theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Mr Will Forster:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he plans to take to support community pharmacies. \p Stephen Kinnock: For 2025/26, funding for the core community pharmacy contractual framework has been increased to £3.073 billion. This represents the largest uplift in funding of any part of the National Health Service, at over 19% across 2024/25 and 2025/26.

There is also additional funding available, for example for pharmacies delivering Pharmacy First consultations and flu and COVID-19 vaccinations. The Pharmacy Access Scheme provides additional funding to support pharmacies in areas where there are fewer.

This year, legislation will also be laid to enable all pharmacies to benefit from the efficiencies of hub and spoke dispensing, and/or using pharmacy technicians to undertake more of the work in pharmacies, enabling pharmacists to spend more time with patients.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Terry Jermy:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has has with relevant stakeholders on the provision of sustainable funding for transforming (a) palliative and (b) end of life care services. \p Stephen Kinnock: In February, I met with key palliative and end of life care and hospice stakeholders, in a roundtable format, with a focus on long-term sector sustainability within the context of our 10-Year Health Plan.

I also recently met Rachael Maskell MP and Baroness Finlay to discuss the progress of their independent commission into palliative and end of life care.

As part of the work to develop the 10-Year Health Plan, we will be carefully considering policies, including those that impact people with palliative and end of life care needs, with input from the public, patients, health staff, and our partners.

We want a society where every person receives high-quality, compassionate care from diagnosis through to the end of life. The Government is determined to shift more healthcare out of hospitals and into the community, to ensure patients and their families receive personalised care in the most appropriate setting, and palliative and end of life care services will have a big role to play in that shift.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Mr Will Forster:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what comparative assessment his Department has made of pharmacy provision in (a) England and (b) Scotland. \p Stephen Kinnock: As is custom and practice when considering policy development for England, we regularly examine and consider the services that are commissioned from pharmacies in a range of other jurisdictions. This includes regular liaison with Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland about their experiences and planned developments.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 25 April 2025 to Question 45661 on Waste: Health Hazards, if he will publish guidance issued by the UK Health Security Agency to the local Director of Public Health. \p Ashley Dalton: The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has provided standard guidance to the local authority on the public health risks associated with household waste, to minimise health risks to Birmingham residents. This information can be found on the Birmingham City Council website, at the following link:

https://www.birmingham.gov.uk/info/20009/waste_and_recycling/3020/waste_and_recycling_industrial_action_-_faq_for_residents/6.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Richard Burgon:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of potential additional costs to his Department of the provisions outlined in the Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working Green Paper, published in March 2025. \p Ashley Dalton: The Government is committed to championing the rights of disabled people and people with long-term health conditions, and our mission-driven approach relies on regular cross-Government collaboration. The Department of Health and Social Care is working with the Department for Work and Pensions to understand the impacts of the Green Paper and the associated consultation, and will continue to do so as the package is developed in detail.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Sojan Joseph:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support public health action to tackle tuberculosis. \p Ashley Dalton: The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and NHS England’s joint tuberculosis (TB) action plan for England details actions to achieve a 90% reduction in people with TB by 2035 and is aligned with the World Health Organization’s elimination targets. The plan is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/tuberculosis-tb-action-plan-for-england/tuberculosis-tb-action-plan-for-england-2021-to-2026#priority-2-prevent-tb

The United Kingdom’s pre-entry TB screening programme operates in 102 countries to reduce the importation of TB by screening applicants for long term visas from high TB incidence countries. People are screened in line with the UK Tuberculosis Technical Instructions, which are available at the following link:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5cd18ae5e5274a34ee7f0275/UK_tuberculosis_technical_instructions_version_7.pdf

Active TB disease can be prevented by identifying, testing, and treating people with TB infection. People who are close contacts of individuals with infectious TB are also tested for infection, so they can be treated before the disease develops.

NHS England’s national latent TB testing programme for migrants from high incidence countries operates in 27 of the 42 integrated care board areas in England.

