Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress his Department has made on delivering the Ukraine-UK uncrewed systems initiative.

Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)

Since February 2022, the UK has provided over 10,000 drones to Ukraine covering a broad range of capabilities including intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, logistical and strike drones for both the land and maritime domain. This includes 400 drones funded via the UK-led International Fund for Ukraine, and 5,000 via the Drone Capability Coalition which the UK co-leads with Latvia.

This Government is steadfast in our commitment to support Ukraine for as long as it takes. On 10 July 2024, the Prime Minister announced that the UK will provide Ukraine with £3 billion a year of military support for as long as needed. This year support totals £4.5 billion.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate he has made of the additional resources that will be available for the development of space capabilities in the 2027-28 financial year, in the context of increases in defence spending.

Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)

The hon. Member and I share a passion for space, and he will know that the Ministry of Defence has invested £6.5 billion over ten years in space, including £5 billion in satellite communications through the SKYNET programme and £1.5 billion in innovative Defence space technologies. Through the Strategic Defence Review, we are assessing the strategic landscape and threat picture to inform long-term decisions on investment in future capabilities.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of the potential cost of redundancy payments to staff in (a) the Department of Health and Social Care, (b) NHS England and (c) Integrated Care Boards.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

We recognise there may be some short-term upfront costs as we undertake the integration of NHS England and the Department, but these costs and more will be recouped in future years as a result of a smaller, leaner centre. By the end of the process, we estimate that these changes will save hundreds of millions of pounds a year, which will be reinvested in frontline services.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the cost to the public purse has been of the 11 working groups supporting the development of the 10-Year Health Plan to date.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Most members of working groups, including the chairs, were not compensated for their participation in the groups, and took on group membership as part of, or alongside, their usual role. In a small number of cases, where members of the groups brought their lived experience as a patient or carer to the group, they were compensated for their time in line with usual NHS England practice. Many of the working group meetings took place virtually. Some in-person working group meetings incurred minimal catering costs. Travel and accommodation costs were reimbursed in a small number of cases by exception, and with the prior agreement of the Department or NHS England.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he expects a new Chief Digital Officer to be appointed in NHS England.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Ministers and senior Department officials will work with the new transformation team at the top of NHS England, led by Sir Jim Mackey, to determine the structure and requirements of the team required to support the creation of a new centre for health and care.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much his Department has spent on (a) consultation and (b) all forms of engagement for the 10-Year Health Plan since 4 July 2024.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Following an invitation to tender a competition process, we appointed Thinks Insight, Kaleidoscope Health and Care, and the Institute For Public Policy Research to support us to run this engagement exercise. The awarded value of the contract is up to £2,961,595.50, with an option to vary to £3,500,000 in the event that the scope of the contract evolves. This includes running the regional deliberative events with members of the public and health and care staff, further online and in-person engagement activities, the Change NHS online portal, and analysis of the insight received.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he plans to implement the Defence Drone Strategy, published on 22 February 2024.

Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

The Defence Drone Strategy was released in February 2024 to provide a strategic approach to drive delivery across Defence and support Frontline Command Drone capabilities. With over £4.5 billion of funding already being invested in Drones, the Ministry of Defence is committed to implementing the Defence Drone strategy, learning lessons from the conflict in Ukraine.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, in what month this year he expects the National Cancer Plan to be published.

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

The National Cancer Plan will be published in the second half of 2025, after the publication of the 10-Year Health Plan. To help inform the content of the National Cancer Plan, on 4 February 2025, the Department launched a Call for Evidence, inviting people from across the country to share their views on what they think should be included within the plan. The Call for Evidence will close on 29 April 2025.

We will provide updates on the development of the plan, including on publication dates, in due course. Those who wish to share their views can do so on the new online platform. Further information is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/calls-for-evidence/shaping-the-national-cancer-plan

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, in what month this year he expects the Urgent and Emergency Care Improvement Plan to be published.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The urgent and emergency care improvement plan will set expectations for the National Health Service in England to deliver improvements in urgent and emergency care services and set the foundations for future areas of reform, in line with the 2025/26 NHS Operational Planning Guidance. It is anticipated that the plan will be published as part of the current NHS planning round.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of trends in the number of commercial providers being used to implement the UK's defence space capabilities on the resilience of those capabilities.

Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)

The Ministry of Defence is committed to investing £6.5 billion over 10 years to ensure the UK is a competitive force in the Space domain. The National Space Strategy makes clear that to meet the Government's goals, the UK requires a flexible approach to determining where space capabilities can be most useful and where multi-use capabilities can best meet civil and defence needs.

The Defence Space Strategy delivers this flexibility by fully embracing the own-collaborate-access (OCA) framework making informed decisions to protect sovereign requirements (own), whilst maximising shared force output (collaborate, access).

All capabilities within the Defence Space Portfolio incorporate a robust level of scrutiny to ensure the appropriate level of security and resilience is applied.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what diplomatic steps he has taken to help develop international (a) norms, (b) rules and (c) principles on responsible behaviours in space since 5 July 2024.

Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK has been advocating and building international support for norms, rules and principles of responsible space behaviours at the United Nations to tackle threats to space systems, reduce the risk of conflict and preserve strategic stability. Since 5 July 2024, the UK has:

Secured support for the UK-led resolution on responsible space behaviours at the UN General Assembly.

Ensured the mandate of the UN Open-Ended Working Group (OEWG) on the Prevention of an Arms Race in Outer Space in all its Aspects (PAROS) included norms, rules and principles of responsible space behaviours.

