Asked by: Antonia Bance (Labour - Tipton and Wednesbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many NHS patients died from cancer within three months of diagnosis in each of the last five years.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Disease Registration Service in NHS England is the cancer registry for England and collects data on the diagnosis and treatment of cancer patients. The service is available at the following link:
The following table shows the number of people who died within three months of their cancer diagnosis:
Diagnosis year | Number of patients who died within three months of diagnosis |
2018 | 41,647 |
2019 | 39,973 |
2020 | 41,599 |
2021 | 41,878 |
2022 | 41,228 |
Source: NHS England Digital
Notes: Using the methodology from the Accredited Official Statistics on Cancer Registrations, the number of people who died within three months of their cancer diagnosis were counted. People who died on the same day as they were diagnosed were not included in the counts, as the vast majority of these are cases where the only indication of their cancer is their death certificate and their true date of diagnosis is not known. Many of the others are incidental findings at death. The statistics are available at the following link: https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/cancer-registration-statistics/england-2022
My rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, has announced that a National Cancer Plan for England will be published in 2026. The Prime Minister’s health mission sets the objective of building a National Health Service fit for the future, and an essential part of this is achieving our goal to reduce the number of lives lost to cancer. The National Cancer Plan will have patients at its heart and will cover the entirety of the cancer pathway, from referral and diagnosis to treatment and ongoing care- as well as prevention and research and innovation. It will seek to improve every aspect of cancer care to better the experience and outcomes for people with cancer. Our goal is to reduce the number of lives lost to cancer over the next ten years. This will benefit all cancer patients, including pancreatic cancer patients.
Asked by: Antonia Bance (Labour - Tipton and Wednesbury)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of charging a 5% surcharge when paying vehicle tax by direct debit on lower income motorists; and whether she has plans to remove this surcharge.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
When Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) is paid monthly or six-monthly, rather than annually, the cost to the exchequer is higher because of lost interest. To reflect this impact on the public finances, the previous government introduced in 2014 an extra charge for monthly and six-monthly VED payments to make up for the lost interest
The Government annually reviews the rates and thresholds of taxes and reliefs to ensure that they are appropriate and reflect the current state of the economy. The Chancellor makes decisions on tax policy at fiscal events in the context of the public finances.
Asked by: Antonia Bance (Labour - Tipton and Wednesbury)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of updating the 10-Year Drugs Plan to reflect (a) the increase in ketamine use and (b) other changes in the drugs landscape.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Ketamine is a dangerous substance, which can cause irreversible bladder damage and in some cases death. Ministers are very concerned about the harms ketamine causes and on 16 October 2025 the Department for Health and Social Care launched a campaign to alert young people to the dangers of that drug (as well as counterfeit medicines containing synthetic opioids, and THC vapes).
Ketamine was moved from Class C to Class B within Schedule 2 to the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 (MDA) in 2014, following a review of its harms by the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD). The ACMD noted that "although there is limited evidence of ketamine misuse causing social harm, evidence of physical harm (mainly chronic bladder toxicity but also an increase in acute toxicity) has increased".
We have not carried out an assessment of the effects of that reclassification. The drivers of the availability, market price and prevalence of drugs are complex. The control of drugs under the MDA is an important means of reducing their availability and gives law enforcement the powers to target criminals involved in supplying harmful substances. In 2024 there were 2,014 prosecutions and 1,507 convictions in England and Wales for offences relating to the possession and trafficking of ketamine.
In January 2025 the Government asked the ACMD to provide an updated harms assessment of ketamine. The ACMD carried out a public call for evidence in August and we expect to receive its report by the end of 2025. We will carefully consider its recommendations.
Asked by: Antonia Bance (Labour - Tipton and Wednesbury)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many households with children claiming Universal Credit contain two adults in full-time work in the latest period for which data is available.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Data on two-earner couple households in which both earners are in full-time work is not held.
Asked by: Antonia Bance (Labour - Tipton and Wednesbury)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many supported housing residents have (a) reduced their working hours and (b) left employment due to the interaction of Housing Benefit and Universal Credit rules in the last five years.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The information requested is not held.
Asked by: Antonia Bance (Labour - Tipton and Wednesbury)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of vehicle tax is paid in instalments using direct debit; and what assessment she has made of the potential impact of charging a 5% surcharge when paying vehicle tax by direct debit on lower income motorists.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
While the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency administers and collects vehicle excise duty (VED) on behalf of HM Treasury, decisions on VED, whether structure, rates or alternatives are a matter for the Chancellor of the Exchequer.
Paying VED by direct debit allows motorists to spread the cost, helping families and businesses in managing their finances. Those who choose to use direct debit pay a low surcharge of five per cent against the annual rate of duty for the vehicle. Typically, a motorist is better off paying by direct debit instead of buying two six-month vehicle licences which if not purchased by direct debit, carry a surcharge of 10 per cent.
The monthly average of vehicle keepers that choose to pay their VED by direct debit is just over 39 per cent.
Asked by: Antonia Bance (Labour - Tipton and Wednesbury)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what funding is available to support interfaith projects aimed at promoting community cohesion.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Interfaith relations are vital for strong, cohesive communities.
The government has provided funding for this year’s Inter Faith Week in November, which will provide a national platform for fostering positive interfaith relations across our communities and schools. Alongside this, the government supports grassroots interfaith relations via our funding to Near Neighbours and Schools Linking, which promote dialogue, youth engagement, and neighbourhood cohesion across different backgrounds and faiths.
The government has launched the new Common Ground Award to provide direct capital investment to voluntary, community, and social enterprise (VCSE) organisations across England. This funding will support those committed to building meaningful connection across communities, including between faith groups.
Asked by: Antonia Bance (Labour - Tipton and Wednesbury)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of abolishing the two-child limit policy for (a) two-earner couple households and (b) two-earner couple households in which both earners are in full-time work.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
No such estimate has been made. This government is committed to tackling child poverty and the Child Poverty Taskforce is developing an ambitious Child Poverty Strategy which we will publish in the autumn.
Asked by: Antonia Bance (Labour - Tipton and Wednesbury)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many households affected by the two-child limit policy are (a) two-earner couple households and (b) two-earner couple households in which both earners are in full-time work.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Statistics about the policy that provides support for a maximum of 2 children in Universal Credit are published annually by a range of breakdowns and demographics. The latest figures, for April 2025, can be found here: Universal Credit claimants statistics on the two child limit policy, April 2025 - GOV.UK
Data on two-earner couple households in which both earners are in full-time work is not held.
Asked by: Antonia Bance (Labour - Tipton and Wednesbury)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate her Department has made of the number of new HGV drivers that would need to be trained annually to maintain workforce levels; and what steps her Department is taking to help support the industry to train HGV drivers.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department regularly monitors the HGV driver workforce and engages with the road haulage sector through the Freight Workforce Group and other regular stakeholder meetings. Industry need for HGV drivers can fluctuate depending on a number of economic factors.
The Government continues to support the sector with the skills training it needs through the Urban Driver and Large Goods Vehicle driver apprenticeships. Skills Bootcamps also remain an important part of government-funded skills provision. Their delivery has evolved with DfE funding Bootcamps through Mayor's Skills Academies and local areas directly. This supports the government’s commitment to empower local leaders with greater control over skills development.