Claire Hanna Portrait

Claire Hanna

Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South and Mid Down

12,506 (28.8%) majority - 2024 General Election

First elected: 12th December 2019


Claire Hanna is not a member of any APPGs
5 Former APPG memberships
Flexible and Family Friendly Working, Green New Deal, HIV and AIDS, Ireland and the Irish in Britain, Performers' Alliance
Northern Ireland Affairs Committee
2nd Mar 2020 - 30th May 2024
British Citizenship (Northern Ireland) Bill
20th Mar 2024 - 17th Apr 2024
Northern Ireland (Ministers, Elections and Petitions of Concern) Bill
28th Jun 2021 - 6th Jul 2021


Division Voting information

During the current Parliament, Claire Hanna has voted in 46 divisions, and never against the majority of their Party.
View All Claire Hanna Division Votes

Debates during the 2024 Parliament

Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.

Sparring Partners
Hilary Benn (Labour)
Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
(17 debate interactions)
Keir Starmer (Labour)
Prime Minister and First Lord of the Treasury
(9 debate interactions)
View All Sparring Partners
Department Debates
Northern Ireland Office
(21 debate contributions)
Cabinet Office
(4 debate contributions)
Department for Business and Trade
(3 debate contributions)
Department for Education
(3 debate contributions)
View All Department Debates
View all Claire Hanna's debates

Belfast South and Mid Down Petitions

e-Petitions are administered by Parliament and allow members of the public to express support for a particular issue.

If an e-petition reaches 10,000 signatures the Government will issue a written response.

If an e-petition reaches 100,000 signatures the petition becomes eligible for a Parliamentary debate (usually Monday 4.30pm in Westminster Hall).

Petitions with highest Belfast South and Mid Down signature proportion
Petitions with most Belfast South and Mid Down signatures
Claire Hanna has not participated in any petition debates

Latest EDMs signed by Claire Hanna

4th June 2025
Claire Hanna signed this EDM as a sponsor on Thursday 5th June 2025

Madleen Freedom Flotilla Ship

Tabled by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
That this House stands in solidarity with the crew of 12, including climate activist Greta Thunburg, of the Madleen Freedom Flotilla Ship bound for the Gaza Strip, attempting to break Israel's siege of Gaza to deliver vital aid including essential medical supplies, food and children's aid; supports the statement by …
14 signatures
(Most recent: 5 Jun 2025)
Signatures by party:
Labour: 8
Independent: 3
Scottish National Party: 2
Social Democratic & Labour Party: 1
Green Party: 1
27th January 2025
Claire Hanna signed this EDM on Wednesday 4th June 2025

Snares

Tabled by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
That this House welcomes the Government’s commitment to ban the use of snares in England and is heartened that the governments of Wales and Scotland have already successfully implemented such a ban; notes that a 2016 motion calling for a ban on snares was passed unanimously, and further, that a …
80 signatures
(Most recent: 4 Jun 2025)
Signatures by party:
Liberal Democrat: 41
Labour: 23
Green Party: 4
Plaid Cymru: 4
Independent: 3
Scottish National Party: 2
Democratic Unionist Party: 1
Conservative: 1
Alliance: 1
Social Democratic & Labour Party: 1
View All Claire Hanna's signed Early Day Motions

Commons initiatives

These initiatives were driven by Claire Hanna, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.

MPs who are act as Ministers or Shadow Ministers are generally restricted from performing Commons initiatives other than Urgent Questions.



Latest 50 Written Questions

(View all written questions)
Written Questions can be tabled by MPs and Lords to request specific information information on the work, policy and activities of a Government Department
21st May 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will have discussions with his EU counterparts to improve the functioning of the Windsor Framework.

As co-Chair of the Withdrawal Agreement Joint Committee I regularly discuss the functioning of the Windsor Framework with my European Commission counterpart Maroš Šefčovič. At the recent UK-EU summit we announced a new SPS agreement that will facilitate the smooth flow of agrifood and plants from Great Britain to Northern Ireland, whilst protecting the facilitations available to businesses under the Windsor Framework. This achievement is a product of a closer partnership with the EU, which will unlock real improvements for businesses and consumers - alongside the recent switch on of new customs facilitations for freight and parcels so that goods can flow smoothly within the UK internal market.

