Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
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 improve the completeness and consistency of data recorded on people diagnosed with secondary breast cancer in NHS trusts.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Cancer Plan, what progress his Department has made on defining and counting recurrent breast cancers.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, from what date the National Institute of Clinical Excellence will be authorised to apply an increased cost-effectiveness threshold of £25,000 - £35,000 per quality-adjusted life year.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government intends to direct the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence to apply the new cost-effectiveness threshold increase from April.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what analysis his department has undertaken of the staffing and capacity pressures identified in the Amos Review's interim report, and what options are being examined to support maternity and neonatal units facing these challenges.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to tackling the retention and recruitment challenges that face the National Health Service. This includes work in maternity and neonatal services to introduce a midwifery and nursing retention self-assessment tool, mentoring schemes, a Graduate Guarantee that has already delivered 700 additional roles for newly qualified midwives, and funded speciality training for neonatal nurses to have the additional skills they need to care for critically ill babies. In addition, the Department’s upcoming workforce plan will make sure the NHS has the right people in the right places, with the right skills to care for patients, when they need it.
Baroness Amos’ interim report details insights gathered so far in the national independent investigation into NHS maternity and neonatal care. Evidence is still being collected and analysed, and a coherent single set of national recommendations will be published in June. My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, will chair a new National Maternity and Neonatal Taskforce that will address the interim insights and final recommendations of the investigation, forming them into a national action plan to drive improvements across maternity and neonatal care.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to improve media literacy.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government is taking a cross‑government approach to improving media literacy, as set out in ‘A Safe, Informed Digital Nation’, published on 16 March.
This includes strengthening coordination across policy areas and working with civil society and industry to help people build the skills, confidence and critical thinking needed to navigate the online world safely and effectively.
This includes initiatives such as the ‘You Won’t Know Until You Ask’ campaign, which encourages people to pause and question online content, alongside trusted guidance on the new Kids Online Safety Hub and funding innovative projects through the Digital Inclusion Innovation Fund.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to ensure that the Information Commissioner's Office is adequately resourced to carry out digital age enforcement cases against tech companies.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The government increased the data protection fee in 2025 to provide the ICO with the necessary resources to carry out its functions effectively. As an independent regulator it is at the discretion of the Commissioner how he chooses to use this funding to effectively enforce the digital age of consent under UK GDPR. To fulfil these responsibilities and respond to rising public and business demand, the ICO has hired additional specialist capacity.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what discussions has she had with Ofcom and the Information Commissioner's Office on the adequacy of protections relating to (a) generative AI and (b) chatbots in the Online Safety Act 2023.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Following public consultation, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) issued and updated guidance on how data protection law applies to generative AI. The Government supports the ICO’s role in providing guidance to organisations to help their compliance.
While some AI chatbots are covered by the Online Safety Act, this Government is determined to close loopholes and has tabled an amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill to protect users from illegal content on chatbots.
The Department will continue to meet regularly with Ofcom, the ICO and industry, to address emerging risks and uphold strong online safety protections.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate he has made of future energy requirements for AI; and what steps he is taking to meet those requirements.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department’s energy and emissions projections include growth in power demand from computing services like data centres. To ensure a comprehensive view of the system, the methodology projects at a broader sector level, not disaggregating specific estimates for data centres.
The Government is committed to ensuring electricity networks can meet rising electricity demand, including from data centres, by deploying new renewable and low-carbon generation in line with the Clean Power 2030 Action Plan. The Capacity Market ensures supply continuously meets demand, balancing cost and reliability to maintain adequate electricity security.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of the suitability of (a) live location sharing and (b) addictive content features such as autopay for social media apps used by children.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Online Safety Act requires services to mitigate and manage risks to children from online features and functionalities. Ofcom recommends in its Codes of Practice that services with specific risks should turn off live location sharing for children as default. Services must also consider how specific features and functionalities, such as autoplay, can increase children’s exposure to illegal or harmful content and mitigate these risks.
Additionally, our landmark consultation launched earlier this month seeks views on whether the government should further restrict risky functionalities such as location sharing, and ‘addictive’ functionalities including autoplay, to further protect children online.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to ensure that Ofcom is adequately resourced to (a) monitor and (b) regulate the algorithms of online platforms.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Ofcom’s online safety budget and expert team ensure its duties are performed effectively. Ofcom has spent approximately £281.3 million on online safety since 2020, including a projected spend of £92 million for 2025/26.
As part of its information gathering powers, Ofcom can remotely view information about a service’s processes, including conducting tests of algorithmic systems. Ofcom also has the power to seek information from categorised services about the design and operation of their algorithms in annual transparency reports.