Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to increase funding into research on the (a) causes of and (b) treatments for Tourette’s syndrome.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department invests over £1.6 billion each year on research through its research delivery arm, the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).

The NIHR has funded a number of research projects on Tourette’s syndrome, including the live ORBIT-UK study, which aims to translate an evidence-based online behavioural therapy intervention for tics in young people into a patient-ready digital tool, deliverable at scale within the National Health Service.

The NIHR continues to welcome funding applications for research into any aspect of human health and social care, including Tourette’s syndrome. These applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money, and scientific quality. Welcoming applications on Tourette’s syndrome to all NIHR programmes enables maximum flexibility both in terms of the amount of research funding a particular area can be awarded, and the type of research which can be funded.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to take steps to ensure that specialist medical services are accessible outside London.

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

Specialised services are typically delivered on a scale that allows for some concentration of clinical expertise and for the management of relatively small caseloads. As such, it is more likely that some patients may need to travel further to access high-quality services. Commissioners are required to review the geographic spread of patients and to reflect this in their commissioning strategies, which may include the use of remote appointments, shared care models, outreach, education and training, and support with travel and accommodation.

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 merits of introducing NICE guidance for (a) Tourette’s Syndrome and (b) other tic disorders.

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

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has established a prioritisation board that takes decisions on which topics should be prioritised for the development of a clinical guideline, in line with the criteria set out in NICE’s published prioritisation framework, and through engagement with experts and other interested parties. The prioritisation board recently considered the development of a guideline on Tourette’s and tic disorders and concluded that many of the challenges relate to service provision, where NICE guidance is likely to have limited impact. It was, however, recognised that there could be value in developing a clinical knowledge summary on this topic, and NICE is exploring this possibility further.

NICE has produced guidance on suspected neurological conditions, which includes recommendations on treatment for tics and involuntary movements in adults and children. The guidance can be found at the following link:

https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng127/

On 7 May 2025, NICE published Early Value Assessment guidance on digital therapy for chronic tic disorders and Tourette syndrome. The guidance states that Online Remote Behavioural Intervention for Tics, created by the National Institute for Health and Care Research’s MindTech national research centre, can be used with standard care in the National Health Service during an evidence generation period as an option to treat chronic tic disorders and Tourette syndrome in children and young people nine to 17 years old. Further information on the digital therapy for chronic tic disorders and Tourette syndrome is available at the following link:

https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/hte25

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether capital funding has been allocated to South Western Ambulance Service for the modernisation of their estate.

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

Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning services to meet the needs of their local communities, including in the South West, as they are best placed to take those decisions. Integrated care systems in the South West have been provisionally allocated a combined total of £447.9 million in operational capital funding, including primary care business-as-usual capital, for 2025/26, to be prioritised according to local needs.

In addition to the system allocation, ICBs and providers in the South West region have been provisionally allocated £82.6 million from our £750 million Estates Safety Fund to deliver vital safety improvements, enhance patient and staff environments, and support National Health Service productivity in 2025/26. They have also been provisionally allocated £10 million from our Primary Care Utilisation and Modernisation Fund to support improvements in the primary care estate, boosting productivity and enabling practices to deliver more patient appointments.

The Dorset ICB and providers have been provisionally allocated £7.9 million from our Estates Safety Fund for 2025/26, of which the South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust will receive £1.7 million. This will fund improvements at Taunton Ambulance Station, St James Ambulance Station, Derriford Ambulance Station, and the trust’s headquarters.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help reduce the educational instability that children in care face.

Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The department is committed to ensuring that looked-after children are supported to succeed in education and achieve positive outcomes. We recognise the critical importance of continuity and stability throughout a looked-after child’s life.

Under the Care Planning, Placement and Case Review guidance and regulations, the child’s social worker should do everything possible to minimise disruption to their education. School changes should be minimised, and any transitions well-planned and supported. Where a change to a child’s educational arrangements is unavoidable, their personal education plan should set out arrangements to minimise disruption to education, especially during exam periods and other critical periods in their education.

The government is introducing measures, including through the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill, to rebalance the market, improve regulation and commissioning of placements. The department is also investing £2 billion over this parliament to give more children a safe, loving home, including expanding the children’s home estate, delivering more foster care placements and helping keep families together by providing targeted support before problems escalate.

These measures will provide greater placement availability, stability and ensure that, where it is in a child's best interests, they are placed closer to home.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of replacing the Work and Health programme that last took applicants in September 2024.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The decision to end the Work and Health Programme was made by the previous Administration.

