Asked by: Allison Gardner (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department (a) is taking and (b) plans to take to support apprentices who cannot afford public transport to reach their apprenticeship.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Apprenticeships are jobs and the department expects employers to provide apprentices with the support, tools and resources they need for a high quality experience.
Where additional costs are anticipated, the department provides employers and apprenticeship providers with additional funding to support more apprenticeship opportunities. The department provides two payments of £500 to employers and providers when they take on apprentices aged 16 to 18, and up to age 24 for apprentices with an education, health and care plan or who have been in local authority care. These payments are used in many cases to support costs such as work equipment, uniforms or travel.
Apprentices may also be eligible for local discounted travel schemes. For example, apprentices over 18, living in a London borough and in the first year of an apprenticeship can get discounted travel with an Oyster photocard. Apprentices aged under 25 who have been in local authority care may be eligible for a £3,000 bursary, as well as wages from their employer. The bursary is not subject to tax and is not treated as income for benefits purposes.
As the department implements the Growth and Skills Levy to expand the range of in-work training available, we will ensure that people from low-income backgrounds are supported to access all opportunities.
Asked by: Allison Gardner (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what support her Department (a) provides and (b) plans to provide for apprentices who are required to purchase equipment to fulfil their apprenticeship.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Apprenticeships are jobs and the department expects employers to provide apprentices with the support, tools and resources they need for a high quality experience.
Where additional costs are anticipated, the department provides employers and apprenticeship providers with additional funding to support more apprenticeship opportunities. The department provides two payments of £500 to employers and providers when they take on apprentices aged 16 to 18, and up to age 24 for apprentices with an education, health and care plan or who have been in local authority care. These payments are used in many cases to support costs such as work equipment, uniforms or travel.
Apprentices may also be eligible for local discounted travel schemes. For example, apprentices over 18, living in a London borough and in the first year of an apprenticeship can get discounted travel with an Oyster photocard. Apprentices aged under 25 who have been in local authority care may be eligible for a £3,000 bursary, as well as wages from their employer. The bursary is not subject to tax and is not treated as income for benefits purposes.
As the department implements the Growth and Skills Levy to expand the range of in-work training available, we will ensure that people from low-income backgrounds are supported to access all opportunities.
Asked by: Allison Gardner (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to increase the provision of ADHD services across North Staffordshire.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department is currently considering next steps to improve access to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) services. It is the responsibility of integrated care boards (ICBs) to make appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including ADHD care pathways, in line with relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.
We are supporting a taskforce that NHS England is establishing to look at ADHD service provision and its impact on patient experience. The taskforce will bring together expertise from across a broad range of sectors, including the National Health Service, education, and justice, to better understand the challenges affecting people with ADHD, and to help provide a joined-up approach in response to concerns around rising demand.
The Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent ICB advises that it has commissioned a new adult ADHD diagnostic and treatment pathway which began in July 2023. The ICB is working closely with its provider trusts to implement the new pathway.
Asked by: Allison Gardner (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress his Department has made on reviewing the funding of research to improve (a) treatment and (b) outcomes for people diagnosed with lobular breast cancer.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department spends £1.5 billion each year on research through its research delivery arm, the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), with cancer being the largest area of spend at over £121.8 million in 2022/23. The NIHR spends more on cancer than any other disease group, reflecting its high priority. Our investments in cancer, including lobular breast cancer, are pivotal to informing efforts to improve cancer prevention, treatment, and outcomes.
We are proud to have invested £29 million into the Institute of Cancer Research and the Royal Marsden NIHR Biological Research Centre in 2022, supporting their efforts to strengthen research into cancer, including lobular breast cancer. This is complemented by wider investments into breast cancer research including, for example, a £1.3 million project to determine whether an abbreviated form of breast magnetic resonance imaging can detect breast cancers missed by screening through mammography, again including lobular breast cancer.
The NIHR continues to encourage and welcome applications for research into any aspect of human health, including lobular breast cancer. Applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money, and scientific quality.
Asked by: Allison Gardner (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department is taking steps to simplify the application process for Pension Credit.
Answered by Emma Reynolds - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Department have introduced an online claim process, providing customers with a convenient alternative claim route, alongside the existing telephony and paper application methods. As the Department continues to modernise the Pension Credit service, we continue to review the user experience, balancing simplification of application with capturing the right information to ensure accuracy of award.
Asked by: Allison Gardner (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to help improve road safety outside schools.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The safety of our roads is an absolute priority for this Government.
