Asked by: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has considered removing prescription charges for patients with Cystic Fibrosis.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
There are currently no plans to add cystic fibrosis to the list of medical conditions that entitle someone to apply for a medical exemption certificate which exempts the holder from paying the National Health Service prescription charge.
Asked by: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taken to reduce the waiting times for a decision on Access to Work claims from Yeovil constituency.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
We are committed to reducing waiting times for Access to Work. We have increased the number of staff processing Access to Work claims by 27% and applications from customers who are about to start a job or who are renewing are prioritised.
The Pathways to Work Green Paper launched a consultation on the future of Access to Work which has now concluded. Following over 47,500 responses from individuals, charities and other stakeholders, as well as 18 consultation events, we published our summary of the responses to the Pathways to Work Green Paper consultation on 30 October 2025.
Asked by: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of proposals in the Autumn Budget 2025 on community pharmacies in Yeovil constituency.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The 2026/27 national community pharmacy funding arrangements will be subject to consultation with Community Pharmacy England, which will commence shortly.
Funding for the core community pharmacy contractual framework increased to £3.073 billion for 2025/2026. This represented the largest uplift in funding of any part of the National Health Service, over 19% across 2024/25 and 2025/26. This shows a first step in delivering stability for the future and a commitment to rebuilding the sector.
Asked by: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of school absence fines on (a) neurodiverse children and (b) their families.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The statutory guidance ‘Working together to improve school attendance’ promotes a 'support first' approach, which sets clear expectations about how schools, local authorities and wider services should work together with families to address attendance barriers. This includes where a pupil's attendance is affected by their neurodiversity.
The guidance is clear that schools should work in partnership with families, establish strategies to remove any in-school barriers these pupils face, and consider support or reasonable adjustments.
The department has also introduced a national framework for issuing fixed penalty notices which strengthens protections for parents with an expectation that attendance support will have been provided before a penalty notice can be used.
Asked by: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he will publish the Defence Investment Plan.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Defence Investment Plan (DIP) will be published when it is ready. Our aim is to ensure decisions in the DIP are robust and support the development of both current and future capabilities, helping to drive the transformation of our Armed Forces described in the Strategic Defence Review.
Asked by: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to strengthen the social care workforce in (a) Yeovil constituency and (b) Somerset.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
For adult social care workforce in specific areas, local authorities hold the duty to ensure sufficient provision. Under the Care Act 2014, they must promote an effective market to meet local care and support needs, including fostering a workforce able to deliver high quality services.
Nationally, the Government plans to introduce the first ever Fair Pay Agreement in 2028, backed by £500 million of funding to improve pay and conditions for the adult social care workforce. This will improve recruitment and retention and give staff better recognition for their vital work. The £500 million forms part of the approximately £4.6 billion of additional funding available for adult social care in 2028/29, compared to 2025/26.
Ensuring staff have the skills and training needed to work in social care is also essential, both to attract people to join and remain in the workforce, and for the provision of high-quality care and support. That is why we have developed the Care Workforce Pathway, the first national career framework for adult social care, and we are investing £12 million in learning and development through the Learning and Development Support Scheme, to enable eligible staff to complete eligible courses and qualifications.
These actions form part of our wider commitment to improving skills and support for the social care workforce.
Asked by: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support NHS Somerset Integrated Care Board to increase access to therapeutic play services in Yeovil constituency.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises the importance of supporting and maintaining children’s right to play in healthcare settings.
The primary National Health Service trust responsible for services in the Yeovil constituency is the Somerset NHS Foundation Trust. The Somerset NHS Foundation Trust is part of a regional delivery network in the South West which provides support to help trusts develop and improve therapeutic play services. This group brings together play specialists, nurses, managers, and representatives from integrated care boards and other operational delivery networks. The group’s remit includes supporting trusts to implement the national Play Well Toolkit, published by NHS England and Starlight in June 2025.
In 2025, the working group conducted a review of hospital play services across participating trusts against the Play Well Toolkit standards. Yeovil District Hospital and Musgrove Park Hospital were included in this review. The findings highlighted common challenges across the region, such as staffing constraints and gaps in seven-day and emergency department provision. These insights are now informing local business cases and shaping regional priorities.
Asked by: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what her planned timetable is for appointing a retail and hospitality envoy.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government will make an announcement on the appointment of the Retail and Hospitality Envoy in the coming weeks.
Asked by: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to insure that NHS correspondence is accessible for constituents in Yeovil with a visual impairment.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Under the Equality Act 2010, health and social care organisations must make reasonable adjustments to ensure that disabled people are not disadvantaged. NHS England is rolling out a Reasonable Adjustment Digital Flag which enables the recording of key information about a disabled patient or client and the reasonable adjustments to care and treatment that they need, to ensure support can be tailored appropriately and equitably. This might include, although is not limited to, recording details of specific communication methods that are required for interacting with the person such as providing information in a specific format.
Since 2016, all National Health Service organisations and publicly funded social care providers are expected to meet the Accessible Information Standard (AIS), which details the approach to supporting the information and communication support needs of people with a disability, impairment, or sensory loss, including people with a visual impairment. Provision of correspondence in an accessible format is specifically covered within the AIS.
On 30 June 2025, NHS England published a revised AIS. NHS England is working to support implementation of the AIS with awareness raising, communication and engagement, and a review of the current e-learning modules on the AIS. The intention is to ensure that staff and organisations in the NHS are aware of the AIS and the importance of meeting the information and communication needs of disabled people using NHS services.
Asked by: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking to support Small and Medium Sized Enterprises in the energy efficiency and retrofit sector in Yeovil constituency.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
UK clean energy and related supply chain jobs are projected to rise from around 440,000 in 2023 to around 860,000 by 2030.
In April, we announced plans to train up to 18,000 skilled workers to install heat pumps, solar panels, insulation and work on heat networks through the Heat Training Grant and Warm Homes Skills Programme.
We have established the industry led Construction Skills Mission Board, tasked with developing and delivering a comprehensive industry skills led action plan. Further initiatives to support SMEs in the retrofit supply chain across the country in the Warm Homes Plan which will be published soon.