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 her Department is taking to support local authorities to develop in‑house digital and connectivity expertise, to improve the interpretation and use of mobile coverage and performance data.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The telecoms regulator, Ofcom, is responsible for reporting on network coverage and availability across the UK. This data should be presented in an accessible format for all types of user, including local authorities.
Government believes Digital Champions can play a key role in advancing the digital connectivity agenda - and help local communities to realise the benefits advanced connectivity can bring. We encourage local and combined authorities to appoint them as dedicated officers where possible, to help improve the interpretation and use of mobile coverage and performance data.
More details on the role that Digital Champions can play can be found on Digital Connectivity Portal. The Portal is an extensive online resource providing best practice guidance helping local authorities to facilitate digital infrastructure deployment. It can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/digital-strategy-and-leadership#digital-champion.
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 merits of more closely aligning spectrum policy with mobile coverage and connectivity objectives across the UK.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The government's ambition is for all populated areas to have access to higher quality standalone 5G by 2030. Our spectrum policy supports the industry achieve this.
Spectrum is a strategic national asset and ensuring efficient use of spectrum is a priority for the government. A range of measures can support this including the adoption of innovative technologies, enhanced spectrum sharing and, in some cases, new spectrum allocations.
Ofcom is responsible for spectrum management in the UK and its duties include balancing the needs of different spectrum users and encouraging the availability of mobile and other services throughout the UK.
The government has no plans to publish a refreshed spectrum strategy currently. However, we frequently review our spectrum policy priorities, for example in the recent draft Statement of Strategic Priorities for Telecommunications, the Management of Radio Spectrum, and Postal Services.
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, whether her Department plans to publish a refreshed spectrum strategy.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The government's ambition is for all populated areas to have access to higher quality standalone 5G by 2030. Our spectrum policy supports the industry achieve this.
Spectrum is a strategic national asset and ensuring efficient use of spectrum is a priority for the government. A range of measures can support this including the adoption of innovative technologies, enhanced spectrum sharing and, in some cases, new spectrum allocations.
Ofcom is responsible for spectrum management in the UK and its duties include balancing the needs of different spectrum users and encouraging the availability of mobile and other services throughout the UK.
The government has no plans to publish a refreshed spectrum strategy currently. However, we frequently review our spectrum policy priorities, for example in the recent draft Statement of Strategic Priorities for Telecommunications, the Management of Radio Spectrum, and Postal Services.
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 her Department is taking to establish a clear and consistent definition of good quality mobile connectivity, beyond coverage alone.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The draft Statement of Strategic Priorities for Telecommunications, the Management of Radio Spectrum, and Postal Services sets out a priority for Ofcom to keep under review its definitions of what constitutes “good” 4G and 5G and the signal strength thresholds it uses to measure this, so that these definitions continue to reflect consumer and business expectations as user requirements and behaviours evolve.
In parallel, the Government is undertaking a Mobile Market Review to assess the impact of technological, structural and financial market developments on investment in comprehensive high-quality mobile connectivity.
As part of the call for evidence to inform the review, we are asking for detailed evidence on how the Government should think about, and define, ‘good’ mobile coverage in relation to the quality of service provided to consumers, businesses and the public sector and what steps could Government take to ensure operators are able to provide this. We will use these responses to further inform policy on this issue. The call for evidence was published on 10 February 2026 and closes 5 May 2026.
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, (a) what the current level of the stockpile of MenB vaccine is and (b) whether her Department has assessed whether stockpiles are sufficient for the current meningitis B outbreak, including through modelling.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The risk of infection to the wider population remains low. A targeted vaccination programme has been extended to everyone who has been offered preventative antibiotic treatment as part of this outbreak. A single course of antibiotics is highly effective at reducing transmission. Immediately after the outbreak was identified, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) deployed 50,000 doses of stockpiled antibiotics to the local area to ensure rapid access for those at highest risk.
UKHSA stock levels for a meningitis B vaccine are the equivalent to eleven months of use in the continued national immunisation programme. 26,500 vaccine doses have been delivered specifically in response to the outbreak in Kent and a further 30,000 doses have been released from future deliveries into UKHSA back to GSK for supply through the standard wholesaler market.
UKHSA continues to work with local resilience partners to ensure effective distribution. We currently have limited data, and our understanding of the dynamics is still developing at pace, as this is an unprecedented situation.
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 NHS England employees have opted to take the voluntary redundancy scheme commencing in April 2026.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England’s voluntary redundancy scheme opened on 1 December and closed for applications on 16 December. NHS England has approved 3,671 employees to leave under voluntary redundancy prior to March 2027. Currently, 25% of the 1,106 employees identified to leave on 31 March 2026 have confirmed their desire to withdraw from the scheme. Employees can withdraw at any time up to signing their final severance agreement.
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 address regional differences in funding for patients trying to conceive through IVF, in the context of NICE guidelines on offering people under 40 up to three full cycles of IVF.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Funding decisions for health services in England are made by integrated care boards (ICBs) and are based on the clinical needs of their local population.
On 31 March, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published its updated fertility guideline, which recommends that women under 40 years old who meet the clinical eligibility criteria should be offered up to three full cycles of in vitro fertilisation.
We expect ICBs to consider and reflect the updated NICE fertility guideline in their commissioning decisions, and we are working with NHS England to support greater consistency in provision.
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 publish the ten advice and guidance referral pathways selected by each integrated care board.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (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: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the role of battery storage in reducing the UK's reliance on international energy markets.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Batteries help balance the electricity system at lower cost and maximise the output from intermittent renewable generation, which helps reduce our reliance on gas and thus international energy markets.
As of March 2027, there is 7.2GW of grid-scale battery storage on the GB grid. S The Clean Power 2030 Action Plan set out an ambition for 23-27 GW of grid-scale batteries connected by 2030. We are therefore already making significant strides towards reducing our dependence on gas.
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, when he will publish the legal text for the UK-US pharmaceuticals deal.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The full text of the UK-US pharmaceutical agreement is available at the following link: