Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the estimated percentage of the population with a learning disability who are recorded on the Quality and Outcomes Framework learning disability register in general practice in England.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Quality and Outcomes Framework indicator relating to the learning disability register was retired for the 2025/26 contract year.
National published data is recorded on a financial year basis from April to March. This published data shows that, at the end of October 2025, there were 342,928 people aged 14 years old and over on a general practice learning disability register. This is approximately a quarter of the estimated number of adults with a learning disability in England.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what was the full-time equivalent vacancy rate for learning disabilities nurses across all NHS organisations in England in each of the past three years.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England published data every quarter on vacancies in National Health Service trusts. However, the data is not granular enough to identify rates for learning disability nurses.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many full-time equivalent learning disabilities nurses were employed across all NHS organisations in England in each of the past three years.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England publishes monthly NHS Hospital and Community Health Service Workforce Statistics for England. These include staff working for hospital trusts and core organisations but excludes staff working for other providers such as in primary care, general practice, or social care. This data is drawn from the Electronic Staff Record, the human resources system for the National Health Service. The following table shows the number of full-time equivalent learning disability nurses in hospital trusts and core organisations across England as of 30 September for each of the years 2022 to 2025:
| 30 September 2022 | 30 September 2023 | 30 September 2024 | 30 September 2025 |
|
Learning disabilities nurses | 2,974 | 2,998 | 3,040 | 3,167 |
|
Source: NHS Hospital and Community Health Service monthly workforce statistics, NHS England. | |||||
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking following the report by the Health Services Safety Investigations Body regarding electronic patient records (EPRs), which found that EPR systems have contributed to incidents of missed, delayed, or incorrect patient care, and that these risks have been "persistent despite national recommendations and guidance."
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England is actively considering the issues raised by the Health Services Safety Investigations Body regarding electronic patient records (EPRs).
EPRs are already improving safety and care to patients, helping to detect conditions such as sepsis more quickly and preventing medication errors. Analysis shows that highly digitised trusts have a 17.5% reduction in sepsis mortality.
The National Health Service has well-established systems in place for reporting, investigating, and learning from any patient safety incidents. We are working closely with NHS trusts to ensure EPRs are used to the highest quality and safety standards.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what percentage of patients on the Quality and Outcomes Framework learning disabilities register received an annual health check in general practice in England in each of the past three calendar years.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) indicator relating to the learning disability register was retired for the 2025/26 contract year. Only people aged 14 years old and over on a general practice (GP) learning disability register are eligible for a learning disability annual health check.
The following table shows the most recent data for those on a learning disability register who have received an annual health check in England for the last three calendar years, up until March 2025, as well as the percentage of patients on a learning disability register who are eligible for an annual health check:
Period | Learning disability annual health checks completed | Percentage of eligible people, aged 14 years old and over, on a GP learning disability register |
April 2022 to March 2023 | 242,641 | 78.13% |
April 2023 to March 2024 | 255,145 | 77.6% |
April 2024 to March 2025 | 267,666 | 79.9% |
The annual statistics publication of Health and Care of People with Learning Disabilities sets out the key differences in healthcare between people with a learning disability and those without. This includes data on key health issues for people who are recorded on their GP learning disability register, such as uptake of annual health checks. The 2024 to 2025 statistics is scheduled for publication on 4 December 2025.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the Supreme Court's ruling in JR87 [2025] UKSC 40, what assessment they have made of the statutory requirements on collective worship in schools in England and Wales.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Education is a devolved matter and as such this reply relates to England only.
The legislative framework for providing collective worship is different in England than in Northern Ireland. The Supreme Court ruling has only recently been published and the department will consider it carefully.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the arrest of Ibrahim Sharif in Bahrain; whether they have made any representations to the government of Bahrain about his arrest; and what assessment they have made of the compatibility of his arrest with freedom of expression in Bahrain.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
The Government is aware of reports concerning the arrest of Ibrahim Sharif in Bahrain. We maintain a regular dialogue with the Government of Bahrain on human rights issues, both bilaterally and through multilateral channels. We continue to encourage Bahrain to uphold its international commitments, including respect for freedom of expression, while recognising that these matters are subject to Bahraini law. We will monitor developments and engage with Bahraini authorities as appropriate.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the government of Bahrain's revocation of the visa of the Associated Press to cover the Manama Dialogue; and whether they have made any representations to the government of Bahrain about that action and compliance with obligations to uphold freedom of the press.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
We are aware of reports that the visa of Associated Press journalists was revoked ahead of this year's Manama Dialogue. The UK remains committed to supporting media freedom and regularly underlines the importance of this principle in our engagement with international partners, including Bahrain.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the Foreign Secretary made any representations to the government of Bahrain about high-profile imprisoned activists or human rights issues during the visit to that country.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
During her recent visit to Bahrain, the Foreign Secretary discussed a range of bilateral and regional issues. The UK maintains an open and frank dialogue with Bahrain on human rights.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the integrated care board (ICB) reorganisation process on ICB staff satisfaction.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
No formal assessment has been made, although the Department recognises that the current process of transition to new integrated care board (ICB) structures and roles directly impacts staff. As the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care acknowledged in his speech at the NHS Providers conference on 12 November, there has been uncertainty for staff for too long but funding arrangements for voluntary redundancy arrangements have now been confirmed and that will help to provide certainty for people. NHS England is working to support ICBs as part of the change process.
The Government is committed to the modernisation of the National Health Service as set out in the 10-Year Health Plan, including refocusing the role of ICBs to strategic commissioning. This will help to support the delivery of the three shifts, from hospital to community, from analogue to digital, and from sickness to prevention, that are needed to build a health service fit for the future.