The Highway Code was updated in 2022 to improve road safety for cyclists and pedestrians, by strengthening pedestrian priority on pavements and at crossings and introducing the Hierarchy of Road Users, which places those road users most at risk in the event of a collision, including children, at the top of the hierarchy. The Highway Code makes it clear that those in charge of vehicles that can cause the greatest harm in the event of a collision bear the greatest responsibility to reduce the danger they pose to others, and highlights the need to take care and be particularly aware of young cyclists and pedestrians near schools.
Local authorities have a range of traffic management measures available to them to help improve safety outside schools. These include 20mph speed limits, traffic calming, and introduction of a School Street where appropriate. Local authorities have the power to set speed limits on their roads. Authorities are also enabled to place advisory part-time 20mph speed limits signs in the vicinity of schools without the need for Government approval. It is for local authorities to determine what measures are appropriate in individual cases. They have the local knowledge so are the best placed to do so.
The Gear Change plan for walking and cycling (2020) included a number of steps which will support and increase safety of active travel to school, including increasing the number of School Streets (a timed restriction of motorised traffic at the start and end of the school day).
Asked by: Allison Gardner (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to widen bariatric patient access to (a) Wegovy, (b) Mounjaro and (c) other weight management drugs.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Obesity medicines can be effective for some patients living with obesity when prescribed alongside diet, physical activity, and behavioural support. Exactly what is most appropriate for an individual is down to health care professionals to advise, in discussion with patients, and considering relevant clinical guidance.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body responsible for developing authoritative, evidence-based recommendations for the National Health Service on whether new medicines represent a clinically and cost-effective use of resources, and for providing guidance for the health and care system on best practice.
The NICE has recommended orlistat, liraglutide (Saxenda), and semaglutide (Wegovy) as clinically and cost-effective drugs for weight management in adults in the NHS in England. NICE guidance includes eligibility criteria and, for some products like Saxenda and Wegovy, a restriction that these treatments should be used within specialist weight management services. The NICE is in the process of finalising its guidance on tirzepatide, also known as Mounjaro, and recently consulted on its draft recommendations.
Integrated care boards are responsible for arranging the provision of health services within their area in line with local priorities, considering population need and relevant guidance. This includes the commissioning of NHS specialist weight management services.
Asked by: Allison Gardner (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to help tackle car thefts in (a) Stoke-on-Trent South constituency and (b) other constituencies.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
This Government is determined to drive down vehicle crime and we are closely working with the automotive industry and police to ensure our response to vehicle crime is as strong as it can be.
We continue to work with the National Police Chiefs’ Council lead for vehicle crime, through the National Vehicle Crime Working Group, to take forward a programme of work to drive down vehicle crime. We are focusing on prevention and deterrence of theft of and from vehicles; this includes training police officers on the methods used to steal vehicles, encouraging vehicle owners to secure their vehicles, and working with industry to address vulnerabilities in vehicles.
The Home Office collects and publishes information on the number of ‘Aggravated vehicle taking’ and ‘Theft or unauthorised taking of motor vehicle’ offences recorded by the police in England and Wales on a quarterly basis. This information is available at the Police Force Area and Community Safety Partnership area level including ‘Stoke-on-Trent Community Safety Partnership Area’. Information at the constituency level is not held centrally.
Data for year ending March 2024 shows there were 714 ‘Aggravated vehicle taking’ and ‘Theft or unauthorised taking of motor vehicle’ offences recorded by Stoke-on-Trent Community Partnership Area, a rise of 1% compared with the previous year. There was a small fall (1%) across England and Wales for the same period.
Asked by: Allison Gardner (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to tackle anti-social behaviour in Stoke-on-Trent South constituency.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government recognises that effective multi-agency working is crucial to reducing anti-social behaviour and ensuring safer communities. We will continue to work with police, local authorities and the voluntary sector to identify and share best practice.
Tackling anti-social behaviour is a top priority for this Government, and a key part of our Safer Streets Mission. We will put thousands of neighbourhood police and community support officers into local communities and crack down on those causing havoc on our high streets by introducing tougher powers including new Respect Orders to tackle repeat offending.
Asked by: Allison Gardner (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the Leasehold and Commonhold Reform Bill will ban leasehold houses.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Further to the answer I gave to Question UIN 8491 on the 18 October 2024, the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 included a ban on the sale of new residential long leases on houses. This will mean that, when this measure is implemented, other than in exceptional circumstances all new houses must be sold on a freehold basis.