Asked by: Claire Hazelgrove (Labour - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made with Cabinet colleagues of the potential merits of enabling British National (Overseas) visa holders to access apprenticeship programmes in (a) the health and social care sector and (b) other sectors before completing three years’ residence in the UK.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The department regularly reviews the apprenticeship funding rules, often in consultation with others, including the Home Office and the Department for Education.
This includes the requirements for ordinary residency. This three-year residency requirement is longstanding within the apprenticeship programme. It applies to both UK and non-UK nationals. It is applied consistently to ensure that the individuals have a connection to the UK and are committed to living in the country before they are eligible for training funded by the taxpayer.
Asked by: Claire Hazelgrove (Labour - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the consistency and effectiveness of (a) antenatal screening in detecting fetal cardiac conditions and (b) the efficacy of the Fetal anomaly screening programme handbook guidance in supporting early identification and treatment pathways for foetuses with cardiac abnormalities.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises how worrying heart health can be for the families of babies and children. The NHS Fetal Anomaly Screening Programme (FASP) recommends the offer of an ultrasound scan which is performed between 18+0 to 20+6 weeks to screen for 11 physical conditions, including serious cardiac anomalies.
Coverage of the foetal anomaly ultrasound for the 2024/25 screening year was high, at 98%. As of 2020/21, the proportion of women who had an unexpected finding suspected or confirmed in the baby at the 20-week screening scan and who were then referred within the timeline was 76.8% for local referrals, those seen within three days of screening scan, and 85.2% for tertiary referrals, those seen with five days of screening scan. This ensures women with a suspected or confirmed unexpected finding are referred in a timely manner and receive timely intervention where appropriate. Minimum screening standards data is collected against the 20-week scan, with further information available at the following link:
NHS England is aware that there is geographical variation in antenatal cardiac detections and it is working with The National Congenital Anomaly and Rare Diseases Registration Services and the Screening Quality Assurance Service to address the variation, with further information about both services available at the following two links:
https://digital.nhs.uk/ndrs/about/ncardrs
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/nhs-population-screening-quality-assurance
NHS England also has a task and finish group looking at quality improvement in this area.
The NHS FASP handbook is a recommended guidance document for providers offering NHS FASP screening with the main aim of supporting healthcare professionals in delivering NHS FASP screening. This includes early identification of screened for conditions. NHS England FASP do not cover treatment pathways.
Additionally, NHS FASP provides an e-learning package with recommended timescales for completion for relevant healthcare professionals involved in the offer of NHS FASP screening, once every 24 months for ultrasound practitioners. This e-learning package is available at the following link:
https://portal.e-lfh.org.uk/Catalogue/Index?HierarchyId=0_37210&programmeId=37210
Asked by: Claire Hazelgrove (Labour - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to help reduce violent reoffending among young people who are on bail.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
The Government recognises the importance of reducing offending, including violent reoffending, among children who are on bail through close supervision and high levels of support by skilled staff. We are investing £5 million over the next three years in strengthening the bail packages available for children, so that courts have access to more robust community-based options that both support children to make positive changes and help manage the risk of offending. We are also reforming the annual youth remand funding arrangements to further support greater local authority investment in high-quality community alternatives to custodial remand, including suitable community placements (specialist fostering and accommodation), family support and enhanced Bail Intensive Supervision and Support services. This builds on the Greater Manchester Youth Remand Funding pilot, which has demonstrated promising early findings in improving their bail and community remand offer regionally, to keep children and communities safe. We are now offering multi-year funding to local authorities to scale up this regional model, encouraging areas to collaborate in developing a broader range of bail support options to meet the needs of children and protect the public.
Asked by: Claire Hazelgrove (Labour - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of recognition and compensation of chronic pain as a distinct medical condition as part of the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme and War Pension Scheme.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The Department has assessed that both the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (AFCS) and the War Pension Scheme provide for pain and suffering as part of a holistic assessment of service-attributable injury or illness.
In most cases, chronic pain is not treated as a standalone condition. Under both Schemes, chronic pain is generally considered an expected effect of a primary injury and is included in the overall award. However, where there is a distinct and separately diagnosable chronic pain condition, such as Complex Regional Pain Syndrome, this may be considered on its own merits.
The Independent Medical Expert Group (IMEG) is currently considering concerns that chronic pain may not always be adequately captured under the AFCS. IMEG is examining the evidence base and how the functional impact of chronic pain is reflected within existing compensation arrangements.
Asked by: Claire Hazelgrove (Labour - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of complaints and accountability processes for NHS patients referred to private healthcare providers.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Local Authority Social Services and National Health Service Complaints (England) Regulations 2009 set out in law the minimum standards National Health Service organisations, and independent providers of NHS-funded care, must adhere to in respect of their complaint handling arrangements. Under the regulations, patients who have received NHS-funded care and wish to make a complaint can do so to either the provider or the commissioner that paid for the service.
In our 10-Year Health Plan for England, we acknowledged that the NHS complaints procedure is far from where it needs to be. Through Change NHS, the biggest ever conversation on the future of the NHS, we heard from patients and carers about their struggle to get responses to their concerns. As committed to in the 10-Year Health Plan, we intend to improve the complaints process across all NHS commissioners and providers, setting clear standards for both the timeliness and the quality of responses to complaints.
Asked by: Claire Hazelgrove (Labour - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that those acting under a valid and registered Lasting Power of Attorney are not subjected to (a) disproportionate and (b) burdensome additional evidential requirements by (i) banks and (ii) other third party organisations.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
Banks and other financial institutions are required to follow the requirements under the Money Laundering Regulations 2017, the Immigration Act 2017 and the Sanctions and Money Laundering Act 2018. The Ministry of Justice has worked with UK Finance and other stakeholders to review the extent of customer identification evidence required by banks and other third-party organisations to meet these requirements in relation to attorneys acting under a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) and deputies acting under a court order.