In March 2025, NHS England and The Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital published a Getting it Right First Time review of TB services, which included a series of recommendations to reduce unwarranted variation in clinical practice and improve care, especially to underserved populations. The report is available at the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/girft-review-of-tuberculosis-national-report.pdf

The UKHSA, in collaboration with key stakeholders, is leading work to develop a new national action plan for 2026 to 2031, which includes a call for evidence.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Blake Stephenson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to publish a national cancer plan. \p Ashley Dalton: The National Cancer Plan for England will be published in the second half of this year, following the publication of the 10-Year Health Plan.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Graham Leadbitter:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he is taking steps to update regulations on the (a) composition, (b) marketing and (c) labelling of commercial infant foods. \p Ashley Dalton: Children’s early years provide an important foundation for their future health and strongly influences many aspects of well-being in later life.

It is vital that we maintain the highest standards for foods consumed by babies and infants, which is why we have regulations in place that set nutritional and compositional standards for commercial baby food. The regulations also set labelling standards to ensure consumers have clear and accurate information about the products they buy. We continue to keep these regulations, which apply in England, under review to ensure they reflect the latest scientific and dietary guidelines. Similar legislation exists in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Sir John Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help improve early (a) detection and (b) diagnosis of raised cholesterol levels in Lincolnshire. \p Ashley Dalton: The NHS Health Check, a core component of England’s cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention programme, plays an important role in detecting people aged 40 to 74 years old with high cholesterol and engages over 1.4 million people a year. Annually, through the NHS Health Check, approximately 900,000 people are found to have raised cholesterol levels.

During 2023/24, the number of people in Lincolnshire who received an NHS Health Check reached its highest level since the programme’s delivery was paused due to COVID-19 in 2020. To further improve access and engagement with the programme, we are developing a new NHS Health Check Online service that people can use at home to understand and act on their CVD risk.

Data on the early detection and diagnosis of raised cholesterol levels is not collected at an integrated care board level.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Bell Ribeiro-Addy:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 1 May 2025 to Question 48518 on Blood: donors, if he will provide a breakdown of this data by gender. \p Ashley Dalton: NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) is responsible for blood donation in England.  NHSBT collects donor’s sex as assigned at birth and their gender identity. A donor’s sex is recorded as the ways in which blood products are donated and processed differ between those assigned male and female at birth.

The following table shows the number of deferrals due to low haemoglobin levels by those of African, Caribbean, mixed white and African, and mixed white and Caribbean heritage, broken down by biological sex at birth, from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025, the latest data available:

Ethnicity

Number of female deferrals due to low haemoglobin levels

Number of male deferrals due to low haemoglobin levels

Black- African

3293

730

Black- Caribbean

1857

567

Mixed white and black African

388

104

Mixed white and black Caribbean

1053

258
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Esther McVey:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to UKHSA FOI Request Ref: 617 H5 Influenza Vaccine, whether one tender response was received; and what steps he has taken to encourage more responses. \p Ashley Dalton: One tender response was received. The requirement for this vaccine specified that the product must be licensed for use in the United Kingdom. At the time the tender was published, only one supplier was able to meet this criterion. This was despite prior engagement with the market ahead of the release of the tender documentation.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) routinely undertakes proactive market and horizon scanning to identify emerging technologies and new suppliers across a range of industries. We remain committed to fostering a competitive environment that encourages innovation, while meeting the scope of the UKHSA to respond to public health outcomes.
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Bell Ribeiro-Addy:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 1 May 2025 to Question 48519 on Blood: Donors, what percentage of female donors who had their donations deferred due to recent travel were white, in the last 12 months. \p Ashley Dalton: NHS Blood and Transplant is responsible for blood donation in England. From 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025, the most recent data available, there were 3,193 deferred female donors due to travel, and 2,186 of which, or 68.5%, were white.
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Mr Lee Dillon:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve services for people with Parkinson's disease. \p Ashley Dalton: At the national level, there are a number of initiatives supporting service improvement and better care for patients with Parkinson’s disease in England, including the Getting It Right First Time Programme for Neurology and the RightCare Progressive Neurological Conditions Toolkit. NHS England has also established a Neurology Transformation Programme, a multi-year, clinically-led programme, which has developed a new model of integrated care to support integrated care boards to deliver the right service, at the right time, for all neurology patients, including those with Parkinson’s.

