Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to set a target for decision waiting times in the National Referral Mechanism.
Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
We have committed to clearing the backlog of Conclusive Grounds decisions by December 2026, improving decision timeliness for all potential victims of slavery and trafficking referred to the National Referral Mechanism (NRM).
We have recruited new staff to the Single Competent Authority and are seeing significantly increased number of Conclusive Grounds decisions as a result of these new staff becoming operational. Decision-making times have reduced in the most recent quarter and the backlog is now half the size it was at its peak.
In addition, we are continuing to explore ways to improve the First Responder Form used by First Responder Organisations to refer potential victims of modern slavery and trafficking into the NRM, to improve the quality of referrals into the NRM system, so that decisions can be taken as early as possible.
Statutory guidance outlines that a minimum period of 30 days must pass between a Reasonable Grounds and Conclusive Grounds decision, and that such a decision can only be made once all relevant information has been gathered or received.
Statistics about NRM referrals and decisions are published quarterly on gov.uk.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to clear the backlog in the National Referral Mechanism.
Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
We have committed to clearing the backlog of Conclusive Grounds decisions by December 2026, improving decision timeliness for all potential victims of slavery and trafficking referred to the National Referral Mechanism (NRM).
We have recruited new staff to the Single Competent Authority and are seeing significantly increased number of Conclusive Grounds decisions as a result of these new staff becoming operational. Decision-making times have reduced in the most recent quarter and the backlog is now half the size it was at its peak.
In addition, we are continuing to explore ways to improve the First Responder Form used by First Responder Organisations to refer potential victims of modern slavery and trafficking into the NRM, to improve the quality of referrals into the NRM system, so that decisions can be taken as early as possible.
Statutory guidance outlines that a minimum period of 30 days must pass between a Reasonable Grounds and Conclusive Grounds decision, and that such a decision can only be made once all relevant information has been gathered or received.
Statistics about NRM referrals and decisions are published quarterly on gov.uk.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of lifting the ban on people in the National Referral Mechanism working if they have been waiting for a decision for over three months.
Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
An individual’s right to work depends on their immigration status in the UK. Many victims of modern slavery already have the legal right to work owing to being British or due to having pre-existing leave to remain for another reason.
Victims with a right to work in the UK can do so while continuing to receive support through the National Referral Mechanism (NRM).
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department has conducted feasibility studies on extending (a) Metrolink and (b) tram-train services to (i) towns and (ii) villages in Hazel Grove constituency.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
This Government is investing in transport improvements across our city regions, including Greater Manchester which is receiving over £1 billion through its City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement. In line with the Government’s commitment to devolution, decisions on where to invest this funding, including whether to conduct feasibility studies for extending Metrolink and tram-train services to towns and villages in the Hazel Grove constituency, rest with the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, in partnership with its constituent local authorities.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to improve public transport services to industrial estates.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Good local bus services, including to industrial estates, are an essential part of prosperous and sustainable communities. The government introduced the Bus Services (No.2) Bill on 17 December as part of its ambitious plan for bus reform. The Bill puts the power over local bus services back in the hands of local leaders and is intended to ensure bus services reflect the needs of the communities that rely on them right across England. The government has committed to increasing accountability by including a measure on socially necessary services so that local authorities and bus operators have to have regard for alternatives to changing or cancelling services.
In addition, the government has confirmed £955 million for the 2025 to 2026 financial year to support and improve bus services in England outside London. This includes £243 million for bus operators and £712 million allocated to local authorities across the country. Greater Manchester Combined Authority has been allocated £66.3 million of this funding.
Local authorities can use this funding to introduce new bus routes, make services more frequent and protect crucial bus routes for local communities.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of investing in mental health services to help tackle substance abuse.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises the need for evidenced-based, high-quality drug and alcohol services, and will ensure that anyone with a substance use problem can access the help and support they need. To achieve this, we also recognise the vital need for high-quality integrated care for those with co-occurring mental health and substance use conditions.
Local authorities are responsible for assessing the local need for alcohol and drug prevention and treatment in their area, and for commissioning services to meet these needs, whilst most mental health services in England are funded and commissioned by integrated care boards. There are currently no plans to change this arrangement, but we are working to promote more cohesive and joined up care between mental health and substance use services. In addition to the Public Health Grant, in 2025/26, the Department is providing a total of £310 million in additional targeted grants to improve drug and alcohol services and recovery support, which includes housing and employment. Alongside this, for 2025/26, mental health spending is forecast to amount to £15.6 billion. This represents a significant uplift in real terms spending on mental health compared to the previous financial year. Integrated care boards are forecast to meet the Mental Health Investment Standard over the 2025/26 financial year, meaning that local health services will invest a greater share of their budgets into frontline mental health services.
In addition to continued investment, we intend to soon publish the Co-occurring Mental Health and Substance Use Action Plan, which has been co-produced between the Department and NHS England. The action plan provides national commitments and calls to the sector on how the health system can improve delivery of joined-up, person-centred care across drug and alcohol treatment and mental health services.
Furthermore, the Office of Health Improvement and Disparities has published a Commissioning Quality Standard in 2022 which provides guidance for drug and alcohol treatment commissioners on improving services for people with co-occurring mental health and alcohol or drug conditions. This standard sets out that local services need to work together so that people can access the help they need for both their mental health and their alcohol or drug use.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps she is taking to increase the number of judges to help reduce the backlog of court cases.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
We are continuing to invest in high volume, regular judicial recruitment of around 1000 judges and tribunal members each year.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
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 improve access to cognitive behavioural therapy for autistic adults with (a) a gambling addiction and (b) other forms of addiction.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
National Health Service treatment for those experiencing gambling-related harms is currently offered through 15 specialist clinics, representing every region of England. These clinics provide access to expert clinicians who are able to offer relevant psychological and psychiatric support, including cognitive behavioural therapy. The Department is also continuing to invest in local drug and alcohol treatment services.
In addition, people, including autistic people, who are experiencing symptoms of anxiety and/or depression as a result of an addiction can be referred by their general practitioner, or can self-refer, to NHS Talking Therapies.
Operational guidance for autism assessment services, published by NHS England in April 2023, sets out the expectation that primary and secondary mental health and psychological therapies services should make reasonable adjustments to routine care, so that it is more accessible for autistic people. Further information is available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/autism-diagnosis-and-operational-guidance/
NHS England has also published guidance for NHS systems on how to improve the quality and accessibility of care and support for autistic adults to meet their mental health needs, which is available at the following link:
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
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 improve access to NHS dental care for (a) pregnant women and (b) women in the postnatal period.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are aware of the challenges faced in accessing a dentist and we want to make sure that everyone who needs a National Health Service dentist can get one, including pregnant women and new mothers. The Government plans to tackle the challenges for patients trying to access NHS dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most.
Pregnant women and women who have had a baby in the last 12 months are eligible for free NHS dental treatment. Further information is available at the following link:
https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/dentists/get-help-with-dental-costs/
The responsibility for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to the integrated care boards (ICBs) across England. For the Hazel Grove constituency, this is NHS Greater Manchester ICB.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to expand dental training programmes.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
To reform the National Health Service and make it fit for the future, we have launched a 10-Year Health Plan as part of the Government’s five long-term missions.
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 Long Term 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.