The Government is committed to reducing the disability employment gap. We have a clear ambition to raise the overall employment rate to 80%. We are delivering the biggest employment support package for disabled people and people with health conditions in more than a generation as part of our Pathways to Work Guarantee, which will provide work, health and skills support for disabled people and those with health conditions claiming out of work benefits. The Pathways to Work Guarantee is backed by £1 billion a year of new, additional funding by 2030 and a total of £2.2 billion over four years.

Separate to this, our new, voluntary, locally led, Supported Employment programme, Connect to Work, is rolling out across England and Wales. Over the five-year duration of the programme, it will provide specialist employment support to over 300,000 disabled people, people with health conditions and those with complex barriers to employment.

This is on top of our Jobcentre core offer, which includes the extended Restart Scheme, Disability Employment Advisers and 1000 Pathways to Work Advisers providing additional work coach support for disabled benefit recipients and those with work-limiting health conditions.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of collecting data on the (a) length and (b) frequency of gaps in education for children in care that are the result of placement moves.

Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The department recognises the need to improve the data available about children’s social care, including making it more relevant to the experience of children and young people during periods of change.

A core part of this work includes understanding the data needs of the children’s social care sector as a whole and scoping ways in which data gaps may be addressed over time. This year the department has published new statistics on stability measures for children looked after, providing further insight on school, placement and social worker stability for these children, here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/stability-measures-for-children-looked-after-in-england/2024.

Existing statutory data is collected for children missing education, school attendance, and children in care. However, it is not yet possible to accurately link these datasets to obtain the information requested, as the children missing education data is collected at a local authority level, while data for children looked after, and school attendance is collected at a child level. Addressing data gaps in children’s social care will be a long-term endeavour due to the need to agree data standards and definitions, as well as redesign local authority and departmental systems before rolling out nationally.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make it her policy to provide financial support to (a) Eat That Frog in Torbay and (b) other community organisations which are support hubs for those who are (i) disabled and (ii) neurodivergent to ensure their long-time viability.

Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The relationship between the department and Eat that Frog, as with all providers, is through the funding of learners through an agreed, published funding methodology. The department does not fund institutions/providers core costs, as the funding is driven by the learner funding methodology. In this case, as a Specialist Post-16 Institution (SPI), Eat that Frog is funded through the high needs funding methodology which is a combination of funding directly from the department and funding from the learners’ local authority, through their dedicated schools grant.

Some of the programmes and support provided through Eat that Frog is outside the scope of departmental funding, for example employment support, and therefore their remit is much wider than that of the department.

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 merits of refusing new (a) oil and (b) gas developments at (i) Rosebank, (ii) Jackdaw and (iii) other potential oil and gas fields.

Answered by Michael Shanks - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

Neither the Secretary of State nor I will be commenting on the specifics of individual projects such as Rosebank and Jackdaw in order to avoid potentially prejudicing any future regulatory decisions the Secretary of State is required to make in relation to these projects.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many full time equivalent civil servants are working on animal welfare policy.

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

There are many civil servants across Defra that are responsible for multiple animal welfare policies, working flexibly according to business need. Civil Servants work across animal welfare, transforming farm animal health and welfare, wildlife and rural teams, with some responsibilities sitting across other teams.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many dogs are exempt under the XL bully exemption scheme.

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

As of 17 June 2025, 56,346 XL Bully dogs are registered with a Certificate of Exemption.

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 rehoming banned breeds which have passed behavioural assessments.

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

In England and Wales, the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 prohibits the ownership of five types of dog; the Pit Bull terrier, the Dogo Argentino, the Fila Brasileiro, the Japanese Tosa, and the XL Bully. It is a criminal offence to sell, abandon, give away or breed any of these breed types. This is an important measure to protect public safety by reducing the number of these dogs in circulation over time.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much funding her Department has allocated for the promotional campaign on pet-friendly tenancy rights following the Renters’ Rights Bill.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The successful implementation of the Renters’ Rights Bill is contingent on landlords, letting agents, and tenants understanding their rights and responsibilities under the new legislation.

Once the Bill has achieved Royal Assent, we intend to deliver a campaign to raise awareness of the changes made by it.

Publicising measures that allow tenants to request a pet will be an integral part of this campaign. It is not possible to break down costs or staffing numbers to indicate spend on specific messages relating to this Bill provision.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many civil servants are working on the communications campaign relating to pet-friendly tenancies following the Renters’ Rights Bill.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The successful implementation of the Renters’ Rights Bill is contingent on landlords, letting agents, and tenants understanding their rights and responsibilities under the new legislation.

Once the Bill has achieved Royal Assent, we intend to deliver a campaign to raise awareness of the changes made by it.