NHS England commissions the specialised elements of Parkinson’s care that patients may receive from 27 specialised neurology centres across England. Within specialised centres, neurological multidisciplinary teams ensure patients can access a range of health professionals and specialised treatment and support, according to their needs. NHS England is updating the Neurosciences specialised neurology (adults) service specification, which will: set out clear deliverables for specialised centres; provide a clearer model of care, incorporating up-to-date guidance and best practice; and set out new quality outcomes focusing on improving patient outcomes and experience. We are expecting the revised specification and standards to be published later in 2025.

We have also set up a United Kingdom-wide Neuro Forum, facilitating formal, biannual meetings across the Department, NHS England, the devolved administrations and health services, and the Neurological Alliances of all four nations. The new forum brings key stakeholders together, to share learnings across the system and discuss challenges, best practice examples, and potential solutions for improving the care of people with neurological conditions, including Parkinson’s.
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Pippa Heylings:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has received (a) evidence and (b) data from the life sciences industry on increasing the NHS medicines budget. \p Ashley Dalton: We regularly engage with the life sciences sector to understand what the latest data and evidence shows about the impact of Government policies on patient outcomes, innovation, and growth, including through the ongoing Voluntary Scheme for Branded Medicines Pricing, Access, and Growth mid scheme review. We take all evidence we receive seriously and, alongside our own analysis and patient engagement, use this to refine our policy thinking. Decisions on the size of the medicines budget are, therefore, taken in the round considering the overall needs of the health system as well as the impact on the sector.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Lincoln Jopp:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of launching a public awareness campaign on sudden unexpected death in childhood. \p Ashley Dalton: We recognise the devastating impact of sudden unexplained death in childhood (SUDC) on affected families and communities, and the importance of raising awareness of SUDC among relevant professionals, communities, and parents. Information on SUDC is available on the National Health Service website, which also signposts to the charity SUDC.UK. Further information is available at the following link:

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/sudden-infant-death-syndrome-sids.

Additional information for parents on SUDC is available in the form of the booklet, When a Child Dies. Health visitors and school nurses also play an important role in promoting health literacy to families. There are no plans at present to launch a public awareness campaign on SUDC.
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Sir John Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help improve early (a) detection and (b) diagnosis of high blood pressure in Lincolnshire. \p Ashley Dalton: The NHS Health Check, a core component of England’s cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention programme, plays an important role in detecting high blood pressure in people aged 40 to 74 years old, and engages 1.4 million people a year. Each year, 343,000 cases of high blood pressure are identified, resulting in 40,000 diagnoses of high blood pressure.

The latest published Quality Outcomes Framework data shows that the number of people diagnosed with high blood pressure in 2023/24 for the NHS Lincolnshire Integrated Care Board (ICB) was 18.34%, the highest recorded prevalence for any ICB in the country, and is compared to a 14.79% national average.

Over 90% of community pharmacies in the NHS Lincolnshire ICB are providing the NHS Community Pharmacy Blood Pressure Check Service. The ICB is also participating in the national blood pressure pilot in dentistry and optometry, aimed at detecting high blood pressure early in people who might not regularly visit their general practice, but who do attend dental or optometry appointments.
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Neil O'Brien:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the median time taken to register a death was in each (a) integrated care board and (b) local authority area in the most recent six months for which data is available. \p Ashley Dalton: The Government is monitoring the impact of the death certification reforms, which came into legal effect on 9 September 2024, through the Death Certification Strategic Board and a cross-Government data strategy group. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publishes a weekly deaths release which includes the provisional number of deaths registered in England and Wales in the latest weeks, and which is available at the following link:

https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/deaths/datasets/weeklyprovisionalfiguresondeathsregisteredinenglandandwales

As part of this release, the ONS publishes data on the median time taken to register a death in England and Wales in each region. This data is also split by certification type and place of occurrence. The latest data available covers deaths registered in the week ending 18 April 2025. The ONS does not publish any data on the median time taken in integrated care boards or local authorities.

