Asked by: Bradley Thomas (Conservative - Bromsgrove)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of police decision-making in cases involving individuals with serious mental health conditions on the number of prosecutions for assaults against mental health nurses.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office has not made such an assessment. The police have a duty to pursue all reasonable lines of enquiry, as set out in The Code of Practice to The Criminal Procedure and Investigations Act 1996.
However, the police are operationally independent from Government and would be best placed to make decisions on the most appropriate course of action according to the specific circumstances of a case they are investigating.
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 assessment he has made of the adequacy of the funding for health bodies involved in the Right Care, Right Person framework; and what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for the Home Department on securing more funding for all bodies involved.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government has not made such an assessment and has instead asked all integrated care boards to estimate the resourcing requirements it would take for them to deliver the Right Care, Right Person framework. In November 2024, NHS England published the document, Guidance on implementing the National Partnership Agreement: Right Care, Right Person, which includes guidance on undertaking an impact assessment to identify how different agencies and services will be impacted and how any negative impacts will be mitigated. The Department and the Home Office continue to work together to monitor the framework and its impacts, and discussions have been had between departments at junior ministerial level.
Asked by: Bradley Thomas (Conservative - Bromsgrove)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what guidelines his Department provides to HM Courts & Tribunals staff on promoting awareness of the principles of the (a) Equality Act 2010 and (b) Children Act 1989; and what steps he takes to evaluate whether HM Courts & Tribunals apply these principles.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS) provides staff with mandatory training and comprehensive guidance to support awareness and application of the principles of both the Equality Act 2010 and the Children Act 1989.
This includes digital learning on reasonable adjustments, safeguarding policy and private and public law proceedings, supported by standard operating procedures, job cards, and Equality Impact Assessments.
HMCTS also promotes inclusive practice with internal working groups and by evaluating how the principles of both Acts are followed. This includes regular reporting on activity and pilot programmes such as the Family Court Pathfinder which aims to improve outcomes for children and families.
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 she is taking to strengthen protections for mental health nurses in the workplace.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Everyone working in the National Health Service has a fundamental right to be safe at work, including those in mental health settings. Individual employers are responsible for the health and safety of their staff, and they put in place measures, including, security, training and emotional support for staff affected by violence.
In April 2025, the Government announced that the Social Partnership Forum’s recommendations on tackling and reducing violence, part of the 2023 Agenda for Change pay deal, have been accepted. These include significant commitments to tackle violence and aggression against NHS staff including improving data and reporting of incidences and ensuring strengthened risk assessment, training and support for victims. This will be strengthened by the introduction of a new set of staff standards, as detailed in the 10-Year Health Plan, which will cover issues including tackling violence, racism and sexual harassment in the NHS workplace.
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, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs and his Brazilian counterpart on the Brazilian government's proposal to reclassify the Pernambuco tree from CITES Appendix II to Appendix I.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Secretary of State has not had discussions with the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs or their Brazilian counterpart. Preparations for the CITES Conference of Parties are led by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
Asked by: Bradley Thomas (Conservative - Bromsgrove)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of reconsidering special circumstances permitting green belt development at times when battery energy storage site targets have been exceeded.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Where the type of development in question is proposed in the Green Belt it is for decision makers, based on the circumstances of the individual case, to determine whether development inappropriate in Green Belt would be justified by very special circumstances.
Asked by: Bradley Thomas (Conservative - Bromsgrove)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what additional monitoring of HM Land Registry her Department has undertaken since July 2024.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
As its sponsor department, MHCLG undertakes a range of activities to hold HM Land Registry (HMLR) to account for its organisational, corporate and governance performance.
A departmental representative sits on the Land Registry Board (LRB) and its subcommittees to review and scrutinise HMLR’s performance against its annual business plans and key performance indicators.
The Minister or Senior Sponsor issues an annual letter to the chair of the board, setting out the department’s priorities for HMLR over the coming year. The latest letter was issued in February 2025 and can be found on gov.uk here. The department holds regular meetings with HMLR executives and the LRB chair, including a quarterly sponsorship governance and performance meeting.
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 his Department has to (a) recruit, (b) train and (c) retain (i) radiologists and (ii) clinical oncologists.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We will ensure that the number of medical specialty training places, including for radiology and clinical oncology, meets the demands of the National Health Service in the future. Over the next three years, we will create 1,000 new specialty training places, with a focus on specialties where there is greatest need.
We will publish a 10 Year Workforce Plan to create a workforce ready to deliver a transformed service. They will be more empowered, more flexible and more fulfilled. The 10 Year Workforce Plan will ensure that the NHS has the right people in the right places, with the right skills to care for patients, when they need it.
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, how many Community Diagnostic Centres there are in Bromsgrove constituency; and how many appointments were delivered across those centres in the last 12 months.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
No community diagnostic centres (CDCs) are currently located in the Bromsgrove constituency. The nearest CDC is the Kidderminster Treatment Centre CDC, which general practitioners in Bromsgrove may refer patients to. Bromsgrove patients can also access diagnostic services from the Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust.
We do not hold data on the number of appointments delivered in CDCs but do publish monthly activity figures. The Kidderminster Treatment Centre CDC delivered 30,853 tests, checks, and scans in the last 12 months, from June 2024 to June 2025.
Asked by: Bradley Thomas (Conservative - Bromsgrove)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to help ensure that school vehicles operated under Section 19/22 exemptions (a) meet the same safety standards as those under Passenger Carrying Vehicles licences and (b) help mitigate driver fatigue after a day of teaching; and what assessment she has made of the adequacy of (i) vehicle safety and (ii) compliance checks.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government publishes guidance to support the correct and safe use of section 19 and section 22 permits, including recommended vehicle maintenance arrangements. Vehicles operated under permits should have regular safety inspections, at least every 10 weeks, in addition to daily walkaround checks, regular servicing and annual MOTs.
The guidance further notes that all drivers should be aware of the risk to passenger safety from driving when tired and that it is not sensible to start a long trip after a full day’s work, whether that work involves driving or not. In 2013, the Government also published guidance specifically for schools and local authorities on driving school minibuses.