Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to improve the performance of South Western Railway.

Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The new Managing Director of South Western Railway (SWR), Lawrence Bowman, is responsible for both the infrastructure and operations of the SWR network. The new integrated team is working hard to address the issues inherited from the previous private sector operator. Officials are supporting SWR in the delivery of these improvements.

Performance is still below the level that passengers should expect but progress is being made. The number of Arterio trains in service has more than quadrupled under public ownership and SWR has accelerated the recruitment of drivers to address traincrew shortages. Also, over £2 billion of works is being delivered in the current five-year control period to help improve the resilience of railway infrastructure.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department are taking to help ensure that GPs are not replaced with Physician Associates.

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

We are clear that physician assistants, still legally known as physician associates, are there to support doctors, not replace them. Professor Leng’s recent review findings were clear that, with changes in line with its recommendations, there remains a place for these roles as supportive, complementary members of medical teams.

We hugely value the critical role that general practitioners (GPs) play and are committed to addressing the issues they face. Since October 2024 we have funded primary care networks with an additional £160 million to recruit recently qualified GPs through the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme. Over 2,900 individual GPs have now been recruited, preventing them graduating into unemployment. This measure was introduced in response to feedback from the profession and to help solve an immediate issue of GP unemployment.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of specialist modern slavery coordinators within local authorities.

Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Government recognises the vital work done by Moden Slavery Coordinators working within local authorities.

Local authorities are independent employers. The majority of funding in the Local Government Finance Settlement is unringfenced recognising that local leaders are best placed to identify local priorities.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the value for money review of homelessness services announced in the Budget 2025 policy paper, (a) when this review is expected to begin and conclude and (b) what consultation will take place with voluntary-sector organisations delivering homelessness services.

Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury

The review will commence in 2026, with the outputs considered as part of the Spending Review 2027.

The review will be a collaborative effort across government departments and external expertise will also be used to inform a comprehensive assessment of homelessness services. This will include expertise from frontline services, local government, and other voluntary and charity sector organisations.