Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information her Department holds on the number of people who (a) were under the age of 18 and (b) from Southport constituency who attended (i) Alder Hey Children's Hospital Trust and (ii) Ormskirk District General Hospital Children's Accident and Emergency Departments in each year from 2002-2023.

Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Whilst the information is not available in the format requested, NHS England publishes information on accident and emergency attendance, which is available at the following link:

https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/hospital-accident--emergency-activity

Accident and emergency attendance data is available for Adler Hey Children’s NHS Foundation Trust and Southport and Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust from 2008/09. The following tables respectively show the accident and emergency attendance for patients between zero and 17 years old in each of the last three years, and the accident and emergency attendance for patients between zero and 19 years old each year from 2008/09, at Adler Hey Children’s NHS Foundation Trust and Southport and Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust:

Notes:

1. Accident and emergency data is published at a National Health Service trust level, not at hospital site level, and therefore attendance data is not available by constituency; and
2. on the 1 July 2023, Southport and Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust was dissolved and its services transferred to Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what financial support is available to farmers impacted by flooding who are not eligible for support under the Farming Recovery Fund.

Answered by Robbie Moore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

October 2023 to March 2024 was the second wettest six-month period on record in England; recorded rainfall was nearly 60% above the average of the last decade. The impacts on farm businesses are already evident in some sectors and are likely to extend through the year. In recognition of these events, Ministers are in discussions with our stakeholders about what further support is needed.

On 9 April we opened the Farming Recovery Fund, which provides grants of between £500 and £25,000 to eligible farmers affected by the exceptional flooding. The fund provides farmers with support to recover from uninsurable damage caused by the flooding. We have listened and responded to feedback and have already removed the requirement for land affected to be within 150 metres of the main river, which will increase the number of farmers who are eligible.

We are actively reviewing the eligible areas for the Fund in England, including the eligibility within the original nine local authority areas we announced.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to support widowed pensioners to manage their finances.

Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Government recognises that people face important decisions about how to use their pension savings and ensures everyone has access to free, impartial pension guidance through the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS).

Pension Wise, a service delivered through MaPS’ MoneyHelper brand, can help anyone over 50 understand their options for accessing their Defined Contribution pension pots. After entering retirement, ongoing guidance is available through the MoneyHelper website, hotline and webchat. This ranges from budget planners and retirement-specific benefits, to long-term care and debt support.

MoneyHelper also provides support for people who need help with their money matters when someone has died, including specific guidance on pensions and bereavement. This includes how to register a power of attorney.

Furthermore, in November 2023 the Government, in the response to the ‘Helping savers understand their pension choices: supporting individuals at the point of access’ consultation, signalled its intent to place duties on all trustees of occupational pension schemes to offer a decumulation service to support their members with decisions around accessing their pension savings. This includes offering a range of products at an appropriate quality and price.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to support pensioners to manage their finances.

Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Government recognises that people face important decisions about how to use their pension savings and ensures everyone has access to free, impartial pension guidance through the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS).

Pension Wise, a service delivered through MaPS’ MoneyHelper brand, can help anyone over 50 understand their options for accessing their Defined Contribution pension pots. After entering retirement, ongoing guidance is available through the MoneyHelper website, hotline and webchat. This ranges from budget planners and retirement-specific benefits, to long-term care and debt support.

MoneyHelper also provides support for people who need help with their money matters when someone has died, including specific guidance on pensions and bereavement. This includes how to register a power of attorney.

Furthermore, in November 2023 the Government, in the response to the ‘Helping savers understand their pension choices: supporting individuals at the point of access’ consultation, signalled its intent to place duties on all trustees of occupational pension schemes to offer a decumulation service to support their members with decisions around accessing their pension savings. This includes offering a range of products at an appropriate quality and price.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress her Department has made on reducing waiting lists for planned care in the North West.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Cutting waiting lists for elective care is one of this Prime Minister’s top priorities. The Delivery Plan for Tackling the COVID-19 Backlog of Elective Care outlines how the National Health Service will bring down waiting times across all elective services. To support this plan and tackle waiting lists the Government plans to spend more than £8 billion from 2022/23 to 2024/25 to drive up and protect elective activity. We are making good progress on tackling the longest waits, to ensure patients get the care they need when they need it.

