Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to improve access to GPs.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

We are expanding capacity in general practices (GPs) which will help deliver more appointments to patients.

Since October 2024, we have funded primary care networks (PCNs) with an additional £160 million to recruit GPs through the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme. Additionally, the new Practice Level GP Reimbursement Scheme, backed by £292 million of ringfenced funding, will help practices hire additional GPs or fund additional sessions with existing GPs to strengthen capacity, access, and improve patient satisfaction, whilst also addressing GP unemployment and underemployment.

We now have the highest number of GPs since 2015. As of July 2024, there were 27,735 fully qualified full-time equivalent GPs, now there are 30,369, which is an extra 2,600 GPs. We delivered 15.8 million more appointments over the past year than in the previous year and we have asked practices to ensure that they see those who need a clinically urgent appointment on the same day.

As a result, patient experience is also improving. Nearly 77% of patients reporting ease of contact, up 16% since July 2024, and overall satisfaction is also improving.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to reduce waiting times for women with endometriosis, adenomyosis, fibroids and other complex reproductive health conditions; and what her Department is taking to ensure that women with complex conditions can access appropriate specialist and multidisciplinary services rather than relying solely on general gynaecology pathways.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

I refer the Hon Member to the plans set out in this area in the Renewed Women’s Health Strategy for England, published in April and available at the link below:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/renewed-womens-health-strategy-for-england

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of establishing a national payment system for parking charges, tolls and other road-user charges, enabling motorists to register for automatic payment.

Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Government is committed to making road-user payments simpler and is supporting the rollout of the National Parking Platform, which enables motorists to use their preferred parking app across participating area, supporting greater interoperability, choice and competition.

The Platform is also exploring opportunities to support tolls and other road-user payments in future, including how payment could be made more seamless for motorists.

The Department has made no assessment of, and has no plans to introduce, a mandatory national payment system for all parking charges, tolls and road-user charges.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to establish clear milestones and accountability for improving radiotherapy services under the National Cancer Plan.

Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The National Cancer Plan sets out specific commitments to improve and reform radiotherapy services and ensure that patients have timely access to high-quality radiotherapy treatments no matter their location. Each commitment within the plan has set delivery deadlines and progress on each commitment is closely monitored by departmental officials and can be escalated to ministers if progress falls off track.

The recently reformed National Cancer Board is responsible for tracking the progress of the commitments within the plan and providing regular updates to ministers. Ministers will publish an annual summary of progress, along with a more in-depth report after three years to assess where the plan needs updating and refreshing to ensure that is has the greatest impact. The board has appointed independent leads to monitor the impact of the plan on health inequalities, rarer cancers, and children and young people’s cancers to reduce disparities and champion progress across these themes.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an estimate of the additional annual revenue that would be raised if air passenger duty on private jet flights were set at (a) 15% and (b) 45% of the average ticket price.

Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General

Air Passenger Duty (APD) applies to airlines and is the principal tax on the aviation sector. It is expected to raise £5.2 billion in 2026-27 and ensures that airlines make a fair contribution to the public finances, particularly given that tickets are VAT free and aviation fuel incurs no duty. The distance-based band structure ensures that those who travel furthest, and have a greater impact on the environment, pay more in tax.

At Autumn Budget 2024, the Government announced a 50% increase in the private jet rate, meaning the rates are now £142 for Band A, £1,097 for Band B and £1,141 for Band C in 2026-27.

At present, only 36 per cent of private jet passengers pay the higher APD rate, while most pay the same as those on commercial flights, despite private jets offering a more premium service with far fewer passengers and significantly higher emissions per person than commercial flights. From 2027, the Government will therefore extend the scope of the higher rate of APD to cover all private jets over 5.7 tonnes. This change will mean that private jet passengers always pay higher rates of APD compared to commercial flyers and ensures fair and consistent taxation across private aviation.

The Chancellor makes decisions on tax policy at fiscal events, and does not routinely comment on proposals.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has made an assessment of the equitability of the tax paid on private jet flights relative to that paid by drivers on motoring fuel.

Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General

Air Passenger Duty (APD) applies to airlines and is the principal tax on the aviation sector. It is expected to raise £5.2 billion in 2026-27 and ensures that airlines make a fair contribution to the public finances, particularly given that tickets are VAT free and aviation fuel incurs no duty. The distance-based band structure ensures that those who travel furthest, and have a greater impact on the environment, pay more in tax.

At Autumn Budget 2024, the Government announced a 50% increase in the private jet rate, meaning the rates are now £142 for Band A, £1,097 for Band B and £1,141 for Band C in 2026-27.

At present, only 36 per cent of private jet passengers pay the higher APD rate, while most pay the same as those on commercial flights, despite private jets offering a more premium service with far fewer passengers and significantly higher emissions per person than commercial flights. From 2027, the Government will therefore extend the scope of the higher rate of APD to cover all private jets over 5.7 tonnes. This change will mean that private jet passengers always pay higher rates of APD compared to commercial flyers and ensures fair and consistent taxation across private aviation.

The Chancellor makes decisions on tax policy at fiscal events, and does not routinely comment on proposals.

Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, what steps his Department is taking to help tackle potential barriers to overseas companies establishing UK operations and employing workers directly.

Answered by Chris McDonald - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Overseas companies are able to establish operations in the UK and employ workers directly, subject to the relevant legal, tax and employment requirements. The Government continues to take steps to ensure the UK remains an attractive and competitive location for international businesses to invest, establish and grow.

This includes a strengthened Office for Investment to support strategically significant investors, working across government to help address potential investment barriers including access to finance, access to skills, planning, and utilities. The Government is also looking to introduce a corporate re-domiciliation regime, enabling overseas companies to move their incorporation to the UK while retaining their legal identity, thereby reducing associated costs and complexity.

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 impact of non-domestic energy costs on small hospitality businesses, including pubs and breweries.

Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade) (Jointly with the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Government recognises that energy costs are a significant pressure on businesses, including small hospitality businesses such as pubs and breweries. We are closely monitoring the impact of energy prices on businesses and continue to develop policies to bring down electricity costs for the non-domestic sector. The best way to reduce bills sustainably is to reduce the UK’s exposure to volatile fossil fuel markets through clean, home-grown energy. We are also supporting businesses to reduce energy demand and bills through schemes that improve energy efficiency and help firms identify cost-effective measures to reduce energy use.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if his department can provide an update on the timeframes for the introduction of dedicated courtrooms for rape and serious sexual offence cases for Maidstone Crown Court.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

As part of our mission to halve violence against women and girls in a decade, we recently announced a package of measures to improve victims' experiences at court and reduce delays in rape and serious sexual offence cases.

Backed by £23 million investment, every Crown Court building will have at least one specialist rape and serious sexual offence courtroom by 2028. These courtrooms will provide improved facilities and technology, including for pre-recorded evidence, remote observation of sentencing and participation from a private room, helping to ensure victims of rape and sexual offences receive better, more tailored support through the court process. We will also introduce a best practice framework for these cases, trauma informed training for court staff, and trial a single point of contact to ensure that these victims’ needs are met by the court.

In addition, we will deliver victim-centred court upgrades in the Crown Court, such as separate entrances and private waiting rooms to spare victims the trauma of seeing their perpetrator. Where these are not already available, priority will be given to courts with high numbers of rape and serious sexual offences. These upgrades will be made by 2030.

Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, what assessment his Department has made of the potential for remote and distributed employment models to increase access to tech and AI jobs in regions outside London and the South East.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Minister of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade)

Remote working and other forms of flexible working can increase access to employment opportunities across sectors and the country. The changes we are making through the Employment Rights Act will improve access to flexible working.

While the Department has not made a specific assessment of the impact of these changes on technology and AI jobs, we are helping people across the UK seize the opportunities of AI by investing in local talent, skills and career pathways. Through the TechLocal fund, we are connecting people to new tech jobs, graduate traineeships and AI learning opportunities in their communities.