Publicising measures that allow tenants to request a pet will be an integral part of this campaign. It is not possible to break down costs or staffing numbers to indicate spend on specific messages relating to this Bill provision.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many FTE civil servants his Department has allocated to work on developing a single point of search for the microchip database for (a) dogs and (b) cats.

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

There are many civil servants across Defra that are responsible for multiple animal welfare policies, working flexibly according to business need. Civil Servants work across animal welfare, transforming farm animal health and welfare, wildlife and rural teams, with some responsibilities sitting across other teams.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many FTE civil servants his Department has allocated to work on the exemption scheme for dogs initially classified as XL bullies.

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

There are many civil servants across Defra that are responsible for multiple animal welfare policies, working flexibly according to business need. Civil Servants work across animal welfare, transforming farm animal health and welfare, wildlife and rural teams, with some responsibilities sitting across other teams.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much funding has been allocated to animal welfare in the Spending Review 2025.

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

This Government was elected on a mandate to introduce the most ambitious plans to improve animal welfare in a generation. The Prime Minister announced that we will be publishing an animal welfare strategy later this year.

The allocations for projects and programmes will be set now following the Spending Review. This will build on the support already available through the Animal Health and Welfare Pathway, which includes access to testing for priority diseases and advice to continually improve the health, welfare and productivity of farmed animals through funded vet visits.

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 effectiveness of the dangerous dogs control scheme in Calgary, Canada.

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

The Government has reconvened the Responsible Dog Ownership Taskforce to explore measures to promote responsible dog ownership across all breeds of dog. As part of this work, the taskforce may look at international models of dog control. We look forward to receiving its findings and recommendations in due course.

Support for local independent businesses, shops, markets and producers

Funding and support for SEND

Carers and social care reform

Introduction of the Hillsborough Law and the 36th anniversary

Government policy on the Hillsborough Law

UK-based medical charities in Palestine

Brian Standring’s fundraising and campaigning in Wellington

Homelessness

Access to mental health support for children and young people

Funding and role of community pharmacies

Cool hubs

Recognition of Wiltshire schools achieving the Dyslexia-Friendly Quality Mark

Reform of the special educational needs and disabilities system

Overseas-qualified dentists

50th anniversary of the Leatherhead Swans Club

Postural Tachycardia Syndrome

Pesticides in public spaces

Post Offices in rural areas

Chalk stream river protection

Import of goods from Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory

Digital-only immigration status

Equitable national prostate cancer screening

200 year anniversary of the North Devon Infirmary

Investment in General Practice

Securing habitat for endangered swifts and other cavity nesting birds

Climate and Nature Bill

Glaucoma Awareness Week

Hannah Beaton-Hawryluk MBE

Found: _12 Steve Darling Vikki Slade Caroline Voaden Tom Morrison Liz Jarvis .

Found: COMMITTEE STAGE Tuesday 8 July 2025 8 _12 Steve Darling Vikki Slade Caroline Voaden Tom Morrison

Found: The Chair invites Steve Darling to move Amendment 12, and question put for decision;3 1 Unless the

Found: The Chair invites Steve Darling to move Amendment 12, and question put for decision;3 7.

Found: Miller Tom Morrison Edward Morello Sarah Olney Anna Sabine David Chadwick Munira Wilson Steve Darling

Found: Miller Tom Morrison Edward Morello Sarah Olney Anna Sabine David Chadwick Munira Wilson Steve Darling

Found: _13 Steve Darling .

Found: _12 Steve Darling .

Found: _12 Steve Darling .

Found: 2025 Negatived on division_NC48 Tom Gordon Vikki Slade Manuela Perteghella Mr Will Forster Steve Darling

Found: STAGE Thursday 3 July 2025 34 _NC48 Tom Gordon Vikki Slade Manuela Perteghella Mr Will Forster Steve Darling

Found: Wrigley, Caroline Voaden, Carla Denyer, Layla Moran, Tessa Munt, Richard Foord, Vikki Slade and Steve Darling

Found: _12 Steve Darling .

Found: Wednesday 2 July 2025 34 _NC48 Tom Gordon Vikki Slade Manuela Perteghella Mr Will Forster Steve Darling

Found: _12 Steve Darling ★.

Found: STAGE Tuesday 1 July 2025 38 _NC48 Tom Gordon Vikki Slade Manuela Perteghella Mr Will Forster Steve Darling

Found: Munira Wilson Martin Wrigley Monica Harding Max Wilkinson Andrew George Alison Bennett Steve Darling

Submit Evidence (by 29 Sep 2025)

With the disability employment gap persistently at nearly 30%, the Government has announced it will spend an additional £2.2 billion on employment support over the next four years.