Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 7 May 2025 to Question 47877 on NHS dental professionals, what criteria his Department uses to identify which areas are in greatest need of increased numbers of NHS dental professionals.

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

The responsibility for commissioning primary care dentistry to meet the needs of local populations is delegated to integrated care boards (ICBs) across England.

ICBs have started to recruit posts through the Golden Hello scheme. This recruitment incentive will see up dentists receiving payments of £20,000 to work in those areas that need them most for three years. Dental practices in specific areas, determined locally as experiencing significant dental pressures due to workforce challenges impacting patient access, were invited by their ICBs to express interest in participating in the scheme and notified of the outcome of their application via their ICB. Further information on the dental recruitment process can be found in guidance issued by NHS England, which is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/dental-recruitment-incentive-scheme-2024-25/

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that teachers receive adequate (a) training and (b) other resources to provide financial education.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

I refer the hon. Member for Hazel Grove to the answer of 7 January 2025 to Question 21190.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to enhance the teaching of financial education within the Personal, Social, Health and Economic curriculum.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

I refer the hon. Member for Hazel Grove to the answer of 9 April 2025 to Question 43513.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to strengthen the provision of financial education in schools beyond the mathematics curriculum.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

I refer the hon. Member for Hazel Grove to the answer of 9 April 2025 to Question 43513.

Question to the Attorney General:

To ask the Solicitor General, what guidance her Department has provided to the Crown Prosecution Service on communicating with victims of sexual violence about trial (a) delays and (b) adjournments.

Answered by Ellie Reeves - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)

The Attorney General’s Office does not issue operational guidance to the CPS.

The CPS has a specific programme of work dedicated to improving communication with victims of crime which includes the introduction of a new Enhanced Service offer for adult victims of rape and serious sexual offences (RASSO). This service incudes the offer of a pre-trial meeting with a member of the prosecution team which provides victims the opportunity to discuss and ask questions about the process of giving evidence.

CPS guidance recommends that those leading the meeting discuss with victims the likely timescales involved in a case and point out the potential implications of court listing practicalities.

The CPS has also recruited over 40 Victim Liaison Officers (VLOs) to work in its RASSO Units to help improve the quality of engagement with adult RASSO victims. These VLOs act as a consistent point of contact within the CPS for victims, should they have any questions about the prosecution process.

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 ensure continuity of weight-loss medication for people who have already demonstrated clinically significant (a) weight reduction and (b) health improvements from private prescriptions of such drugs.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

As we shift the focus from treatment to prevention through our 10 Year Health Plan, we are determined to bring revolutionary modern treatments to everyone who needs them, not just those who can afford to pay.

NHS England has worked with Eli Lilly to ensure that the list price increase will not affect National Health Service commissioning of tirzepatide in England as a treatment for eligible patients, and we remain committed to the rollout of this medicine as a weight loss treatment based on clinical priority. This will enable 220,000 eligible people to access the medication over the first three years. Not everyone who wants tirzepatide will be able to access it at first, and the initial eligibility criteria will be for people with a body mass index of 40 or more in addition to four or more qualifying comorbidities.

Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland have also entered equivalent agreements to maintain their current commissioning approaches.

Pricing in the private market is a matter for Eli Lilly and for private providers. Private patients who are impacted by price increases should discuss any concerns with their private provider. This includes their options regarding payment plans, alternative treatments, and/or stopping or tapering off their current medication. Eli Lilly is working with private providers to support continued patient access.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department plans to (a) improve and (b) expand the financial education resources available through Oak National Academy to help support schools to provide financial literacy teaching.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

In April last year, Oak National Academy (Oak) launched over 80 new financial education resources to support teachers in delivering high quality lessons and preparing children for life and employment in the modern world. The resources, which cover both primary and secondary, explore core financial concepts such as budgeting, saving and taxation, as well as more contemporary areas such as keeping money safe from scams, virtual spending whilst online gaming, and assessing claims made by influencers.

