Asked by: Caroline Dinenage (Conservative - Gosport)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what guidance he is providing to ICBs to ensure consistent interpretation of NHS continuing healthcare checklist guidance.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department published national guidance, the National Framework for NHS Continuing Healthcare and NHS-funded Nursing Care, intended to ensure the consistent delivery of National Health Service continuing healthcare (CHC) by integrated care boards (ICBs). Further information on this guidance is available at the following link:
We have published additional guidance on the completion of the CHC checklist screening tool, called the NHS continuing healthcare checklist, which is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nhs-continuing-healthcare-checklist
NHS England also has an assurance regime that promotes the standardisation and consistency of CHC assessments. NHS England CHC regional teams provide ICBs oversight and assurance to support robust, effective, and timely service delivery. ICBs should have processes in place to ensure checklists are completed by staff who are trained in checklist completion. An NHS England online learning resource to support all staff working in health and social care is in place. This includes an e-learning module on completing CHC checklists.
Asked by: Caroline Dinenage (Conservative - Gosport)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure the safe return of refugees to their homes in Northeast Syria.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The security situation in Northeast Syria remains unstable and we are concerned about the impact that current tensions may have on the civilian population and on civilian infrastructure. Northeast Syria also faces an ongoing humanitarian crisis, with 82 per cent of the population in need of humanitarian assistance. We are working through diplomatic, security and humanitarian channels to monitor and address these issues. Syrians are best placed to make decisions regarding their own future, and we will continue to support refugees and host countries while the situation across Syria remains uncertain. It is essential that international law is respected and that any returns are safe, voluntary, and dignified.
Asked by: Caroline Dinenage (Conservative - Gosport)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will make an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of the recommendations in the report entitled Addressing the UK’s heritage skills crisis: why we must act now, published by the University of Manchester in January 2025.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department supports vocational education and training programmes that include heritage conservation skills. This includes funding for courses at further education colleges and specialist training providers. A wide range of government-funded programmes are available for construction employers who are considering hiring employees, offering work experience, or upskilling existing staff. These include apprenticeships, T Levels, Skills Bootcamps, and Higher Technical Qualifications.
Together with employers, the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (IfATE) have developed 90 apprenticeship standards in the construction and built environment sector. These apprenticeships provide hands-on experience and formal qualifications in heritage areas such as heritage construction specialist, cultural heritage conservation technician, craft carpenter and joinery, and stained glass craftsperson. IfATE works with key stakeholders such as Grosvenor, Peabody, Historic England, the National Trust, and the Crown Estate to ensure that employers can access the heritage construction skills they need.
The department is working across government and in partnership with industry through the Construction Skills Delivery Group (CSDG) and the Construction Leadership Council to identify policy levers and other actions to ensure that our skills offer, including apprenticeships, Skills Bootcamps and T Levels, meets the needs of employers in the sector, including small and medium enterprises. The department works closely with Historic England, through the CSDG, to ensure that training programs meet the needs of the heritage sector.
Asked by: Caroline Dinenage (Conservative - Gosport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to reduce barriers to application to the War Pensions Scheme for British Nuclear Test Veterans.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
Nuclear Test Veterans who believe they have suffered ill health due to service have the right to apply for no-fault compensation under the War Pension Scheme (WPS) and have the same access to the scheme as any other veteran, with each application being assessed on its individual merits. War Disablement Pensions are medically certified with relevant material facts including on claimed incidents, events, and exposures.
There is not a specific Nuclear Test Veteran claim form for compensation under the WPS. However, a supplementary form is available which allows for Nuclear Test Veteran specific information to be provided at the point of claim, reducing potential delays arising from seeking this information.
The Veterans Welfare Service offers assistance to all veterans throughout the application process.
An information leaflet for claiming compensation for conditions relating to exposure to ionising radiation can be accessed through the gov.uk website at the following link: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5f461d0ae90e074c4d303333/NTVleaflet.pdf
Asked by: Caroline Dinenage (Conservative - Gosport)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of the findings in the report entitled Addressing the UK’s heritage skills crisis: why we must act now, published by the University of Manchester on 23 January 2025.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The government recognises the risk to the repair, maintenance and retrofit of older buildings arising from possible skills shortages. DCMS and Historic England are working across government and with sector partners to ensure the necessary workforce is in place.
Asked by: Caroline Dinenage (Conservative - Gosport)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he plans to take to increase the evidence base on the impacts of merger and acquisition-led FDI projects in the creative industries.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) is cognisant of the increasing levels of Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) driven Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), as highlighted in the Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre's (PEC) recent "FDI in the Creative Industries" report, November 2024.
A new partnership will be announced shortly between DBT, the Creative PEC and the CoStar Foresight Lab, supported by DCMS. The Creative Business Panel is a longitudinal study which will involve 5 waves of in-depth industry research, running to 2028. It will provide unprecedented insight into what drives growth in the sector, and crucially it will be able to determine for the first time how potential growth factors, including M&A, interrelate.
Asked by: Caroline Dinenage (Conservative - Gosport)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the Government’s preferred option in its consultation on copyright and AI on growth in the creative industries.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The government’s consultation on Copyright and AI, launched 17 December and closing 25 February, was published alongside an accompanying options assessment. The consultation seeks to gather further evidence on the potential impact on the creative industries of any change to the copyright regime in the context of AI training.
We have said we will only move forward once confident we have a practical plan that delivers each of our objectives: increased control for right holders to help them license their content, access to high-quality material to train leading AI models in the UK, and more transparency for right holders from AI developers.
Following the consultation, if legislative changes are needed, a full economic impact assessment will be undertaken.
Asked by: Caroline Dinenage (Conservative - Gosport)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has plans to extend the eligibility criteria for the Holiday activities and food programme.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The holiday activities and food (HAF) programme is aimed at children in receipt of benefits-related free school meals. However, local authorities have discretion to go beyond this as set out in the HAF guidance: “While the majority of funding that local authorities receive should be used for holiday club places for children in receipt of free school meals, local authorities have discretion to use up to 15% of their funding to provide free or subsidised holiday club places for children who are not in receipt of benefits-related free school meals, but who the local authority believe could benefit from HAF provision”.
Asked by: Caroline Dinenage (Conservative - Gosport)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will announce funding for a multi-year extension to the Holiday activities and food programme.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government recently announced over £200 million funding for the holiday activities and food (HAF) programme for 2025/26.
The HAF programme has been delivered nationally by local authorities in England since 2022, to provide healthy meals, enriching activities and free childcare places to children from low-income families, benefitting their health, wellbeing and learning.
Funding beyond March 2026 will be subject to the multi-year Spending Review taking place later this year.
Asked by: Caroline Dinenage (Conservative - Gosport)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, when the next phase of Help to Grow Management Programme funds will be available to universities.
Answered by Gareth Thomas - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
In the Autumn Budget, 2024 the Chancellor demonstrated the government’s commitment to continue the Help to Grow: Management Course throughout 2025-26, maintaining its existing scale and reach as part of our growth strategy. Help to Grow: Management will continue to help thousands of small businesses across the UK to improve their productivity and drive small business growth. Funding for 2025-26 will continue to be made available to university business schools through the Chartered Association of Business Schools from April 2025.
Help to Grow: Management is delivered by the UK’s leading business schools. DBT provides annual grant funding to the Chartered Association of Business Schools (CABS). DBT will extend its existing grant agreement with CABS once the business planning round is completed in March 2025. CABS will then contract with individual business schools to deliver the training to SMEs, allowing the programme to continue without a break in funding.