Asked by: Shockat Adam (Independent - Leicester South)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to ensure effective (a) monitoring and (b) tackling of Islamophobia.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Islamophobia is completely abhorrent and has no place in our society. No one should ever be a victim of hatred because of their religion or belief, and we are determined to root it out.
On 28 February 2025, the Government announced the establishment of a new working group to provide government with a definition of Anti-Muslim Hatred/Islamophobia, advising government and other bodies on how to best understand, quantify and define prejudice, discrimination, and hate crime targeted against Muslims. With levels of Islamophobia at a record high, this work will improve understanding of unacceptable treatment and prejudice against Muslim communities, supporting wider and ongoing government-led efforts to tackle religiously motivated hate crime and foster cohesion.
We continue to work closely with police and community partners to ensure effective monitoring of Islamophobia. The Government has worked with the police to fund True Vision, an online hate crime reporting portal, designed so that victims of hate crime do not have to visit a police station to report. We have also made up to £1 million of funding available this year to monitor Islamophobia and provide support to victims.
Asked by: Shockat Adam (Independent - Leicester South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department plans to take steps to commemorate the anniversary of the 2003 Darfur genocide; and what steps he is taking to improve stop the humanitarian situation in Sudan.
Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK's long-standing policy is that any determination as to whether genocide has occurred is a matter for a competent national or international court. There has been no such determination for Darfur. Irrespective of any such determination, it is clear that atrocities have been committed in this conflict, which the UK condemns. The UK is committed to securing accountability for those responsible. The UK is strongly supporting the humanitarian response in Sudan. The Foreign Secretary visited the Chad-Sudan border in January to see first-hand the impact the UK's recent £113 million aid uplift is making, including providing emergency food assistance to nearly 800,000 displaced people. The Foreign Secretary will soon be hosting a conference in London to mark the two-year point in the Sudan conflict, where we aim to make collective progress on improving the humanitarian response.
Asked by: Shockat Adam (Independent - Leicester South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve the (a) diagnosis and (b) treatment of eye problems as part of its 10-Year Plan.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
As part of the work to develop a 10-Year Health Plan, we have launched a significant public engagement process, and we would encourage all those with an interest in eye care services to take part in that process so that we can fully understand what is not working as well as it should and what the potential solutions are. More information is available at the following link:
Alongside the development of the 10-Year Health Plan, NHS England has been testing how integrating primary and secondary eye care services, through IT connectivity and the development of a single point of access, could improve the referral, triage and management of patients with eye care needs and reduce the time from diagnosis to treatment.
Asked by: Shockat Adam (Independent - Leicester South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he has taken to maximise take up of the Healthy Start scheme.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Healthy Start scheme was introduced in 2006 to encourage a healthy diet for pregnant women, babies, and young children under four years old from very low-income households. It can be used to buy, or put towards the cost of, fruit, vegetables, pulses, milk, and infant formula. Those on the scheme have access to free Healthy Start Vitamins for pregnant women and children aged under four years old.
The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) operates the Healthy Start scheme on behalf of the Department. The NHSBSA is committed to increasing uptake of the scheme to ensure as many children as possible have a healthy start in life.
The NHSBSA promotes the Healthy Start scheme through its digital channels and has created free tools to help stakeholders promote the scheme locally. The NHSBSA has also reached out to stakeholders to see how it can support them to promote the scheme. In January 2025, Healthy Start supported over 353,000 people.
Asked by: Shockat Adam (Independent - Leicester South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to Article 7 of UN Resolution A/78/L.67/Rev.1, if she will take steps to introduce observance of the International Day of Reflection and Commemoration of the 1995 Genocide in Srebrenica to the National Curriculum.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
Schools are free to decide which events to commemorate and what activities to put in place to support pupils’ understanding of significant events and particular months or days dedicated to specific historical events, such as the International Day of Reflection and Commemoration of the 1995 Genocide in Srebrenica.
Schools also have the opportunity to mark such events though the curriculum, and to teach about the Srebrenica Genocide, for example, through subjects such as history and citizenship.
Asked by: Shockat Adam (Independent - Leicester South)
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 poor dietary health on the UK economy.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises that poor diet and obesity are major drivers of physical and mental ill health and early mortality. Ill health leads to increased sickness absence and early death which reduces workforce productivity, putting a burden on businesses and the wider economy.
Frontier Economics estimates that the total cost of obesity to society was approximately £74.3 billion per year in the United Kingdom in 2021, expressed in 2023 prices. Included in these costs is an £8.9 billion per year cost to businesses and the economy from productivity losses due to obesity related diseases.
Asked by: Shockat Adam (Independent - Leicester South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to extend eligibility for the NHS Learning Support Fund to include pharmacy students.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
There are no immediate plans to make changes to the NHS Learning Support Fund scheme design. The Government keeps the funding arrangements for all healthcare students under close review. At all times, the Government must strike a balance between the level of support students receive and the need to make best use of public funds to deliver value for money.
Asked by: Shockat Adam (Independent - Leicester South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of Israel's decision to ban UNWRA on the humanitarian situation in (a) Gaza and (b) the West Bank.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As the Foreign Secretary said on 13 January, Israeli legislation means the United Nations Relief and Work Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) faces a cliff edge in its ability to support Palestinian refugees across the West Bank and Gaza. UNRWA plays a vital role in delivering humanitarian assistance in Gaza and enabling the broader international response through its logistics and distribution network. We remain opposed to the legislation, and unequivocally reject attempts to undermine or degrade UNRWA. The Foreign Secretary raised our concerns on 13 January with Foreign Minister Sa'ar, during his visit to the region. The Minister for Development set out our concerns with Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Haskel on 4 December, and the Foreign Secretary's Representative for Humanitarian Affairs in the Occupied Palestinian Territories also raised this with the Israeli Minister for Strategic Affairs on 23 January.
Asked by: Shockat Adam (Independent - Leicester South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Israeli counterpart on the decision to ban UNRWA operations.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As the Foreign Secretary said on 13 January, Israeli legislation means the United Nations Relief and Work Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) faces a cliff edge in its ability to support Palestinian refugees across the West Bank and Gaza. UNRWA plays a vital role in delivering humanitarian assistance in Gaza and enabling the broader international response through its logistics and distribution network. We remain opposed to the legislation, and unequivocally reject attempts to undermine or degrade UNRWA. The Foreign Secretary raised our concerns on 13 January with Foreign Minister Sa'ar, during his visit to the region. The Minister for Development set out our concerns with Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Haskel on 4 December, and the Foreign Secretary's Representative for Humanitarian Affairs in the Occupied Palestinian Territories also raised this with the Israeli Minister for Strategic Affairs on 23 January.
Asked by: Shockat Adam (Independent - Leicester South)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to reinstate the Community Housing Fund.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
As part of the development of our Long Term Housing Strategy, we are considering how the government may further support the growth of the community-led housing sector.