Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions he has had with Royal Mail on recent service disruptions in the SW17 postcode.

Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

Ofcom is the independent regulator of postal services, and the Government does not collect or hold information concerning service issues in specific areas.

However, Ministers and officials have discussions with Royal Mail on a regular basis in its capacity as the universal service provider. In November, I met with Royal Mail’s CEO, Emma Gilthorpe, and stressed the importance of a reliable postal service.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of increasing statutory regulation of the veterinary profession.

Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Defra officials are actively engaging with key stakeholders, including representatives from the BVA (British Veterinary Association), as well as the RCVS (Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons), BVNA (British Veterinary Nursing Association), and the Vet Schools Council to review opportunities for reform of the Veterinary Surgeons Act (VSA). This core working group is looking at how changes to policy can support the profession, animals, and consumers in the future.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of allowing (a) artists, (b) musicians and (c) other people in creative industries to opt in, rather than opt out, to their intellectual property being used for the training of artificial intelligence.

Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

The government recognises the importance of the UKs copyright regime to the economic success of the cultural and creative industries, one of eight growth-driving sectors as identified in our Industrial Strategy. We also recognise the basic principle that rights holders should have control over and seek payment for their work, including when thinking about the role of AI. The current UK Copyright Framework enables creative right holders to prevent the use of protected works, but we are aware that this can be very difficult to implement in the context of AI, especially for individual firms and creators.

Responses to our consultation on the impact of AI on the copyright regime, which was published on 17 December and closed on 25 February, will inform our approach to the design and delivery of a solution to these issues. Our aim is to clarify the copyright framework for AI – delivering certainty through a copyright regime that provides creators with real control and transparency, and helps them licence their content, while supporting AI developers' access to high-quality material.

The consultation was published alongside an accompanying options assessment. The consultation sought to gather further evidence on the potential impact on the creative industries of both AI and any change to the copyright regime. We will now consider the full range of responses we have received through our consultation and if legislative changes are needed, a full economic impact assessment will be undertaken.

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 improve diagnostic pathways for those suffering from persistent unexplained symptoms.

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

It's vital that the National Health Service is there when people need it, and that symptoms are investigated to provide a diagnosis promptly, to enable treatment.

That is why we are committed to fixing the front door of the NHS and improving access to general practices (GPs). We are bringing back the family doctor, and incentivising continuity of care so that patients can see the same doctor at each appointment, which can play an important role in identifying and managing health conditions. Additionally, we have announced a proposed £889 million uplift to the GP Contract in 2025/26, the largest uplift in years, with a rising share of total NHS resources going to GPs. We are also currently consulting on key proposals to improve GP access and recruitment.

Cutting waiting lists for diagnostic tests is a key priority for the Government. It is unacceptable that some patients are waiting over six weeks for a diagnostic test. Our Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, builds on the investments already made with an ambitious vision for the future of diagnostic testing. This will include more straight-to-test pathways, increasing and expanding community diagnostic centres, and better use of technology.

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 reduce incidents of diagnostic bias within the NHS.

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

The Government is committed to putting patients first. It is crucial that patients receive the right diagnostic tests, at the right time, in the right place.

The Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, commits to transforming and expanding diagnostic services and speeding up waiting times for tests, a crucial part of reducing overall waiting times and returning to the referral-to-treatment standard.

We have wasted no time in getting to work cutting National Health Service waiting lists and ensuring that people have the best possible experience during their care. We promised change, and we’ve delivered early, with a reduction in the waitlists of 160,000 pathways and over two million extra appointments provided, which includes diagnostic tests.

As part of a return to meeting performance standards, the Elective Reform Plan commits to continuing the roll out of the iRefer clinical decision support tool, which supports clinicians to facilitate appropriate diagnostic imaging referrals by using on-demand, real-time evidence-based guidance to improve health and healthcare delivery. This will support the reduction of diagnostic bias by promoting the ordering of the most clinically appropriate tests, especially for clinicians working in emergency medicine, and will reduce the number of unnecessary tests.

The Elective Reform Plan also commits to continuing the support for the education and training of clinicians, to support their development in independent clinical practice.

Very importantly, we know that biases in diagnostic services and other clinical services can lead to harm and worse patient outcomes. The Elective Reform Plan commits to reducing health inequalities by strengthening the accountability and oversight of providers addressing health inequalities in elective care, and by improving the reporting and monitoring of health inequalities and their impacts. This will support the NHS to better identify and address health inequalities.

Found: Blundell Fabian Hamilton Paula Barker Siân Berry Natalie Fleet Chris Webb Alison Hume Dr Rosena Allin-Khan

Found: Blundell Fabian Hamilton Paula Barker Siân Berry Natalie Fleet Chris Webb Alison Hume Dr Rosena Allin-Khan

Found: Blundell Fabian Hamilton Paula Barker Siân Berry Natalie Fleet Chris Webb Alison Hume Dr Rosena Allin-Khan

Found: Blundell Fabian Hamilton Paula Barker Siân Berry Natalie Fleet Chris Webb Alison Hume Dr Rosena Allin-Khan

Found: Blundell Fabian Hamilton Paula Barker Siân Berry Natalie Fleet Chris Webb Alison Hume Dr Rosena Allin-Khan

Found: Blundell Fabian Hamilton Paula Barker Siân Berry Natalie Fleet Chris Webb Alison Hume Dr Rosena Allin-Khan

Found: Blundell Fabian Hamilton Paula Barker Siân Berry Natalie Fleet Chris Webb Alison Hume Dr Rosena Allin-Khan

Found: Blundell Fabian Hamilton Paula Barker Siân Berry Natalie Fleet Chris Webb Alison Hume Dr Rosena Allin-Khan

Found: Blundell Fabian Hamilton Paula Barker Siân Berry Natalie Fleet Chris Webb Alison Hume Dr Rosena Allin-Khan

Found: Blundell Fabian Hamilton Paula Barker Siân Berry Natalie Fleet Chris Webb Alison Hume Dr Rosena Allin-Khan

Found: Blundell Fabian Hamilton Paula Barker Siân Berry Natalie Fleet Chris Webb Alison Hume Dr Rosena Allin-Khan