Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
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 increase (a) referral to and (b) uptake of testing for chronic kidney disease among people diagnosed with hypertension through the NHS Health Check programme.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Individuals who have a high blood pressure reading during their NHS Health Check are referred to their general practice for further clinical investigation, and subsequent diagnosis of hypertension and management where appropriate.
In 2024, NHS England incorporated a new indicator into the CVDPREVENT audit to monitor the measurement of kidney function, a urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio test, in people with hypertension, as recommended in National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of people diagnosed with hypertension through the NHS Health Check programme were subsequently tested for chronic kidney disease in each of the last five years.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Blood pressure is one of seven risk factors for cardiovascular disease assessed in the NHS Health Check, and it is also a risk factor for chronic kidney disease. Individuals who have a high blood pressure reading during their NHS Health Check are referred to their general practice for further clinical investigation, and subsequent diagnosis of hypertension and management where appropriate.
Data is currently not collected on the number of individuals who, following their NHS Health Check, are diagnosed with hypertension and are subsequently tested for chronic kidney disease.
We are considering how to improve data collection and monitoring of the NHS Health Check following the National Audit Office report.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to support (a) dyscalculic learners and(b) learners with maths learning difficulties.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
This government’s ambition is that all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), including dyscalculia, receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life.
The department funds the Maths Hubs programme, a school-led network aimed at improving the teaching of mathematics for all pupils in publicly funded schools. The programme covers primary, secondary and special schools and uses a mastery-based teaching approach, which aims to secure understanding of key concepts. This includes training for teachers on techniques such as avoiding cognitive overload by breaking the learning down into small manageable steps, using representations to expose mathematical structure, and ensuring that learning is sequenced in a coherent manner so it makes sense to pupils.
Professionals can access online training to develop their understanding how the curriculum support learners. This includes approaches to support learners who face barriers to understanding of maths, such as those with SEND or dyscalculia.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of removing the tax exemption from woodlands.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Income Tax and Corporation Tax do not apply to woodlands managed on a commercial basis and with a view to making profits. This treatment was introduced in 1988 to prevent high-income individuals sheltering other income from tax by setting it against expenditure on forestry.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what information his Department holds on the amount of income generated by the Ordnance Survey from public subscriptions in the last five years.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Since 2022-23, Ordnance Survey has published the revenue from paying subscribers to the OS Maps platform and app in its Annual Report and Accounts, and these are set out below.
2022/23: £8.4m
2023/24: £9.5m
The Annual Report and Accounts for 2024-25 will be published in due course and laid before Parliament.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reason there are currently no service standards in place for Family route visa applications.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
Family visa applications have a service standard of 12 weeks. Further information on our Family visa service standards can be found here: Visa processing times: applications outside the UK - GOV.UK.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans her Department has to raise awareness of the availability of Pension Credit this winter.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government wants all pensioners to get the support to which they are entitled. That is why since Autumn 2024 we have been running the biggest ever Pension Credit take-up campaign.
The Department’s campaign to raise awareness of Pension Credit has continued in numerous stages between January and July 2025 and has included radio, print and social media adverts as well as continuing work with stakeholders. We plan to continue promotional activity from Autumn through to the end of the financial year with the campaign aimed at eligible pensioners who are not yet claiming, and their friends and family, as we work to increase the take up of Pension Credit.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if he will hold discussions with Ordance Survey on the potential merits of making the Ordnance Survey Maps Premium (a) service and (b) app available to the public for free.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Ordnance Survey is a public corporation, operating on a commercial basis. Ministers meet regularly with the leadership of Ordnance Survey to discuss how the company can support the Government’s priorities.
Ordnance Survey makes its authoritative geospatial data available to the public and private sectors, including individuals, directly and through commercial partners. A free version of the OS Maps app, which uses data that Ordnance Survey makes available under Open Government Licence, is used by over a million people every month. The premium subscription provides additional features and has over half a million active subscribers. It is already freely available to key users such as Mountain Rescue in Scotland, England and Wales.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he plans to review the criteria for which applications to join the British Army are rejected on medical grounds.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
This Government inherited a recruitment crisis, with targets being missed every year for the past 14 years, and is taking decisive action to get recruitment back on track. This has included the largest pay rise to personnel in decades and scrapping 100 outdated policies that slow recruitment down.
Defence is committed to a diverse workforce and is seeking to ‘select in’ rather than ‘select out’ and is focused on work to review the current policies for Armed Forces recruiting.
An update to Joint Service Publication (JSP) 950 Leaflet 6-7-7, which outlines the medical entry standard for the Armed Forces, was published in August 2024 following an intensive period of review undertaken by clinical experts, Defence personnel staff and the recruiting agencies. Recent updates to policy include; new regulations for a range of conditions including asthma and eczema, and candidates with Autism Spectrum Disorder may now be able to join the Armed Forces providing they meet certain criteria.
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to increase political engagement amongst young people.
Answered by Rushanara Ali - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government, in its manifesto, committed to increasing the engagement of young people in our democracy, by giving 16- and 17-year-olds the right to vote in all UK elections. The government believes that enabling 16- and 17-year-olds to vote in all UK elections will foster early and sustained participation in civic life and enhance engagement in our democratic processes. We want young people to find their voice and exercise their right to vote – registering to vote is a vital first step towards doing that.