These have been created in partnership with the mathematics education charity, MEI, and the Association of Citizenship Teaching, and cover mathematics, citizenship and financial education. Oak will keep its offer under review based on teacher feedback and any changes required following the Curriculum and Assessment Review.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of trials being repeatedly adjourned on the mental health of victims of sexual violence.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

The Government recognises the impact delays to court processes may have on victims of sexual violence. We are committed to tackling the outstanding caseload to improve timeliness - we have already doubled magistrates’ sentencing powers, so that Crown Courts can focus on the most serious cases; and this year we have funded a record-high allocation of 110,000 Crown Court sitting days to tackle the outstanding caseload and delays. We also commissioned Sir Brian Leveson to propose bold and ambitious measures to deliver swifter justice for victims.

To ensure ongoing communication with victims in the pre-trial period, every Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) area now has at least one dedicated Victim Liaison Officer in its rape and serious sexual offences unit. Pre-trial meetings are also offered to all adult victims of these crimes and the CPS has also delivered trauma-informed training to staff as part of their Victim Transformation Programme.

The Ministry of Justice funded Witness Service also provides on-the-day emotional and practical support to victims who are witnesses. This may include providing information about the court and its processes, facilitating explanations around any delays and accompanying the witness (if allowed by the court) into the court room when they give evidence.

This year, to help support the wellbeing of sexual violence victims, we have protected dedicated Ministry of Justice Violence Against Women and Girls victims spending, maintaining 2024-25 funding levels for ringfenced sexual violence and domestic abuse support. This includes the Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Fund grant, which directly supports specialist sexual violence services.

The funded services, which include advocacy and counselling support, can be accessed at any point. This includes supporting victims to continue their criminal justice system journey if their trial has been delayed or adjourned.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many criminal trials involving charges of sexual violence have been adjourned due to insufficient courtroom time in each of the last three years.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

Data on trials that have been adjourned due to insufficient court time is not held by the Ministry of Justice. Related data regarding trial effectiveness can be found here: trials_tool.xlsx.

We recognise the impact on victims when trials do not proceed as planned. The Ministry of Justice funded Witness Service provides on-the-day emotional and practical support to victims who are witnesses. This may include providing information about the court and its processes, facilitating explanations around any delays and accompanying the witness (if allowed by the court) into the court room when they give evidence. To ensure ongoing communication with victims in the pre-trial period, every Crown Prosecution Service area now has at least one dedicated Victim Liaison Officer in its rape and serious sexual offences unit. Pre-trial meetings are also offered to all adult victims of these crimes.

This Government inherited a record and rising courts backlog. The scale of cases entering the courts is now so great that, even with the Crown Court sitting at a historically high level, this would not be enough to make meaningful progress on reducing the outstanding caseload and bring down waiting times. It is clear that we must go further and do things differently if we are to deliver swifter justice and long-lasting change for victims.

That is why the Government asked Sir Brian Leveson to chair an Independent Review of the Criminal Courts, to propose once-in-a-generation reform to deliver swifter justice for victims. Part one of the Review has been published. We will carefully consider Sir Brian’s proposals before setting out the Government’s full response in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to help (a) protect the rights and (b) support the wellbeing of victims of sexual violence when trials are (i) delayed and (ii) rescheduled.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

The Government recognises the impact delays to court processes may have on victims of sexual violence. We are committed to tackling the outstanding caseload to improve timeliness - we have already doubled magistrates’ sentencing powers, so that Crown Courts can focus on the most serious cases; and this year we have funded a record-high allocation of 110,000 Crown Court sitting days to tackle the outstanding caseload and delays. We also commissioned Sir Brian Leveson to propose bold and ambitious measures to deliver swifter justice for victims.

To ensure ongoing communication with victims in the pre-trial period, every Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) area now has at least one dedicated Victim Liaison Officer in its rape and serious sexual offences unit. Pre-trial meetings are also offered to all adult victims of these crimes and the CPS has also delivered trauma-informed training to staff as part of their Victim Transformation Programme.

The Ministry of Justice funded Witness Service also provides on-the-day emotional and practical support to victims who are witnesses. This may include providing information about the court and its processes, facilitating explanations around any delays and accompanying the witness (if allowed by the court) into the court room when they give evidence.

This year, to help support the wellbeing of sexual violence victims, we have protected dedicated Ministry of Justice Violence Against Women and Girls victims spending, maintaining 2024-25 funding levels for ringfenced sexual violence and domestic abuse support. This includes the Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Fund grant, which directly supports specialist sexual violence services.

The funded services, which include advocacy and counselling support, can be accessed at any point. This includes supporting victims to continue their criminal justice system journey if their trial has been delayed or adjourned.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to reduce delays in bringing historical child sexual violence cases to trial.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

This Government is focused on delivering meaningful change for victims of child sexual violence. In April, we published our plan for responding to the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse’s (IICSA) recommendations.

In line with recommendations from IICSA, the Government has announced the removal of the three-year limitation period for personal injury claims brought by victims and survivors of child sexual abuse in respect of their abuse. This reform also provides express protection for the right to a fair trial, with the burden falling on defendants to show that a fair trial is not possible. This change is intended to reduce the trauma survivors face when seeking justice and ensure that more cases can proceed without unnecessary procedural barriers. This reform is part of the Crime and Policing Bill, which is currently being considered in Parliament.

We are also committed to tackling the outstanding caseload to improve timeliness - we have already doubled magistrates’ sentencing powers, so that Crown Courts can focus on the most serious cases; and this year we have funded a record-high allocation of 110,000 Crown Court sitting days. We also commissioned Sir Brian Leveson to propose bold and ambitious measures to deliver swifter justice for victims, including for victims of sexual violence. We will respond to the recommendations in the Independent Review of Criminal Courts in due course.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether her Department plans to strengthen enforcement powers against employers who misrepresent jobs as apprenticeships in order to (a) pay below the National Minimum Wage and (b) use apprentices as cover for absent employees.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

Employers are required by law to pay their apprentices the correct rate of the National Minimum Wage. An apprenticeship combines on the job learning and classroom-based learning. Employers cannot call a worker an apprentice if they are not genuinely an apprentice.

The existing enforcement mechanisms in place already protects workers and we are creating the Fair Work Agency to deliver a much-needed upgrade to enforcement of employment rights. The Fair Work Agency will provide better support to businesses on how to comply with the law and will take tough action against rogue employers who exploit their workers.

If a worker believes they are not being paid correctly, they can seek confidential advice. If HMRC finds an employer has underpaid their workers, the employer is required to pay back the full amount owed to the worker and a penalty to the government.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that individuals who have been paid below the statutory minimum wage in circumstances involving mislabelled apprenticeships are compensated.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

Employers are required by law to pay their apprentices the correct rate of the National Minimum Wage. An apprenticeship combines on the job learning and classroom-based learning. Employers cannot call a worker an apprentice if they are not genuinely an apprentice.

The existing enforcement mechanisms in place already protects workers and we are creating the Fair Work Agency to deliver a much-needed upgrade to enforcement of employment rights. The Fair Work Agency will provide better support to businesses on how to comply with the law and will take tough action against rogue employers who exploit their workers.

If a worker believes they are not being paid correctly, they can seek confidential advice. If HMRC finds an employer has underpaid their workers, the employer is required to pay back the full amount owed to the worker and a penalty to the government.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether his Department plans to introduce additional safeguards to prevent the mislabelling of jobs as apprenticeships.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

Employers are required by law to pay their apprentices the correct rate of the National Minimum Wage. An apprenticeship combines on the job learning and classroom-based learning. Employers cannot call a worker an apprentice if they are not genuinely an apprentice.

The existing enforcement mechanisms in place already protects workers and we are creating the Fair Work Agency to deliver a much-needed upgrade to enforcement of employment rights. The Fair Work Agency will provide better support to businesses on how to comply with the law and will take tough action against rogue employers who exploit their workers.

If a worker believes they are not being paid correctly, they can seek confidential advice. If HMRC finds an employer has underpaid their workers, the employer is required to pay back the full amount owed to the worker and a penalty to the government.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of (a) 30 April 2025 to Question 46025 and (b) 24 April 2025 to Question 38415, whether her Department has considered aligning the data collection processes of police forces in relation to (i) contacts with individuals experiencing suicidal ideation and (ii) incidents where a suicide is in progress with the equivalent data collection processes used by UK Fire and Rescue Services in order to ensure consistent recording of such incidents across frontline.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Office does not collect data from police on calls about suicidal ideation or where an apparent suicide is in progress and has no current plans to do so.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what progress her Department has made on enforcing the provisions of the Online Safety Act 2023 in relation to small-scale online suicide forums (a) through the Small but Risky Taskforce and (b) by other means.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

Ofcom is the independent regulator of the Online Safety Act and is responsible for its enforcement. Within the first month of the Act’s illegal content duties coming into effect, Ofcom launched several enforcement programmes to monitor compliance with the regime, including into the provider of a pro-suicide forum, demonstrating small but risky sites as a high priority for enforcement. As demonstrated by their dedicated small but risky taskforce and recent enforcement actions, Ofcom will identify, manage and enforce against such services where there is a failure to comply with their duties.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 2 June 2025 to Question 54442 on Oxygen: Medical Treatments, whether the recompression chambers in (a) Wirral, (b) Hull, (c) the Midlands and (d) Whipps Cross will close.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The hyperbaric oxygen therapy services in Wirral, Hull and the Midlands will continue to be commissioned by NHS England.

From 1 October, the service currently commissioned for the London and South East regions will be delivered by a provider in Chichester. As such, from 30 September, the current centre based at Whipps Cross will cease to be funded for National Health Service activity.

NHS England remains committed to ensuring high-quality, accessible and cost-effective hyperbaric oxygen therapy services which meet optimal time to treatment from symptom onset standards based on clinical evidence.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department has issued guidance to Jobcentres on making reasonable adjustments in line with the Equality Act 2010 for claimants with complex disabilities which may prevent them from attending Universal Credit verification appointments in-person; and if she will make it her policy to require Jobcentres to proactively offer remote or home-based alternatives.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Where customers need assistance to access our services and information, we will make reasonable adjustments to meet their individual needs, in line with our obligations under the Equality Act 2010.

Guidance on reasonable adjustments is available for all staff. This includes recognising when an adjustment is needed, recording the customer need and the types of reasonable adjustments available, which includes a visiting service for customers who are unable to use our other contact routes.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to respond to the correspondence of 29 May 2025 from the hon. Member for Hazel Grove, ref LS06945.

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

The Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Baroness Merron) replied to the hon. Member on 1 August 2025.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will respond to the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Financial Education for Young People's report, entitled: Laying Firm Foundations: Financial education in schools and colleges across the UK and the opportunities of devolution.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

Education is a devolved matter, and this response outlines the information for England only.

The government welcomes the work of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Financial Education for Young People to highlight the importance of financial education.

The independent Curriculum and Assessment Review seeks to deliver an excellent foundation in core subjects, including mathematics, and a rich and broad, inclusive and innovative curriculum that readies young people for life and work.

The interim report highlighted that the Review has heard, from children, young people and their parents, that they want more focus on the applied knowledge and skills that will equip them for later life and work, such as financial education.

The Review’s final report will be published in autumn, following which we will consider how to ensure the financial education pupils receive is relevant and taught by confident and committed teachers.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when the Minister for Gambling plans to respond to the correspondence of 24 March 2025 from the hon. Member for Hazel Grove, Ref LS04145.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

DCMS did not receive the Hon Member’s letter until her office was contacted on 23 July, on receipt of this question. Baroness Twycross replied via return letter, with reference MC2025/07636/GT, on 26 August. We apologise for the delay.

Arts for Recovery in the Community in Stockport

Farmers, growers and the supermarket supply chain

Found: Hansard, 10 March 2025, cols 693–4. 38 The Liberal Democrat spokesperson for home affairs, Lisa Smart