Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, when his Department last raised the rights of women and girls in Afghanistan in the (a) UN Human Rights Council and (b) General Assembly.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The government continues to call for the human rights of all Afghans to be protected. We condemned the Taliban's actions against women and girls in a statement at the UN Third Committee on 8 October and in a statement on Afghanistan at the 57th UN Human Rights Council on 9 October. The future of Afghanistan as a country at peace with itself, its neighbours and the international community, relies on there being human rights for all.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the provision of community accessible covered tennis courts in underserved communities.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is committed to doing more to ensure that everyone from all backgrounds have access to and benefit from quality sport and physical activity opportunities. Sport and physical activity is central to achieving our health and opportunity manifesto missions, with the biggest gains coming from supporting those who are inactive to move more.
Sport England, the Government’s arm’s length body for grassroots sport, provides long term investment to the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA), the National Governing Body for tennis in Britain. The LTA is receiving up to £10.2 million for five years, to invest in community tennis and padel initiatives that will benefit everyone, including disabled people, women and girls and older people.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what data his Department holds on the number of (a) pregnant women and (b) new mothers receiving free dental treatment on the NHS (i) nationally and (ii) by region.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Pregnant women and new mothers are entitled to free National Health Service dental care. The following table shows the total number of Courses of Treatment delivered nationally to new mothers and pregnant women over the last five years:
Patient type | 2019/20 | 2020/21 | 2021/22 | 2022/23 | 2023/24 |
Expectant mother | 304,536 | 104,659 | 204,229 | 215,528 | 211,935 |
Mother of child born in the year before treatment started | 471,033 | 144,737 | 289,624 | 330,000 | 321,718 |
Source: Data is published by the NHS Business Services Authority, and is available at the following link: https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/statistical-collections/dental-england/dental-statistics-england-202324
We do not hold data for each region.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to help tackle global hunger.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are urgently addressing catastrophic forms of hunger through diplomatic and humanitarian channels. The Foreign Secretary recently committed to doubling our aid for those affected by war in Sudan. Last week, the Prime Minister announced the UK’s Board-level role in the Global Alliance against Hunger and Poverty. This will pool resources and expertise for long-term solutions, backed by new £70m UK support, including for climate-resilient food production.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
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 adequacy of the provision of health services for women.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Women’s health is a priority for this government. We are considering how to take forward the Women’s Health Strategy and aligning our work on women’s health with the forthcoming 10-Year Health Plan.Work continues to improve health outcomes for women, including the £25 million women’s health hubs pilot, new NICE guidance on endometriosis and menopause and extending the Baby Loss Certificate service.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
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 adequacy of the availability of NHS dentistry for (a) pregnant women and (b) new mothers; and what steps he is taking to increase the availability of that treatment.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
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 and increase access to NHS dental care, we will reform the dental contract, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.
The responsibility for commissioning primary care, including dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to all integrated care boards (ICBs) across England. For the Norwich North constituency, this is the NHS Norfolk and Waveney ICB.
Pregnant women and new mothers are entitled to free NHS dental care. The following table show the total number of Courses of Treatment delivered nationally to new mothers and pregnant women over the last five years:
Patient type | 2019/20 | 2020/21 | 2021/22 | 2022/23 | 2023/24 |
Expectant mother | 304,536 | 104,659 | 204,229 | 215,528 | 211,935 |
Mother of child born in the year before treatment started | 471,033 | 144,737 | 289,624 | 330,000 | 321,718 |
Source: data is published by the NHS Business Services Authority, and can be found at the following link: https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/statistical-collections/dental-england/dental-statistics-england-202324
We do not hold data for each region.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the impact of challenges accessing dental care on pregnant women.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
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 and increase access to NHS dental care, we will reform the dental contract, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.
The responsibility for commissioning primary care, including dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to all integrated care boards (ICBs) across England. For the Norwich North constituency, this is the NHS Norfolk and Waveney ICB.
Pregnant women and new mothers are entitled to free NHS dental care. The following table show the total number of Courses of Treatment delivered nationally to new mothers and pregnant women over the last five years:
Patient type | 2019/20 | 2020/21 | 2021/22 | 2022/23 | 2023/24 |
Expectant mother | 304,536 | 104,659 | 204,229 | 215,528 | 211,935 |
Mother of child born in the year before treatment started | 471,033 | 144,737 | 289,624 | 330,000 | 321,718 |
Source: data is published by the NHS Business Services Authority, and can be found at the following link: https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/statistical-collections/dental-england/dental-statistics-england-202324
We do not hold data for each region.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
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 ensure that people with Alzheimer’s disease in the East of England receive (a) an early diagnosis and (b) swift treatment.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Improving dementia care is one of four workstreams delivering NHS England’s Ageing Well Strategy. The dementia workstream is looking at improving early diagnosis and early access to care and support for patients, families, and carers, as well as taking preventative action through public health messaging, promoting healthy lifestyle choices, and expanding NHS Health Checks. The workstream is also looking at improving local services and delivering an integrated approach to care across statutory, voluntary, community, and social enterprises, as well as other services, and providing dementia training for the workforce.
A Norfolk and Suffolk system-wide Dementia Round Table event was held in September 2024 to identify what changes need to be made to the pathway in order to meet the needs of a complex patient group in a rural geography. The findings of this event have since evolved into a set of priorities focussed on the review of the clinical model and commissioning arrangements.
Norfolk and Waveney’s statutory partners have signed-up to a Dementia Charter and have agreed to a set of best practice principles and way of working which will mean that people using dementia services will have a smooth transition between services and organisations.
In the last four months, community diagnostic centres have opened at the James Paget Hospital and the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, which will help to make it easier and speed-up the time it takes for people to get diagnosis scans. A further diagnostic centre will be opening at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital early next year.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance the Government provides to local authorities on the inspection of school ceilings.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Responsibility for keeping buildings safe and well-maintained lies with responsible bodies, such as local authorities and academy trusts, along with their schools. The department supports them by providing capital funding, delivering major rebuilding programmes and offering guidance and support.
The department provides good estate management for schools (GEMS), which is a manual and toolkit to support responsible bodies and schools with their estate management. The guidance can be found at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/good-estate-management-for-schools.
The guidance contains a range of information that can help organisations to manage their school estate, including strategic estate management, maintenance and health and safety compliance. This includes guidance on carrying out condition surveys and how to procure professional services, which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/good-estate-management-for-schools/understanding-land-and-buildings#assessing-the-condition-of-your-estate and here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/good-estate-management-for-schools/planning-and-organising-your-estate-resources#buying-goods-works-and-services.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people are affected by long covid in (a) Norfolk, (b) the East of England and (c) England.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The most recent data from the Winter Coronavirus (COVID-19) Infection Study, a joint study carried out by the Office for National Statistics and the UK Health Security Agency, shows that, for the period of 6 February 2024 to 7 March 2024, an estimated 1.8 million people, or 3.3% of the population, in private households in England reported experiencing long COVID symptoms more than four weeks after a COVID-19 infection.
For the same period, approximately 200,000 people, or 3.3% of the population, in private households in the East of England reported experiencing long COVID symptoms more than four weeks after a COVID-19 infection.