Asked by: Miriam Cates (Conservative - Penistone and Stocksbridge)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment she has made of (a) the effectiveness of the Kooth mental health app for tackling children's mental health problems, (b) the value for money of that app and (c) whether that app meets her Department's safeguarding expectations.
Answered by Maria Caulfield
It is for local National Health Service organisations to choose which products and services they commission. We would expect local organisations to commission services which they deem to be effective and value for money.
A local Digital Technology Assessment Criteria (DTAC) assessment is required as part of the procurement process. It is expected that Kooth would only have been commissioned if the local NHS organisation had ensured it met baseline DTAC standards across technical assurance, data protection, clinical safety, interoperability, usability, and accessibility.
NHS England are reviewing the concerns raised by Members of Parliament and campaigners relating to Kooth.
Asked by: Miriam Cates (Conservative - Penistone and Stocksbridge)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether owners who register their dogs as an XL Bully type dog will be able to remove them from the register if they are later identified as a different breed.
Answered by Mark Spencer
There will be a process for owners to apply to have their Certificate of Exemption withdrawn if the owner considers that the dog is not within scope of the ban. We will announce details of how the process will work in due course.
Asked by: Miriam Cates (Conservative - Penistone and Stocksbridge)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent progress her Department has made on reforming the social care workforce.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
We are carrying out ambitious reforms for the care workforce to increase the supply and quality of social care.
We will shortly be publishing the Care Workforce Pathway setting out a career path for care workers, together with launching a new care qualification and funding thousands of training places.
Asked by: Miriam Cates (Conservative - Penistone and Stocksbridge)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, when she plans to publish terms of reference for the Pornography Review announced on 3 July 2023.
Answered by Saqib Bhatti - Shadow Minister (Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is committed to undertaking the comprehensive review of pornography regulation, legislation, and enforcement in a timely fashion.
The details of the independent Lead Reviewer’s appointment and the review’s Terms of Reference will be announced in due course.
Asked by: Miriam Cates (Conservative - Penistone and Stocksbridge)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, when she plans to appoint the Chair of the Pornography Review announced on 3 July 2023.
Answered by Saqib Bhatti - Shadow Minister (Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is committed to undertaking the comprehensive review of pornography regulation, legislation, and enforcement in a timely fashion.
The details of the independent Lead Reviewer’s appointment and the review’s Terms of Reference will be announced in due course.
Asked by: Miriam Cates (Conservative - Penistone and Stocksbridge)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps her Department is taking to support energy-intensive industries with energy costs.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
We are determined to secure the future for our energy intensive industries (EIIs) to protect UK jobs. To strengthen our existing support that has already provided over £2billion since 2013, the Government has announced the British Industry Supercharger to support those most exposed to the costs of electricity. The measures will bring the energy costs of the UK’s energy intensive industries in line with those across the world’s major economies. This is crucial to help these businesses remain internationally competitive and will enhance the UK’s attractiveness as a destination for international investment.
Asked by: Miriam Cates (Conservative - Penistone and Stocksbridge)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 12 September 2023 to Question 197914, whether she plans to extend eligibility for the Animal Health and Welfare Pathway in the future beyond the species currently included.
Answered by Mark Spencer
We will continue to work in partnership with industry to develop the Pathway offer, including looking at the potential to extend the Pathway’s reach to other species.
Asked by: Miriam Cates (Conservative - Penistone and Stocksbridge)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she plans to include deer farmers in the rollout of the Animal Health and Welfare Pathway.
Answered by Mark Spencer
The Animal Health and Welfare Pathway rollout will initially focus on the most commonly farmed species: dairy cows, beef cattle, sheep, pigs and poultry.
Asked by: Miriam Cates (Conservative - Penistone and Stocksbridge)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children below school age spend (a) 30 to 39 hours and (b) 40 hours or more per week in a formal childcare setting broken down by age of child in England for which the latest data is available.
Answered by Claire Coutinho - Shadow Minister (Equalities)
The department does not publish the data required to answer this question. A range of related data is available in the 2022 childcare and early years survey of parents in England. This is a long-standing, nationally representative survey of 6,000 parents of children aged 0-14, with the latest data published on 27 July 2023. The survey can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/childcare-and-early-years-survey-of-parents-2022.
Asked by: Miriam Cates (Conservative - Penistone and Stocksbridge)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of introducing an individual childcare budget to support parents with informal childcare arrangements such as that provided by (a) parents and (b) grandparents.
Answered by Claire Coutinho - Shadow Minister (Equalities)
The reporting year 2021 ‘Childcare and early years survey of parents’ has findings on parents’ views on ideal working arrangements. The results of this survey are available at: https://www.explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/childcare-and-early-years-survey-of-parents/2021, including table 8.12. In 2021, 39% of working mothers of 0-14 year olds stated they would give up work to look after their children, and 58% would work fewer hours, if they could afford it.
The department recognises the valuable role that informal and family childcare arrangements play in supporting working parents, giving them additional flexibilities. The department is determined to support as many families as possible with access to high-quality, affordable childcare, which is why the Spring Budget 2023 announced the single largest investment in childcare ever. There are no current plans to look at the potential merits of introducing an individual childcare budget to support parents with informal childcare arrangements.
In 2021 children under one spent a median of 17.4 hours per week (note very small sample sizes) and one-year-olds a median of 18 hours per week in formal childcare. This data is not published broken down by household income. Table 1.7, also taken from reporting year 2021 ‘Childcare and early years survey of parents’, contains further information. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there are no figures available for 2020. Data for 2022 is due to be published on 27 July 2023.