Asked by: Lorraine Beavers (Labour - Blackpool North and Fleetwood)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues and officials in the Department for Transport regarding the future supply of seafarer Apprentices to the ferry industry from nautical colleges in coastal communities.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government recognises the important role that maritime training and employment opportunities play in supporting growth, productivity and skills development in coastal communities. The Department for Transport, which leads government policy on the maritime sector, engages with other departments such as DfE and DWP, where workforce needs relate to the wider skills system. Through Skills England, Government are working with employers and sector bodies so that occupational standards underpinning apprenticeships and technical qualifications reflect current and future needs. Skills England’s Occupational Maps also help people understand routes into maritime careers.
As part of its routine review of apprenticeships, Skills England launched a recent call for feedback from employers regarding the future of five maritime apprenticeships. Responses from industry were strongly in support of retention, and my noble Friend the Minister for Skills took the decision to retain all five apprenticeships in light of industry feedback.
Asked by: Lorraine Beavers (Labour - Blackpool North and Fleetwood)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to improve the management of liver disease in primary care with respect to (a) destigmatising service delivery (b) increasing knowledge and awareness of liver disease.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Commissioning of primary care management of liver disease is managed at an integrated care board level.
General practitioners are responsible for ensuring their own clinical knowledge remains up-to-date and for identifying learning needs as part of their continuing professional development. This activity should include taking account of new research and developments in guidance, such as that produced by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, to ensure that they can continue to provide high-quality care to all patients.
Asked by: Lorraine Beavers (Labour - Blackpool North and Fleetwood)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the impact on the nutrient profiling model on obesity.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Hon Member to the answers provided on 31 March in response to Question 120152, on 1 July in response to Question 8994, and on 7 September in response to Question 19910.
Asked by: Lorraine Beavers (Labour - Blackpool North and Fleetwood)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to ensure hospitals receive adequate funding.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We recognise that the NHS is under pressure. We have:Published the 10-Year Health Plan that will put the NHS on a sustainable footing by shifting towards prevention and community care, which will reduce pressure on hospitals.
Delivered record investment that will see annual NHS day-to-day spending increase by £29 billion in real terms (£53 billion cash increase) from 2024-25 to 2028-29.
Asked by: Lorraine Beavers (Labour - Blackpool North and Fleetwood)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent discussions she has had with ministerial colleagues regarding the adequacy of maritime (a) training and (b) employment opportunities in coastal communities.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government recognises the vital role of maritime training and employment in supporting growth and opportunity in coastal communities.
The Department for Transport leads government policy on the maritime sector and, where maritime workforce needs relate to the wider skills system, engages with the Department for Education and the Department for Work and Pensions, who work closely on skills and employment matters.
Skills England works with employers and sector bodies to ensure apprenticeship and technical qualification standards reflect current and future needs, and its Occupational Maps explain routes into maritime careers. The government fully funds apprenticeships for eligible under-25s, providing a £2,000 hiring payment for non-levy-paying employers recruiting under-25 apprentices, supporting smaller maritime businesses.
Devolution will enable strategic authorities serving coastal communities to shape skills approaches around local labour market needs. This supports the government’s wider aim of ensuring that skills and employment provision better reflects the needs of communities across England.
Asked by: Lorraine Beavers (Labour - Blackpool North and Fleetwood)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to reduce health inequalities in (a) liver disease and (b) liver cancer outcomes.
Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 20 July in response to Question 17759.
Asked by: Lorraine Beavers (Labour - Blackpool North and Fleetwood)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of cross-government working between the Disability Policy Unit, the Department of Health and Social Care and other relevant departments in improving outcomes for disabled people and people with long-term health conditions.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government) (Equalities)
In December 2024, a Lead Minister for Disability was appointed in every government department, including the Department of Health and Social Care, to represent the interests of disabled people and champion disability inclusion and accessibility across their department, as they drive forward progress on the government’s manifesto commitments. The Lead Ministers for Disability have met regularly as a group to discuss improving outcomes for disabled people and people with long-term health conditions.
The Health and Growth Accelerators programme has been established to test the effectiveness of health interventions across three systems- South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, and North East and North Cumbria- in supporting people back to work or keeping them in work. The programme supports people with common conditions including musculoskeletal, mental health, and metabolic conditions, with early results indicating improved health and employment outcomes. Integrated working and local partnerships are key success factors: a multidisciplinary team nationally across DWP, DHSC and NHSE and locally across Integrated Care Boards and MCAs successfully co-design and deliver the programme as one team.
Asked by: Lorraine Beavers (Labour - Blackpool North and Fleetwood)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking with the Department of Health and Social Care to assess how changes to the Access to Work programme’s policy, implementation and claimant interactions could improve health outcomes and prevent avoidable deterioration of health for disabled people and people with long-term health conditions.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government) (Equalities)
Access to Work is an important programme that supports many people and reform in this area is complex. We are committed to ensuring the system remains fair, and sustainable and changes must be carefully designed to ensure they deliver real improvements and this work takes time, but it is important we get it right.
We have taken the time needed to consult widely, collaborate, and gather evidence from disabled people, employers, and representative bodies. We are continuing to refine policy options, and ministers will announce next steps when the policy, evidence, and delivery plans are fully developed.
Asked by: Lorraine Beavers (Labour - Blackpool North and Fleetwood)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the Liver Transformation Programme on reducing the impact of liver disease on health inequalities, mortality rates and variations in care.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Further to the answer provided on 20 July in response to Question 17757, NHS England’s Liver Disease Programme has moved into the next phase of delivery, focused on a targeted set of priorities designed to build on the strongest areas of impact and provide strategic national support, strengthen alignment with wider transformation agendas, and enable systems to prepare for new clinical and operational opportunities, from early identification and prevention of liver cancer to treatment of severe disease.
We are conscious of the current disparities in the impact of liver disease, particularly in deprived communities, but the improvements we are developing through the Liver Disease Programme are too wide-ranging and complex to estimate potential impacts on health inequalities, mortality rates, and variations in care at this stage. We will continue to monitor these issues, and seek to provide further analysis in due course.
Asked by: Lorraine Beavers (Labour - Blackpool North and Fleetwood)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what funding her Department plans to allocate to the Liver Transformation Programme.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Further to the answer provided on 20 July in response to Question 17757, NHS England’s Liver Disease Programme has moved into the next phase of delivery, focused on a targeted set of priorities designed to build on the strongest areas of impact and provide strategic national support, strengthen alignment with wider transformation agendas, and enable systems to prepare for new clinical and operational opportunities, from early identification and prevention of liver cancer to treatment of severe disease.
We are conscious of the current disparities in the impact of liver disease, particularly in deprived communities, but the improvements we are developing through the Liver Disease Programme are too wide-ranging and complex to estimate potential impacts on health inequalities, mortality rates, and variations in care at this stage. We will continue to monitor these issues, and seek to provide further analysis in due course.