Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of not expanding Healthy Babies funding to all local authority areas from April 2026.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The 10-Year Health Plan sets out an ambitious agenda for how we will improve the nation’s health by creating a new model of care that is fit for the future.

We recognise that local authorities are ambitious, seeking to deliver universal support to families and prevent escalating need. We are committed to delivering the 10-Year Health Plan ambition to match Healthy Babies, formerly Start for Life, to Best Start Family Hubs over the next decade.

From April, the Government is rolling out Best Start Family Hubs to all local authorities, backed by over £500 million to reach up to half a million more children and families. This funding will help embed hubs within a wider support system, including integrated child health services, and will enable proactive identification and support for health issues and early developmental delays.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what diplomatic steps her Department is taking to help prevent the detention of children from Gaza and the West Bank by the Israeli military.

Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

We are deeply concerned about the detention of Palestinian children by the Israeli military and about allegations of abuse against those children, including sexual violence.

The UK calls for all such reports to be fully investigated. The arrest and detention of children must follow due process, in line with international juvenile justice standards.

We also call on all parties to the conflict to grant the International Committee of the Red Cross immediate and unfettered access.

Air pollution is a serious threat to both public health and the natural environment. It has been linked to heart disease, strokes, cancer, asthma and impacts on lung development in children. Tens of thousands of lives are being shortened in the UK by air pollution, according to the Chair of the Environment Agency.