Following a public consultation by HM. Treasury in Spring 2025, amendments were made to guidance issued by the Joint Money Laundering Steering Group (JMLSG). The amended guidance clarified the evidence that financial firms should request to confirm the identity of an attorney or court appointed deputy and the legal authority granted to them to access one or more accounts.
In December 2025, UK Finance issued a practice note for financial institutions which summarises the customer due diligence requirements that financial firms should take when registering an attorney appointed under an LPA or a court appointed deputy.
The changes to the JMLSG guidance and the UK Finance Practice Note should standardise the evidential requirements and make the identification process less burdensome for attorneys and court appointed deputies.
The Department and UK Finance will continue to monitor the situation.
Asked by: Claire Hazelgrove (Labour - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the availability, affordability and terms of insurance for people (a) diagnosed with sickle cell disease and (b) carrying the sickle cell trait.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The government has not made a specific assessment regarding insurance for individuals with sickle cell disease. However, the government recognises the important role of insurance products in building the financial resilience of consumers and protecting them when things go wrong. The government’s Financial Inclusion Strategy seeks to close gaps in protection and ensure that the insurance sector is well-placed to support the financial wellbeing of households and vulnerable customers.
The Equality Act 2010 generally prohibits discrimination based on certain personal characteristics. However, the law accepts that some exceptions, relating to age and disability, apply for insurance. The Act stipulates an insurance provider cannot refuse to cover potential consumers or charge more for insurance as a result of these characteristics, unless they base their risk assessment on relevant information from a reliable source and (in the case of the disability exception) it is reasonable for the insurer to refuse cover or charge more.
However, the Financial Conduct Authority, as the independent regulator, requires firms to ensure their products offer fair value. The FCA has been clear that it will be monitoring firms, and, where necessary, it will take action.
Since 2021, the FCA has required firms providing travel insurance to signpost consumers with pre-existing medical conditions to a directory of specialist providers if they are declined cover, offered cover with an exclusion, or charged a significantly higher premium based on a pre-existing medical condition.
Asked by: Claire Hazelgrove (Labour - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the adequacy and availability of therapeutic support for adoptive families; and what assessment she has made of the adequacy and effectiveness of signposting to support services available for adoptive families.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
This financial year, the department has invested £50 million into the adoption and special guardianship support fund. We have approved applications for nearly 14,000 children since April for both therapy and specialist assessments. We continue to review the impact of the changes to funding made in April 2025.
The department continues to work closely with stakeholders to ensure clear and effective communication. This commitment is reflected in the fund’s growth, with applications increasing by around 10% annually since its inception and over 55,000 individual children supported to date.
Regional adoption agencies serve as central hubs for advice, connecting families to local services, training opportunities, peer support groups, and providing direct referrals to specialist services.
In addition, we work in collaboration with Adoption England to identify and promote best practice across the sector.
Asked by: Claire Hazelgrove (Labour - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans her Department has to expand eligibility of the England National Concessionary Travel Scheme to (a) carers and (b) companions of (i) older and (ii) disabled people.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The English National Concessionary Travel Scheme (ENCTS) provides free off-peak bus travel to those with eligible disabilities and those of state pension age, currently sixty-six. The ENCTS costs around £700 million annually, and any changes to the statutory obligations, such as expanding eligibility, would need careful consideration for the scheme’s financial sustainability
Local authorities in England have the power to use local resources to fund further concessions in addition to their statutory obligations, for example, offering companion passes or lowering the age of eligibility.
The government has confirmed over £1 billion for the 2025 to 2026 financial year to support and improve bus services in England outside London. This includes £243 million for bus operators and £712 million allocated to local authorities across the country, of which Gloucestershire County Council has been allocated £8 million. Funding allocated to local authorities to improve services for passengers can be used in whichever way they wish, including enhancing the concessionary travel offering in the local area.
Asked by: Claire Hazelgrove (Labour - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate the Government has made of the prevalence of ketamine addiction among under 25s; what steps the Government is taking to address ketamine addiction among young people; and what tailored addiction support the Government is providing for young people.
Answered by Ashley Dalton
The Department takes seriously the risk of ketamine and other drugs to our young people and is working with partners from across the Government to respond to existing and new drug threats and to reduce and prevent the health harms.
Ketamine use among children and young people has increased in recent years. According to the Crime Survey for England and Wales, the prevalence of ketamine use among 16 to 24 year olds was 2.9% in 2023/24. This is an increase from 1.3% in 2018/19, but a decrease from 3.8% in 2022/23. Data from the Smoking, Drinking and Drugs 2023 survey shows that, although relatively low, the prevalence of ketamine use among school children doubled in the last decade, from 0.4% in 2014 to 0.9% in 2023. We also know that the proportion of young people aged under 18 years old who are in treatment for ketamine problems has increased from 1.3% in 2016/17, to 8.4% in 2023/24.
The Government is committed to ensuring that anyone with a drug problem can access the help and support they need, and we recognise the need for evidence-based, high-quality treatment. In addition to the Public Health Grant, in 2025/26, the Department is providing £310 million in additional targeted grants to improve drug and alcohol treatment services and recovery support in England, including for housing and employment.
Furthermore, on 16 October 2025, the Department launched a campaign to alert young people to the dangers of ketamine, as well as synthetic opioids in counterfeit medicines and adulterated THC vapes. Resources have been made available to schools, universities, and local public health teams with content available on FRANK, the Government’s drug information and advice website. Influencer content has been posted on social media platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat. The full press notice is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/young-people-given-stark-warning-on-deadly-risks-of-taking-drugs