Asked by: Chris Evans (Labour (Co-op) - Caerphilly)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he has considered the potential merits of introducing a more accessible appeals mechanism for coroners’ rulings.
Answered by Catherine Atkinson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Government believes that coroners’ decisions can be effectively and appropriately challenged by means of the existing mechanisms of judicial review or application for a first or fresh inquest under section 13 of the Coroners Act 1988.
As soon as Parliamentary time allows, we will bring forward amendments to section 13 to enable the High Court, in appropriate circumstances, to direct the Record of Inquest to be amended without the need for a fresh inquest. This will provide the court with greater flexibility to ensure that it can fulfil its role as expediently as possible and in a way that best serves the interests of justice.
Asked by: Chris Evans (Labour (Co-op) - Caerphilly)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to the report 'Strike while AI is hot' by the Institute for Public Policy Research, whether his Department plans to give employees new rights to shape AI's deployment in the workplace.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
New technologies, including AI, have the potential to boost wages, drive up productivity and empower workers, but they may also pose risks. This Government’s plan to make work pay will help bring employment rights legislation into the twenty first century.
The government has committed to ensuring worker voice is at the heart of Britain's digital transition by working with trade unions, workers, employers and experts. We will be launching a public consultation on the use of workplace monitoring technologies to continue this dialogue and ensure workplace technologies benefit everyone.
Asked by: Chris Evans (Labour (Co-op) - Caerphilly)
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 implications for his policies of the evidence base that underpins the use of tissue stabilisers - as an alternative to fresh frozen tissue - for whole genome sequencing.
Answered by Preet Kaur Gill - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England has produced national sample handling guidance, including for whole genome sequencing (WGS), of solid tumours to standardise the collection, processing, and transport of tumour samples, helping to maintain DNA quality and support access to precision diagnostics. As part of the guidance, approaches to the handling of fresh tissue have been reviewed, including the use of tissue stabilisers as an alternative to fresh frozen tissue.
The Department has not undertaken a specific, separate assessment of whether reliance on tissue stabilisers could limit access to precision diagnostics, WGS, clinical trials, or research. However, the guidance indicates that the use of tissue stabilisers is intended to support, rather than limit, access to genomic testing, including WGS, by enabling more consistent sample handling pathways across the National Health Service. The aim is to reduce some of the barriers of having to acquire, freeze, and transport the frozen tissue, helping to speed up processes and improve consistency.
Asked by: Chris Evans (Labour (Co-op) - Caerphilly)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will provide a breakdown of the funding allocated to the Ajax programme between December 2025 and April 2026.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Ministry of Defence paid £97 million in line with contractual obligations for the Ajax programme between December 2025 and April 2026, to General Dynamics and other Suppliers. I am unable to publish details of the milestones and payment schedules as this may prejudice the Department's commercial interests.
Asked by: Chris Evans (Labour (Co-op) - Caerphilly)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps his Department is taking to promote supply-chain resilience.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Government recognised the importance of supply chain resilience in both the Trade and Industrial Strategies, which committed to setting up a Supply Chain Centre within DBT. The Centre will review inputs required for our growth industries and national security, consider the impact of future trends on demand, and determine what action may be required to build resilience – such as domestic capability building, diversification or strategic international partnerships. It will work closely with industry to identify the UK’s key risks and dependencies and improve businesses’ access to information, enhancing our ability to tackle risks.
Asked by: Chris Evans (Labour (Co-op) - Caerphilly)
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 help reduce the number of people needing treatment for alcohol use disorders.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to reducing the number of people in ill health, with the shift from treatment to prevention being a key priority.
Action to prevent harms from alcohol feature in multiple current strategies and plans. The recently published National Cancer Plan reiterated the commitment made in Fit for the Future: 10-Year Health Plan for England, to strengthen and expand on existing voluntary guidelines for alcohol labelling by introducing a mandatory requirement for alcoholic drinks to display consistent nutritional information and health warning messages. The Men’s Health Strategy outlines the impact alcohol can have on men’s health, and several initiatives to address this, including piloting a new brief intervention to target the rise in cardiovascular disease deaths from combined alcohol and cocaine use among older men.
Validated alcohol risk screening tools are being built into our new digital resources. The healthy choices quiz, launched in November, includes making health choices around alcohol and users receive tailored advice about reducing health risk from alcohol based on their input about their drinking. The healthy choices quiz and further information on its introduction is available, respectively, at the following two links:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/millions-to-benefit-from-new-health-and-wellbeing-quiz
In addition, the NHS Health Check, designed to assess the top risk factors for cardiovascular disease, includes an alcohol assessment, and can refer people to further support for their alcohol use where appropriate.
Asked by: Chris Evans (Labour (Co-op) - Caerphilly)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the effectiveness of licensing regulations to protect people from alcohol-related harms.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Licensing Act 2003, which is overseen by the Home Office, requires licensing authorities to promote objectives relating to the prevention of crime and disorder, public safety, the protection of children from harm, and the prevention of public nuisance, which together provide important safeguards against alcohol‑related harms.
The Government is considering how best to take forward recommendations to develop a modern, proportionate, and enabling licensing system. This work is being led by the Department for Business and Trade and the Home Office with support from other departments, including the Department of Health and Social Care, to ensure public health is fully considered.
We will continue to work across Government to consider what other measures might be needed to reduce the negative impact excessive alcohol consumption is having on health, crime, and the economy.
Asked by: Chris Evans (Labour (Co-op) - Caerphilly)
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 help support the routine use of digital consultations in community drug and alcohol treatment services.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
As part of our shift from analogue to digital, the Department has provided guidance for alcohol and drug treatment services on maintaining a balance between digital, or remote, and in-person interventions. This guidance is available to view at the following link:
While the Department supports the use of digital consultations in community drug and alcohol treatment services, they should be considered alongside an assessment of risk and need, to determine whether they are suitable. There are circumstances in which there is no digital substitute for an in-person consultation.
Asked by: Chris Evans (Labour (Co-op) - Caerphilly)
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 allow CQC-registered drug and alcohol treatment providers, including charities, to use the NHS Electronic Prescription Service in place of paper instalment prescriptions.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department is working with NHS England to extend the NHS Electronic Prescription Service (EPS) to include instalment dispensing for the FP10MDA, or controlled drugs, prescription type. This will allow eligible services, including drug and alcohol treatment providers and community pharmacies, to use EPS rather than paper prescriptions where this is appropriate.
Asked by: Chris Evans (Labour (Co-op) - Caerphilly)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that (a) alcohol advertising and (b) websites selling alcoholic products provide reference to addiction support platforms.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
In the United Kingdom, the Advertising Standards Authority is responsible for regulating advertising through enforcing the codes set by the Committees of Advertising Practice and the Broadcast Committee of Advertising Practice. There are rules about ensuring alcohol and drinking are portrayed in a responsible way, for instance adverts generally should not imply, condone, or encourage immoderate, irresponsible, or anti-social drinking. The codes do not currently require alcohol advertisements to signpost to addiction support services.
Online sales of alcohol are regulated under the Licensing Act 2003. There is currently no statutory requirement for online retailers to signpost to addiction support platforms.
The Department of Health and Social Care will continue to work with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, as the lead Government department responsible for advertising, and the Home Office, as the department responsible for licensing, to understand the evidence base and explore policy responses for addressing alcohol harms.