First elected: 4th July 2024
Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.
e-Petitions are administered by Parliament and allow members of the public to express support for a particular issue.
If an e-petition reaches 10,000 signatures the Government will issue a written response.
If an e-petition reaches 100,000 signatures the petition becomes eligible for a Parliamentary debate (usually Monday 4.30pm in Westminster Hall).
These initiatives were driven by Lewis Cocking, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.
MPs who are act as Ministers or Shadow Ministers are generally restricted from performing Commons initiatives other than Urgent Questions.
Lewis Cocking has not been granted any Urgent Questions
Lewis Cocking has not been granted any Adjournment Debates
Lewis Cocking has not introduced any legislation before Parliament
Planning (Flooding) Bill 2024-26
Sponsor - Blake Stephenson (Con)
Roadworks (Regulation) Bill 2024-26
Sponsor - Mark Francois (Con)
This Government’s Safer Streets Mission will drive forward the change we need to crack down on shoplifting – a crime that is blighting our communities.
As Solicitor General, I superintend the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), which prosecutes shoplifting and attempted shoplifting in England and Wales.
The CPS increased prosecutions for shoplifting and attempted shoplifting in 2024. In 2024, the CPS prosecuted 113,624 cases of shoplifting, up from 56,986 in 2022. In 2024, the CPS prosecuted 2,025 cases of attempted shoplifting, up from 1,074 in 2022.
However, more needs to be done.
Under the previous government, shoplifting hit a record high, with more and more offenders using appalling violence and abuse against shopworkers.
This Government will not stand for that level of lawlessness and criminality. New money will be invested in prevention, training the police and retailers on specific retail crime tactics to stop crime before it happens.
We’re also putting a stop to the effective immunity for shoplifting of goods below £200 and bringing in a new offence of assaulting a retail worker to protect those who face unacceptable abuse in their roles serving the public.
Costs for equality, diversity and inclusion in the Civil Service have recently been published on Gov.uk. See the Civil Service Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Expenditure Review and Civil Service 2024/2025 External Expenditure on Equality, Diversity and Inclusion.
The Government will publish a Small Business Strategy Paper later this year.
This will set out the Government’s vision for all small businesses, from boosting scale-ups to growing the co-operative economy, across key policy areas such as creating thriving high streets, making it easier to access finance, opening up overseas and domestic markets, building business capabilities, and providing a strong business environment.
The paper will complement the Government’s forthcoming Industrial Strategy and Trade Strategy.
Our forthcoming Small Business Strategy will reaffirm our long-term support for small businesses and outline our vision for boosting scale-ups and helping all types of business to thrive and grow. This strategy will empower business owners and entrepreneurs to innovate, export, and create jobs across their regions.
In addition, as confirmed in the autumn Budget the Government has taken steps to protect small businesses by increasing the Employment Allowance to £10,500. This measure will help small businesses in particular - in 2024 small businesses (with 0-49 employees) make up 99.2% of the total business population.
The Government understands the importance of face-to-face banking to communities and high streets and is committed to championing sufficient access for all.
We have committed to work closely with banks to roll out at least 350 banking hubs. That rollout is overseen by Cash Access UK (CAUK). LINK (the operator of the UK’s largest ATM network) assesses a community’s needs for access to cash in the event of the closure of a core cash service or if LINK receives a request directly from a community.
The net zero transition will not only be the economic opportunity of the century, but it will also support the creation of hundreds of thousands of good jobs across the UK, protect our economy from future price shocks that reliance on fossil fuels create, while delivering a range of social and health benefits. The Warm Homes Plan, for example, will transform homes across the country, from installing new insulation to rolling out solar and heat pumps, helping households make their homes cleaner and cheaper to run.
As the OBR has noted [July 2021 Fiscal Risks Report], the costs of failing to get climate change under control would be much larger than those of bringing emissions down to net zero.
I refer the hon. Member for Broxbourne to the answer of 28 February 2025 to Question 31690.
Ministers and departmental officials engage with a wide range of experts on special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). The government has established and are working with an Inclusion Expert Advisory Group and a Neurodiversity Task and Finish Group, set up by Ministers to advise on steps needed to improve mainstream education outcomes and experiences for children and young people with SEND.
In addition to regular engagement with parents across the country, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education met recently with members of the Disabled Children’s Partnership (a coalition representing more than 120 organisations who support families of children and young people with SEND) and the department continues to have ongoing conversations with parents and other key stakeholders.
Announcements on funding for the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund (ASGSF) will be made as soon as possible. We will, of course, always consider the impact of decisions on vulnerable children.
ASGSF applications are generally permitted to extend up to 12 months, allowing children and families to receive continuing therapy across financial years. Where applications are agreed, therapy which starts before March 2025 may therefore continue into the next financial year, under previously agreed transitional funding arrangements.
Home-to-school travel is an integral part of the school system. It provides a valuable service on which many families rely. The department is grateful to the many transport operators for the crucial role they play in ensuring that children receive the education that they need to help them thrive.
Local authorities are responsible for arranging home-to-school travel for eligible children. It is for them to determine how best to do so, based on local circumstances and the needs of the children travelling. They might, for example, have an in-house fleet, provide passes for free travel on public transport or contract with private transport operators for the provision of buses, coaches, taxis and private hire vehicles. Where they contract with private operators, it is for the local authority and the operator to agree suitable terms.
I refer the hon. Member for Broxbourne to the answer of 29 January 2025 to Question 26397.
The department understands that, in line with schools’ charitable objectives, private schools do not typically charge for partnership work, meaning it is outside the scope of VAT. Whilst the government keeps all tax policy under review, there are currently no plans for changes that would enable independent schools to offset any financial contributions made to state academies against their VAT liability.
Whilst developing these policies, the government has carefully considered the impact that they will have on pupils and their families across both the state and private sector, as well as the impact these policies will have on state and private schools. Following scrutiny of the government’s costing by the independent Office for Budget Responsibility, the government will confirm its approach to these reforms at the Budget on 30 October and set out its assessment of the expected impacts of these policy changes in the normal way.
The department understands that, in line with schools’ charitable objectives, private schools do not typically charge for partnership work, meaning it is outside the scope of VAT. Whilst the government keeps all tax policy under review, there are currently no plans for changes that would enable independent schools to offset any financial contributions made to state academies against their VAT liability.
Whilst developing these policies, the government has carefully considered the impact that they will have on pupils and their families across both the state and private sector, as well as the impact these policies will have on state and private schools. Following scrutiny of the government’s costing by the independent Office for Budget Responsibility, the government will confirm its approach to these reforms at the Budget on 30 October and set out its assessment of the expected impacts of these policy changes in the normal way.
This government aims to create a clear, flexible, high quality skills system that supports all young people, thereby breaking down the barriers to opportunity and driving economic growth.
The department has already taken steps to reform the skills system.
Firstly, the department has established Skills England, which is a new organisation that will ensure we have the highly trained workforce needed to deliver national, regional and local skills needs, aligned with the Industrial Strategy. It is a critical part of the government’s mission to raise growth sustainably across the whole country to support people to get better jobs and to improve their standard of living.
Secondly, the department has established an independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, covering ages 5 to 18 and chaired by Professor Becky Francis CBE. The review will seek to refresh the curriculum to ensure it is cutting edge, fit for purpose and meets the needs of children and young people to support their future life and work. The review will be undertaken in close partnership with stakeholders, including employers. A call for evidence will be launched in the coming weeks which will set out the areas where the review group would particularly welcome input.
Thirdly, the department is undertaking a short, internal review of post-16 qualifications reform. The review will examine the current planned reforms to look at how the department can ensure high quality qualifications like T Levels are open to as many people as possible, whilst also ensuring there are high-quality alternatives available where they are needed. To allow space for the review, the department has paused the planned defunding of qualifications in construction and the Built Environment, Digital, Education and Early Years, and Health and Science, which was due to go ahead in July 2024. The department will conclude and communicate the outcomes of this review before the turn of the year. Defunding decisions for 2025 onwards will be confirmed after the short review.
T Levels will continue to be rolled out as high quality qualifications which include direct experience of the workplace, providing young people with a firm foundation for their future. 21 T Levels are now available, including Media, Broadcast and Production, Craft and Design, and Animal Care and Management, which are being taught for the first time from this September.
The government will continue to take steps to reform the skills system, as part of a comprehensive post-16 education and skills strategy.
The department will introduce a Youth Guarantee of access to training, an apprenticeship, or support to find work for all 18 to 21 year olds. This will bring together existing funding and entitlements to help to lower the number of young people who are not learning or earning. This is vital to prevent young people becoming excluded from the world of work at a young age.
The department is transforming the Apprenticeship Levy into a new Growth and Skills Levy, to create opportunities for learners of all ages and to give employers greater flexibility to train and upskill their workforce by allowing investment in a broader range of skills training.
The department will establish Technical Excellence Colleges, which will work with businesses, trade unions, and local government to provide opportunities to young people and adults, developing a highly skilled workforce that meets national and local needs.
These reforms will support all young people to have access to the skills and training opportunities to enable them to succeed in the workplace.
This government is committed to providing the necessary support to improve the experiences for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and their families. The department is committed to taking a community-wide approach, improving inclusivity and expertise in mainstream schools and alternative provision settings, as well as ensuring special schools cater to those with the most complex needs.
Ofsted inspected local arrangements for children with SEND in Hertfordshire in July 2023. Its report, published on 10 November 2023, concluded that there are widespread and/or systemic failings, leading to significant concerns about the experiences and outcomes of children and young people with SEND, which the local area partnership must address urgently.
The department provides support and accountability to the Hertfordshire local area partnership by monitoring progress against its priority action plan and Improvement Plan, and by providing advice and guidance via a SEND expert advisor. The partnership has also established a SEND Improvement Board, independently chaired by Dame Christine Lenehan to oversee progress and provide appropriate challenge.
The Land Use Consultation published this year was underpinned by analysis of land use change for nature restoration and other objectives. This included analysis of potential spatial distributions of change to 2050, taking account of land’s suitability for food production. This analysis is set out in the Analytical Annex published alongside the consultation. We are currently analysing responses to the consultation and feedback on this analysis and will take them into account in the preparation of the Land Use Framework, the forthcoming food strategy and future UK Food Security Reports.
Section 29 of the guidance entitled “May 2025 Elections: guidance on conduct for civil servants” outlines that it is for individual public bodies to apply the guidance within their own organisations. Environment Agency staff follow all relevant sections of the guidance to ensure that their activities do not call into question their political impartiality.
The Cabinet Office publishes guidance to civil servants in UK Government departments and staff and members of non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) and other arm’s-length bodies (ALBs) on their role and conduct during pre-election periods. The most recent guidance was updated on 20 March 2025 ahead of the May 2025 local elections.
Environment Agency (EA) staff follow this guidance to ensure that their activities do not call into question their political impartiality.
Under new proposals set out by this Government, households and businesses will be entitled to higher payments from water companies when basic services are hit in a wider range of circumstances – with payments water company customers are legally entitled to when key standards are not met at least doubling.
The Government is also expanding the list of circumstances that can trigger compensation, to include payments for boil notices when drinking water standards drop, and for failures to conduct meter readings or installations as promised. It would mean recent outages in Hastings, Brixham and Bramley earlier this year would have all automatically led to compensation at higher rates for all customers.
The Government has allocated capital grants for new flood defences as well as maintenance funding for existing flood defence assets in Hertfordshire.
For the financial year 24/25 (April 2024 - March 2025), the Environment Agency's allocated funding for asset maintenance in Hertfordshire is £1,040,280. This figure covers their expected maintenance on flood defence assets and main river channels under their permitted powers, including vegetation management, operational checks on flood defence assets, treatment of invasive non-native species, mechanical and electrical inspections, and inspection and maintenance of public safety measures.
In addition, as of 4 September 2024, £6,480,444 of Grant in Aid has been allocated to capital flood defence projects in Hertfordshire for the financial year 24/25.
Protecting communities around the country from flooding and coastal erosion is one of the new Secretary of State’s five core priorities. That’s why we are launching a Flood Resilience Taskforce to provide oversight of national and local flood resilience and preparedness ahead of and after the winter flood season.
In the current floods investment programme, approximately 40% of the Environment Agency’s flood defence schemes, and 45% of their investment, protect properties in rural communities. We will review the floods programme to ensure flood risk management is fit for the challenges we face now and in the future.
Working with farmers and landowners is an important part of the Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management Strategy Roadmap up to 2026. As part of this, the Rural Flood Resilience Partnership focuses on helping farmers and land managers adapt to a changing climate.
Since the announcement by the Secretary of State for Transport, 23 April 2025, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has:
As part of the measures announced, 23 April, DVSA also has:
Further information on these actions and progress of DVSA’s plan to reduce driving test waiting times, which was announced in December 2024, can be found on GOV.UK.
The Pedicabs (London) Act 2024 conferred powers onto Transport for London (TfL) to regulate London’s pedicab industry for the first time, giving TfL the tools it needs to tackle the unsafe, anti-social and nuisance behaviours of certain pedicab operators and drivers. TfL is currently analysing responses to a public consultation in order to inform the design and implementation of future pedicab regulations. Department for Transport Ministers and officials have regular conversations with the Mayor of London and TfL on a range of matters including pedicabs.
The Pedicabs (London) Act 2024 conferred powers onto Transport for London (TfL) to regulate London’s pedicab industry for the first time, giving TfL the tools it needs to tackle the unsafe, anti-social and nuisance behaviours of certain pedicab operators and drivers. TfL is currently analysing responses to a public consultation in order to inform the design and implementation of future pedicab regulations. Department for Transport Ministers and officials have regular conversations with the Mayor of London and TfL on a range of matters including pedicabs.
Transport in London is devolved to the Mayor, and TfL is responsible for operational decisions to support reduced fare evasion. Department for Transport ministers and officials have regular conversations with Transport for London on a variety of issues including fare evasion on their network. TfL has informed the department of their activity to tackle this important issue which includes an expanded dedicated team of investigators and 500 uniformed TfL officers deployed across the TfL network with 360 offenders found guilty at court in 2024.
The Department for Transport works closely with industry stakeholders, including utility companies, as we continue to review our legislation, statutory guidance and guidance, to identify areas where the regime can be improved to minimise the impact of street works. We have recently announced to the industry that we will be clamping down on disruptive works by doubling fixed penalty notices for utility companies who fail to comply with rules and extending charges for works that overrun into weekends.
As more highway authorities are progressing with their applications to operate lane rental schemes to target the most disruptive works on our roads, my Department have been engaging with utility companies directly as part of a series of regional visits. Utility companies have also been invited, along with a range of other stakeholders, to take part in a consultation on proposals to improve and simplify the lane rental application process.
Ministers and officials have regular conversations with Transport for London on a variety of issues including fare evasion on their network. Transport in London is devolved to the Mayor and TfL is responsible for operational decisions to support reduced fare evasion.
The number of people struck by trains in the last 12 months within each of Network Rail’s regions and routes is set out below. This data shows whether the incident led to a fatality or injury, and if it was classified as a suspected suicide or as non-suicidal. The total number of people struck by trains over this period was 339.
NR Region | Fatalities | Injuries | ||
Suicidal | Non-suicidal | Suicidal | Non-suicidal | |
Eastern | 98 | 1 | 11 | 9 |
North West and Central | 63 | 3 | 11 | 8 |
Scotland's Railway | 16 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
Southern | 47 | 1 | 3 | 6 |
Wales and Western | 50 | 2 | 1 | 6 |
NR Route | Fatalities | Injuries | ||
Suicidal | Non-suicidal | Suicidal | Non-suicidal | |
Anglia | 29 | 1 | 4 | 1 |
East Coast | 20 | 0 | 2 | 4 |
East Midlands | 18 | 0 | 3 | 4 |
North & East | 31 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
Central | 18 | 0 | 5 | 2 |
North West | 35 | 3 | 5 | 5 |
West Coast Mainline South | 10 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Scotland's Railway | 16 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
Kent | 12 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
Sussex | 16 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
Wessex | 19 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
Wales and Borders | 11 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Western | 39 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
The Street Manager service is closely managed by the Department, with officials also overseeing ongoing development and improvement of the service in line with Government Digital Services best practice. There is a governance group made up of elected representatives from the public and private sector whom officials meet monthly, and a small group of subject matter experts are consulted on a weekly basis. A roadmap setting out future enhancements of the service is agreed with the governance group and published every six months. Users can provide feedback and raise any concerns they have about the service at any point, and a yearly survey monitors satisfaction.
The Department is in the process of updating its lane rental guidance and has recently announced a new assessment process for lane rental applications to improve and streamline the application process for authorities. We have been speaking to authorities directly as part of a series of regional visits and are also working with the Highway Authorities and Utilities Committee (HAUC) to develop their guidance for local authorities who are considering applying for a scheme.
According to British Transport Police (BTP) data, from November 2023 to October 2024, 358 people have been struck by a train on the railway; of these, sadly 304 people lost their lives. Of the 304 who died, 297 of those are suspected to have taken their own life by suicide, and 6 died in rail accidents (with one classification pending).
The Department is committed to working with the rail industry to reduce the number of deaths by suicide. Each rail operator is responsible for delivering a suicide prevention plan and maintaining accreditation to the independently assessed Safeguarding on Rail Scheme. Their plan must include training of public-facing staff in suicide prevention, putting in place mitigation measures at stations and promoting avenues of help for vulnerable people at risk of suicide or self-harm.
The rail industry works together, using campaigns and education, physical barriers, training staff and working with charities to prevent these incidents.
BTP works in collaboration with its partners to ensure all incidents are managed swiftly and people are treated with dignity.
Network Rail has a long-standing relationship with The Samaritans and funds the ‘Small Talk Saves Lives’ campaign. Since launching in 2017, the campaign has successfully raised awareness within railway stations and other public settings about the need to trust your instincts and start a simple conversation if you think someone might need help.
Crossrail 2 has not received government funding since 2020 when the scheme was paused. The Department for Transport will be considering its future investment priorities as part of the current Spending Review.
This Government is committed to maintaining and renewing our road network so it can serve all road users, is safe, and tackles congestion. Traffic management on local roads is the responsibility of local traffic authorities who are best placed to understand local needs.
Local traffic authorities are subject to the statutory network management duty which requires them to manage their roads to secure the ‘expeditious movement’ of all traffic including pedestrians, with a view to reducing congestion, and they have a wide range of tools already available to them to enable this.
The Government takes the condition of local roads very seriously and is committed to maintaining and renewing the local road network. To this end, the Government will provide authorities with funding to help them fix up to one million more potholes across England in each year of this parliament. Confirmation of highways maintenance funding for future years is a matter for the forthcoming Budget and Spending Review.
Highways maintenance funding typically covers a range of maintenance activities and local authorities are best placed to decide how to spend it according to local needs and priorities. Government expects authorities to invest in all parts of the highway including cycleways, bridges, and lighting columns, and not just the fixing of potholes.
