Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps the Government is taking to provide guidance to local authorities on pavement parking regulations.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department has been considering all the views expressed in response to our pavement parking consultation in 2020 and is currently working through the policy options and the appropriate means of delivering them. As soon as the Government has decided its preferred way forward, we will announce the next steps and publish our formal response. We will also publish any relevant guidance once that response has been published.

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 help retain existing GPs in the workforce.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

We are starting to see consistent growth in the general practice (GP) workforce. As of March 2025, there were 938 more full time equivalent doctors working in GPs compared to March 2024.

Our commitment to growing the GP workforce includes addressing the reasons why doctors leave the profession and encouraging them to return to practice. We know that high workloads can be a key driver for GPs reducing their contracted hours or leaving the profession altogether. This is why we are tackling morale through drivers such as growing the workforce and reducing bureaucracy through our Red Tape Challenge, to improve job satisfaction and reduce the risk of burnout.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help increase the diversity of GPs; and how those steps align with the NHS Long Term Plan.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government is committed to fostering a diverse workforce. It is vital that the National Health Service’s workforce represents the patients it serves, which is why we are actively encouraging better flexible working such as job-sharing and part-time hours.

To reform the NHS and make it fit for the future, we have launched a 10-Year Health Plan as part of Government’s five long-term missions. We are listening to and co-designing the plan with the public and health and care staff. We want patients and staff to feel the difference in their daily lives. A central part of the 10-Year Health Plan will be our workforce and how we ensure we train and provide the staff, technology, and infrastructure the NHS needs to care for patients across our communities. We will publish a refreshed workforce plan to deliver the transformed health service we will build over the next decade and treat patients on time again. We will ensure the NHS has the right people, in the right places, with the right skills to deliver the care patients need when they need it.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he plans to take to increase the numbers of Army Cadets.

Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Leeds North West (Katie White) on 9 April 2025 to Question 43391.