Asked by: Beccy Cooper (Labour - Worthing West)
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 implications for public health policy of the Health Foundation’s findings on the decline in healthy life expectancy in the UK.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises that the Health Foundation’s findings on the recent decline in healthy life expectancy are concerning. The findings reinforce the importance of a shift from treatment to prevention as set out in the 10-Year Health Plan, alongside action to address the inequalities experienced by different communities.
Work is already underway to raise the healthiest generation of children ever. This includes the Tobacco and Vapes Act which will create our first smoke-free generation, and our action to tackle childhood obesity, including restricting junk food advertising targeted at children on television and online.
We will support people to make healthier choices on alcohol by mandating health information on alcohol labelling. We will also tackle air pollution, which can disproportionately affect more disadvantaged communities. To accelerate progress on the ambition to reduce premature mortality from heart disease and stroke by 25% within a decade, we will publish the cardiovascular disease modern service framework in Spring. This will support consistent, high quality and equitable care whist fostering innovation across the cardiovascular disease pathway.
Improving healthy life expectancy requires action across society. The Government will work in partnership with business, civil society, and citizens to support healthier lives for longer.
Asked by: Beccy Cooper (Labour - Worthing West)
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 reduce the impact of energy bills on levels of personal debt.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The affordability crisis is the biggest issue facing families across the country. At the Autumn Budget we committed to taking money off energy bills to tackle the cost of living.
The Government is working closely with Ofgem, energy suppliers and consumer groups to develop a range of interventions to reduce energy debt and ensure consumers have access to effective debt advice.
Asked by: Beccy Cooper (Labour - Worthing West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment has been made of the potential impact of debt on the prevalence of mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression.
Answered by Preet Kaur Gill - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises that financial circumstances are an important factor influencing mental health. Evidence, including findings from the Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey: Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing, England, 2023/24, shows a clear association between problem debt and poor mental health outcomes, with people experiencing problem debt being around twice as likely to have a common mental health condition, including anxiety and depression. Financial pressures can contribute to psychological distress, particularly where they exacerbate existing vulnerabilities or create feelings of insecurity, but they are one of a number of interrelated factors affecting mental health. The Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey: Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing, England, 2023/24 is available at the following link:
The Government has announced plans for a new cross-Government mental health strategy for England, which will set a new direction for the mental health system so that it responds earlier, intervenes before distress escalates, and supports people to stay active and participate in education, work, family, and community life. Through the strategy, we will work across the Government and with partners to ensure people experiencing both mental health challenges and financial difficulty can access timely support. This includes improving access to NHS Talking Therapies, integrating employment and financial guidance into services, and promoting schemes such as Breathing Space, which provides protections for people in problem debt.
We know that financial difficulty and economic adversity are also risk factors for suicide. Through delivery of the Suicide Prevention Strategy for England, we are improving the support available for people most at risk of suicide.
Asked by: Beccy Cooper (Labour - Worthing West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment they have made of the adequacy of Statutory Sick Pay in meeting essential living costs for low-income workers.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) is designed to provide a minimum level of support and financial security for employees when they are unable to work due to sickness whilst also balancing the cost to employers.
The government has made key changes to SSP, which came into force last month. Through the Employment Rights Act, we have removed the Lower Earnings Limit for SSP. Previously employees had to earn at least £125 per to week to be eligible to receive SSP from their employer, the removal of the Lower Earnings Limit has meant this threshold no longer applies.
This means up to 1.3 million more employees will be covered, supporting low-income workers and those who work for more than one employer. We have also removed the waiting period, so people can access sick pay from their first day of sickness absence.
These changes will mean that employees receive around an extra £400 million a year in sick pay.
Asked by: Beccy Cooper (Labour - Worthing West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of (a) the number and (b) cost of clinical negligence claims associated with the use of corridor care in hospitals.
Answered by Preet Kaur Gill - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS Resolution (NHSR) manages clinical negligence and other claims against the National Health Service in England. NHSR does not hold the information in the format requested.
Asked by: Beccy Cooper (Labour - Worthing West)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will review the decision not to permit close relatives of deceased members of the Women’s Land Army to apply for and receive the Women’s Land Army and Women’s Timber Corps commemorative badge on their behalf.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Women’s Land Army and Women’s Timber Corps Scheme, announced to Parliament on 6 December 2007, recognises the women who served in the Land Army and Timber Corps during the Second World War making a critical contribution to the war effort.
The Scheme was designed so that medals could be worn by surviving veterans and the families of deceased veterans as a visible reminder of the significant role these women played in the war effort.
Applications are welcome from family members for posthumous awards for those veterans who died on or after 6 December 2007 (the opening of the Scheme).
Asked by: Beccy Cooper (Labour - Worthing West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether the contract for the National school breakfast club programme prohibits the use of ultra-processed cereals and breads; and if she will set out the nutritional and processing specification of that contract.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The National School Breakfast Programme (NSBP) is an inherited scheme from the previous government and the contract will end in July 2026. The contract with the supplier Family Action stipulates that all food available for schools to purchase must meet the School Food Standards, which already restrict foods high in fat, salt and sugar, as well as low-quality reformed or reconstituted foods. To ensure quality and nutrition in meals for the future, we are revising the School Food Standards and are engaging with experts across the sector.
This government is committed to delivering a free breakfast club in every state-funded school with primary-aged pupils in England. All NSBP schools with primary-aged pupils will have the opportunity to transition onto the free breakfast clubs programme from September 2026. NSBP secondary schools will be provided with continued support at an equivalent value to what they receive on the NSBP for the 2026/7 academic year. Further details for secondary schools will follow shortly.
Asked by: Beccy Cooper (Labour - Worthing West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a maximum five per cent threshold for ultra-processed foods (Nova Group 4) in the updated School Food Standards.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition has considered the impact of processed foods on health in 2023 and 2025, and recommends that on balance, most people are likely to benefit from reducing their consumption of processed foods high in energy, saturated fat, salt and free sugars and low in fibre.
The School Food Standards already restrict foods high in fat, salt and sugar, as well as low-quality reformed or reconstituted foods, but to ensure quality and nutrition in meals for the future, we are revising the School Food Standards. We are engaging experts across the sector, such as nutritionists, and are developing our plans to consult on the changes.
Asked by: Beccy Cooper (Labour - Worthing West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what mechanisms she is putting in place to ensure that proposed agency fee caps under the new Supply Teachers and Temporary Staffing framework are effectively monitored and enforced.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The responsibility for monitoring adherence to the agency fee caps, and all requirements of the framework agreement, sits with Crown Commercial Service (CCS). As part of the framework terms and conditions, agencies must provide data reporting, with potential consequences of non-compliance resulting in removal from the framework agreement.
To support CCS, the department will review spend across the sector, comparing it with the management information reported by suppliers to CCS through the framework.
Asked by: Beccy Cooper (Labour - Worthing West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, for what reason the new Supply Teachers and Temporary Staffing framework makes no provision for ensuring that supply teachers can access the teachers’ pension scheme.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The Teachers’ Pensions Regulations currently provide for supply teachers to participate in the teachers’ pension scheme (TPS) where they are employed by a scheme employer. These are local authorities, academies and further education colleges. This includes supply teachers who are recruited by a supply agency but then employed directly, under a contract of employment, by the scheme employer.
Where supply teachers are self-employed or remain employed by a supply agency and their services are provided under a ‘contract for services’, it is not possible for them to participate in the TPS as there is no organisation to undertake the employer role, including remitting contributions to the scheme.
Supply teachers employed by agencies will continue to have access to alternative workplace pensions.