Asked by: Blake Stephenson (Conservative - Mid Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will ask NHS England to publish an analysis of the options they have considered for re-organisation of ICBs in the East of England.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The proposals for the clustering of integrated care boards (ICBs) across England were considered in view of the ambition set out in the Government’s 10-Year Health Plan and NHS England’s Model ICB Blueprint. Specifically, the Government’s aim to strengthen the role of ICBs as strategic commissioners whilst delivering efficiency savings through creating leaner and more agile structures.
Although the Government will not publish a detailed analysis of the options considered in each region, options for the re-organisation of ICBs in the east of England were considered in view of the ambition detailed above, with careful consideration of the local circumstances and meeting the running cost allowance envelope of £18.76 per head of population.
Asked by: Blake Stephenson (Conservative - Mid Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the expected population coverage of each ICB in England is following the proposed re-organisation.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
In order to optimise the impact of strategic commissioning, and release resources to the frontline, we are working with integrated care boards to so that they cover populations of approximately two million people.
Asked by: Blake Stephenson (Conservative - Mid Bedfordshire)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on trends in the level of tourism in Scotland.
Answered by Ian Murray - Secretary of State for Scotland
As a former small business owner myself, I have first hand experience and determination for ensuring Scotland’s small businesses thrive. Tourism is crucial not only for the economy, but for supporting local communities and promoting Scotland’s unique culture and natural beauty.
Through our Brand Scotland campaign, the Scotland Office is promoting Scotland as a premier destination for both business and leisure.
I am always eager to discuss matters important to Scotland, and have committed to meeting with VisitScotland as early as my diary permits.
Asked by: Blake Stephenson (Conservative - Mid Bedfordshire)
Question to the Leader of the House:
To ask the Leader of the House, if she will make an estimate of the number of Government announcements which were made in the House of Commons prior to a Ministerial announcement in the media since July 2024.
Answered by Lucy Powell - Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons
The Ministerial Code is clear, when Parliament is in session the most important announcements of Government policy should be made in the first instance to Parliament. This is an important principle that the government stands by.
As of 9th July 2025 there have been 185 oral statements in 165 sitting days – more than one per day and more than in the previous session.
While the Government remains committed to making the most important announcements on the floor of the House, we do need to balance this with the time available for both government and backbench business.
Asked by: Blake Stephenson (Conservative - Mid Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to her Department's press release published on 22 May 2025 entitled, Teachers to benefit from pay boost, if she will make an estimate of the cost to schools of funding the first 1% of the pay award.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
Schools are receiving £615 million to support them with the costs of the 2025 pay awards, over and above the funding already being provided to schools in financial year 2025/26. The increase in National Insurance Contributions (NICs) costs were considered when calculating this additional funding.
The department has asked that schools fund, on average, the first 1% of the 2025 pay awards. The impact of this will vary for individual schools based on their circumstances, as they have autonomy over how they use their funding, including any decisions on staffing.
Schools in Central Bedfordshire are receiving £4 million to support them with their NICs costs; we will publish allocations for the 2025 pay grant in the autumn. From 2026/27, funding in respect of both NICs costs, and the 2025 pay awards, will be incorporated into schools’ core budgets through the national funding formula.
The department provides a suite of free tools, guidance and support, developed in partnership with the sector, to help schools better manage their spending. Schools are already making savings and bringing core operating costs down: for example, the 400 schools who participated in the department’s new energy for schools pilot will save 36% on average compared to their previous contracts, which will free up vital funding to deliver for children and young people. We are also making plans to secure better banking solutions for schools, getting them better returns on their cash balances.
Additionally, all schools can access services such as the get help buying for schools service to get best value when procuring goods and our teaching vacancies service to save recruitment costs. Since, workforce deployment is the biggest component of school budgets, we will support schools to benefit fully from the tools we offer to benchmark and integrate resourcing and curriculum planning, such as the financial benchmarking and insights tool. We will also introduce a new toolkit to support schools to adopt evidence-based deployment models. This will focus on data that helps schools identify areas for improvement and support to learn from best practice peers who are delivering strong outcomes for pupils with an efficient deployment model.