Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average waiting time is for NHS orthodontic treatment following referral; and what steps his Department is taking to reduce waiting lists.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Data on the average waiting times for National Health Service orthodontic treatment is not held centrally. Patients referred for NHS orthodontic treatment before the age of 18 years old remain eligible for NHS-funded treatment, provided they meet the relevant clinical eligibility criteria, the Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need. Eligibility is determined by the patient's age at the date of referral, rather than the date treatment commences. Further information can be found at the following link:
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry and orthodontic services, to meet the needs of the local population.
To support ICBs in their duties, NHS England has published a number of documents, including a clinical policy to support the commissioning of orthodontic activity, which is available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/clinical-standards-for-dental-specialties-orthodontics/
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
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 (a) increase capacity within NHS orthodontic services and to (b) reduce waiting times for treatment.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Data on the average waiting times for National Health Service orthodontic treatment is not held centrally. Patients referred for NHS orthodontic treatment before the age of 18 years old remain eligible for NHS-funded treatment, provided they meet the relevant clinical eligibility criteria, the Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need. Eligibility is determined by the patient's age at the date of referral, rather than the date treatment commences. Further information can be found at the following link:
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry and orthodontic services, to meet the needs of the local population.
To support ICBs in their duties, NHS England has published a number of documents, including a clinical policy to support the commissioning of orthodontic activity, which is available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/clinical-standards-for-dental-specialties-orthodontics/
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
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 ensure that food labelling provides sufficient information for individuals with (a) sensitivities and (b) adverse reactions.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The fundamental principle of food labelling rules is that information provided to the consumer must not mislead and must enable the safe use of food. The United Kingdom maintains high standards on the information that is provided on food labels, so that consumers can have confidence in the food they buy. The Food Standards Agency (FSA) is responsible for food safety and food hygiene in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, including food allergen labelling.
All food businesses are under a legal obligation to provide information on the presence of the 14 major allergens in food, so that people who have allergies and intolerances are able to make safe food choices. The 14 allergens must be emphasised within the ingredients list of prepacked food or drink. This can be done, for example, by using bold, italic, or coloured type, to make the allergen ingredients easier to spot. Following the introduction of changes to allergen labelling rules in 2021, also known as Natasha's Law, these rules also apply to foods and drinks that are prepacked for direct sale food. For non-prepacked foods, such as those sold in restaurants, businesses must also provide allergen information and ensure it is accurate and accessible.
To further help consumers make safe and informed choices, food businesses may voluntarily provide information about the unintentional presence of allergens. This is called precautionary allergen labelling and is often seen on food labels as “may contain” statements.
The FSA carries out a range of research to ensure that this information is clear and accurate. In 2023, the FSA updated the food labelling technical guidance for businesses following a consultation with consumers and food businesses on the application and understanding of allergen labelling.
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to increase the number of education psychologists.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department is investing around £1.8 billion over the next three years for local area partnerships, including local authorities and Integrated Care Boards, to develop a new ‘Experts at Hand’ offer, strengthening mainstream education through access to health and specialist education support, including from educational psychologists (EPs).
By setting clear national expectations alongside locally delivered support, the offer will help ensure children and young people can receive timely, high‑quality specialist support regardless of locality, reducing variation and improving equity of access.
The department is also investing £26 million to train at least 200 EPs per year from 2026/2027, followed by additional funding from 2028 to train more EPs than we currently do, subject to the future Spending Review. This is in addition to the £31 million already invested to train EPs since 2023.
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when he plans to respond to correspondence of 1 and 28 February 2026 from the hon. Member for Cheadle on the DWP Complaints Team.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Thank you for raising this matter. We understand that the hon. Member is referring to correspondence dated 1 and 28 February 2026.
A full response addressing the issues raised was issued on 7 May 2026, resolving the complaint, which has now been closed.
