Asked by: Emma Foody (Labour (Co-op) - Cramlington and Killingworth)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to support veterans in Cramlington and Killingworth constituency transition back into civilian life.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
I am working across Government and with civil society to help those who leave the Armed Forces, including those in Cramlington and Killingworth, transition back into civilian life.
Currently the Defence Holistic Transition Policy (JSP100) sets out how the Ministry of Defence supports Service leavers to assist in a successful transition, including through the Career Transition Partnership, Veterans Welfare Service (VWS), Defence Transition Services (DTS) and Integrated Personal Commissioning for Veterans (IPC4V).
Asked by: Emma Foody (Labour (Co-op) - Cramlington and Killingworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of people living in Cramlington and Killingworth constituency do not have access to an NHS dentist.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government plans to tackle the challenges patients face when trying to access National Health Service dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. To rebuild dentistry in the long term and increase access to NHS dental care, we will reform the dental contract, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.
The Northeast and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board (ICB), which includes the Cramlington and Killingworth constituency, have taken a number of steps to help improve access in this area, but we know we must do more.
In the 2024 GP Patient Survey, 59% of respondents in Northeast and North Cumbria ICB had tried to get an NHS dentist appointment in the last two years. Of those who did try to get an appointment in the ICB, 24% were unsuccessful. This data is available at the following link:
Asked by: Emma Foody (Labour (Co-op) - Cramlington and Killingworth)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what proportion of households spent more than 10 percent of their household income on energy bills in Cramlington and Killingworth constituency in each year since 2010.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The latest statistics for the number of households in fuel poverty in parliamentary constituencies in England, can be found in the published sub-regional fuel poverty statistics, in Table 4: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/fuel-poverty-statistics. These statistics were published in line with the boundaries operating prior to the 2024 General Election.
The latest official Fuel Poverty Statistics for England were published in February 2024 here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/fuel-poverty-statistics#2023-statistics Annex D of this report includes an affordability measure of the number of households required to spend more than 10 per cent of their income on domestic energy. However, affordability measure estimates are not held at sub-national level.
Asked by: Emma Foody (Labour (Co-op) - Cramlington and Killingworth)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate his Department has made of the number of people in Cramlington and Killingworth constituency living in fuel poverty.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The latest statistics for the number of households in fuel poverty in parliamentary constituencies in England, can be found in the published sub-regional fuel poverty statistics, in Table 4: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/fuel-poverty-statistics. These statistics were published in line with the boundaries operating prior to the 2024 General Election.
The latest official Fuel Poverty Statistics for England were published in February 2024 here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/fuel-poverty-statistics#2023-statistics Annex D of this report includes an affordability measure of the number of households required to spend more than 10 per cent of their income on domestic energy. However, affordability measure estimates are not held at sub-national level.
Asked by: Emma Foody (Labour (Co-op) - Cramlington and Killingworth)
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 adequacy of the provision of mental health support services for veterans in (a) Cramlington and Killingworth constituency and (b) the North East.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
No specific assessment has been made. Op COURAGE is the existing veterans’ mental health and wellbeing service. The mental health service provided by Op COURAGE includes access to dedicated support for those presenting with substance misuse and other addictions such as gambling. We would encourage any veterans living in the North of England who wish to access this service to contact Op COURAGE via phone or email, with further information available at the following link:
https://www.tewv.nhs.uk/services/op-courage/
More widely, we are aware that many people with mental health issues are not getting the support or care they need. That is why we will recruit an additional 8,500 mental health workers to reduce delays and provide faster treatment, so people can access high quality mental health support when they need it. Improved mental health services will benefit veterans as well as the wider population.
The King’s speech confirmed our intention to bring forward a Mental Health Bill to give patients greater choice, autonomy, enhanced rights and support, and ensure everyone is treated with dignity and respect throughout treatment.
Asked by: Emma Foody (Labour (Co-op) - Cramlington and Killingworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of the number of open dentistry practices in Cramlington and Killingworth constituency between 2010 and 2024.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
While there is no data available for 2010, as of February 2024, there are nine open dentistry practices in the Cramlington and Killingworth constituency. Of those nine practices, one is entirely private, and eight do a mixture of National Health Service and private work.
Asked by: Emma Foody (Labour (Co-op) - Cramlington and Killingworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of how many and what proportion of people living in Cramlington and Killingworth constituency are not registered with a GP.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We do not hold the number of people not registered with a general practice (GP), or individual patient’s addresses. As of 1 June 2024, there were 74,697 patients registered at GPs with a postcode in the Cramlington and Killingworth constituency. The data provided has been sourced from NHS England and shows the number of patients registered with a GP in the Cramlington and Killingworth constituency. This data is not directly comparable to local population data as parliamentary constituencies do not line up with GP practice catchment boundaries, so some patients will be registered to a GP in a different constituency.
Asked by: Emma Foody (Labour (Co-op) - Cramlington and Killingworth)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to increase connectivity between (a) towns and (b) villages in Cramlington and Killingworth constituency.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The government knows that Britain needs a modern transport network to help kickstart economic growth. Good local bus services are an essential part of prosperous and sustainable communities. As announced in the King’s Speech, the government will pass the Better Buses Bill to put the power over local bus services back in the hands of local leaders right across England, to ensure networks can meet the needs of the communities who rely on them, including communities across the North East.
By giving local leaders more control and flexibility over bus funding they can plan ahead to deliver their local transport priorities. The Department will work closely with local leaders and bus operators to deliver on the government’s ambitions.
Asked by: Emma Foody (Labour (Co-op) - Cramlington and Killingworth)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to support the use of buses in (a) Cramlington and Killingworth constituency and (b) the North East.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The government knows that Britain needs a modern transport network to help kickstart economic growth. Good local bus services are an essential part of prosperous and sustainable communities. As announced in the King’s Speech, the government will pass the Better Buses Bill to put the power over local bus services back in the hands of local leaders right across England, to ensure networks can meet the needs of the communities who rely on them, including communities across the North East.
By giving local leaders more control and flexibility over bus funding they can plan ahead to deliver their local transport priorities. The Department will work closely with local leaders and bus operators to deliver on the government’s ambitions.
Asked by: Emma Foody (Labour (Co-op) - Cramlington and Killingworth)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many veterans live in Cramlington and Killingworth constituency.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The House of Commons library has an online data dashboard for constituencies which includes data on veterans taken from the most recent censuses in Great Britain. This is available here:
https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/constituency-data-uk-armed-forces-veterans-2021-census/
England and Wales Census 2021 data showed that 4,387 people in Cramlington and Killingworth constituency reported that they had previously served in the UK armed forces. This represents 5.5% of this constituency’s population aged 16 and over. This compares with 5.0% of the population in the North East region and 3.8% in Great Britain.