Nick Thomas-Symonds
Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
21st May 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will take steps to ensure that the findings of the Independent Review of the Windsor Framework are considered during UK-EU negotiations.

The Review reflects the Government’s commitment to securing the broadest possible confidence of communities in Northern Ireland’s post-Brexit trading arrangements. The Government looks forward to considering Lord Murphy’s recommendations when the Review reports. In doing so, we will follow the duties contained within Schedule 6A Northern Ireland Act 1998 including in respect of engagement with the European Union.

Nick Thomas-Symonds
Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
17th Dec 2024
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what discussions he has had with the EU on the impact of General Product Safety regulations on small and medium businesses sending goods to Northern Ireland.

The Government maintains a dialogue with the EU on matters of mutual interest. The updated General Product Safety Regulation largely formalises the reality of how businesses are already operating in the UK and the measures are therefore likely to have limited impact. Where businesses need to make changes, we expect that they will be adapting anyway in order to continue trading with the EU. We are keeping this matter under careful review and are supporting small and medium businesses through providing detailed guidance and via regular engagement to ensure we are enabling them to trade freely across the whole of the UK.

Nick Thomas-Symonds
Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
17th Apr 2025
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions his Department has had with the National Council for the Training of Journalists on establishing a mutual recognition of professional qualifications agreement with the Republic of Ireland.

The UK government encourages regulators and industry bodies to engage with their counterparts in the Republic of Ireland to ensure professionals are able to practise in both jurisdictions. Independent UK regulators and industry bodies are responsible for agreeing recognition agreements with their overseas counterparts.

The Department for Business and Trade has not held discussions with the National Council for the Training of Journalists on establishing a mutual recognition of professional qualifications agreement with the Republic of Ireland.

Douglas Alexander
Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
13th Jan 2025
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps his Department has taken to monitor the application of the General Product Safety Regulations in Northern Ireland and Great Britain.

The updated GPSR largely formalises the reality of how many businesses are already operating and the measures are therefore likely to have limited impact in practice. However, we understand that for some businesses, the regulation will require changes, and we take any concerns extremely seriously.

We have issued guidance, will keep this under review and continue to engage businesses directly to ensure we are supporting them to trade freely within the UK and with the EU. We have regular discussions with businesses and consumer representatives from across the UK to hear their concerns.

Justin Madders
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
17th Dec 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps the Government plans to take to monitor the impact of General Product Safety regulations on SME's and sole traders sending goods to Northern Ireland.

The Government is supporting SMEs to comply with the new General Product Safety Regulation. We have published guidance and have been engaging with businesses directly. We will keep the guidance under review and will continue to engage with businesses directly to monitor the situation and to ensure we are supporting them to trade freely across the whole of the UK.

Justin Madders
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
25th Oct 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what his timetable is for the publication of guidance to Great Britain based businesses trading in Northern Ireland on the General Product Safety Regulations 2025 .

The updated General Product Safety Regulation largely formalises the reality of how businesses are already operating in the UK and the measures are therefore likely to have limited impact. Where businesses need to make changes, we expect that they will be already adapting in order to continue trading with the EU. We will provide more guidance in this area shortly, will keep this under review and continue to engage businesses directly to ensure we are supporting them to trade freely across the whole of the UK.

Justin Madders
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
17th Jul 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he plans to take to review arms sales to Israel.

When it comes to arms exports, this Government will uphold our international legal obligations, ensuring that international law is fully factored into decisions, in line with the UK's Strategic Export Licensing Criteria. The Foreign Secretary met with President Netanyahu in Israel on 14 July and pushed for an immediate ceasefire, the release of all hostages, the upholding of international law, and a rapid increase of aid into Gaza.

The Government will now review the advice available and come to a considered decision. The Government will update Parliament as appropriate once this decision has been made.

Douglas Alexander
Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
27th Nov 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether the Clean Power 2030 Advisory Commission will consider matters relating to Northern Ireland.