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps are being taken to ensure there is an adequate supply of social homes for women fleeing abuse with enough bedrooms for their children in Greater Manchester.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statements made on 19 June 2025 (HCWS721), 2 July 2025 (HCWS771) and 28 January 2026 (HCWS1283), and the Social and Affordable Homes Programme 2026-2036 policy statement published on 7 November, which can be found on gov.uk here.
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what further plans she has to increase funding for violence against women and girls (VAWG) since the latest VAWG strategy was published.
Answered by Natalie Fleet - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
‘Freedom from Violence and Abuse: a cross-government strategy’, was published on 18th December last year: this is a ten-year Strategy which is backed by at least £1 billion of funding across government over the spending review period.
This includes £550 million for victims’ services, incorporating a 2% uplift a year, and £499 million for safe housing for victims of abuse over the next three years. This sits alongside wider investment across government and existing commitments, such as funding to put thousands more neighbourhood police officers on our streets. All commitments within the Strategy are fully funded.
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to (a) tackle the root causes of and (b) use a prevention based approach to violence against women and girls.
Answered by Natalie Fleet - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
Prevention and early intervention are fundamental to tackling Violence Against Women and Girls. ‘’Freedom from Violence and Abuse: a cross-government strategy’ sets out our plans to halve VAWG in a decade. Within this, tackling entrenched issues like misogyny requires a whole society approach: working across government, public services, the private sector and charities.
Prevention needs to focus specifically on young people. The Home Office and the Department for Science Information and Technology are working to safeguard young people by making the UK one of the hardest places for children to access harmful content and misogynistic influences online. We are also ensuring that schools have the skills and support to teach about healthy relationships. The Department for Education has published its updated Relationships, Sex and Health Education (RSHE) guidance, set to be introduced in September 2026, which includes teaching on online safety and awareness, and healthy relationships.
Prevention and tackling the root causes of VAWG need to reach across society. The Enough campaign is a cross-government programme with three strands: challenging young men, supporting victims and educating young people. Many people don’t recognise their actions as abusive: phase 1 of the campaign seeks to encourage self-reflection and self-identification, particularly for young men aged 18 -24, while also engaging the wider general public to understand and prevent abuse. We have also committed to work with the Premier League Foundation to develop new educational resources that challenge harmful attitudes, to be delivered through both their Primary Stars education programme and Premier League Kicks community programmes.
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help tackle and reduce corridor care in accident and emergency departments in Greater Manchester.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We recognise concerns about corridor care and are clear that it is not acceptable and should not be normalised. Corridor care is a visible symptom of wider pressures across urgent and emergency care, and we are committed to eliminating this practice.
The Government and NHS England are taking action across the whole pathway to improve patient flow, expand urgent care capacity, and reduce unnecessary demand on accident and emergency departments. This includes targeted support to the most challenged trusts, alongside strengthened reporting arrangements and a clear national definition of corridor care to improve transparency, and we will shortly publish data for the first time, subject to data quality.
The Greater Manchester Integrated Care Board is working with local providers to tackle corridor care through action across the urgent and emergency care pathway. This includes strengthening same day emergency care and front door models, improving assessment, streaming and early clinical decision making, and maintaining a strong system focus on inpatient flow, early discharge planning, and transfer of care processes. The system is also expanding alternatives to admission, including urgent community response, virtual wards, and community pathways, supported by operational oversight through the System Coordination Centre, daily escalation processes, and strengthened reporting and improvement support for organisations facing the greatest pressure.
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to reduce sewage overflows into rivers and lakes; and whether a timeline has been set for achieving a significant reduction.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government is clear that water companies must take action to address storm overflow spills and are pleased that water companies are delivering a record amount of investment in Price Review 2024.
To deliver on the Storm Overflows Discharge Reduction Plan, we are expecting £60bn of investment to be delivered across England by 2050. This should result in a reduction of over 300,000 spills from storm overflows per year by 2050 and ensure that no storm overflow is permitted to spill more than 10 times per year on average.