DWP provides 16-24-year-olds with labour market support through an extensive range of interventions at a national and local level.
As part of the plan to Get Britain Working we will launch a Youth Guarantee for all young people aged 18-21 in England to ensure that they can access training opportunities, an apprenticeship or help to find work.
Eight Youth Guarantee Trailblazers to test and learn before further roll out of the Youth Guarantee have launched in April.
Our plan to get Britain working includes a new Youth Guarantee for all young people aged 18-21 in England to ensure that they can access quality training opportunities, an apprenticeship or help to find work.
The Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Education are working closely with the eight Mayoral Strategic Authorities in England who will begin delivering the Youth Guarantee Trailblazers announced in the Get Britain Working White Paper from Spring 2025.
To tackle the rising number of young people who are not participating in education, employment or training, these Trailblazers will test how new local leadership, accountability structures and existing provision can be integrated into a cohesive education, training and employment support for young people. More broadly, we will work closely with mayoral authorities on a range of wider initiatives such as developing national and local partnerships to support the Youth Guarantee.
The Trailblazers will run for 12 months, and we will use the learning to inform the future design and development of the Youth Guarantee as it rolls-out across the rest of England. Additionally, Department for Education are also developing new foundation apprenticeships to give more young people a foot in the door at the start of their working lives whilst supporting the pipeline of new talent that employers will need to drive economic growth.
The Department for Work and Pensions are also working to develop proposals for reform to the system of health and disability benefits and will set them out in a Green Paper in the Spring. The Government is committed to putting the views and voices of disabled people at the heart of all that we do, so we will consult on these proposals with disabled people and representative organisations.
It is estimated that around 16,600 pensioners in Broxbourne Constituency (2024 boundaries) will be affected by the decision to amend the eligibility criteria for the Winter Fuel Payment. This is based on February 2024 Pension Credit statistics which are available via DWP Stat-Xplore and the Winter FuelPayment statistics for winter 2023 to 2024 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
This estimation is calculated by subtracting the number of people claiming Pension Credit in Broxbourne constituency from the number of Winter Fuel Payment recipients in Broxbourne constituency. It is possible to use the Pension Credit statistics, to give a minimum estimate of the number who may be eligible for Winter Fuel Payments. Therefore, the above estimation is essentially the number of Winter Fuel Payment recipients who are not claiming Pension Credit pre-policy change, as an estimate of those who will no longer receive the Winter Fuel Payment.
Please note that the above estimation would not take into account any potential increase in Pension Credit take-up that we might see as a result of the Government’s Pension Credit Awareness Campaign. We do not have data on those additional Pension Credit claims by Parliamentary constituencies.
The published Pension Credit figures refer to households, so the number of individuals in respect of whom Pension Credit is paid will be higher (i.e. taking account of households where a claimant has a partner and/or dependents.)
In addition, while Pension Credit claimants constitute the majority of those that will be eligible for the Winter Fuel Payment, pensioners who claim other qualifying means-tested benefits will also be eligible for the Winter Fuel Payment. It is not, however, possible to include those on other qualifying means-tested benefits in these figures.
The information is not held in the format requested. HC2 certificates are generic and do not have categories such as student or asylum seeker attributed to them. The NHS Business Services Authority does not collect information on what category a patient using the HC2 belongs to for any of the National Health Service charges covered by the scheme. Therefore, it is not possible to calculate the cost to the public purse in terms of lost NHS charge revenue.
Local integrated care boards are responsible for ensuring that mental health services are safe, effective, sustainable, and meet the needs of the population.
Long waits are being driven by increasing demand in a system in desperate need of change. We are already responding by delivering new, innovative models of care in the community. We are piloting six neighbourhood, 24/7 adult mental health centres to bring together community, crisis, and inpatient care.
NHS England uses the Oversight Framework to assess the quality and safety of all mental health inpatient services in England, including services in Broxbourne. Risks and issues are escalated nationally using the quality risk and escalation framework.
