Asked by: Bradley Thomas (Conservative - Bromsgrove)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of data sharing and record keeping for cross border policing between West Mercia Police and West Midlands Police.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The sharing of operational information between police forces is a matter for chief constables, who are responsible for ensuring that information is recorded and shared in accordance with operational requirements and legal obligations.
The Government recognises the importance of effective data sharing across policing and the wider criminal justice system. The Government's White Paper, From Local to National: A New Model for Policing, sets out plans to strengthen police data capabilities, including through the introduction of national data standards and improved arrangements for sharing information across force boundaries.
This includes the development of the National Data Integration and Exploitation Service (NDIES), which is intended to support more consistent and effective sharing of policing data nationally and improve officers’ access to the information they need to prevent and investigate crime and protect the public.
Asked by: Bradley Thomas (Conservative - Bromsgrove)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of cross border policing between West Mercia Police and West Midlands Police.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
In specialist crime types, such as serious and organised crime and county lines, policing has been effective in tackling cross-border crime.
Regional Organised Crime Units (ROCUs), working with police forces across England and Wales, are a prime example of this.
In May 2026, Tarian ROCU, working with Gwent Police and Gloucestershire Constabulary, concluded Operation Rooster – a long running investigation into an organised crime group (OCG) operating across south Wales and south-west England. Tarian ROCU coordinated enforcement activity against a network involved in the supply of Class A and Class B drugs with an estimated street value of £3.5 million. Through evidence secured in the investigation, five members of the OCG were sentenced to a combined 41 years imprisonment.
Additionally, through the County Lines Programme, we fund the National County Lines Co-ordination Centre (NCLCC) to monitor the intelligence picture and co-ordinate the national law enforcement response to county lines. The NCLCC has been vital in strengthening the law enforcement response and enabling police forces to work together to tackle this complex, cross-border issue.
However, despite the success of these operations, the ability to tackle cross border crime and provide victims of these crimes with the support they need is not consistent across policing in England and Wales. The existing 43 force model is fractured, and we expect all 43 forces to be both highly responsive to local needs and to deal with major incidents and serious crimes. They are not set up to do both.
As set out in the Police Reform White Paper, we will set out to change that.
We will create
Asked by: Bradley Thomas (Conservative - Bromsgrove)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of cross border policing across policing areas.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
In specialist crime types, such as serious and organised crime and county lines, policing has been effective in tackling cross-border crime.
Regional Organised Crime Units (ROCUs), working with police forces across England and Wales, are a prime example of this.
In May 2026, Tarian ROCU, working with Gwent Police and Gloucestershire Constabulary, concluded Operation Rooster – a long running investigation into an organised crime group (OCG) operating across south Wales and south-west England. Tarian ROCU coordinated enforcement activity against a network involved in the supply of Class A and Class B drugs with an estimated street value of £3.5 million. Through evidence secured in the investigation, five members of the OCG were sentenced to a combined 41 years imprisonment.
Additionally, through the County Lines Programme, we fund the National County Lines Co-ordination Centre (NCLCC) to monitor the intelligence picture and co-ordinate the national law enforcement response to county lines. The NCLCC has been vital in strengthening the law enforcement response and enabling police forces to work together to tackle this complex, cross-border issue.
However, despite the success of these operations, the ability to tackle cross border crime and provide victims of these crimes with the support they need is not consistent across policing in England and Wales. The existing 43 force model is fractured, and we expect all 43 forces to be both highly responsive to local needs and to deal with major incidents and serious crimes. They are not set up to do both.
As set out in the Police Reform White Paper, we will set out to change that.
We will create
Asked by: Bradley Thomas (Conservative - Bromsgrove)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has undertaken a survey of residents of Bromsgrove constituency's satisfaction with West Mercia Police regarding (a) general policing and (b) the handling of cross-boundary crime.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Under current local governance arrangements for policing, Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) are responsible for holding Chief Constables to account and have been since they were first elected in November 2012. It would therefore be for the elected West Mercia PCC, John Campion, to decide if a survey of Bromsgrove residents is necessary.
