Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has had recent discussions with Gloucestershire Hospital NHS Foundation Trust on the potential impact of the Big Space Cancer Appeal on cancer care at Cheltenham General Hospital.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

As set out in the recent Autumn Budget 2024, we are providing an additional £1.8 billion to directly support elective recovery and activity in 2024/25, which includes cancer care. This funding is being provided to reduce waiting times and support the National Health Service to deliver 40,000 additional appointments each week.

As my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced at the Autumn Budget 2024, capital spending is set to increase to £13.6 billion in 2025/26, representing record levels of capital investment into health. This includes £1.65 billion for investments aimed at improving NHS performance against constitutional standards, delivering new surgical hubs, diagnostic scanners, and beds to increase elective and emergency care capacity. This funding also includes £70 million for new radiotherapy machines to improve cancer treatment. The Gloucestershire Integrated Care Board has been provisionally allocated £4.5 million from our Constitutional Standards Recovery Fund for 2025/26.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the Big Space Cancer Appeal on funding for cancer care at Cheltenham General Hospital.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

As set out in the recent Autumn Budget 2024, we are providing an additional £1.8 billion to directly support elective recovery and activity in 2024/25, which includes cancer care. This funding is being provided to reduce waiting times and support the National Health Service to deliver 40,000 additional appointments each week.

As my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced at the Autumn Budget 2024, capital spending is set to increase to £13.6 billion in 2025/26, representing record levels of capital investment into health. This includes £1.65 billion for investments aimed at improving NHS performance against constitutional standards, delivering new surgical hubs, diagnostic scanners, and beds to increase elective and emergency care capacity. This funding also includes £70 million for new radiotherapy machines to improve cancer treatment. The Gloucestershire Integrated Care Board has been provisionally allocated £4.5 million from our Constitutional Standards Recovery Fund for 2025/26.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has had recent discussions with Cabinet colleagues on the potential merits of moving responsibility for sports and leisure provision into his Department.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

There have been no discussions with Cabinet colleagues on moving the responsibility for sports and leisure provision into the Department of Health and Social Care, nor are there any plans to make an assessment of the potential impact on public health of doing so.

Addressing physical inactivity and getting people moving more is important for improving health outcomes, reducing demand on the National Health Service, and supporting economic growth, and the Government recognises the important role sport and leisure plays within that.

Officials in the Department of Health and Social Care work closely with their counterparts at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and across other Government departments to ensure that sport and leisure is reflected in the Government’s ambition to reduce levels of physical inactivity as part of the Health Mission.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of moving sports and leisure policy into his Department on public health.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

There have been no discussions with Cabinet colleagues on moving the responsibility for sports and leisure provision into the Department of Health and Social Care, nor are there any plans to make an assessment of the potential impact on public health of doing so.

Addressing physical inactivity and getting people moving more is important for improving health outcomes, reducing demand on the National Health Service, and supporting economic growth, and the Government recognises the important role sport and leisure plays within that.

Officials in the Department of Health and Social Care work closely with their counterparts at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and across other Government departments to ensure that sport and leisure is reflected in the Government’s ambition to reduce levels of physical inactivity as part of the Health Mission.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential cumulative impact of her Department's (a) economic forecasting and (b) fiscal rules on economic policy.

Answered by Emma Reynolds - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Treasury does not produce economic forecasts. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) is the Government’s independent official economic and fiscal forecaster. The Government uses the forecasts and analysis it produces to inform policy decisions. The OBR will publish its next Economic and Fiscal Outlook on 26 March alongside The Chancellor of the Exchequer’s Spring Statement.

The fiscal rules demonstrate the Government’s commitment to fiscal responsibility and help underpin economic stability. The stability and investment rules put the public finances on a sustainable path and prioritise investment to support long term growth.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will publish a list of the sports governing bodies she has met with since 5 July 2024.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

DCMS publishes transparency data on GOV.UK, including details of ministers’ meetings with external organisations. Details of all meetings between 1 July and 30 September 2024 were published on 30 January 2025 and details for the following quarter will be published in due course.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential (a) merits of reducing taxes on developers of brownfield sites and (b) impact of doing so on the regeneration of town centres.

Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

The government has announced reforms to the National Planning Policy Framework that will deliver key steps to get Britain building, and the reforms introduced through the Planning and Infrastructure Bill will streamline the delivery of new housing and regeneration projects.

The government has also committed to deliver 1.5 million new homes as part of our mission to achieve economic growth across the country. At Autumn Budget, the government announced over £5 billion total housing investment in 2025-2026 to boost supply.

Tax stability is important for investment in regeneration, and the government has committed through the Corporate Tax Roadmap to provide the stability needed for businesses to make investments that are critical to boosting growth in the UK.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of reducing taxes on the developers of brownfield sites on the development of new homes in town centres.

Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

The government has announced reforms to the National Planning Policy Framework that will deliver key steps to get Britain building, and the reforms introduced through the Planning and Infrastructure Bill will streamline the delivery of new housing and regeneration projects.

The government has also committed to deliver 1.5 million new homes as part of our mission to achieve economic growth across the country. At Autumn Budget, the government announced over £5 billion total housing investment in 2025-2026 to boost supply.

Tax stability is important for investment in regeneration, and the government has committed through the Corporate Tax Roadmap to provide the stability needed for businesses to make investments that are critical to boosting growth in the UK.

Robert May’s school and STEM racing competition

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Found: _NC11 Max Wilkinson ★.