In July 2022, the NHS successfully met the first target in our plan to virtually eliminate waits of over two years, excluding patients waiting by choice or due to complex specialties. The NHS then worked hard to deliver the next ambition to eliminate waits of 18 months or more. Thanks to the incredible work of NHS staff, NHS England's official statistics show that as of March 2024, we have virtually eliminated waits of over 18 months.

Referral to Treatment (RTT) waiting times data is published monthly by NHS England:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/rtt-waiting-times/

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent progress she has made on increasing access to cancer screening in the North West.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

NHS England North West has carried out significant work to improve access to cancer screening in the area, including: insight work into cervical screening, which has highlighted some issues, resulting in the piloting of potential solutions; a breast mobile site review being carried out, with findings and recommendations to be shared with trusts to act upon; five bowel and seven breast providers have been trained to use data to develop a Health Equity Audit, which will be submitted at the end of June 2024, with funding being offered to providers to design, develop, implement, and evaluate an intervention to reduce inequalities and barriers experienced by a population group they have identified in their Health Equity Audit; and funding being provided for Improving Uptake in Screening Officers, working to support non responders to take up the offer of breast screening.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent fiscal steps his Department has taken to help support small and local businesses in the (a) seasonal tourism and (b) service industries.

Answered by Gareth Davies - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Government is committed to supporting small and local businesses in the hospitality, tourism, and services sectors, which provide a significant contribution to the UK economy and society.

At the Autumn Statement 2023, the Government announced an extension to the 75% business rate relief for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure properties for 2024-25, a tax cut worth £2.4 billion.

Spring Budget 2024 goes further to support SMEs by increasing the VAT registration threshold from £85,000 to £90,000 which means the UK now has the joint highest VAT registration threshold in the OECD. This keeps the majority of UK businesses out.

Our Small Business Rates Relief means one-third of business properties in England already pay no Business Rates. We provide other tax reliefs benefiting SMEs such as the Annual Investment Allowance and Employment Allowance, and support investment in SMEs through British Business Bank programmes.

Furthermore, over this Spending Review period – the Government has allocated over £100m to the British Tourist Authority to support VisitBritain and VisitEngland with marketing activity to promote Britain as a destination.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to support those commuting by car between towns and cities in the North West.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Plan for Drivers, published last year, shows that the government is on the side of drivers, including measures to promote smoother journeys and cracking down on inconsiderate driving. We are also investing significantly in the strategic and local road network, including £8.5m allocated to roads across the North West from the third round of the Safer Roads Fund in March 2024, and £1.3bn investment through the Road Investment Strategy in enhancing, renewing and maintaining the Strategic Road Network in the North West in the period 2020 - 2023. In addition, the Network North announcement included an additional £3.3bn long term road surfacing fund for the North for the period 2023-2033. This is in addition to the local transport funding already allocated at the last Spending Review and to what local authorities were already expecting in the future.

Another significant step we have taken to support commuting by cars is, no increase in the main fuel duty rate since January 2011. Furthermore, recognising fuel price volatility, we cut five pence off fuel duty in March 2022. This was extended for another year in March 2023. This cut, along with the fuel duty freeze, saved the average car driver around £100 in 2023/24.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to improve road (a) maintenance and (b) conditions in the North West.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

On 4 October 2023 the Prime Minister announced an unprecedented increase of £8.3 billion for local highway maintenance over the period from 2023/24 to 2033/34 to help fix the blight of potholes on our local highway networks up and down the country.

As part of this, local highway authorities in the North West of England will receive in total a minimum funding uplift of £1.269 billion between 2023-24 and 2033-34. This includes an additional £19 million in both the 2023/24 and 2024/25 financial years to allow local highway authorities across the North West to make an immediate start on improving road conditions. Funding allocations for individual local highway authorities are published on gov.uk.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to expand support available through Jobcentres in Southport constituency.

Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The local Jobcentre team are collaborating with a range of partners to support people into work and help employers fill vacancies. In addition to hosting job fairs, delivering Sector-Based Work Academy Programmes (SWAPs), and hosting employer Group Information Sessions, Southport Jobcentre is working with Sefton Council, local colleges, care & childcare providers, manufacturing, retail, education, agriculture, and hospitality companies, to provide an employment and skills offer to help meet the recruitment needs of local employers.

Southport Jobcentre has been working closely with employers such as Sainsbury’s and McDonald’s to hosts SWAP’s for Southport residents to have direct access to live vacancies. The Jobcentre has also collaborated with Southport College to hosts job fairs to bring together national and local employers for job opportunities as well as providers to support customers with breaking down barriers to work. Additionally, the Jobcentre looks forward to supporting Southport’s future regeneration and exciting projects which includes the Southport Enterprise Arcade, the Garrick Theatre development and the Marine Lake Events Centre.

Disability Employment Advisers (DEA’s) offer advice and expertise on how to help disabled people and people with health conditions into work, alongside close working with Merseycare, The Peer Mentoring Service, Life Rooms, and Sefton Council. Southport Jobcentre colleagues also attend local events to highlight the support available, including Access to Work, Disability Confident and the Working Health Pioneer programme.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to support in-work progression.

Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Since September 2022 we have increased the Administrative Earnings Threshold (AET) from earnings equivalent to 9 hours per week at the National Living Wage to the equivalent of 18 hours, bringing over 400,000 working customers into regular support from a Work Coach to help them increase in work progression and thereby increase earnings.

In addition, working Universal Credit customers earning above the AET are eligible to access support on a voluntary basis from a Work Coach, providing individual and tailored support designed to help customers.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent steps her Department has taken to support (a) companies and (b) individuals in the development of fusion technology.

Answered by Andrew Bowie - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Government has announced its plan to launch the Spherical Tokomak for Energy Production (STEP) procurement process on 22nd May. This multi-stage competition, which offers the chance to bid for up to hundreds of millions of pounds in the initial contract period until 2029, will seek to find industry partners in engineering and construction, to form a world-leading public-private alliance led by UK Industrial Fusion Solutions Ltd (UKIFS). Meanwhile, UK Research and Innovation invest in research grants for fusion, doctoral training and support fusion companies through the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council's prosperity partnership.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department has taken to support (a) small and (b) independent theatres.

Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

His Majesty’s Government is committed to supporting the arts and cultural sector, including theatres. This is primarily through the Arts Council England whose funding for National Portfolio Organisations has increased to £444.6 million per annum, funding a record 985 organisations, including 214 new organisations outside of London.

Arts Council England invests in nearly 200 theatres or theatre companies that produce, commission, and present theatre, in addition to arts centres, festivals and outdoor theatre companies. These range from large theatres in cities - Liverpool Theatres, Manchester Royal Exchange, Sheffield Theatres - to smaller theatres and theatre companies often with a particular specialism, such as theatre for children, theatre with a disability focus, theatre companies that co-create with different communities or theatre companies that are designed to tour. Overall investment in theatre has increased through the current round of the Arts Council’s National Portfolio programme – both in terms of the number of organisations supported, and the volume of funding which is now more than £110 million per annum.

A number of theatres are also regularly supported through the Arts Council’s open access National Lottery Project Grants programme which has a budget of £116.8 million a year. This is a rolling programme and is open to artists and companies across the country.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of updating the Integrated Defence Review in 2024.

Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)

The Integrated Review Refresh published in March 2023 updated the 2021 Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy which anticipated some but not all the global turbulence of the previous two years including Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The refreshed Integrated Review published in March 2023 set out our new approach through an updated strategic framework delivered through four pillars. The department continues to work to implement and deliver its ambition. A decision to refresh the Integrated Review is for the Prime Minister and currently no such decision has been made.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to help support small and local businesses within the defence industry.

Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

The MOD recognises the vital contribution that Small and local businesses make within the defence industry. UK MOD is continuously working to address issues that limit access for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) to defence opportunities, both directly with the department and through prime suppliers’ supply-chains. MOD’s SME Action Plan outlines the actions and commitments we have made to support SMEs seeking to work in defence. Increasing the diversity of the defence supply-chain helps us to identify and exploit innovation and improves the resilience of the defence industry overall.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to preserve psammosere environments in (a) Southport constituency and (b) across the UK.

Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The sand dune habitats of the Sefton Coast benefit from a range of legal protections - as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), Special Area of Conservation (SAC), Ramsar site and National Nature Reserves (NNRs).