The introduction of medical examiners is in part about making sure deaths are properly described and improving practice, but the impact on the bereaved is also central. The reforms aim to put the bereaved at the centre of the process, and the medical examiner’s office must offer a conversation with representatives of the deceased, so they can ask any questions they have about the death or to raise concerns. Ensuring the system is appropriately resourced and works for all those who interact with it is crucial, and something we will continue to monitor with NHS England.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Victoria Collins:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of access to emergency dentistry in Harpenden and Berkhamsted constituency. \p Stephen Kinnock: The Government plans to tackle the challenges for patients trying to access National Health Service dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. To rebuild dentistry in the long term, we will reform the dental contract with the sector, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.

The responsibility for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to the integrated care boards (ICBs) across England. For the Harpenden and Berkhamsted constituency this is the Hertfordshire and West Essex ICB. ICBs have been asked to start making extra urgent dental appointments available from April 2025. The Hertfordshire and West Essex ICB are expected to deliver 5,712 additional urgent dental appointments as part of the scheme.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Mr Luke Charters:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress the Patient Safety Commissioner has made on their work on Sodium Valproate and surgical mesh implants. \p Ashley Dalton: The Government is carefully considering the valuable work done by the Patient Safety Commissioner and the resulting Hughes Report, which set out options for redress for those harmed by valproate and pelvic mesh. This is a complex area of work, involving several Government departments, and it is important that we get this right. We will be providing an update to the Patient Safety Commissioner’s report at the earliest opportunity.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Sir John Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment has he made of the adequacy of access to emergency dentistry in South Holland and the Deepings constituency. \p Stephen Kinnock: The Government plans to tackle the challenges for patients trying to access National Health Service dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. To rebuild dentistry in the long term, we will reform the dental contract with the sector, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.

The responsibility for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to the integrated care boards (ICBs) across England. For the South Holland and the Deepings constituency, this is the Lincolnshire ICB. ICBs have been asked to start making extra urgent dental appointments available from April 2025. The Lincolnshire ICB is expected to deliver 12,017 additional urgent dental appointments as part of the scheme.
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Bell Ribeiro-Addy:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information his Department holds on the number of NHS blood donation appointments cancelled due to (a) low iron levels, (b) low haemoglobin and (c) travel to and from other countries. \p Ashley Dalton: NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) is responsible for blood donation in England. NHSBT tests for haemoglobin levels rather than iron levels ahead of blood donation.Data for deferrals is currently held for the period 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025. In this period, 169,419 donations were deferred due to low haemoglobin levels, and 6,165 donations were deferred due to the donor’s recent travel to other countries where there is a risk of transmitting specific diseases to recipients via the blood donated.

Information for donors on eligibility to donate, including on haemoglobin levels and donation after travel, is available at the following link:

www.blood.co.uk
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Julia Lopez:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 8 January 2025 to Question 21326 on Personal Independence Payment Mandatory Reconsiderations, what the average clearance time is for mandatory reconsiderations of Personal Independence Payment decisions; and what progress her Department has made on reducing the backlog of cases. \p Sir Stephen Timms: The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
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Llinos Medi:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of closing the Holyhead PIP Assessment Centre on sick and disabled people in Ynys Môn. \p Sir Stephen Timms: The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
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Gareth Snell:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of PIP claimants currently have more than four points in any one category. \p Sir Stephen Timms: The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
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Richard Burgon:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions her Department has had with disability organisations on the impact of (a) eligibility changes to Personal Independence Payment and (b) freezing the Universal Credit health element. \p Sir Stephen Timms: The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
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Richard Burgon:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate her Department has made of the proportion of disabled people who receive the standard rate of Personal Independence Payments and are expected to no longer receive PIP following the changes to eligibility. \p Sir Stephen Timms: The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
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Richard Burgon:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate her Department has made of the number of people who (a) receive and (b) will receive (i) the daily living allowance and (ii) the enhanced Personal Independence Payment after the measures in her Pathways to Work Green Paper are enacted. \p Sir Stephen Timms: The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
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Jess Brown-Fuller:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the number of terminally ill people ineligible for PIP. \p Sir Stephen Timms: The Department does not hold the data requested.
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Uma Kumaran:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will ensure that consideration of (a) maternity pay and (b) pregnancy poverty are included in the work of the child poverty taskforce. \p Alison McGovern: The Child Poverty Taskforce is considering all children across the United Kingdom and is exploring all available levers to drive forward short and long-term actions across government to reduce child poverty.

