Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many emergency workers have died by suicide each year since 2015.

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

Every suicide is a tragedy that has devastating and enduring impacts on families, friends and communities. The Government recognises the demanding nature of working in emergency settings, and that staff may require more complex mental wellbeing support due to the traumatic nature of their jobs. National Health Service staff are able to access mental health support through their general practice, as well as support provided by their employer through employee assistance programmes or occupational health. NHS England also offers a range of health and wellbeing resources including the Practitioner Health service that provides specialist mental health support.

The Department does not hold this data. Data relating to numbers of suicides in England and Wales are published regularly by the Office of National Statistics (ONS). ONS occasionally also publishes ad hoc analysis of suicide numbers by standard occupational classifications. Whilst this data does not allow identification of the employer, such as the NHS, it does present suicide numbers by broad occupation categories. The latest ad hoc publication is available at the following link:

https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/deaths/adhocs/2726suicidebyoccupationinenglandandwales2023and2024provisional

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department uses Artificial Intelligence in its decision-making process to assess applicants' rights to obtain a visa.

Answered by Mike Tapp

Where appropriate we use AI to improve productivity and effectiveness in our public services. All applications made under the Immigration Rules are considered and decided by trained human decision-makers.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if artificial intelligence is used to assess ECAA applicants' extensions of their permissions to stay.

Answered by Mike Tapp

Artificial Intelligence is not used in applications made under Appendix ECAA for either indefinite leave to remain or further leave to remain.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate she has made of the cost per megalitre of water produced over an eighty-year lifespan of Teddington Direct River Abstraction.

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

The Teddington Direct River Abstraction (TDRA) project is being developed as a scheme intended to operate intermittently, during periods of drought, rather than as a continuously operating water supply source. The actual volume of water that TDRA may provide over an eighty-year period would depend on future drought frequency, severity, operational requirements and planning assumptions over that period.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of indirect potable reuse schemes in improving London’s water supply resilience.

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

Water reuse (water recycling) plays a key role in helping to improve water supply resilience.

Water companies have a statutory duty to provide a secure supply of water for customers and set out how they plan to continue to supply water to their customers through statutory Water Resources Management Plans (WRMPs).

Where selected in WRMPs, indirect potable reuse (water recycling) schemes have been fully assessed to ensure they form part of the best package of options across a region to manage supplies. They are subject to ongoing assessment through the Regulators’ Alliance for Progressing Infrastructure Development (RAPID) programme to ensure appropriate design and permit.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the efficacy of an indirect potable reuse schemes for direct discharge to reservoirs as an environment buffer.

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

Indirect potable reuse (water recycling) uses an environmental buffer before abstracting water into drinking water treatment and supply. This environmental buffer can be a reservoir. There are few schemes in operation currently, but water recycling will play an increasingly important role in meeting future demand.

Water companies planning to utilise water recycling to supplement their raw water are required to ensure that all regulatory requirements in the drinking water quality legislation are met at all times, to ensure that the drinking water supply remains wholesome. The Drinking Water Inspectorate issued guidance for companies on this matter.

Water companies are required to assess the risk of any new raw water sources and review and update their Drinking Water Safety Plans to ensure that these risks have been assessed and mitigations, such as additional treatment, are put in place if required.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the efficacy of an indirect potable reuse scheme which would take treated sewage from Mogden Sewage Treatment Works, process it using an advanced water recycling plant using reverse osmosis to remove PFAS, and discharge the treated water into the Queen Mary Reservoir for subsequent treatment to potable water by a water treatment works.

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

Water companies explore a wide range of options, and variants of those options, through the Water Resources Management Planning process. Many of these are not taken forward due to technical, practical, or cost considerations. Any new water recycling schemes for water supply must be included by water companies in their preferred Water Resources Management Plans and developed by the company. Schemes taken forward must secure environmental permits from the Environment Agency, including water quality permits that include conditions to manage impacts from any discharge to the environment.

The Drinking Water Inspectorate carried out a research project published last year outlining that ‘reverse osmosis (RO) and nano filtration (NF) provide a near absolute barrier for passage of PFAS compounds when operated correctly’.

Russian sanctions

International Court of Justice's July 2024 Advisory Opinion on the Occupied Palestinian Territories

Seven-year anniversary of the mixed-aged couples’ rule

Found: Lowe (Restore Britain; Great Yarmouth) Catherine McKinnell (Labour; Newcastle upon Tyne North) Sarah Olney

Found: Lowe (Restore Britain; Great Yarmouth) Catherine McKinnell (Labour; Newcastle upon Tyne North) Sarah Olney

Found: present: Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown (Chair); Mr Clive Betts; Sarah Hall; Catherine McKinnell; Sarah Olney

Found: Sarah Olney MP asked a question of Chris Walters in the regulators’ session about what are the drivers

Found: Lowe (Restore Britain; Great Yarmouth) Catherine McKinnell (Labour; Newcastle upon Tyne North) Sarah Olney

Found: present: Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown (Chair); Mr Clive Betts; Sarah Hall; Catherine McKinnell; Sarah Olney