Asked by: Chris Coghlan (Liberal Democrat - Dorking and Horley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of recognising Essential Tremor as a disability.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Equality Act 2010 defines disability as ‘a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on a person’s ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities’. The Act defines ‘long-term’ in this context as having lasted, or being likely to last for, at least 12 months, or likely to last for the rest of the life of the person.
This could cover individual people who have Essential Tremor, where the condition has a ‘substantial’ and ‘long-term’ negative effect on their ability to do normal daily activities.
Asked by: Chris Coghlan (Liberal Democrat - Dorking and Horley)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to expedite the processing of visa applications for charity workers volunteering in adult care homes.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
Any Charity Worker applying for Entry Clearance who qualifies under the Immigration Rules will have their case decided within 15 working days as a maximum.
Charity Workers must not be filling permanent positions, even if they are on a temporary basis. This includes performing routine activities for the sponsor.
Current visa processing times can be found at: Visa processing times: applications outside the UK - GOV.UK.
Asked by: Chris Coghlan (Liberal Democrat - Dorking and Horley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to commission research on (a) essential tremor and (b) other neurological movement disorders.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department delivers research into neurological movement disorders via the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). For example, the NIHR is funding the first James Lind Alliance Priority Setting Partnership on essential tremor, which will bring together clinicians and families to understand the current unmet needs in the management and care of this group of patients and the challenges of living with essential tremor.
The NIHR is also funding a phase III trial, investigating the clinical and cost-effectiveness of rivastigmine patches in preventing falls for people with Parkinson’s disease. This approach is complemented by the STEPS II trial, which will determine if daily use of functional electrical stimulation improves walking speed in people with Parkinson’s disease.
Whilst there is no current funding call specifically for neurological movement disorders, the NIHR continues to welcome funding applications for research into any aspect of human health and care and topics proposals can be submitted via the NIHR website at the following link:
https://www.nihr.ac.uk/get-involved/suggest-a-research-topic
These applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality. Welcoming applications on neurological movement disorders to all NIHR programmes enables maximum flexibility both in terms of amount of research funding a particular area can be awarded, and the type of research which can be funded.
Asked by: Chris Coghlan (Liberal Democrat - Dorking and Horley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of Eli Lilly’s decision to increase the list price of Mounjaro by up to 170 per cent from September 2025 on people using the drug; and what steps his Department is taking to ensure that people continue to have affordable access to this treatment.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
As we shift the focus from treatment to prevention through our 10 Year Health Plan, we are determined to bring revolutionary modern treatments to everyone who needs them, not just those who can afford to pay.
NHS England has worked with Eli Lilly to ensure that the list price increase will not affect National Health Service commissioning of tirzepatide in England as a treatment for eligible patients, and we remain committed to the rollout of this medicine as a weight loss treatment based on clinical priority. This will enable 220,000 eligible people to access the medication over the first three years. Not everyone who wants tirzepatide will be able to access it at first, and the initial eligibility criteria will be for people with a body mass index of 40 or more in addition to four or more qualifying comorbidities.
Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland have also entered equivalent agreements to maintain their current commissioning approaches.
Pricing in the private market is a matter for Eli Lilly and for private providers. Private patients who are impacted by price increases should discuss any concerns with their private provider. This includes their options regarding payment plans, alternative treatments, and/or stopping or tapering off their current medication. Eli Lilly is working with private providers to support continued patient access.
Asked by: Chris Coghlan (Liberal Democrat - Dorking and Horley)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what progress Ofcom has made on reducing the number of spoofed phone numbers being used by (a) spammers and (b) scammers.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
‘Spoofing’ is a common technique used by fraudsters and spam callers to disguise their telephone numbers and pretend to be someone else, such as a bank or another person.
Ofcom have already strengthened activity against ‘spoofed’ calls. New rules were introduced last year to ensure that operators block calls from suspicious numbers from the UK and overseas.
