Asked by: Dan Norris (Independent - North East Somerset and Hanham)
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 on reducing waiting times for mental health treatment services in North East Somerset and Hanham constituency.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Waiting times for those referred to mental health services are too high all across England, including in the North East Somerset and Hanham constituency. Too many people with mental health issues are not getting the support or care they need, which is why we will fix the broken system to ensure we give mental health the same attention and focus as physical health, so that people can be confident in accessing high quality mental health support when they need it.
We are committed to improving mental health care for people with a range of mental health conditions, and to shifting the focus from treatment to prevention as we make the National Health Service fit for the future.
In the Spending Review announcement, we have confirmed that we will fulfil the Government’s commitment to recruit an additional 8,500 mental health staff, to reduce delays and provide faster treatment, by the end of the Parliament, and will expand mental health support teams in schools in England to cover 100% of pupils by 2029/30.
We are also keen to learn from models like Open Mental Health in Somerset, that bring together different organisations to offer access to mental health support.
Our reforms to the Mental Health Act will give patients a greater say in their care and will ensure that people get the appropriate and compassionate mental health support they need.
Asked by: Dan Norris (Independent - North East Somerset and Hanham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to improve mental health support for children in schools in North East Somerset and Hanham constituency.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
This government is committed to improving mental health support for all children and young people, including those in North East Somerset and Hanham. This is critical to high and rising standards in schools and breaking down barriers to opportunity, helping pupils to achieve and thrive in education.
The government will provide access to specialist mental health professionals in every school by expanding Mental Health Support Teams (MHSTs), so every child and young person has access to early support to address problems before they escalate. By April 2026, the department estimates that 60% of pupils in schools and learners in further education in England will be covered by an MHST, up from 52% in April 2025. In Bath and North East Somerset local authority, 46% of pupils/learners and 47% of schools/colleges are already covered by an MHST, compared to 52% and 41% nationally, respectively.
The government will also recruit 8,500 mental health staff to treat children and adults, and open new Young Futures Hubs with access to mental health support workers.
To support education staff, the department provides a range of guidance and practical resources on promoting and supporting pupils’ mental health and wellbeing, such as a resource hub for mental health leads and a toolkit to help schools choose evidence-based early support for pupils.
School funding is increasing by £3.7 billion in 2025/26, taking total core school funding to £65.3 billion compared to £61.6 billion in 2024/25.
Asked by: Dan Norris (Independent - North East Somerset and Hanham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what progress she has made on ensuring access to specialist mental health professionals in schools.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
This government is committed to improving mental health support for all children and young people, including those in North East Somerset and Hanham. This is critical to high and rising standards in schools and breaking down barriers to opportunity, helping pupils to achieve and thrive in education.
The government will provide access to specialist mental health professionals in every school by expanding Mental Health Support Teams (MHSTs), so every child and young person has access to early support to address problems before they escalate. By April 2026, the department estimates that 60% of pupils in schools and learners in further education in England will be covered by an MHST, up from 52% in April 2025. In Bath and North East Somerset local authority, 46% of pupils/learners and 47% of schools/colleges are already covered by an MHST, compared to 52% and 41% nationally, respectively.
The government will also recruit 8,500 mental health staff to treat children and adults, and open new Young Futures Hubs with access to mental health support workers.
To support education staff, the department provides a range of guidance and practical resources on promoting and supporting pupils’ mental health and wellbeing, such as a resource hub for mental health leads and a toolkit to help schools choose evidence-based early support for pupils.
School funding is increasing by £3.7 billion in 2025/26, taking total core school funding to £65.3 billion compared to £61.6 billion in 2024/25.
Asked by: Dan Norris (Independent - North East Somerset and Hanham)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent steps she has take to encourage people who are eligible to apply for pension credit.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government wants all pensioners to get the support to which they are entitled. That is why we have been running the biggest ever Pension Credit take-up campaign. The campaign included adverts on television, radio, social media such as Facebook and Instagram, on YouTube, on advertising screens, including on GP and Post Office screens as well as in the press.
This drive has successfully boosted applications. The latest applications and awards statistics were published on 29 May and are available at: Pension Credit applications and awards: May 2025.(opens in a new tab) The statistics show that the Department received over 285,000 applications since 29 July 2024 and made almost 60,000 extra awards on the comparable period the previous year.
Since February, the Department has also been writing to all pensioners who make a new claim for Housing Benefit and who appear to be entitled to Pension Credit – directly targeting this group and encouraging them to make a claim.
