Asked by: Helena Dollimore (Labour (Co-op) - Hastings and Rye)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the length of the statute of limitations for medical devices as specified under the Consumer Protection Act 1987.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Given the importance, breadth and complexity of this area of law – and as I set out in Committee on the Product Regulation and Metrology Act – the Government has asked the Law Commission to conduct a full review of product liability legislation. This includes considering the time limits for bringing claims. Following a wide consultation that will begin soon, I expect the Law Commission to make recommendations later next year.
Asked by: Helena Dollimore (Labour (Co-op) - Hastings and Rye)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to reduce the number of children in temporary accommodation in Hastings and Rye constituency.
Answered by Rushanara Ali - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Investing in preventative services is critical for reducing the number of households and children in temporary accommodation. The Government has made the largest-ever investment in prevention services, increasing funding for homelessness services by £233 million to a total of £1 billion for homelessness and rough sleeping in 2025/26.
The Spending Review has protected this record level of investment for the next three years, and provided £100 million, including from the Transformation Fund, to fund increased homelessness prevention activity by local authorities.
Asked by: Helena Dollimore (Labour (Co-op) - Hastings and Rye)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions her Department has had with (a) local authorities and (b) housing associations on the adequacy of levels of playground provision to meet children’s needs.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Playgrounds are an essential part of social infrastructure and government is committed to improving access to safe play spaces. The provision of playgrounds in parks and public spaces is primarily a matter for local authorities. We support local government and recognise the challenges that local authorities are facing as demand increases for critical services.
The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) is clear that planning policies and decisions should aim to achieve healthy, inclusive and safe places. In addition, the National Design Guide demonstrates how new development can promote inclusive design by creating buildings and spaces that are safe, social and inclusive, with an integrated mix of uses that are accessible for all.
We will use our bold £1.5 billion Plan for Neighbourhoods to bolster a wide range of community assets, including play areas. Over the next decade, the plan will deliver up to £20 million of funding and support to each of 75 eligible communities across the UK, bringing together “neighbourhood boards” to develop local regeneration plans in partnership with local authorities: Plan for Neighbourhoods: prospectus - GOV.UK.
Asked by: Helena Dollimore (Labour (Co-op) - Hastings and Rye)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that children have access to (a) safe and (b) well-maintained playgrounds.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Playgrounds are an essential part of social infrastructure and government is committed to improving access to safe play spaces. The provision of playgrounds in parks and public spaces is primarily a matter for local authorities. We support local government and recognise the challenges that local authorities are facing as demand increases for critical services.
The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) is clear that planning policies and decisions should aim to achieve healthy, inclusive and safe places. In addition, the National Design Guide demonstrates how new development can promote inclusive design by creating buildings and spaces that are safe, social and inclusive, with an integrated mix of uses that are accessible for all.
We will use our bold £1.5 billion Plan for Neighbourhoods to bolster a wide range of community assets, including play areas. Over the next decade, the plan will deliver up to £20 million of funding and support to each of 75 eligible communities across the UK, bringing together “neighbourhood boards” to develop local regeneration plans in partnership with local authorities: Plan for Neighbourhoods: prospectus - GOV.UK.
Asked by: Helena Dollimore (Labour (Co-op) - Hastings and Rye)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 4 February 2025 to Question 24568 on Department of Health and Social Care: Media, which Ministers received media training.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Between 4 July 2022 and 4 July 2024, media training was received by Minister Caroline Johnson MP, the then Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Mental Health and Public Health, and Lord Markham, the then Parliamentary Under Secretary of State.
Asked by: Helena Dollimore (Labour (Co-op) - Hastings and Rye)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much their Department spent on (a) media and (b) voice training for Ministers between 4 July 2022 and 4 July 2024.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Between 4 July 2022 and 4 July 2024, the Department spent £2,292 on media training for members of the Ministerial team. No spend on voice training for Ministers was incurred during this period.
Asked by: Helena Dollimore (Labour (Co-op) - Hastings and Rye)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will make an estimate of the potential cost to the public purse of (a) media and (b) voice training for Ministers between (a) 4 July 2022 and (b) 4 July 2024.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Department organised no (i) media or (ii) voice training for Ministers during this period, and therefore the estimated cost to the public purse is none.
Asked by: Helena Dollimore (Labour (Co-op) - Hastings and Rye)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many doctors applied for core anaesthetic training in each of the last five years; and how many training places were available in the same period.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The following table shows the number of doctors who applied for training in the Core Anaesthetics programme, as well as how many training places were available across the United Kingdom in each of the last five years:
Year | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
Applications | 1,479 | 2,046 | 2,337 | 2,604 | 3,522 |
Training places (posts) | 569 | 566 | 558 | 545 | 542 |
Source: Workforce, Training and Education, Competition Ratios, published by NHS England and available at the following link:
https://medical.hee.nhs.uk/medical-training-recruitment/medical-specialty-training/competition-ratios
Asked by: Helena Dollimore (Labour (Co-op) - Hastings and Rye)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many doctors applied for medical specialty training in each of the last five years; and how many training places were available in the same period.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Doctors undertake two years of foundation training after graduation, which is followed by a choice of core training programmes. Most of those in core training then apply for higher specialty training programmes.
For 2024, there were 4,177 applications across the 25 specialty training programmes that comprise medical specialty training, which came from 2,897 unique applicants due to doctors being able to apply to a number of different specialities when seeking specialty training posts. The number of unique applicants for prior years is not held by the Department.
The attached table shows the number of doctors who applied for training in the 25 individual specialty training programmes that comprise medical specialty training, along with how many training posts were available across the United Kingdom in each speciality, in each of the last five years.
This information is drawn from information published by NHS England on the Competition Ratios for all doctor training specialties each year, which is available at the following link:
Asked by: Helena Dollimore (Labour (Co-op) - Hastings and Rye)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much his Department spent on (a) media and (b) voice training for Ministers between 4 July 2022 and 4 July 2024.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department spent a total of £1,500, including VAT, on media training for ministers between 4 July 2022 and 4 July 2024. There was no expenditure on voice training for ministers during this period.