The Taskforce is listening to experts and campaigners and ensuring the voices of families and children with experience of poverty are brought into policy thinking and decision making as part of the development of the Child Poverty Strategy. This programme of work has ensured people’s experiences have been shared with Ministers and senior decision makers, and the findings are directly informing the development of the Strategy.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Paul Davies:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she plans to take to ensure autism is considered in the Youth Employment Strategy. \p Alison McGovern: As a Government, we want to support all forms of neurodiversity in the workplace, and we are looking to build on the findings of the Buckland Review of Autism Employment by gathering expert evidence in line with this expanded focus.

As part of plan to Get Britain Working, we will launch a Youth Guarantee for all young people aged 18-21 in England to ensure that they can access training opportunities, an apprenticeship or help to find work.

Our Youth Guarantee will meet the needs of those facing disadvantages relating to mental or physical health. Collaborating closely with stakeholders from a range of sectors will be integral to improving opportunities for young people. And that is why we have launched eight Youth Guarantee Trailblazers to test and learn before further roll out of the Youth Guarantee. These Trailblazers are testing joining-up locally and nationally delivered work, health and skills approach.

Autism creates employment barriers that can affect young people's daily lives and mental health. As outlined in the Pathways to Work Green Paper, we have ambitious plans to better support our young people to lead fulfilling lives and careers.

Jobcentre Plus already offers extensive assistance to young disabled people and those with health conditions, focusing on individual needs and collaborating with local partners for appropriate support. In addition, work coaches in Youth Hubs and Youth Employability Coaches, provide targeted interventions to build skills, confidence, and employment opportunities.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Neil Duncan-Jordan:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will ensure that autism is included in the Youth Employment Strategy. \p Alison McGovern: As a Government, we want to support all forms of neurodiversity in the workplace, and we are looking to build on the findings of the Buckland Review of Autism Employment by gathering expert evidence in line with this expanded focus.

As part of plan to Get Britain Working, we will launch a Youth Guarantee for all young people aged 18-21 in England to ensure that they can access training opportunities, an apprenticeship or help to find work.

Our Youth Guarantee will meet the needs of those facing disadvantages relating to mental or physical health. Collaborating closely with stakeholders from a range of sectors will be integral to improving opportunities for young people. And that is why we have launched eight Youth Guarantee Trailblazers to test and learn before further roll out of the Youth Guarantee. These Trailblazers are testing joining-up locally and nationally delivered work, health and skills approach.

Autism creates employment barriers that can affect young people's daily lives and mental health. As outlined in the Pathways to Work Green Paper, we have ambitious plans to better support our young people to lead fulfilling lives and careers.

Jobcentre Plus already offers extensive assistance to young disabled people and those with health conditions, focusing on individual needs and collaborating with local partners for appropriate support. In addition, work coaches in Youth Hubs and Youth Employability Coaches, provide targeted interventions to build skills, confidence, and employment opportunities.
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Neil Duncan-Jordan:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of trends in the level of children in poverty. \p Alison McGovern: Statistics on the number of children living in absolute and relative poverty in the UK are published annually in the “Households Below Average Income” publication, the latest available being  Households below average income: for financial years ending 1995 to 2024 - GOV.UK. The table showing the percentage of children in relative poverty over time is published as “table 4.1tr” of “children-trends-hbai-1994-95-2023-24-tables”.

Statistics on the number of children living in absolute and relative poverty on a before housing costs basis at local level are published annually in the “Children in low income families: local area statistics” publication, the latest available being Children in low income families: local area statistics 2014 to 2024 - GOV.UK.

The latest statistics published on 27 March 2025 are up to and including 2023/24. The latest available data can also be found on Stat-Xplore: https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/. Guidance on how to use it can be found here: https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/User-Guide.html.

In 2023/24 there were 900,000 more children in relative poverty after housing costs in the UK than in 2010/11. Delivering our manifesto commitment to tackle child poverty is an urgent priority for this Government. The Ministerial Taskforce is working to publish a Child Poverty Strategy looking at levers across four key themes of increasing incomes, including considering social security reforms, reducing essential costs, increasing financial resilience; and better local support especially in the early years. This will build on the reform plans underway across government and work underway in Devolved Government.

The Taskforce is listening to experts and campaigners and ensuring the voices of families and children with experience of poverty are brought into policy thinking and decision making as part of the development of the Child Poverty Strategy. This includes three key stands of work – a Parents and Carers Forum, engagement with the Changing Realities Project and research with children and young people.

The vital work of the Taskforce comes alongside our commitments to triple investment in breakfast clubs to over £30 million, introduce a Fair Repayment Rate for deductions from Universal Credit, improve the adequacy of the standard allowance with the first sustained above inflation rise in the basic rate of Universal Credit since it was introduced and increase the National Living Wage to £12.21 an hour to boost the pay of three million workers.
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Siân Berry:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the implications for her Department's policies of the report entitled Social insecurity: the devastating human rights impact of social security system failures in the UK by Amnesty International, published on 25 April 2025. \p Alison McGovern: The UK Government takes its international obligations seriously and values the insights provided by Amnesty International and notes their recommendations.

The UK Government is committed to tackling poverty across the UK. Good work can significantly reduce the chances of people falling into poverty so this will be the foundation of our approach. The proposals in our plan for Making Work Pay and our Get Britain Working White Paper and our urgent work to bring forward our Child Poverty Strategy reflect our commitment to delivering lasting change.

Alongside this as announced in our Pathways to Work Green Paper we will establish a new guarantee of support for all disabled people and people with health conditions claiming out of work benefits who want help to get into or return to work.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Neil Duncan-Jordan:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions she has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on protected funding for the child poverty strategy. \p Alison McGovern: We are working across government to develop the Child Poverty Strategy and are committed to exploring all available levers to reduce child poverty. The Chief Secretary to the Treasury is a part of the Child Poverty Taskforce and the Secretary of State has regular discussions on child poverty with HM Treasury Ministers. Officials in the Child Poverty Unit are also working closely with policy and analytical experts across departments, such as HM Treasury.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Helen Whately:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the oral contribution of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in the debate on the Report stage of the Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Recovery) Bill on 29 April 2025, Official Report, column 236, how many sickfluencers have been prosecuted under the (a) Fraud Act 2006 and (b) Serious Crime Act 2007. \p Andrew Western: The Department does not use the term ‘sickfluencer’ as a defined term and, as such, does not collect data under this description. Furthermore, the Department is not a prosecuting body; DWP’s role is to refer cases for consideration of prosecution to the appropriate prosecuting authority who are then responsible for taking the case forward, including determining the most appropriate offences to prosecute under.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Cat Eccles:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the merits of writing off debt payments for Child Support Agency payments valued below £500. \p Andrew Western: The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) has the ability to write off Child Support Agency (CSA) debt that is £500 and under in circumstances where no payment has been made within the last 90 days and where administrative powers have been considered but were deemed inappropriate or ineffective.

Writing off is not a quick or easy decision and involves exhausting other approaches to deal with the debt. All Child Support Agency debt is now at least 11 years old.

In the year ending March 2024 £17.8m of CSA debt was collected and £13.5m was written off.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Rachel Gilmour:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the potential cost to the public purse of (a) food insecurity and (b) economic hardship. \p Alison McGovern: It is unacceptable that people are falling into hardship and using foodbanks. This is why we have committed to tackling poverty and ending mass dependence on emergency food parcels.

Our plan for Making Work Pay and our Get Britain Working White Paper, alongside our work to develop our Child Poverty Strategy, will ensure better outcomes for families whose lives are damaged by poverty as well as supporting the delivery of our missions on economic growth and opportunity.

We have taken action to help those facing hardship through the increase in the National Living Wage from April, the extension of the Household Support Fund and Discretionary Housing Payments in England and Wales in 2025/26 and the introduction of the Fair Repayment Rate from April.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Margaret Mullane:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if her Department will remove the 2011 cap on Local Housing Allowance payable for temporary accommodation through the Housing Benefit Subsidy system. \p Sir Stephen Timms: DWP pays local authorities a Housing Benefit subsidy for temporary accommodation cases. There are restrictions on the amount paid, including a subsidy cap which is £500 per week in certain areas of London or £375 elsewhere.

