Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent discussions her Department has had with licence holders on reporting the number of animals bred for scientific purposes and not used in procedures at their establishment.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office is presently reviewing the collection and publication of additional statistics on animals that were bred but not used in scientific procedures. This position has been communicated to all stakeholder groups, including the life science sector.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Answer of 16 June 2025 to Question 59099 on Animal Experiments, when she expects the review to conclude.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Home Office)
We intend for a position to be publicised later in 2025.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans his Department has to include the (a) Chartered Society of Physiotherapy and (b) Association of Chartered Physiotherapists in Animal Therapy in its planned review of the Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra is actively engaging with key stakeholders to review opportunities for reform of the Veterinary Surgeons Act. It’s really important that we do this together to have the best opportunity of delivering the best reform for the future of the whole of the veterinary profession. Defra is grateful for the engagement of lots of different representatives of Allied Veterinary Professionals in this process, and plan to continue engaging a diverse group of stakeholders.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Wales Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what recent discussions she has had with the Welsh Government on plans for cross-border healthcare.
Answered by Jo Stevens - Secretary of State for Wales
I meet with the First Minister of Wales regularly to discuss a range of issues, including health. We are working in a spirit of genuine collaboration to do everything possible to cut waiting lists and build an NHS fit for the future.
A good example of our two Governments working together on health is the Interministerial Group (IMG) for Health and Social Care, which met on 30 April, chaired by the Welsh Government Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care. The IMG brought together Ministers from the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and the Devolved Governments to discuss shared priorities across health in the UK.
I welcome the news that waiting lists, including long waits, have fallen in recent months. These improvements come after we provided the Welsh Government with an additional £1.7 billion to invest in public services like the NHS at the Autumn Budget. An extra £600 million in funding has now been announced by the Welsh Government for health and social care in their Budget for 2025/26. Furthermore at the Spending Review last week, we announced a record £22.4 billion per year on average for the Welsh Government between 2026-27 and 2028-29, to invest in public services and drive down waiting lists. This is the largest budget settlement in the history of devolution.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent discussions he has had with his counterpart in Wales on the implementation of plans for cross-border healthcare.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
My Rt. Hon. friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, regularly meets his devolved administration counterparts, both bilaterally and at Inter-Ministerial Groups on Health and Social Care. There is also significant official level engagement daily with the devolved administrations.
There are special cross-border arrangements in place for patients who live on the England-Wales border to make sure they receive healthcare without confusion or delay, and patient data can be accessed by the relevant professionals. These arrangements have been implemented and are managed by the Department, NHS England, the Welsh Government and NHS Wales.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Wales on the potential impact of the Green Paper entitled Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working, published on 29 May 2025, on people with arthritis.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
This Government is committed to championing the rights of disabled people and people with long-term health conditions and our mission-driven approach relies on regular cross-government collaboration. We are working across government and with the Devolved Governments to further assess the impacts of the Green Paper and will continue to do so as the package is developed in detail. The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions met with the Welsh First Minister and the Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice on the 4 June to discuss the proposals and their impacts in Wales. I also continue to engage closely with my Ministerial colleagues and other stakeholders throughout the consultation period and beyond.
Information on the impacts of the Pathways to Work Green Paper has been published in the impacts analysis and equality analysis on 26 March 2025 and the evidence pack on 2 May 2025 at:
The functional impact and severity of a condition can significantly vary across individuals, so we are not planning for specific conditions to be exempt from the changes. We recognise the challenges that people with arthritis face and our reforms will ensure the most vulnerable and severely disabled people are protected, while supporting those who can work to do so.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the adequacy of the frequency of the publication of statistics on the number of animals that are bred for use in scientific procedures but not used.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office is presently reviewing the collection and publication of additional statistics on animals that were bred but not used in scientific procedures.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of smart grids enabled by dedicated radio spectrum access on people in Newport West and Islwyn constituency.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Ofcom is responsible for the management of spectrum in the UK, including allocating spectrum. My officials are working with those in the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and with regulators to help establish the evidence base for the future telecommunications requirements of the energy sector.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to support the (a) development and (b) deployment of artificial intelligence to accelerate the transition away from the use of animals in scientific research and testing.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Labour Manifesto commits to “partner with scientists, industry, and civil society as we work towards the phasing out of animal testing”. While it is not yet possible to replace all animal use, we support the development and application of approaches that replace, reduce and refine animal use in research (the 3Rs), including via artificial intelligence. The Prime Minister launched the AI Opportunities Action Plan in January which outlined 50 actions needed to drive up the development and deployment of AI.
The Government will publish a strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods later this year.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support faith-based organisations providing humanitarian assistance to vulnerable communities impacted by recent conflict in Lebanon.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Whilst the UK does not currently directly support any faith-based organisations in Lebanon, we remain committed to supporting vulnerable Lebanese communities, including refugees, regardless of religion or nationality. The UK has played a leading role in addressing the humanitarian situation in Lebanon and provided £56 million in humanitarian aid to support thousands of people affected by the conflict in Financial Year 2024/25. This included support to both displaced and host communities, to help them meet their basic needs and support them to access essential services It also included £4.5 million to the Lebanon Humanitarian Fund, which delivers multisectoral support through a network of local and international Non-Governmental Organisations, including faith-based organisations.
We recognise that post-ceasefire needs in Lebanon remain high. The UK's ongoing response will continue, including our work with international partners to tackle immediate and long-term priorities.