Energy policy is largely devolved to the Northern Ireland Executive (NIE). As such the Clean Power 2030 Advisory Commission is focused on decarbonisation of the power system in Great Britain. However, we are keen to share learnings from this process with colleagues in Northern Ireland and will work with them to this end as NIE produces its own plan to decarbonise the power sector, which will receive UK government support.

Michael Shanks
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
10th Sep 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what discussions he has had with (a) Ofgem and (b) energy companies on introducing a social tariff for low-income households.

The Government is committed to supporting low-income households this winter, and we are continuing to deliver the Warm Home Discount which provides an annual £150 rebate off energy bills to eligible low-income households.

Last month, I met with energy suppliers to discuss the support we will provide to customers struggling with bills this winter, and my team and I will continue to work closely with suppliers in the weeks ahead. The Government expects energy suppliers to do everything they can to support consumers who are struggling with their bills.

Miatta Fahnbulleh
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
29th Apr 2025
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what governance arrangements are in place for the Cyber Local fund in Northern Ireland; and what steps he plans to take to allow local groups in Northern Ireland to provide input into the initiative.

For the 2024/25 Cyber Local pilot, regional steering groups were established to review expressions of interest from potential applicants. The Northern Ireland steering group comprised individuals from industry, academia, and the NI Executive, and was responsible for ensuring that proposals met a local need and did not duplicate existing interventions. Endorsement from the steering group was a prerequisite for accessing a Cyber Local grant via Innovate UK.

Feryal Clark
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
29th Apr 2025
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether Northern Ireland will receive funding from Cyber Local in 2025-26.

As of April 2025, the way that Devolved Administrations (DAs) receive funding for cyber security has changed. Previously ringfenced cyber budgets will be absorbed into departmental baselines and provided directly to DAs in their overall HM Treasury settlement.

The revised funding arrangements further support DAs, including the Northern Ireland Executive, to make their own choices about how to champion the cyber sector in each part of the UK. DSIT will continue to engage with the Northern Ireland Executive on how to assist the cyber sector, including through the Cyber Local programme.

DSIT continues to support the successful cyber ecosystem in Northern Ireland with key investments such as the Cyber AI Hub programme at Queen’s University Belfast.

Feryal Clark
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
29th Apr 2025
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of including Northern Ireland as an eligible region for Cyber Local funding in 2025-26.

As of April 2025, the way that Devolved Administrations (DAs) receive funding for cyber security has changed. Previously ringfenced cyber budgets will be absorbed into departmental baselines and provided directly to DAs in their overall HM Treasury settlement.

The revised funding arrangements further support DAs, including the Northern Ireland Executive, to make their own choices about how to champion the cyber sector in each part of the UK. DSIT will continue to engage with the Northern Ireland Executive on how to assist the cyber sector, including through the Cyber Local programme.

DSIT continues to support the successful cyber ecosystem in Northern Ireland with key investments such as the Cyber AI Hub programme at Queen’s University Belfast.

Feryal Clark
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
7th Jan 2025
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of (a) withdrawing the Copyright and Performances (Application to Other Countries) (Amendment) (No.2) Order 2024 (SI, 2024, No. 1124) and (b) commencing a consultation into the potential impact of introducing the regulation.

The Government introduced SI 2024/1124 following a public consultation and careful consideration of the views and evidence submitted thereto. The effect of the SI is to largely maintain the effect of the law as it formerly applied (Option 0 in the consultation), except for limited changes, most of which are made to allow the UK to comply with its international obligations. Revoking this SI and adopting any of the other options considered at consultation would risk costs and disruption for the UK’s creative industries, as set out in the Government’s response to the consultation.

Feryal Clark
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
17th Apr 2025
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when she plans to answer Question 41236 on BBC Radio: Ireland.

An answer was provided to the Hon Member on 22nd April. I apologise for the delay.

Stephanie Peacock
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
25th Mar 2025
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of the cessation of BBC Sounds coverage outside of the UK on listeners living in border counties on the Island of Ireland.