Used the International Security Fund to support diplomatic engagement with a broad range of countries on how responsible space behaviours can address space threats.

Shaped discussion on responsible space behaviours in the Conference on Disarmament.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much of the additional £0.4 billion 2025-26 resource DEL allocated to Defence at the Spring Statement will be spent on additional service personnel; and if he will make an estimate of the number of additional personnel that will be recruited as a result.

Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)

The Department is committed to taking decisive action to address recruitment and retention challenges that we inherited from the last administration and strengthen our Armed Forces, including launching the new, combined Armed Forces Recruitment Service in 2027.

These initiatives are funded from our existing spending plans and will not draw on the additional funding announced in the Spring Statement.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to allow time spent under the Homes for Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme to count towards the five-year qualifying period for settled status.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

We recognise the Ukrainian government’s desire for the future return of its citizens to Ukraine. It is important our approach respects these wishes.

This is why the temporary sanctuary Ukraine Visa Schemes do not lead to settlement in the UK. Similarly, time spent in the UK with permission granted under the Ukraine Schemes cannot be relied upon towards the continuous qualifying period for the purposes of a Long Residence application.

There are other routes available for those who wish to settle in the UK permanently, if they meet the requirements.

The Ukraine Permission Extension (UPE) scheme, which opened to applications on 4 February 2025, will provide up to an additional 18 months’ permission to stay in the UK for those with existing Ukraine Scheme permission.

UPE is a new grant of permission; it is not an extension of a person's existing permission. An automatic extension of existing permission would mean providing further unnecessary permission, even to a person who has now left the UK and is no longer in need of temporary sanctuary in the UK.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to section 1 of the Down Syndrome Act 2022, when his Department plans to publish the guidance.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Officials have been working to develop the Down Syndrome Act 2022 statutory guidance, including engaging with sector partners and the relevant departments.

We expect to issue the draft guidance of the public consultation by the summer of 2025. The guidance will be published at the earliest opportunity following the consultation.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the abolition of NHS England on the (a) regulation and (b) oversight of clinical commissioning groups.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Ministers and senior Department officials will work with the new transformation team at the top of NHS England, led by Sir Jim Mackey, to lead this transformation. As we work to return many of NHS England’s current functions to the Department, we will ensure that we continue to evaluate impacts of all kinds.

The abolition of NHS England will strip out the unnecessary bureaucracy and cut the duplication that comes from having two organisations doing the same job. We will empower staff to focus on delivering better care for patients, driving productivity up, and getting waiting times down.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of the abolition of NHS England on (a) training and (b) development programmes for NHS staff.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Ministers and senior Department officials will work with the new transformation team at the top of NHS England, led by Sir Jim Mackey, to lead this transformation. As we work to return many of NHS England’s current functions to the Department, we will ensure that we continue to evaluate impacts of all kinds.

The abolition of NHS England will strip out the unnecessary bureaucracy and cut the duplication that comes from having two organisations doing the same job. We will empower staff to focus on delivering better care for patients, driving productivity up, and getting waiting times down.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to manage the redistribution of NHS England's (a) assets and (b) resources.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Ministers and senior officials in Department will work with the new transformation team at the top of NHS England, led by Sir Jim Mackey, to lead this transformation. Work has begun immediately to start bringing teams in NHS England and the Department together, and over the next two years, NHS England and the Department will combine to form a new joint centre.

We are currently scoping the programme for this change, which will include an approach to the assets and resources of NHS England.

The abolition of NHS England will strip out the unnecessary bureaucracy and cut the duplication that comes from having two organisations doing the same job. We will empower staff to focus on delivering better care for patients, driving productivity up, and getting waiting times down. The expected millions of pounds savings made by this transformation will be reinvested in frontline services to deliver better care for patients.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the abolition of NHS England on partnerships with external healthcare organizations.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Ministers and senior Department officials will work with the new transformation team at the top of NHS England, led by Sir Jim Mackey, to lead this transformation. As we work to return many of NHS England’s current functions to the Department, we will ensure that we continue to evaluate impacts of all kinds.

We recognise the role that external healthcare organisations have across our healthcare system, and we will continue to work closely with these organisations throughout the transition.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the abolition of NHS England on the implementation of the NHS 10 year plan.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

We do not envisage that the changes set out by the Prime Minister on 13 March 2025 will affect the implementation of the 10-Year Health Plan. We still intend to publish the plan in spring 2025.

The changes will set the National Health Service up to deliver on the three big shifts needed to make the service fit for the future: from hospital to community; from analogue to digital; and from sickness to prevention.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what proportion of British diplomats posted to Russia have language proficiency in Russian at CEFR level C1 or higher.

Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

Around 70 members of staff of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office currently have valid exam passes in Russian at C1 level or above. Exam passes are valid for five years.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure (a) data protection and (b) privacy during the transfer of NHS England's functions.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Ministers and senior Department officials will work with the new transformation team at the top of NHS England, led by Sir Jim Mackey, to lead this transformation. As we work to return many of NHS England’s current functions to the Department, we will ensure that we continue to evaluate impacts of all kinds.

It will remain the policy of the Department and NHS England before, during, and after this transition that information relating to people’s identifiable health and care is shared appropriately, lawfully, and in line with their reasonable expectations.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the role of the Care Quality Commission in the new NHS structure post NHS England.

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

Ministers and senior Department officials will work with the new transformation team at the top of NHS England, led by Sir Jim Mackey, to lead this transformation. The whole health and care sector, including all relevant Arms Length Bodies, needs to work effectively for patients.