Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will work with the Financial Conduct Authority to issue guidance to insurers on the resolution of Covid-19 Business Interruption claims not resolved when the limitation deadline is reached.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), as the independent regulator for financial services, sets the conduct standards required of insurance firms. This includes rules requiring insurers to handle claims fairly and promptly.
With respect to business interruption claims linked to Covid-19, the Supreme Court published its final judgment in the FCA test case in January 2021. At the time of the judgment, the FCA set out its expectation that insurers should communicate to all impacted policyholders what the judgment meant for their claim and that insurers should move quickly to resolve claims as determined by the judgment, making interim payments wherever possible. It is important to note that the FCA court case did not cover all potential issues with business interruption policies but aimed to provide certainty to as many policyholders as possible.
The FCA, as the independent regulator, has robust powers to take action where firms do not appear to be meeting their expectations and treating their customers fairly.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the March 2026 limitation deadline on unresolved Covid-19 Business Interruption claims.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), as the independent regulator for financial services, sets the conduct standards required of insurance firms. This includes rules requiring insurers to handle claims fairly and promptly.
With respect to business interruption claims linked to Covid-19, the Supreme Court published its final judgment in the FCA test case in January 2021. At the time of the judgment, the FCA set out its expectation that insurers should communicate to all impacted policyholders what the judgment meant for their claim and that insurers should move quickly to resolve claims as determined by the judgment, making interim payments wherever possible. It is important to note that the FCA court case did not cover all potential issues with business interruption policies but aimed to provide certainty to as many policyholders as possible.
The FCA, as the independent regulator, has robust powers to take action where firms do not appear to be meeting their expectations and treating their customers fairly.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she is taking to ensure insurers do not use litigation to prevent small business policyholders from making claims.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), as the independent regulator for financial services, sets the conduct standards required of insurance firms. This includes rules requiring insurers to handle claims fairly and promptly.
With respect to business interruption claims linked to Covid-19, the Supreme Court published its final judgment in the FCA test case in January 2021. At the time of the judgment, the FCA set out its expectation that insurers should communicate to all impacted policyholders what the judgment meant for their claim and that insurers should move quickly to resolve claims as determined by the judgment, making interim payments wherever possible. It is important to note that the FCA court case did not cover all potential issues with business interruption policies but aimed to provide certainty to as many policyholders as possible.
The FCA, as the independent regulator, has robust powers to take action where firms do not appear to be meeting their expectations and treating their customers fairly.
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 assessment his Department has made of the impact of not extending Start for Life funding to new Best Start for Life Family Hub areas on the delivery of integrated early-years services by local authorities.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Delivering integrated, joined-up health, education, and family support is at the heart of our ambition to raise the healthiest generation of children ever.
Healthy Babies, formerly Start for Life, funding is helping families during the critical 1,001 days, and parents have said that they are more confident in feeding their babies and have better perinatal mental health because of this support. Further information is available at the following link:
We continue to assess how we can best support early years service integration across the country and remain committed to working with delivery partners locally to achieve this.
Healthy Babies is one element of our broader commitment to supporting babies, children, and families. From April 2026, Best Start Family Hubs will expand to every single local authority, backed by over £500 million, to reach up to half a million more children and families. This funding will help all local authorities to integrate a range of statutory and non-statutory child health and family services.
Best Start Family Hubs will form part of the architecture of the Neighbourhood Health Service. Through the shifts from hospital to community and from treatment to prevention, we will further strengthen the integration of services, helping to ensure that babies and their families can get the support they need, when and where they need it.
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 he will make it his policy to expand BRCA testing to men, including those with male relatives of confirmed BRCA carriers.
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. He will make a decision on implementation, including any changes to BRCA testing eligibility, at that point.
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:
- offer a targeted national prostate cancer screening programme to men with confirmed BRCA1/2 gene variants every two years, from 45 years old to 61 years old;
- not recommend population screening;
- not recommend targeted screening of black men;
- not recommend targeted screening of men with family history; and
- collaborate with the Transform trial team to answer outstanding questions on screening effectiveness for black men and men with a family history as soon as the trial data becomes available, and to await the results of the study to develop and trial a more accurate test than the prostate specific antigen test alone, to improve the balance of benefit and harm of screening.
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 steps he is taking to improve (a) awareness and (b) treatment of postural tachycardia syndrome in North Shropshire constituency.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
In North Shropshire, the planning and commissioning of services for postural tachycardia syndrome (PoTS) is led by the Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin Integrated Care Board (ICB). It is this local ICB’s responsibility to work with clinicians, service users, and patient groups to develop services and care pathways that meet the needs of patients with PoTS.
Many patients with PoTS can be diagnosed and managed effectively within primary care. In complex cases, or where patients do not respond to initial treatment, patients may be referred to specialised cardiology or neurology services. Management of PoTS typically involves lifestyle changes and medications to help control symptoms, and can involve support from a multidisciplinary team.
