Further information can be found at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/opportunities-for-flexible-commissioning-in-primary-care-dentistry-a-framework-for-commissioners/

We are continuing to meet representatives of the dental sector to discuss how we can best deliver our shared ambition to improve access for NHS dental patients
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-14)

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Tom Morrison:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average waiting time was for a wheelchair-bound patient to access an NHS appointment in (a) Stockport Borough and (b) Greater Manchester in the latest period for which data is available. \p Karin Smyth: Cutting waiting lists is a key priority for the Government. We promised change, and we’ve delivered early, with a reduction in the list of over 219,000 pathways from July 2024 to February 2025.

We do not hold data on the average waiting time for a wheelchair-bound patient to access a National Health Service appointment. This patient characteristic is not collected in the data which is used to assess waiting times.

The current waiting list for all patients at the Stockport NHS Foundation Trust currently stands at 35,824 patients waiting, with a median average waiting time of 16 weeks. The current total waiting list for all patients in Greater Manchester stands at 436,509 as of February 2025, with a median average waiting time of 16 weeks.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-14)

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Carla Denyer:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 6 May 2025 to Question 46236 on NHS: Contracts, what assessment he has made of the number of staff working in the NHS for non-NHS providers (a) nationally and (b) in the Bristol Central constituency area. \p Karin Smyth: Neither the Department nor NHS England hold data on the number of staff working in the National Health Service for non-NHS providers.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-14)

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Tom Morrison:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average waiting time was for an able-bodied patient to access an NHS appointment in (a) Stockport Borough and (b) Greater Manchester in the latest period for which data is available. \p Karin Smyth: Cutting waiting lists is a key priority for the Government. We promised change, and we have delivered early, with a reduction in the list of over 219,000 pathways from July 2024 to February 2025.

We do not hold data on the average waiting time for able-bodied patients to access a National Health Service appointment. This patient characteristic is not collected in the data which is used to assess waiting times.

The current waiting list for all patients at the Stockport NHS Foundation Trust currently stands at 35,824 patients, with a median average waiting time of 16 weeks. The current total waiting list for all patients in Greater Manchester stands at 436,509 as of February 2025, with a median average waiting time of 16 weeks.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-14)

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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 28 April 2025 to Question 46102 on Integrated Care Boards: Carbon Emissions, how (a) emission estimates and (b) progress towards net zero will be assessed for integrated care boards that merge. \p Karin Smyth: As part of the necessary changes to support National Health Service recovery, NHS England has indicated that integrated care boards (ICBs) should reduce their running cost allowance by 50%. The Government is supportive of NHS England’s decision and will work with NHS England to make the necessary choices that are needed to get the NHS back on its feet. We expect ICBs to continue to deliver their responsibilities, including the planning and delivery of health and care services.

In this context, ICBs will continue to be required to report an annual summary of progress on the delivery of their green plans to their board, and will publish this in their annual report, including actions taken and planned, with quantitative progress data.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-14)

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Blake Stephenson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to review the treatment guidelines for recurring UTIs. \p Karin Smyth: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body that develops authoritative, evidence-based guidance for the National Health Service on best practice. The NICE has published a guideline on antimicrobial prescribing for the treatment of recurrent urinary tract infections (UTIs), which is available at the following link:

https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng112

The NICE keeps its published guidance under active surveillance to ensure that they are up to date and reflect any changes in the evidence base. If any new evidence comes to light, the NICE would consider the need for an update of its guideline. Both integrated care boards and healthcare providers are expected to take the national guidance into consideration when commissioning and delivering services.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-14)

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Andrew Gwynne:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he has taken to ensure that future NHS spending is proportional to the increased healthcare needs of people in areas of high deprivation. \p Karin Smyth: NHS England is responsible for funding allocations to integrated care boards (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. The formula takes account of population, age, need, and deprivation and health inequality considerations. High deprivation areas receive more funding per capita than low deprivation areas, given other, similar circumstances. ICB allocations for 2025/26 were published on 30 January 2025, and are available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/allocations/

The 10 Year Plan will set out our ambitions to create a National Health Service that is there for anyone who needs it, whenever they need it. One in which access to, and experience of, healthcare services is equitable, effective, and responsive. The plan will be published later in the summer.

Departmental budgets beyond 2025/26 will be set through phase 2 of the Spending Review, which will conclude and be published in June. Future growth in demand is one of the factors taken into account.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-14)

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Mike Wood:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 10 March 2025 to Question 32585 on NHS: Training, what assessment he has made of the (a) efficiency and (b) effectiveness of NHS spending on unconscious basis training. \p Karin Smyth: There has not been a specific assessment made of spend on unconscious bias training in the National Health Service. As explained in the answer to Question 32585, there is no national NHS-wide policy on unconscious bias training in the NHS. Individual NHS organisations have responsibility for training their own staff, and provide relevant training where appropriate.

Taxpayers rightly expect value for money from the funding that is spent in the NHS. The NHS and the Department’s arms-length bodies are continually expected to review their expenditure, with a view to finding efficiency savings and ensuring value for money for the public purse.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-14)

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Andrew Gwynne:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will incentivise newly qualified healthcare workers in (a) primary and (b) secondary care to fill vacancies in areas with high levels of unmet health needs. \p Karin Smyth: Decisions about the employment of newly qualified healthcare workers are a matter for individual National Health Service trusts. NHS trusts manage their recruitment at a local level, ensuring they have the right number of staff in place, with the right skill mix, to deliver safe and effective care.

We will publish a refreshed workforce plan to deliver the transformed health service we will build over the next decade, and treat patients on time again.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-14)

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Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps he has taken to eradicate modern slavery from the NHS. \p Karin Smyth: As part of the recommendations from the review into the risk of modern slavery in National Health Service supply chains from December 2023, it was recommended that regulations be laid with a view to eradicating modern slavery, supporting the amendment of Section 12zc in the NHS Act 2006. Further information on the review into the risk of modern slavery in NHS supply chains is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/review-of-risk-of-modern-slavery-and-human-trafficking-in-the-nhs-supply-chain

The Department and NHS England have collaboratively developed detailed guidance to support the embedding of the regulations and policies throughout procurement exercises. This ensures alignment to procurements conducted under all legal regimes, including the Public Contracts Regulations 2015, Procurement Act 2023, and the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023.

A public consultation for the content and approach of those regulations was launched in Autumn 2024. A Written Ministerial Statement (WMS) was laid in both Houses of Parliament on 21 November 2024 to launch the consultation, which is available at the following link:

https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2024-11-21/hcws245.

As stated in the WMS, the draft regulations and guidance were published alongside the consultation. The consultation closed in February 2025 and the Department will publish a consultation report shortly on the GOV.UK website. The Department intends to lay the regulations in due course, following the publication of the report.

The published guidance refers to a risk assessment tool that NHS England has developed based on the six characteristics to help assess modern slavery risks, as set out in the Public Procurement Policy Note on identifying and managing modern slavery risks. These are: industry type; nature of the workforce; supplier location; context in which the supplier operates; commodity type; and business/supply chain model. Further information on the published guidance and the Public Procurement Policy Note on identifying and managing modern slavery risks is available, respectively, at the following two links:

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/tackling-modern-slavery-in-nhs-procurement-proposed-regulations-and-guidance

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ppn-009-tackling-modern-slavery-in-government-supply-chains