Ofcom have announced further initiatives which will make it more difficult for spammers and scammers to use UK telephone numbers to harm consumers. For instance, in July 2025 Ofcom launched a consultation proposing that telecoms companies withhold the caller ID (CLI) of calls that appear to come from a UK mobile number (+447) when they originate abroad, unless the number’s validity can be verified. This measure aims to close the loophole that previously allowed spoofed mobile numbers via roaming to bypass existing blocks.
The Home Office is also currently developing a second Telecommunications Fraud Charter. This new charter will build on the existing voluntary anti-fraud efforts in the telecoms sector and will aim to go further in identifying, preventing, and disrupting fraud activities.
Asked by: Chris Coghlan (Liberal Democrat - Dorking and Horley)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to publish a second Telecommunications Fraud Charter.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
‘Spoofing’ is a common technique used by fraudsters and spam callers to disguise their telephone numbers and pretend to be someone else, such as a bank or another person.
Ofcom have already strengthened activity against ‘spoofed’ calls. New rules were introduced last year to ensure that operators block calls from suspicious numbers from the UK and overseas.
Ofcom have announced further initiatives which will make it more difficult for spammers and scammers to use UK telephone numbers to harm consumers. For instance, in July 2025 Ofcom launched a consultation proposing that telecoms companies withhold the caller ID (CLI) of calls that appear to come from a UK mobile number (+447) when they originate abroad, unless the number’s validity can be verified. This measure aims to close the loophole that previously allowed spoofed mobile numbers via roaming to bypass existing blocks.
The Home Office is also currently developing a second Telecommunications Fraud Charter. This new charter will build on the existing voluntary anti-fraud efforts in the telecoms sector and will aim to go further in identifying, preventing, and disrupting fraud activities.
Asked by: Chris Coghlan (Liberal Democrat - Dorking and Horley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to (a) help tackle supply chain issues relating to (i) Desmopressin and (ii) Hydrocortisone and (b) manage risks for patients who require access to these medications.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are aware of supply issues affecting desmopressin nasal spray for which the Department issued comprehensive communications to healthcare professionals in March 2025. This included advice on alternative medications, such as desmopressin oral products, and on how to manage affected patients during this time. Where alternative medications are not appropriate, the Department has reached out to specialist importers who have sourced unlicensed desmopressin nasal spray for patients. Guidance on ordering these is included in the shortage guidance. The Department has highlighted to prescribers the risk of omission or delay in treatment in patients with arginine vasopressin deficiency (AVP-D).
We are also aware of supply issues affecting hydrocortisone sodium phosphate 100mg/1ml solution for injection. Hydrocortisone sodium succinate 100mg powder remains available for patients. We have issued comprehensive management guidance to healthcare professionals on how to manage patients while supply is disrupted. The guidance highlighted the differences between the two hydrocortisone injections. It also included resources for patients and healthcare professionals on how to administer the alternative hydrocortisone injection.
The Department will continue to work closely with the manufacturers to resolve the issues as soon as possible and to ensure patients have continuous access to medicines. Any patient who is worried about their condition should speak to their clinician in the first instance.
Asked by: Chris Coghlan (Liberal Democrat - Dorking and Horley)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to end the use of the Four Points Hotel in Horley to house asylum seekers.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer I gave on the 4 September to Question 71421.
Asked by: Chris Coghlan (Liberal Democrat - Dorking and Horley)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he plans to publish a climate action plan that is in line with the (a) Climate Change Act 2008 and (b) Climate Change Committee’s independent assessment of the third national adaption programme.
Answered by Kerry McCarthy
We will deliver an updated Carbon Budgets and Growth Delivery Plan by October 2025 which outlines the policies needed to deliver Carbon Budgets 4-6 and our Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) on a pathway to net zero. Defra is also exploring stronger climate resilience objectives ahead of the next National Adaptation Programme in 2028. We welcome the Climate Change Committee’s 2025 Progress Report. The government will consider their recommendations and respond by October.
Asked by: Chris Coghlan (Liberal Democrat - Dorking and Horley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure that there is adequate infrastructure in place to support new housing developments.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 65505 on 14 July 2025.