The Government has committed to abolish PCCs at the end of their term of office in May 2028. That remains the plan. The Home Office continues to work with those in policing and local government to refine policy and plan for successor arrangements.
As part of the Government’s wider Police Reform agenda, we will be creating a new national force, the National Police Service (NPS) which will enable local forces to focus on local crime and strengthen our ability to deal with national and cross-border serious and organised crime threats. Additionally, we will carefully consider governance of forces when considering the Independent Review of Force Structure’s recommendations.
Asked by: Bradley Thomas (Conservative - Bromsgrove)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what consideration has been given to changing NHS policy so that the possibility of a second transplant is assessed individually for relapses within 12 months of an allogeneic stem cell transplant.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England does not routinely collect or hold data on the number of patients with blood cancer who do not meet the eligibility criteria set out in its clinical commissioning policies, the numbers who have not been funded to receive treatment under the current commissioning policy, or the number of patients whose disease relapsed under 12 months of a first allogeneic-hematopoietic stem cell transplant.
NHS England recognises the seriousness of relapse following a stem cell transplant and is actively reviewing the current policy, working with clinicians, patients, and charities to assess the latest available evidence. A revised draft policy is expected to undergo stakeholder testing in the new year, with final decisions currently anticipated in late spring 2027.
The ongoing review will consider the latest peer-reviewed clinical evidence, alongside clinical benefit, patient safety, affordability, and the opportunity cost of any new investment. Any changes to commissioning arrangements will be considered through NHS England's established policy development process, which includes an independent evidence review, expert clinical input, patient and public involvement, and stakeholder testing. Stakeholders will have the opportunity to comment on the draft policy through a formal stakeholder testing process before any final decisions are made.
Asked by: Bradley Thomas (Conservative - Bromsgrove)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of amending the list of medical conditions which provide exemption from the prescription charges to include rheumatoid arthritis.
Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 18 August in response to Question 18253.
Asked by: Bradley Thomas (Conservative - Bromsgrove)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps is she taking to improve the palliative care for terminally ill hospital patients that cannot be transferred to a hospice or into the care of end-of-life charities, and if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing fit-for-purpose mini hospices in NHS hospitals to aid the improvement of end-of-life palliative care services.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 20 July 2026 in response to Question 18732.
Asked by: Bradley Thomas (Conservative - Bromsgrove)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans her department has to introduce the Omavelexolone treatment for Friedrich’s Ataxia in the NHS.
Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Hon. Member to the answer provided on 29 June 2026 to Question 11724.
Asked by: Bradley Thomas (Conservative - Bromsgrove)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether assessments are being carried out on wildfire risk and management for areas where open or agricultural land adjoins to residential communities; whether environmental land-management schemes adequately take account of extreme wildfire conditions; and what steps her Department is taking to help farmers and agricultural landowners manage wildfire risks.
Answered by Jenny Riddell-Carpenter - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Responsibility for assessing local risks, including wildfire risk, sits with local responders under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004. Local Resilience Forums bring together emergency services, local authorities, health bodies and other partners to assess local risks and develop, maintain and exercise multi-agency emergency plans.
Local Resilience Forums are expected to consider risks relevant to their local area, including where environmental and land-use factors may increase the potential impact of incidents on nearby communities. Risk assessments and preparedness arrangements are therefore tailored to local circumstances and informed by local evidence.
Environmental Land Management schemes already support a range of actions that can help reduce wildfire risk and improve resilience, for example Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier includes options for wildfire planning, fire and fuel breaks, and fire belts. Defra has also introduced temporary adjustments to Environmental Land Management revenue agreements in response to the exceptionally hot and dry conditions experienced this year, including measures to support the creation of fire breaks.
Asked by: Bradley Thomas (Conservative - Bromsgrove)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what consideration she has given to lowering the screening age for breast cancer to women aged twenty and above.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 6 July in response to Question 13406.