Asked by: Marie Goldman (Liberal Democrat - Chelmsford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what support his Department provides to Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust in Chelmsford to meet cancer waiting times and ensure people with cancer receive timely care.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Improving cancer waiting times for patients is a high priority for the Government.
We are seeking to achieve this goal through the increased use of community diagnostic centres (CDCs) which will increase the available capacity and bring healthcare closer to the community. CDCs are now delivering additional tests and checks on 170 sites across the country, with 103 of these being open 12 hours a day, seven days a week, offering at least one test in expanded hours, meaning patients can access vital diagnostic tests around their busy working lives.
The Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust is the local provider for cancer services in Chelmsford, has been awarded funding for a replacement radiotherapy machine.
The National Cancer Plan, which is due to be published soon, will set out how we will increase performance against our standards, speed up diagnosis and treatment, and ultimately provide better outcomes for cancer patients. It will ensure patients, including those in Chelmsford, have access to the latest treatments and technology and improve patient experience and outcomes.
Asked by: Marie Goldman (Liberal Democrat - Chelmsford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what support his Department provides to Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust in Chelmsford to recruit and retain specialist cancer nurses and cancer workforce.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government and NHS England are acting to ensure that we train the staff we need to ensure patients are cared for by the right professional, when and where they need it including at Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust (MSEFT).
In 2024/25, an estimated 8,000 people received training to either enter the cancer and diagnostics workforce or develop in their roles.
NHS England has also been expanding specialty training places in key professions, including histopathology, clinical radiology, and gastroenterology. Targeted national campaigns and outreach activities, for example in clinical oncology, also promote cancer career pathways, with a focus on increasing applications.
Additionally, NHS England Workforce, Training and Education and the East of England Cancer Alliance work closely with MSEFT to understand local training needs. Together, they coordinate and allocate funding to ensure the cancer nursing workforce has access to the development pathways it requires, supporting both recruitment and long-term retention.
MSEFT is preparing to launch an oncology nursing rotation across oncology wards, the chemotherapy unit and clinical nurse specialist (CNS) teams. Many of these CNS roles sit within the cancer division, supporting the development of competencies, and enable structured career progression for nurses alongside programmes of reform for workforce.
To improve retention, NHS England is investing in structured career development and education support. The Aspirant Cancer Career and Education Development programme provides a nationally agreed framework for capability, career development, and education for nurses, allied health professionals, and the support workforce working in cancer care.
Asked by: Marie Goldman (Liberal Democrat - Chelmsford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to ensure that the National Cancer Plan tackles identity-based disparities in cancer care, including for people from (a) ethnic minority backgrounds, (b) disabled people and (c) LGBTQ+ communities.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Cancer Plan will have patients at its heart and will cover the entirety of the cancer pathway, from referral and diagnosis to treatment and ongoing care, as well as prevention, research, and innovation. It will seek to improve every aspect of cancer care to better the experiences and outcomes for all people with cancer.
Reducing inequalities is also a key priority for the National Cancer Plan. The plan will look at the targeted improvements needed across different cancer types to reduce disparities in cancer survival and will develop interventions to tackle these. This includes looking at protected characteristics such as disability, ethnicity, and sexual orientation, as well as inequalities related to socioeconomic status, and geographic location.
Asked by: Marie Goldman (Liberal Democrat - Chelmsford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how his Department plans to engage key stakeholders on the assumptions underpinning the modelling of workforce numbers in the 10 Year Workforce Plan.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The 10 Year Workforce Plan will include updated workforce modelling and its underlying assumptions when published in spring 2026. The updated workforce modelling will be supported by independent external scrutiny to assess and test it.
We are committed to engagement with external stakeholders. On 26 September 2025, we launched a formal call for evidence, which provided stakeholders the opportunity to contribute directly to the Plan’s development. This closed on 7 November 2025. The submissions to our call for evidence are being analysed to inform the development of the plan.
Asked by: Marie Goldman (Liberal Democrat - Chelmsford)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what recent discussions she has had with Ofcom regarding xAI’s Grok creating intimate and sexually explicit images of people, including minors, without their consent.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The government is clear that no one should have to go through the ordeal of these horrendous images online.
