Asked by: Douglas McAllister (Labour - West Dunbartonshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent progress he has made on improving cooperation between the UK Government and the devolved Administrations.
Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
This government reset relations with the devolved governments, has delivered record funding settlements for Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, and is bringing pride to communities in every part of the UK with our groundbreaking Pride in Place scheme, including in West Dunbartonshire.
My honourable friend’s constituents are best served when both of Scotland’s governments work in partnership, to create jobs and opportunities for all Scots, and that is exactly the approach I have taken in this role.
Asked by: Douglas McAllister (Labour - West Dunbartonshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has considered options for schemes to deliver compensation in line with the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman's report on Women's State Pension age communications.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Secretary of State announced in his oral statement of 11 November 2025 that we will retake the decision made in December 2024 as it relates to the communications on State Pension age.
This was because findings from a 2007 report had not been drawn to the attention of the previous Secretary of State as its potential relevance to the making of her decision was not evident at the time.
The process to retake the decision is underway and it is important that we give this full and proper consideration. Retaking the decision should not be taken as an indication that Government will necessarily decide that it should award financial redress. We will update Parliament on the decision as soon as a conclusion is reached and on 2 December 2025 we committed to re-take the decision within three months.
Asked by: Douglas McAllister (Labour - West Dunbartonshire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the Replacing animals in science strategy on economic growth.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government has published a strategy to support alternatives to the use of animals in science, which considered economic impacts.
Building on the UK’s strengths as home to world leading research and pharmaceutical businesses, the strategy will support the UK to capitalise on the global non-animal technologies market, estimated to be worth $29.4 billion by 2030
The strategy has also considered the scientific and economic advantages of human-relevant methods for product development and testing.
Asked by: Douglas McAllister (Labour - West Dunbartonshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he plans to enter into alternative dispute resolution with WASPI Ltd.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
We have no plans to do so.
Asked by: Douglas McAllister (Labour - West Dunbartonshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans he has to meet with representatives of the WASPI campaign.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
There are no plans to meet with any campaign groups.
Asked by: Douglas McAllister (Labour - West Dunbartonshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to publish the geographical distribution of sites involved in the TRANSFORM trial; and what criteria were used to select them.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department invests over £1.6 billion each year on research through its research delivery arm, the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).
In November 2023, the Government and Prostate Cancer UK (PCUK) announced the £42 million TRANSFORM screening trial to find the best way to screen men for prostate cancer, in order to find it before it becomes advanced and harder to treat. PCUK is managing the award on behalf of the funders, with the Government contributing £16 million through the NIHR.
Once received, the protocol will be published on the NIHR’s website on the funding and awards page. This is expected to contain details of the site selection criteria. TRANSFORM will aim to recruit men from across the United Kingdom, including Scotland.
Asked by: Douglas McAllister (Labour - West Dunbartonshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she plans to establish an alternative disputes resolution process for people affected by changes in state pension age for women.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
We have no such plans.
Asked by: Douglas McAllister (Labour - West Dunbartonshire)
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 lengthen life expectancy for people with acute myeloid leukaemia; and if he will increase levels of funding for leukaemia (a) research and (b) treatment.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department funds research into leukaemia through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The NIHR spent £133 million on cancer research in 2023/24.
In leukaemia research, for example, the NIHR is funding the £2.6 million PROPEL trial, testing whether a package of enhanced personalised prehabilitation can help people with acute myeloid leukaemia secure better outcomes after treatment.
NHS England has implemented non symptom specific pathways for patients who present with non-specific symptoms or combinations thereof that can indicate several different cancers. This includes leukaemia, which can present non-specific symptoms, such as unexpected weight loss and night sweats. The national evaluation showed that blood cancers are one of the most common cancer types diagnosed through these pathways.
The National Cancer Plan will include further details on how we will improve outcomes for cancer patients, including treatment for acute myeloid leukaemia patients.
Asked by: Douglas McAllister (Labour - West Dunbartonshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent progress her Department has made on increasing levels of international cooperation to help tackle organised illegal immigration.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We are leading the international fight against organised immigration crime, and have delivered new agreements with a range of partners, including with Iraq, Germany and Italy; as well as deepening our cooperation with France
Today’s landmark Summit on Organised Immigration Crime features delegations from over 45 countries and agencies, and will strengthen our partnerships across the globe; increase intelligence-sharing, and enable targeted disruptions to the criminal networks whose operations cross over multiple borders.
Asked by: Douglas McAllister (Labour - West Dunbartonshire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to support digital inclusion in West Dunbartonshire.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Digital inclusion is a priority for me and for Government. It means everyone has the access, skills, support and confidence to participate in a modern digital society, whatever their circumstances. Work is ongoing to develop our approach to tackling digital exclusion and we hope to announce more on this soon. We look forward working closely with the third sector, business and the Devolved Governments, to ensure interventions are targeted to and based on individual needs.