We recognise the financial pressures which local authorities are experiencing. MHCLG are increasing funding for homelessness services this year by an extra £233 million compared to last year (2024/25).

We continue to keep the rates used for Housing Benefit subsidy under review and are working closely with MHCLG and the Inter-Ministerial Group on Homelessness and Rough Sleeping to explore the impacts of subsidy rates on local authorities.

Any future decisions on subsidy rates will be taken in the context of the Government’s missions, goals on housing and the current challenging financial environment at the appropriate fiscal event.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Chris Hinchliff:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to consult people living with motor neurone disease on the development of the health and disability green paper. \p Sir Stephen Timms: This government strongly values the input of disabled people and people with health conditions, and that is why we have brought forward this Green Paper and opened a public consultation. The consultation welcomes their views, and we hope that a wide range of voices will respond before it closes on the 30 June 2025.

We are also running a programme of accessible public events to further facilitate input. The series of both virtual and in-person events across the country, will help us to hear from disabled people and representative organisations directly.

We are continuing to facilitate other ways to involve stakeholders and disabled people in our reforms. In addition to the consultation itself, we will establish ‘collaboration committees’ that bring groups, including disabled people and other experts, together for specific work areas. Our wider review of the PIP assessment, led by myself, will also bring together a range of experts, stakeholders and people with lived experience.
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Jess Brown-Fuller:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Green Paper entitled Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working, published on 18 March 2025, what estimate her Department has made of the number of people with terminal illnesses who are younger than 22 who will lose (a) the health component of Universal Credit and (b) any other form of incapacity benefit. \p Sir Stephen Timms: We are currently consulting on whether to delay access to the health element of Universal Credit within the reformed system until someone is aged 22 as part of the ‘Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working’ Green Paper.

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/pathways-to-work-reforming-benefits-and-support-to-get-britain-working-green-paper/pathways-to-work-reforming-benefits-and-support-to-get-britain-working-green-paper#chapter-2-reforming-the-structure-of-the-health-and-disability-benefits-system
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Mary Kelly Foy:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the proposed changes to Personal Independence Payment on people in the North East. \p Liz Kendall: It is vital that our social security system, including PIP, is sustainable now and into the future.

That is why we are reforming the system, so we protect those who can never work and so that those who can work get the help they need and deserve – including by investing an additional £1 billion in our new Pathways to Work employment programme.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Josh Newbury:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of vehicles rented by her Department are electric vehicles. \p Andrew Western: In March 2025, out of a total of 1023 vehicles hired, 68 were hybrid electric vehicles, 1 was a purely electric vehicle. A percentage of 6.7% of the vehicles hired were either electric or electric-capable, with only one being fully electric.

DWP is committed to transitioning towards full electrification of the DWP fleet vehicles in line with the Government Greening Commitment 2027. This includes replacing Petrol and Diesel vehicles with Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs) where operationally viable. In addition, DWP is committed to ensuring the maximum use of Battery Electrical Vehicles during short term car hire where operationally viable and through seeking to ensure the increasing availability of those vehicles in the new Hire car contract.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-12)

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Helen Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to ensure that people receiving Universal Credit have adequate support for accessing (a) employment opportunities and (b) training in Epsom and Ewell constituency. \p Sir Stephen Timms: Jobcentre teams work closely with Epsom and Ewell Council, Employers, local colleges and providers to promote employment and training opportunities. The Employment and Partnership Team recently facilitated the Annual Epsom & Ewell Employment Fair with Nescot College, Epsom & Ewell Council and Surrey Lifelong Learning Partnership.

The Jobcentre offers Sector Based Work Academy Programmes and Mentoring Circles to give customers the skills to enter employment. Often, customers engage directly with an employer to find out role requirements. For example, working with the Jobcentre, Macro will facilitate a series of Mentoring Circle sessions to help people with mental health impairments move closer to employment.