The BBC is operationally and editorially independent of the Government, and decisions on how it discharges its obligations, such as its changes to its BBC Sounds service, are a matter for the BBC. The Government has therefore not assessed the potential impact of the BBC’s changes to its BBC Sounds service. The BBC has announced its own decision to delay the blocking of BBC Sounds outside of the UK while working on plans to continue to make other BBC stations available to listeners outside the UK.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) meets regularly with representatives of the BBC on a range of matters, including how it engages listeners both in the UK and internationally.

Stephanie Peacock
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
21st Feb 2025
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has written to her counterpart in the new Irish government on the creation of a unique IP address for Northern Ireland residents.

Further to my response of 14 October 2024 to question 6604, my officials have subsequently discussed the issue of geoblocking with their counterparts in both the Northern Ireland Executive and the Irish Government. Those discussions are ongoing. Following the formation of the new Irish Government on 23 January, I have written to the Minister for Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport to seek his views.

Stephanie Peacock
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
4th Oct 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if her Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of developing a unique IP address for Northern Ireland residents to prevent geo blocking of Irish sports coverage from Ireland.

The Government recognises the importance of residents of Northern Ireland being able to access coverage of important sporting and other cultural events that are relevant to communities across the island of Ireland.

While decisions on the coverage of sporting events are for rights holders and broadcasters to make independent of their respective Governments, we would encourage sports rights holders and relevant broadcasters to have in place suitable arrangements to ensure Northern Ireland residents can continue to access sports coverage from Ireland.

Given the cross-border nature of the concerns raised, I have also asked my officials to discuss these issues with their counterparts in the Irish Government.

Stephanie Peacock
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
12th Nov 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the policy objective is of (a) extended producer responsibility and (b) packaging recovering notes; and what the relationship is between the two policies.

Extended Producer Responsibility for packaging (pEPR) is intended to make producers responsible for the costs of managing their packaging, incentivising them to use less packaging and make the packaging they do use more sustainable.

The key pEPR obligations include paying local authority disposal costs for the management of packaging collected from households and public information campaigns, in addition to scheme administration and regulator fees. pEPR also includes a recycling obligation, which requires producers to obtain PRNs, based on the amount of packaging they have placed on the market, from accredited reprocessors and exporters. The cost of PRNs is intended to support the actual recycling of the collected packaging waste.

Combined, pEPR disposal fees and the cost of PRNs support the collection, sorting and reprocessing of packaging, as well as the costs of disposing of packaging which is not recycled.

A full explanation of how the pEPR system will operate can be found the Explanatory Memorandum published alongside the Producer Responsibility (Packaging and Packaging Wate) Regulations which were laid in Parliament on the 24th October The Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging and Packaging Waste) Regulations 2024 - Draft Explanatory Memorandum.

Mary Creagh
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
21st Oct 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when the updated National Action Plan on the Sustainable Use of Pesticides will be published.

We intend to publish a National Action Plan in due course that reflects the Government’s priority to minimise the risks and impact of pesticides on human health and the environment and facilitate sustainable use.

Emma Hardy
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
4th Oct 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress his Department has made on introducing a ban on single use vapes.

We are reviewing the current proposals to restrict the sale and supply of single use vapes and will outline next steps as soon as possible.

Mary Creagh
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
11th Sep 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will (a) hold discussions with the (Minister for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs in the Northern Ireland Executive on the potential impact of levels of (i) investment by the Irish Government and (ii) access to labour (A) from the EU and (B) through a bespoke visa on the mushroom sector in Northern Ireland and (b) make an assessment with the Secretary of State for Home Affairs of the potential merits of introducing a bespoke visa to encourage more agricultural workers into Northern Ireland's mushroom sector.

This Government is serious about revitalising the relationship between UK and Devolved Governments and partnering to deliver economic growth and stability.

The Seasonal Workers visa route is a bespoke visa currently available for workers outside of the UK to come and work for up to six months in the horticulture sector, and in the run up to Christmas for the poultry sector. The horticulture sector includes both edible and ornamental horticulture, which covers the mushroom sector in Northern Ireland. The number of seasonal worker visas available for horticulture in 2024 is 45,000, with an additional 2,000 for the poultry sector. The same allocation was available in 2023 and comfortably met the sector’s needs.

The Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) review of the Seasonal Worker visa was published in July. It recommended the continuation of the visa route because of the sector’s unique, highly seasonal and short-term labour requirements and important role in ensuring our food security. The Government will be responding to the MAC this autumn.

Alongside migrant workers arriving through the Seasonal Worker visa route, food and farming businesses can also draw on EU nationals living in the UK with settled or pre-settled status to meet their seasonal worker needs.

I speak regularly to my counterparts in the Northern Ireland Executive on shared priorities.

Daniel Zeichner
Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
4th Sep 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of the extender producer responsibility scheme on sustainable glass producers.

No, the 2022 PePR impact assessment made an assessment of the impact of introducing the scheme on packaging producers as a whole. This does not split the assessment by sector. The Government has now published the first set of pEPR illustrative base fees and is undertaking engagement with relevant industry to ensure that they are based on the best evidence to date. As part of this engagement, the impact on specific packaging sectors is being discussed.

Mary Creagh
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
10th Feb 2025
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 6 February 2025 to Question 27960 on the Cycle to Work Scheme: Northern Ireland and the Answer of 11 October 2024 to Question 5735 on Bicycles: Subsidies, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of working with the Department for Infrastructure in Northern Ireland on improving access to cycles for people excluded from the cycle to work scheme.

Officials from this Department regularly meet with their counterparts from the other parts of the UK, including the Department for Infrastructure in Northern Ireland, to compare notes on how each is approaching a wide range of active travel issues. The Department’s officials would be happy to explore this topic with their counterparts in the Department for Infrastructure in Northern Ireland, but in practice nearly all of the ways of improving access to cycles for those people in Northern Ireland who are unable to use the cycle to work scheme would be devolved matters for the Northern Ireland government.

Simon Lightwood
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
31st Jan 2025
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the report entitled The cycling opportunity by Sustrans, published in September 2024, what recent discussions she has had with the Department for Infrastructure in Northern Ireland on the Cycle to Work Scheme.

The Cycle to Work Scheme is a salary sacrifice scheme and any changes to it would be a matter for His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs. The Department continues to have conversations with HMRC regarding the scheme, but has had no such discussions with the Department for Infrastructure in Northern Ireland.

Simon Lightwood
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
12th Nov 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if her Department will take steps to increase (a) sustainable travel options and (b) (i) rail and (ii) sail provision between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

The UK ferry market predominantly operates on a private sector, commercial basis without government support or intervention. As such decisions on increased services is a matter for the relevant operators, and we note that there are multiple routing options for ferry access between Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The Government is considering options to decarbonise the domestic maritime sector which - alongside the expansion of the UK ETS to domestic maritime from 2026, will deliver more sustainable travel options between GB and NI.

The Northern Ireland rail network is fully devolved, operated by Translink and provided grant capital from Department for infrastructure.

Mike Kane
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
25th Jul 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she plans to take to help improve accessibility on flights for disabled passengers.

Accessible air travel is a key priority, and everyone should be able to fly with ease and dignity. Government is committed to working closely with industry and stakeholders to make progress in improving aviation accessibility.

Mike Kane
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
2nd May 2025
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to (a) directly invite the views of disabled people and (b) directly engage with stakeholder groups on the Pathway to Work proposals.

This government strongly values the input of disabled people and representative organisations, and that is why we have brought forward this Green Paper and opened a public consultation. The consultation welcomes all views, and we hope that a wide range of voices will respond before it closes on the 30 June 2025.

We have published a full suite of accessible versions of the Green Paper to ensure that everyone can engage. Our schedule of virtual and in-person public consultation events across the country will further facilitate input and help us to hear from disabled people and stakeholders directly. The events accommodate any reasonable adjustments for individuals who wish to attend, including re-imbursing travel costs and arranging accessible venues and accessibility requirements such as BSL interpreters or stenographers for attendees.

