Asked by: Leigh Ingham (Labour - Stafford)
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 adequacy of community provision of palliative care in Stafford constituency.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We want a society where every person receives high-quality, compassionate care from diagnosis through to the end of life.
Palliative care services are included in the list of services an integrated care board (ICB) must commission. This promotes a more consistent national approach and supports commissioners in prioritising palliative and end of life care. ICBs, including the Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent ICB, which covers the Stafford constituency, are responsible for the commissioning of palliative and end of life care services, to meet the needs of their local populations. To support ICBs in this duty, NHS England has published statutory guidance and service specifications.
As set out in the Government’s recently published 10-Year Health Plan, we are determined to shift more care out of hospitals and into the community, to ensure patients and their families receive personalised care in the most appropriate setting. Palliative care and end of life care services, including hospices, will have a big role to play in that shift, and were highlighted in the plan as being an integral part of neighbourhood teams.
The Government and the National Health Service will closely monitor the shift towards the strategic commissioning of palliative and end of life care services to ensure that, in future, services reduce variation in access and quality, although some variation may be appropriate to reflect both innovation and the needs of local populations.
Officials will present further proposals to ministers over the coming months, outlining how to operationalise the required shifts in palliative care and end of life care to enable the shift from hospital to community, including as part of neighbourhood health teams.
Asked by: Leigh Ingham (Labour - Stafford)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what mechanisms are in place to (a) monitor and (b) hold accountable (i) CAFCASS and (ii) family courts in private law proceedings where safeguarding concerns for children are identified; and what procedures there are to ensure action is taken in cases involving known risks to prevent serious harm.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
As a Non-Departmental Body sponsored by the Ministry of Justice, the oversight and assurance arrangements for Cafcass are carried out in accordance with the Arms-Length Body Code of Practice. Specific areas of oversight are also covered in the Framework Document between the Ministry of Justice and Cafcass, which broadly sets out sponsorship governance arrangements, financial management and performance reporting. Cafcass is subject to regular inspection by Ofsted. The most recent inspection took place in January 2024 and key findings are available here.
The judiciary is independent, and the Government therefore does not hold them to account, however support is available in the family courts where safeguarding concerns are identified and to ensure that action is taken to protect children.
Asked by: Leigh Ingham (Labour - Stafford)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 6 November 2024 to Question 11995 on Park Homes: Sales, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of removing the 10 percent commission on the sale of park homes.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 44299 on 16 April 2025.
Asked by: Leigh Ingham (Labour - Stafford)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what her plan is for the next phase of free breakfast club provision in primary schools.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government is committed to delivering on its pledge to provide a free breakfast club in every state-funded school with primary-aged children. This will ensure every child, regardless of circumstance, has a supportive start to the school day.
From the start of the summer term, we have funded 750 schools to deliver a free breakfast club as early adopters.
We are currently working through the outcomes of the latest spending review and the departmental business planning processes. Further details will follow in due course, including the timing of national rollout and the details of funding and support for schools.
Asked by: Leigh Ingham (Labour - Stafford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what correspondence her Department has had with Fenland District Council on their decision not to permit the passage of the Terra Marique barge on the River Nene between Sutton Bridge and Wisbech.
Answered by Mike Kane - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department sought clarification from Fenland District Council of its decision not to permit passage, and the Council confirmed that its decision had been made on the basis of a risk assessment by qualified advisers. The Department remains committed to its ‘water-preferred’ abnormal load movement policy.
Asked by: Leigh Ingham (Labour - Stafford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent discussions she has had with relevant stakeholders on tackling online misogynistic radicalisation.
Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
Tackling misogyny, both online and offline, is central to our mission to halve violence against women and girls (VAWG) in a decade and we will address the drivers and root causes of VAWG as part of our upcoming cross-Government Strategy, due to be published this year. I have regularly engaged with VAWG stakeholders to help inform this work and held a roundtable on technological harms.
Asked by: Leigh Ingham (Labour - Stafford)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of trends in the level of male GCSE attainment in Stafford constituency.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
Data is available at Staffordshire local authority level, and shows that 36.3% of boys achieved grade 5 or above in English and mathematics GCSE in 2024, down from 37.2% in 2023. Attainment 8 for boys in 2024 was 41.0, down from 41.9 in 2023.
Through the department’s work to deliver the Opportunity Mission, we will improve opportunities and life chances across the country for all children and young people.
High and rising standards are the key to strengthening outcomes and closing gaps for every child and young person no matter who they are or their background, helping them to achieve and thrive.
The department will deliver this through excellent teaching and leaders, a high quality curriculum, strong accountability with faster school improvement and an inclusive system which removes the barriers to learning.
The department’s new regional improvement for standards and excellence (RISE) teams are designed to accelerate improvement in education standards across England by providing targeted interventions as well as universal support to all schools. RISE teams will be working with Staffordshire County Council and local multi-academy trusts in the county to develop the RISE Regional Plan to address gaps in attainment.
Asked by: Leigh Ingham (Labour - Stafford)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of farrowing crates on the welfare of pigs.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We remain firmly committed to maintaining and improving animal welfare and want to work closely with the farming sector to deliver high standards. Defra’s statutory welfare Code of Practice for Pigs states that the aim is for farrowing crates to no longer be necessary and for any new system to protect the welfare of the sow as well as her piglets. Whilst the farrowing crate reduces the risk of piglet mortality, it also restricts sow movement, preventing her from turning around and performing normal behaviours such as nest building. The use of farrowing crates for pigs is an issue we are currently considering very carefully.
Asked by: Leigh Ingham (Labour - Stafford)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act on (a) Stafford High Street and (b) Eccleshall High Street.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
This Government is committed to rejuvenating high streets across the country including those in Stafford and Eccleshall. While no specific assessment has been made of the potential impact of the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023 on Stafford and Eccleshall high streets, High Street Rental Auction powers commenced by the Government in December 2024 were introduced by the Act. The Government encourages all councils, including Stafford Borough Council, to exercise these powers to tackle persistent vacancy on the high street.
Asked by: Leigh Ingham (Labour - Stafford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made a comparative assessment of the effectiveness of (a) Urgent Treatment Centres and (b) Accident and Emergency Departments.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Urgent treatment centres and emergency departments, also known as accident and emergency, provide a different range of services to patients.
Our Urgent and Emergency Care Plan for this year will continue the expansion of urgent treatment centres that are co-located with emergency departments. This allows for the effective streaming of patients away from emergency departments, helping to reduce the number of people who spend time there, and overcrowding.