Charlotte Cane

The latest statistics for the number and proportion of households in fuel poverty in parliamentary constituencies in England can be found in the published sub-regional fuel poverty Official Statistics, in Table 5: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/sub-regional-fuel-poverty-data-2024-2022-data.

There are targeted schemes to deliver energy efficiency measures, and bill support through the Warm Home Discount scheme, available to eligible low-income and fuel poor households. The Warm Homes Plan includes an initial £1.8 billion to support fuel poverty schemes over the next 3 years. The 2021 fuel poverty strategy, which sets out how we will reach our fuel poverty targets, is currently under review.

The government recognises the important role that kinship carers play in caring for some of the most vulnerable children.

On 27 October 2024, the government announced a £40 million package to trial a new Kinship Allowance in up to ten local authorities to test whether paying an allowance to cover the additional costs of supporting the child can help increase the number of children taken in by family members and friends. The announcement is accessible here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-protects-education-priorities-in-face-of-inherited-22-billion-blackhole. The department will share further details on the process for selecting local authorities in due course.

This is the single biggest investment made by government in kinship care to date. This investment could transform the lives of vulnerable children who can no longer live at home.

The programme will begin in 2025 and decisions about future national rollout will be informed by the findings of the evaluation. The department will share further detail on the timetable and delivery of the programme in due course.

Protecting communities around the country from flooding and coastal erosion is one of the new Secretary of State’s five core priorities.

This Government will improve resilience and preparation across central government, local authorities, local communities and emergency services to better protect communities across the UK. We will launch a new Flood Resilience Taskforce to turbocharge the delivery of new flood defences, drainage systems and natural flood management schemes.

In the short-term, the Environment Agency are working hard to sustain the current standard of service in the Fenland area. £172m in capital investment has been committed between 2021/22 - 2026/27 across the area, with £23.93m of this in the East Cambridgeshire area.

In parallel, work is progressing to develop a long-term adaptive plan for flood infrastructure in the Fens. The 'Fens 2100+’ is a £9.8m programme to develop a Fens-wide flood resilience investment strategy that achieves long-term value for money and generates regional and national benefits. It’s being developed with, and for, Flood Risk Management Authorities so they can plan for the next 20-25 years of flood risk management. This investment strategy will be completed in 2025.

Further information can be found here: Fens2100+ - Environment Agency - Citizen Space (environment-agency.gov.uk).

This government is committed to delivering economic growth, and projects such as the Ely Area Capacity Enhancement have the potential to contribute to this. While the previous government made public statements of support for the project, no funding was provided to allow it to progress.

The Chancellor has been clear about the state of the nation's finances and has launched a multi-year Spending Review. Decisions and timescales about individual projects will be informed by the review process and confirmed in due course.

The Government takes the condition of local roads very seriously and is committed to maintaining and renewing the local road network.

Local highway authorities, such as Cambridgeshire County Council, have a duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 to maintain the highways network in their area. They are best placed to understand local needs and priorities as well as any particular challenges caused by the local geology or topography.

To ensure that crisis care services are safe, effective, and consistently provide high quality care across England, NHS England has asked all crisis care services accessible via NHS 111 option two to move at pace and begin reporting access, responsiveness, and patient feedback measures from quarter two of 2024/25.

The collected data will enable a better understanding of where pressures exist in the system and help to drive improvements in waiting times and overall service delivery. These measures will allow NHS England and local providers to monitor performance and implement targeted strategies to reduce waiting times, therefore ensuring a timelier response for individuals in crisis.

NHS England is currently piloting a new way of supporting people experiencing mental ill health, through neighbourhood based, open access community mental health centres, in six sites across the country. An external evaluation of these pilot sites will inform any future decision to roll these centres out in other parts of the country.

We will also roll out Young Futures hubs in every community, providing open access mental health support for children and young people in every community.