We are continuing to facilitate other ways to involve stakeholders and disabled people in our reforms. In addition to the consultation itself, we will establish ‘collaboration committees’ that bring groups, including disabled people and other experts, together for specific work areas. Our wider review of the PIP assessment, led by myself, will also bring together a range of experts, stakeholders and people with lived experience.

Stephen Timms
Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
2nd May 2025
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to ensure the consultation events on the Pathway to Work are accessible to people with disabilities.

This government strongly values the input of disabled people and representative organisations, and that is why we have brought forward this Green Paper and opened a public consultation. The consultation welcomes all views, and we hope that a wide range of voices will respond before it closes on the 30 June 2025.

We have published a full suite of accessible versions of the Green Paper to ensure that everyone can engage. Our schedule of virtual and in-person public consultation events across the country will further facilitate input and help us to hear from disabled people and stakeholders directly. The events accommodate any reasonable adjustments for individuals who wish to attend, including re-imbursing travel costs and arranging accessible venues and accessibility requirements such as BSL interpreters or stenographers for attendees.

We are continuing to facilitate other ways to involve stakeholders and disabled people in our reforms. In addition to the consultation itself, we will establish ‘collaboration committees’ that bring groups, including disabled people and other experts, together for specific work areas. Our wider review of the PIP assessment, led by myself, will also bring together a range of experts, stakeholders and people with lived experience.

Stephen Timms
Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
28th Apr 2025
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department plans to apply for permission to appeal to the Court of Appeal from the Upper Tribunal judgement Secretary of State for Work and Pensions v MJ [2025] UKUT 035 (AAC).

In relation to the recent judgment in Secretary of State for Work and Pensions v MJ [2025] UKUT 035 (AAC), the Secretary of State will not be seeking permission to appeal the outcome.

Stephen Timms
Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
17th Apr 2025
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she plans to hold consultation events in Northern Ireland on the Pathways to work Green Paper.

We are committed to putting the views and voices of disabled people and people with health conditions at the heart of everything we do.

In the Green Paper, we have announced that we will set up collaboration committees to develop parts of our reforms further. This will involve bringing together disabled people and other experts with civil servants around specific issues to collaborate, provide ideas, challenge, and input into recommendations.

We intend to run a number of accessible virtual and face-to-face events on the Green Paper to hear from stakeholders, including disabled people and their representative organisations, directly. The Department will be holding a consultation event in Northen Ireland and is working with officials there on the planning stages.

Stephen Timms
Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
29th Nov 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people in Northern Ireland will be impacted by changes proposed to the Work Capacity Assessment.

Social security is transferred (devolved) to the Northern Ireland Executive where it is administered by the Department for Communities.

Stephen Timms
Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
4th Oct 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the oral evidence provided by the Minister for Pensions to the Work and Pensions Committee on defined benefit pension schemes on 10 January 2024, Session 2023-24, HC 144, what plans she has to review the (a) indexation, (b) 90% compensation cap and (c) potential merits of other changes to the Pension Protection Fund; and whether she plans to consult on potential changes to that Fund during this Parliament.

I have heard about the problems experienced by Defined Benefit pension scheme members adjusting to an income in retirement which may be less than they were expecting following the insolvency of their employer. I recognise the importance of these issues for members and will consider this further in the coming months.

Pension Protection Fund compensation payments based on benefits accrued on or after 6 April 1997 are increased in line with the Consumer Price Index, capped at 2.5 per cent. Before 6 April 1997, there was no general statutory requirement for defined benefit pensions to be increased when in payment, apart from any Guaranteed Minimum Pension element earned on or after 6 April 1988.

There is no cap to Pension Protection Fund compensation. Compensation is calculated at the date of employer insolvency and, at that date, is initially either 100 per cent of their accrued pension benefits for members over their scheme's normal pension age or 90 per cent of their accrued pension benefits for members below their scheme’s normal pension age.

Emma Reynolds
Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
17th Jul 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman's report into women’s State Pension age changes, published on 21 March 2024, if she will take steps to introduce compensation for women affected by changes to the State Pension age.

As a newly formed Government we will need time to review and consider the Ombudsman’s report along with the evidence provided during the investigation.