The campaign is currently live on social media, radio and in print, with further promotional activity planned for this year.
Asked by: Dan Norris (Independent - North East Somerset and Hanham)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Health and Safety Executive report entitled, Agency Opinion on the Annex 15 Dossier on the Proposal for a Restriction, published in December 2024, when his Department will publish its response.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra has received HSE’s final opinion on a proposed UK REACH Restriction on lead in ammunition and we are assessing their proposals. Given the need to work through the detail of HSE’s proposal a decision is expected in the summer due course. This decision will be taken with the consent of the Devolved Governments of Scotland and Wales.
Asked by: Dan Norris (Independent - North East Somerset and Hanham)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will have discussions with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on support for domestic heating oil consumers, in the content of potential increases in oil prices caused by the conflict between Iran and Israel.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
My Rt. Hon. Friends the Secretary of State and the Chancellor of the Exchequer have regular discussions on a range of issues.
We are confident in the UK's security of gas and fuel supply, even in light of geopolitical tensions and the current crisis in the Middle East. The UK benefits from a secure and diverse energy system, which allows us to draw on global gas and fuel supplies, reducing our reliance on any single source. Additionally, despite regional disruptions, global energy markets continue to function, ensuring stability in our supply.
Asked by: Dan Norris (Independent - North East Somerset and Hanham)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to support young people into employment, education or training in North East Somerset and Hanham constituency.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
As part of our plan to Get Britain Working, we are launching a new Youth Guarantee for all young people aged 18-21 in England to ensure that they can access quality training opportunities, an apprenticeship or help to find work. The Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Education are working closely with the eight Mayoral Strategic Authorities in England which began mobilising the Youth Guarantee Trailblazers in April 2025.
We are taking steps to support young people with youth pilots in Bath and Youth Job Clubs in Taunton. ‘Youth Curriculum’ sessions have been operational in Bath since October 2024, which provide tailored support including CV support, interview prep, mock interviews with Work Coaches and job matching. The sessions are targeted at our customers who are not in employment, education or training, who typically have lower engagement. Attendance has been excellent, at just under 90%.
We have a Youth Guarantee Trailblazer in the West of England, which supports young people in North East Somerset and Hanham constituency aged 18-21 to access employment education and training. There is one pilot programme of support focusing on young people with special educational needs, and another on improving access to opportunities and support from more rural areas. All participants will access 1:1 coaching and support, work placement opportunities, and free bus travel to support their pathway to employment.
In addition, DWP continues to provide young people aged 16-24 with labour market support through an extensive range of interventions at a national and local level. This includes flexible provision driven by local need, nationwide employment programmes and support delivered by Work Coaches based in our Jobcentres and in local communities working alongside partners.
Asked by: Dan Norris (Independent - North East Somerset and Hanham)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many project licences for animal testing have been approved in the last five years; and what proportion of those included conditions requiring the use of New Approach Methodologies where available.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 does not allow testing on animals where there is a validated non-animal alternative available that would achieve the scientific outcomes sought.
The number of project licences granted are published in the Regulator’s Annual Report, which is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/animals-in-science-regulation-unit-annual-reports. The numbers for 2020 to 2023 are below. The Annual Report for 2024 will be published later this year.
Year | Number of project licences granted |
2020 | 478 |
2021 | 497 |
2022 | 490 |
2023 | 460 |
Asked by: Dan Norris (Independent - North East Somerset and Hanham)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to review the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 to accelerate the transition to animal-free (a) research and (b) testing methodology.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Home Office)
This Government will soon publish a strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods. It will set out how we can build on our support by creating a research and innovation system that replaces animal testing with alternative methods wherever possible.
The Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act (ASPA) does not allow testing on animals where there is a validated non-animal alternative that would achieve the scientific outcomes sought. Section 20B of the ASPA already requires the development and validation of alternative strategies.
The Government already invests £10m annually in the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs) to accelerate the development and adoption of 3Rs approaches.
Asked by: Dan Norris (Independent - North East Somerset and Hanham)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to respond to the Health and Safety Executive's report entitled Agency Opinion on the Annex 15 Dossier on the Proposal for a Restriction: Lead in Ammunition, published on 13 December 2024.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra has received the Health and Safety Executive’s (HSE) final opinion on a proposed UK REACH Restriction on lead in ammunition and we are assessing their proposals. Given the need to work through the detail of HSE’s proposal a decision is expected in due course.