Natural England (NE) works proactively with landowners, land managers, developers, and the public to ensure these important habitats are protected. The Sefton Coast Partnership has a key role in bringing stakeholders together to ensure dune habitats are conserved. The Sefton Coast was a location in the Dynamic Dunescapes project which actively restored dune habitats by removing scrub, helping dune re-mobilisation, and utilising livestock grazing to manage vegetation.

In England, we have set four legally binding targets for biodiversity, to halt the decline in species abundance by 2030; to reverse species decline by 2042; to reduce the risk of species extinction; and to restore or create more than 500,000 hectares of wildlife-rich habitat, which will include psammoseres. These targets, alongside other targets on water and air quality for example, will drive action to create and restore habitats, reduce pressures on nature, and recover species.

A recently published paper, Environment Act Habitat Target – Definitions and Descriptions, developed jointly by Defra and Natural England, provides detail for those involved in on-the-ground activities to restore or create wildlife-rich habitats. It includes the list of wildlife-rich habitats, of which several are coastal, for example, littoral sand and muddy sand, coastal vegetated shingle and coastal sand dunes.

Natural flood management is a key part of our solution to tackling flood and coastal erosion risks. We will double the number of government funded projects which include nature-based solutions to reduce flood and coastal erosion risk. Actions such as dune restoration not only help to reduce flood risk, but also provide other environmental benefits to wider areas. In February we awarded £25 million of funding to 40 schemes around England for improving flood resilience through a new natural flood management programme.

The Environment Agency’s Restoring Meadow, Marsh and Reef (ReMeMaRe) initiative is working to restore our estuarine and coastal habitats, including saltmarsh, to benefit people and nature. The initiative involves Defra arms-length bodies, and a partnership network of environmental non-governmental organisations. It has a mission to restore 15% of the current extent of our key estuarine and coastal habitats (such as saltmarsh, seagrass, native oyster reefs) by 2043.

Natural England is also undertaking climate change risk and vulnerability assessments across the SSSI network and developing site adaptive plans to identify climate vulnerable habitats, including sand dunes, and guide management to improve their resilience.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to improve the combat readiness of the armed forces.

Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)

Our Armed Forces are always ready to protect and defend the UK and we continue to meet all operational commitments, including participating in every single NATO mission.

The Defence Command Paper 23 sets out our plan to deliver a credible warfighting force, generated and employed to protect the nation and help it prosper now and in the years to come. This plan will deliver the biggest transformation and strengthening of our national defence since the Cold War.

To support this, defence spending will increase to £87 billion a year by the end of the decade. As part of this, we're investing £10 billion in munitions production to ensure we have rapid production capacity and stockpiles of next generation munitions.

Found: Glenrothes ) Paul Holmes MP (Conservative, Eastleigh ) Gareth Johnson MP (Conservative, Dartford ) Damien

Found: Glenrothes ) Paul Holmes MP (Conservative, Eastleigh) Gareth Johnson MP (Conservative, Dartford ) Damien

Found: Glenrothes ) Paul Holmes MP (Conservative, Eastleigh) Gareth Johnson MP (Conservative, Dartford ) Damien

Found: Glenrothes ) Paul Holmes MP (Conservative, Eastleigh ) Gareth Johnson MP (Conservative, Dartford ) Damien

Found: Holloway Dame Andrea Jenkyns Sir Julian Lewis Jill Mortimer Mr David Jones Brendan Clarke-Smith Damien

Found: Champion Shailesh Vara Tracey Crouch Mr David Jones Tim Farron Jane Stevenson Ms Marie Rimmer Damien

Found: Champion Shailesh Vara Tracey Crouch Mr David Jones Tim Farron Jane Stevenson Ms Marie Rimmer Damien

Found: Champion Shailesh Vara Tracey Crouch Mr David Jones Tim Farron Jane Stevenson Ms Marie Rimmer Damien

Found: Champion Shailesh Vara Tracey Crouch Mr David Jones Tim Farron Jane Stevenson Ms Marie Rimmer Damien

Found: Champion Shailesh Vara Tracey Crouch Mr David Jones Tim Farron Jane Stevenson Ms Marie Rimmer Damien