Ofcom has confirmed that they have opened an investigation into X and have our full backing to take necessary enforcement action.
The commencement order for the offence of the creation, or requested creation, of intimate images will be signed this week meaning that individuals are committing a criminal offence if they create – or seek to create – such abhorrent content. This will also be made a priority offence, meaning platforms must take proactive action.
This is not about restricting freedom of speech but upholding the law.
Asked by: Marie Goldman (Liberal Democrat - Chelmsford)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether she has made a recent assessment of the effectiveness of Ofcom.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Ofcom’s effectiveness is kept under regular review and there is ongoing engagement with the regulator on key issues.
We monitor Ofcom’s effectiveness against its key performance indicators and objectives using reporting in Ofcom’s Annual Report and Accounts. These are laid before Parliament, to whom Ofcom is accountable. Ofcom’s leadership also appears regularly before Select Committees to give evidence and to be scrutinised on Ofcom’s work. In addition, DSIT ministers will meet with Ofcom to discuss overall performance twice a year as part of the Regulation Reform Programme.
The government directs Ofcom on parts of its remit through statements of strategic priorities. Ofcom must report annually on how it has had regard to their steers. The online safety statement was designated in July 2025, and the updated telecoms, spectrum and post statement will be designated in the coming months. Ofcom must have regard to the statements when exercising relevant functions and must publish a review of what it has done in consequence of the statements every 12 months.
Asked by: Marie Goldman (Liberal Democrat - Chelmsford)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he has considered the potential impacts on property owners of planning permission applications being permitted on their property from those who do not own it.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The planning system entitles anyone to apply for planning permission on any land, irrespective of ownership, but applicants are legally required to notify the owners of a site before they submit their planning application. This facilitates delivery of developments where land is in multiple ownership.
The grant of planning permission has no effect on the ownership of the land and development cannot proceed without the agreement of the relevant landowner.
Asked by: Marie Goldman (Liberal Democrat - Chelmsford)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if she will take steps to ensure that Ofcom adequately enforces the Online Safety Act 2023 in the context of social media companies.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Ofcom is the independent regulator for online safety and is responsible for scrutinising platforms’ risk assessments, requiring safety mitigations, and enforcing safety duties. Ofcom has our full backing in using all available powers to protect users.
On 4 December 2025, Ofcom released a summary of the tech sector's response to the UK's new online safety rules. While there has been notable progress, further action is needed, including by major services.
Government meets Ofcom regularly to discuss online safety, including ensuring the swift implementation of the outstanding duties under the Act, and we continue to monitor outcomes through our joint evaluation programme.
Asked by: Marie Goldman (Liberal Democrat - Chelmsford)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what discussions she has had with Ofcom on the effectiveness of its implementation of the Online Safety Act 2023.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Ofcom is the independent regulator for online safety and is responsible for scrutinising platforms’ risk assessments, requiring safety mitigations, and enforcing safety duties. Ofcom has our full backing in using all available powers to protect users.
On 4 December 2025, Ofcom released a summary of the tech sector's response to the UK's new online safety rules. While there has been notable progress, further action is needed, including by major services.
Government meets Ofcom regularly to discuss online safety, including ensuring the swift implementation of the outstanding duties under the Act, and we continue to monitor outcomes through our joint evaluation programme.
Asked by: Marie Goldman (Liberal Democrat - Chelmsford)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when he expects Dame Lynne Owens’ independent investigation into the mistaken release of Hadush Kebatu from HMP Chelmsford on 24th of October 2025 to conclude; and whether he plans publish the findings in full.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
On 11 November, the Deputy Prime Minister announced a five-point national action plan to reduce releases in error, which includes strengthening release checks across prisons and commissioning an independent review led by Dame Lynne Owens.
The Deputy Prime Minister has asked Dame Lynne Owens to report back by the end of February 2026, with recommendations on how to reduce the likelihood of releases in error in the future.
Following this, the Deputy Prime Minister will consider the findings and recommendations carefully.
In line with the Deputy Prime Minister’s commitment to transparency, Parliament will be kept informed of the outcomes related to the review.