To improve awareness among healthcare professionals, the Royal College of General Practitioners includes training on PoTS as part of its Syncope Toolkit, an online resource for general practitioners. This provides education, practical guidance, and case studies to help primary care doctors recognise PoTS and manage initial investigations.
Additionally, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence provides a Clinical Knowledge Summary on blackouts and syncope, last updated November 2023, which advises clinicians on best practice in assessing and diagnosing PoTS.
The 10-Year Health Plan aims to transform services and outcomes for people living with complex conditions like PoTS by prioritising integrated, personalised care. The plan focuses on earlier diagnosis and promotes multidisciplinary teams and community-based services to deliver coordinated support closer to home, reducing reliance on hospital care. Digital innovations, including remote monitoring and an enhanced NHS App, will help manage long-term conditions like PoTS more effectively. The plan also commits to 95% of people with complex needs having a personalised care plan by 2027. Personalised care plans will improve support for people with complex needs by ensuring that care is tailored to the individual and coordinated across services.
These measures will help to ensure that patients in North Shropshire, as in the rest of England, will receive timely diagnosis, coordinated specialist care delivered though locally based multidisciplinary teams, and personalised support that addresses their needs.
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 steps his Department is taking to ensure broadband providers have robust governance and independent assurance arrangements in place, including internal audit, to support cyber resilience and protect digital infrastructure.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government keeps the financial health of the market under close review and Ofcom have powers to request financial information from providers. The Telecommunications (Security) Act 2021, and its associated Regulations and Code of Practice introduced a robust security framework requiring public telecoms providers to identify, reduce, and prepare for security and resilience risks.
We recently held a public consultation on proposed updates to the Telecommunications Security Code of Practice, which provides guidance on how public telecoms providers can meet their statutory requirements to secure their networks and services. These include requirements relating to reviews, governance and board responsibilities. Ofcom monitor and enforce these requirements.
In response to the consultation, the Chartered Institute of Internal Auditors raised the matter of independent assurance arrangements. We are now carefully reviewing all feedback to the consultation to ensure that any updates to the Code of Practice are appropriate and proportionate.
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 adequacy of independent assurance arrangements in place by broadband providers, including internal audit, to support the identification, management and mitigation of major risks.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government keeps the financial health of the market under close review and Ofcom have powers to request financial information from providers. The Telecommunications (Security) Act 2021, and its associated Regulations and Code of Practice introduced a robust security framework requiring public telecoms providers to identify, reduce, and prepare for security and resilience risks.
We recently held a public consultation on proposed updates to the Telecommunications Security Code of Practice, which provides guidance on how public telecoms providers can meet their statutory requirements to secure their networks and services. These include requirements relating to reviews, governance and board responsibilities. Ofcom monitor and enforce these requirements.
In response to the consultation, the Chartered Institute of Internal Auditors raised the matter of independent assurance arrangements. We are now carefully reviewing all feedback to the consultation to ensure that any updates to the Code of Practice are appropriate and proportionate.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of toilet provision at primary schools in North Shropshire constituency.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Under the School Premises Regulations 2012 or The Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations 2014, for maintained schools and academies respectively, each school’s responsible body must ensure that schools are maintained so that pupils’ health, safety and welfare is ensured.
The same regulations require that Responsible Bodies provide suitable toilets for pupils, which means they must consider factors such as the number, age and special requirements of pupils using the toilets.
The full set of the first Condition Data Collection (CDC1) data is presented at school or regional level in the House of Commons library here: https://depositedpapers.parliament.uk/depositedpaper/2285521/details. A summary of the CDC1 data can be accessed in the CDC1 key findings report here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/condition-data-collection-2-cdc2-programme.
CDC1 ran from 2017 and 2019 and includes all government funded schools in England. The successor programme, CDC2, reviews and refreshes CDC1 data. It does not yet cover all schools in scope and is due to complete in 2026.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what data her Department holds on the number of primary schools without indoor toilets.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Under the School Premises Regulations 2012 or The Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations 2014, for maintained schools and academies respectively, each school’s responsible body must ensure that schools are maintained so that pupils’ health, safety and welfare is ensured.
The same regulations require that Responsible Bodies provide suitable toilets for pupils, which means they must consider factors such as the number, age and special requirements of pupils using the toilets.
The full set of the first Condition Data Collection (CDC1) data is presented at school or regional level in the House of Commons library here: https://depositedpapers.parliament.uk/depositedpaper/2285521/details. A summary of the CDC1 data can be accessed in the CDC1 key findings report here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/condition-data-collection-2-cdc2-programme.
CDC1 ran from 2017 and 2019 and includes all government funded schools in England. The successor programme, CDC2, reviews and refreshes CDC1 data. It does not yet cover all schools in scope and is due to complete in 2026.