Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many seizures of illegal pork imports have been recorded at UK ports and airports in the last 12 months.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra does not record this information. Border Force, supported by port health and local authorities, is responsible for seizing illegal imports of pork at UK ports and airports.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the risk of African Swine Fever entering the UK.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra’s latest assessment for African Swine Fever (ASF) dated 1 December 2025, considers that the risk of the virus entering the UK remains at medium.
We have strict measures in place to mitigate this risk. These include the listing of countries and regions eligible to export pigs and porcine products to Great Britain commercially, prohibitions on importing pigs, fresh pig meat, porcine semen and untreated porcine meat products from areas with ASF, veterinary health certification, and import checks at the border. Personal imports of pork and pork products are not permitted. It is also illegal to feed catering waste to livestock.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what biosecurity procedures are in place for (a) detained and (b) uncollected meat consignments at UK border control posts to prevent the transmission of African Swine Fever.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
All consignments of pork and pork products are checked at bio-secure border control posts to ensure that they have been effectively treated to mitigate the risk of African Swine Fever or they originate from a region declared free of the disease. Border Force with the support of Port Health Authorities carry out checks at the border to identify, seize and destroy illegally smuggled meat.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many consignments of pork meat and associated products originating from Spain have been seized at UK borders since 28 November 2025.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The seizure data for detained consignments associated with a specific disease outbreak is recorded locally by Port Health Authorities. Defra does not record this information centrally.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what estimate she has made of the number of vulnerable customers impacted by ongoing PSTN switchover programmes.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
There are an estimated 2 million telecare users in the UK, and many customers may be identified as vulnerable for other reasons, such as landline-dependency. The government does not hold data on the specific number affected by the industry led PSTN migration.
The Government is committed to keeping vulnerable people safe during the PSTN migration. In November 2024, the Government secured further commitments from the telecoms industry to protect vulnerable customers via the non-voluntary migrations checklist.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
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 potential impact of Virgin Media’s PSTN switchover on the safety of vulnerable and telecare-reliant customers.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Virgin Media has been fined £23.8m following the conclusion of Ofcom’s investigation started in 2023 into Virgin Media’s breach of their General Conditions.
We take people’s safety during this switchover very seriously. In November 2024, the Government secured further commitments from the telecoms industry, including Virgin Media, to protect vulnerable customers via the non-voluntary migrations checklist. This includes telecare-reliant customers.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
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 Neighbourhood Health Centre sites have prioritised neurology within their (a) initial service plans and (b) delivery models.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
In August 2025, NHS England updated its service specification for specialised adult neurology services. It outlines how specialised neurology services should support integrated and responsive care for individuals with long-term neurological conditions through collaboration between hospital and community providers. Service specifications define the standards of care expected from organisations funded by NHS England to provide specialised care.
At the national level, there are a number of initiatives supporting service improvement and better care for patients with neurological conditions, including the Getting It Right First Time Programme for Neurology and the Neurology Transformation Programme.
We have announced our commitment to deliver 250 Neighbourhood Health Centres (NHCs) through the NHS Neighbourhood Rebuild Programme, with 120 delivered by 2030, and with rollout starting in areas with the greatest need where healthy life expectancy is lowest
We expect neighbourhood teams and services to be designed in a way that reflects the specific needs of local populations. While the focus on personalised, coordinated care will be consistent, that will mean the service will look different in different places across the country. We will be publishing further guidance to support local areas to develop neighbourhood health plans in due course. This will set out how the National Health Service, local authorities, and partners should work together under the leadership of Health and Wellbeing Boards to develop and implement plans.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what guidance his Department has provided to Neighbourhood Health Centre sites on integrating specialist neurology services with neighbourhood-based care teams.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
In August 2025, NHS England updated its service specification for specialised adult neurology services. It outlines how specialised neurology services should support integrated and responsive care for individuals with long-term neurological conditions through collaboration between hospital and community providers. Service specifications define the standards of care expected from organisations funded by NHS England to provide specialised care.
At the national level, there are a number of initiatives supporting service improvement and better care for patients with neurological conditions, including the Getting It Right First Time Programme for Neurology and the Neurology Transformation Programme.
We have announced our commitment to deliver 250 Neighbourhood Health Centres (NHCs) through the NHS Neighbourhood Rebuild Programme, with 120 delivered by 2030, and with rollout starting in areas with the greatest need where healthy life expectancy is lowest
We expect neighbourhood teams and services to be designed in a way that reflects the specific needs of local populations. While the focus on personalised, coordinated care will be consistent, that will mean the service will look different in different places across the country. We will be publishing further guidance to support local areas to develop neighbourhood health plans in due course. This will set out how the National Health Service, local authorities, and partners should work together under the leadership of Health and Wellbeing Boards to develop and implement plans.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will provide guidance, resources, and risk assessment tools to general practitioners to support discussions with patients eligible for targeted prostate cancer screening.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care will consider the final recommendation of the UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) on screening for prostate cancer when it is received. At that point, he will make a decision on implementation, including any resources that may be required for general practitioners and other healthcare professionals to support his decision.
It is anticipated that the final recommendation will be provided in early 2026 after the conclusion of a 12 week consultation which opened on 28 November 2025. This seeks views on an evidence review and a draft recommendation to:
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many officials are working on the independent investigation into NHS maternity and neonatal care.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
There are 31 officials currently working on the Independent Investigation into Maternity and Neonatal care. The full time equivalent (FTE) for the investigation team is approximately 28 FTE, taking into account individuals working part-time and in job-shares. This excludes the independent chair and expert advisors.
In addition to officials, there are eight expert advisers supporting the chair, Baroness Amos.