In addition, the Care Quality Commission carries out monitoring and assessments of providers in England to ensure they are providing safe and quality care to people using their services. The Care Quality Commission has a duty under the Mental Health Act 1983 to monitor how services exercise their powers and discharge their duties when patients are detained in hospital or are subject to community treatment orders or guardianship.
It is the responsibility of local commissioners and providers to work together to ensure that hospital patient transport services are meeting the needs of their populations locally. National guidance for non-emergency patient transport services, to support them in becoming consistently more responsive, fair, and sustainable, is available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/improving-non-emergency-patient-transport-services/
We know patients are struggling to contact their general practices (GP), including in the Broxbourne constituency. That is why we have committed to eliminating the 8:00am scramble for appointments by implementing a modern appointment booking system.
The most recent data from the Health Insight Survey found that between July and August 2024, 78% of people had successfully contacted their GP on the same day, in the last 28 days. Of those who tried to contact their GP practice in the last 28 days, 72.6% of adults perceived their overall experience of their GP practice as either ‘Very Good’ or ‘Good’.
99.4% of the primary care estate are now live with digital telephony and 90% have been enrolled to use online registration systems.
We are determined to reduce bureaucracy, which is why the Government has launched a red tape challenge, ensuring GPs spend less time filling in forms and more time caring for patients.
Providers must provide sufficient numbers of suitably qualified, competent, skilled, and experienced staff to meet the needs of the people using the service. Staff must receive the support, training, professional development, supervision, and appraisals that are necessary for them to carry out their role.
We now have a national career framework for adult social car, the Care Workforce Pathway, which is linked to a number of existing competency frameworks, including the dementia training standards framework.
The Department has also launched a new Level 2 Adult Social Care Certificate qualification which links to the outcomes in the Care Workforce Pathway. This contains the baseline knowledge required to provide quality care, and will make sure that those who are starting out their careers have an informed awareness of dementia.
In July 2024, the median number of full time equivalent (FTE) doctors in general practice per 10,000 registered patients in the Broxbourne constituency was 5.5. This was more than the median in England, of 5.4.
The Government is committed to delivering a National Health Service that is fit for the future, and this means better utilising and expanding primary care infrastructure across the NHS estate. That is why we have set out our intention to fix the front door to the NHS and bring healthcare closer to home, and the local community.
At a local level, the relevant integrated care board is responsible for deciding how the NHS budget for its area is spent, and funding is allocated according to local priorities, such as new general practice surgeries, integrated care centres, or neighbourhood hubs. Any further support for NHS organisations delivering local and national priorities will be considered as part of the forthcoming Spending Review.
We know that patients are finding it harder than ever to see a general practitioner (GP) and we are committed to fixing the the crisis in GPs to secure the long-term sustainability of the National Health Service.
Broxbourne sits within the NHS Hertfordshire and West Essex Integrated Care Board, where 82.7% of appointments were delivered within two weeks of booking, 0.4% lower than the national average.
Our plan to restore GPs and improve the waiting times to see a GP will require both investment and reform. We have committed to train thousands more GPs, end the 8:00am scramble for GP appointments by introducing a modern booking system, and trial new Neighborhood Health Centers to bring community health services together under one roof. Furthermore, the Government will also bring back the family doctor by incentivising GPs to see the same patient.
Reducing barriers for business, entrepreneurs and investors is key to boosting economic growth and delivering the government’s Plan for Change.
Alex Depledge has been appointed as the government’s Entrepreneurship Advisor and brings extensive entrepreneurship experience, having successfully built several businesses from the ground up.
Over the coming months, Alex will advise the Chancellor on the government’s entrepreneurship landscape, focusing on addressing the key barriers faced by businesses seeking to start up and scale up in the UK. The impact of any policy decisions taken by the Chancellor as a result of this advice will be assessed in the usual way.