Asked by: John Milne (Liberal Democrat - Horsham)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when his Department plans to respond to the letter from the Hon. Member Horsham sent to the Minister for Pensions on 23 November 2025.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
I apologise for the delay in responding to my Hon. Friend’s letter. A meeting has been arranged for the 22nd of April.
Asked by: John Milne (Liberal Democrat - Horsham)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when the Department plans to publish the findings from its employment support pilot schemes; and what assessment has been made of their potential impact on employment outcomes.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department for Work and Pensions has adopted a test and learn approach across many of its employment support pilot scheme areas.
The Government has committed to publish a report this spring which sets out more detail on how we are delivering the new Jobs and Careers Service.
To evaluate the effectiveness of the eight Youth Guarantee Trailblazers and the nine Economic Inactivity Trailblazers, the Department for Work and Pensions commissioned an evaluation starting in January 2026. This is expected to build evidence on the effectiveness of the initiative at improving employment outcomes, reducing economic inactivity, enhancing health and well-being, increasing participation in education and training, and strengthening systems integration. We expect to publish interim findings during the next two years and will develop the value for money assessment once longer-term impacts have developed.
https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2025-12-08/hcws1137
Asked by: John Milne (Liberal Democrat - Horsham)
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 potential merits of providing breast cancer screening for women under 40 with Neurofibromatosis type 1.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to improving cancer screening services in line with the National Cancer Plan and as part of the 10-Year Health Plan’s shift from treatment to prevention.
Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) affects individuals differently. An individual’s risk of breast cancer is based on a number of factors. These factors may vary throughout a lifetime which is why individuals are advised to seek advice from their health professionals.
Most individuals with NF1 would be considered at moderate risk of breast cancer, which would mean they could be referred to local cancer surveillance programme commissioned via the integrated care boards.
The National Institute of Health and Care Excellence’s guidance does not address NF1 specifically but does state that people with certain genetic conditions should be referred through to a geneticist to consider their risk and may qualify for annual breast screening between the ages of 40 and 50 years old.
The UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC), which advises the Government on all screening matters, has never been asked to look at creating a separate programme for women with NF1. Any individual or organisation can submit a proposal during the committee’s three-month open call for topics.
The UK NSC will consider whether the proposal is within the UK NSC remit and, if so, how the topic should be explored further.
Asked by: John Milne (Liberal Democrat - Horsham)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when he plans to reply to the correspondence from the hon. Member for Horsham of 6 January 2026.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
We apologise for the delay in responding to this letter. As it requires input from multiple government departments, it has not been possible to respond within the usual timeframe. A response is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: John Milne (Liberal Democrat - Horsham)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether the Delivery Model Assessment undertaken by his Department for the new Jobs and Careers Service included an assessment of existing AI-powered technologies available in the private sector.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
For the new jobs and careers service the Department considered a range of delivery options and enabling technologies to support service design and delivery, including the potential role of digital and data‑driven tools such as automation and artificial intelligence.
The Department is preparing to undertake a market engagement exercise to understand the range of digital products and services that could support and enhance the Jobs and Career Service. The outcome of this engagement will help inform the future delivery strategy for the Jobs and Career Service.
Any consideration of AI‑powered solutions is subject to the Department’s established governance, assurance, and ethical frameworks, including requirements on data protection, security, transparency, and value for money. The Department continues to monitor developments in AI‑enabled technologies and will consider their appropriate use where they can safely and effectively support delivery of the Jobs and Careers Service.
Asked by: John Milne (Liberal Democrat - Horsham)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, progress his department has made on testing personalised employment support in the Wakefield Pathfinder pilots; and whether an assessment has been made of the potential impact on user experience.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
As part of the first Jobs and Careers Service Pathfinder, launched in Wakefield in April 2025, we have been testing personalised employment support, including through a new Get Britain Working Coaching Academy and changes to claimant commitment appointments. Evaluation is ongoing and will focus on how personalised employment support is delivered both from a user and operational perspective. We are committed to publish evaluation findings in line with Government Social Research processes.
Asked by: John Milne (Liberal Democrat - Horsham)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the in-house digital replacement for the DWP's Find a Job service, whether an assessment has been carried out of its potential impact on (a) jobseeker outcomes and (b) employers ability to find workforce, were it to launch with a reduction in provision when compared with the existing service.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The new service is designed to provide a parity of service from day one. We do not expect any negative impact on Jobseeker outcomes. The Department is continuously reviewing the readiness of the new service, and it remains on track. Over time the new service will be iterated in to provide a more enhanced experience for customers, in line with the ambition for the Jobs and Careers Service as outlined in the Get Britian Working White Paper.
Asked by: John Milne (Liberal Democrat - Horsham)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether the in-house replacement for the Department’s Find a Job digital service will (a) offer additional functions to the current service, (b) if those additional functions will be available on launch, and (c) if not available on launch, when such functions will be incorporated.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
At the point of launch, the in-house replacement service will support equivalent functionality to the existing Find a Job service. After launch the service will go through regular test and learn iterations to introduce new innovations.
Asked by: John Milne (Liberal Democrat - Horsham)
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 resilience of electricity networks serving rural businesses.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Energy resilience is one of our top priorities. The Government is working with the industry to continually improve and maintain the resilience of old and new energy infrastructure, networks and assets, including the ones in rural areas. This will reduce vulnerabilities and ensure an effective response to actual or potentially disruptive incidents.
The Government will also publish an Energy Resilience Strategy in 2026 to set long term priorities for maintaining a secure and resilient energy system.
Asked by: John Milne (Liberal Democrat - Horsham)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if his Department will list ML3 arms export licences to Israel licensing the transfer of bullets extant for August 2025.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
I refer the Member to the answer I gave on 5 March to question 117033.