This Government respects the work of the Ombudsman. Now the election has concluded we need to consider the views that have been expressed on all sides.

The issues outlined in the report are significant and complex, as such they require serious deliberation. Once this work has been undertaken, the Government/we will be in a position to outline its approach.

Emma Reynolds
Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
17th Jul 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the UK's progress on implementing the recommendations made in the report entitled Concluding observations on the initial report of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland by the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in 2017.

The Government is committed to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and improving disabled people’s lives in all aspects of life.

The previous Government’s latest response to the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities was submitted in 2022, and published on GOV.UK with accessible formats in December 2022. This report and previous ones can be found here.

As requested by the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the Government will submit a report by March 2029 with information on how we are implementing the Committee’s recommendations outlined in their latest report published in April 2024. The Government, through the Disability Unit in the Cabinet Office, has already begun considering the recommendations from this report.

Stephen Timms
Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
21st Feb 2025
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of implementing a national redress scheme for (a) mothers and (b) children living with fetal valproate syndrome.

The Government is carefully considering the valuable work done by the Patient Safety Commissioner and the resulting Hughes Report, which set out options for redress for those harmed by valproate and pelvic mesh. We will be providing an update to the Patient Safety Commissioner’s report at the earliest opportunity. Although the Hughes Report and its recommendations only cover patients harmed in England, the Government recognises that any response will likely have implications for Northern Ireland and is engaging with the Minister for Health in the Northern Ireland Executive on the Hughes Report.

Ashley Dalton
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
3rd Jan 2025
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve NHS diagnostic processes for glioblastoma brain tumours.

The Department is working with NHS England in taking steps to improve diagnostic processes in the National Health Service for all patients with cancer, including those with glioblastoma brain tumours.

We will get the NHS diagnosing cancer, including brain tumours, on time, diagnosing it earlier and treating it faster so more patients survive, and we will improve patients’ experience across the system. We will address the challenges in diagnostic waiting times, providing the number of CT, magnetic resonance imaging and other tests that are needed to reduce cancer waits.

To do this, we set out expectations for renewed focus on cancer targets in the Elective Reform plan, published on 6 January 2025. We have asked systems and providers to identify local opportunities in both community diagnostic centres (CDCs) and hospital based diagnostic services to improve performance against the Faster Diagnosis Standard, to reduce the number of patients waiting too long for a confirmed diagnosis of cancer. Any new CDCs will be expected to include specific capacity for cancer testing as part of activity plans, enabled either through direct provision or via freeing up acute hospital capacity for more complex cancer tests.

In September 2024, the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) announced new research funding opportunities for brain cancer research, including glioblastoma, spanning both adult and paediatric populations. This includes a national NIHR Brain Tumour Research Consortium, to ensure the most promising research opportunities are made available to adult and child patients and a new funding call to generate high quality evidence in brain tumour care, support, and rehabilitation.

18th Dec 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions his Department has had with the devolved administrations on development of a new HIV Action Plan.

Health is a devolved matter and it is the responsibility of individual governments to commission comprehensive healthcare based on population need. All four nations, however, are committed to reducing HIV transmissions.

The new HIV Action Plan, which is due to be published in summer 2025, will apply to England only. Government officials in England meet regularly with their counterparts in the devolved governments, to share information and best practice on our response to HIV.

17th Dec 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of the current age range for bowel cancer screening.

Based on advice from the UK National Screening Committee, NHS England committed in the Long Term Plan to extend the age range of people eligible for bowel screening using the FIT home testing kit from age 60 down to age 50.

The age extension for bowel screening is already underway. NHS England started in April 2021 with the 56-year-old cohort and, based on modelling and clinical advice, has planned to gradually reduce to age 50 by 2025. This has been done to ensure that screening centres could manage any required increase in colonoscopy capacity.

21st Oct 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Hughes report published by the Patient Safety Commissioner on 7 February 2024, if he will take steps to introduce a compensation scheme which is open to (a) all UK and (b) Northern Ireland patients affected by sodium valproate.

The Government is carefully considering the valuable work done by the Patient Safety Commissioner and the resulting Hughes Report, which set out options for redress for those harmed by valproate and pelvic mesh. We will be providing an update to the Patient Safety Commissioner’s report at the earliest opportunity. Although the Hughes Report and its recommendations only cover patients harmed in England, the Government recognises that any response will likely have implications for the whole of the United Kingdom, and so we will engage with the devolved administrations on the Hughes Report.

Healthcare in Northern Ireland is a devolved matter and, as such, it is respectfully requested that the question on introducing a compensation scheme for individuals harmed by sodium valproate in Northern Ireland be redirected to the Justice Minister for Northern Ireland or the Minister for Health for Northern Ireland, to be handled at a devolved level.

25th Jul 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he plans to take to ensure that people with breast cancer receive (a) an early diagnosis and (b) swift treatment.

The Department is responsible for healthcare in England. In Northern Ireland, health is a transferred matter.

Improving early diagnosis of cancer, including breast cancer, is a priority for NHS England. NHS England has an ambition to diagnose 75% of cancers at stage 1 or 2 by 2028, which will help tens of thousands of people live longer. The National Health Service in England carries out approximately 2.1 million breast cancer screens each year in hospitals and mobile screening vans, usually in convenient community locations.

The Department is committed to improving waiting times for cancer treatment across England. We will start by delivering an extra 40,000 operations, scans, and appointments each week, as the first step to ensuring early diagnosis and faster treatment.

24th Jul 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of making dental (a) foundation and (b) vocational training mandatory for dentists entering private practice.

The General Dental Council (GDC) is the independent regulator of dentistry in the United Kingdom, and sets the standards that must be met by domestic and international applicants wishing to be added to the UK dental register. Only dentists and dental care professionals registered with the GDC can legally practise in both National Health Service and private dentistry in the UK. The GDC sets out these standards to ensure registrants are safe to practise, and patients receive a high standard of care.

Stephen Kinnock
Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
24th Jul 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to review the standards of training for dentistry students.

The General Dental Council (GDC) is the independent regulator for dentists and dental care professionals in the United Kingdom. The GDC sets the standards of training and education required, including clinical placements, to gain entry to its register, and approves and inspects education and training providers.

Stephen Kinnock
Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
24th Jul 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of increasing the clinical experience dentists receive before becoming eligible to practice.

The General Dental Council (GDC) is the independent regulator for dentists and dental care professionals in the United Kingdom. The GDC sets the standards of training and education required, including clinical placements, to gain entry to its register, and approves and inspects education and training providers.

Stephen Kinnock
Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
24th Jul 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to review the immigration health surcharge.

The Government has not announced any plans to review the policy.

Karin Smyth
Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
22nd Jul 2024
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department plans to (a) help increase the survival rate of out-of-hospital cardiac arrests and (b) increase the availability of defibrillators in public settings.

As of July 2024, there are 93,113 automated external defibrillators registered in the United Kingdom on the National Defibrillator Network, also known as The Circuit, including 73,682 in England. Moving forward, the Department has asked Professor Lord Darzi to investigate the state of the National Health Service. The Department will then set out its 10-year plan for the NHS.

Karin Smyth
Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
20th May 2025
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what his Department's definition of genocide is.

As a State Party to the Genocide Convention, we adopt the definition of genocide as set out in Article II of the Genocide Convention.

Stephen Doughty
Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
2nd May 2025
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help resolve the blockade of food and aid reaching Gaza.

The Foreign Secretary has raised the urgent need for restarting the flow of humanitarian aid with his Israeli counterpart repeatedly and will continue to make representations to the Government of Israel on this matter. We are constantly pressing Israel publicly and privately to allow the flow of aid into Gaza. On 23 April, we issued a statement, together with France and Germany, calling for Israel to immediately re-start a rapid and unimpeded flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza, ensure aid workers are protected and urge all parties to return to a ceasefire with remaining hostages released. On 29 April, the UK made a statement to the UN Security Council where we shared our concerns about the dwindling supply of food, which leaves a million children at risk of starvation, disease and death.

Hamish Falconer
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)