Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many dependants of care worker and senior care worker Skilled Worker visa holders continually employed in the UK since before 11 March 2024 have been refused extensions to their leave to remain; and what guidance has her Department issued to caseworkers on handling such applications.

Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

The information requested is not centrally held and could only be collected and verified for the purpose of answering this question at disproportionate cost.

The immigration rules and caseworker guidance set out how visa applications should be handled. Dependents of care workers (SOC code 6135) or senior care workers (SOC code 6136) can apply to join a Skilled Worker, if the lead applicant has continuously had permission as a Skilled Worker since before 11 March 2024 and this is to extend their dependent visa.

Further information can be found in Appendix Skilled worker of the Immigration Rules at SW32A.2 (a)(i). Information for caseworkers can be found on page 8 of the dependent caseworker guidance: Dependent family members in work routes.

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 ensure that hospices can implement staff pay awards in line with national Agenda for Change pay scales, where these staff are delivering NHS contracted services.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Hospices, as independent organisations, are free to develop and adapt their own terms and conditions of employment, including pay scales and, therefore, it is for them to determine what is affordable within the financial model they operate and how to recoup any additional costs they face if they choose to utilise the terms and conditions of NHS staff on the Agenda for Change contract.

NHS England uprates national allocations in line with the pay rises for integrated care boards (ICBs). It is down to the local contractual arrangements whether this includes the increases for pay rises or not, which will help to determine what the hospice can afford. So, there is no single model which is consistent across England.

Additional funding for 2026/27 Pay Review Body awards will be provided to reflect the final pay award through an increase to ICB allocations and NHS Payment Scheme prices. Full guidance will be available in due course.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of implementing NHS pay rises for all hospice staff in line with Agenda for Change pay scales.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Hospices, as independent organisations, are free to develop and adapt their own terms and conditions of employment, including pay scales and, therefore, it is for them to determine what is affordable within the financial model they operate and how to recoup any additional costs they face if they choose to utilise the terms and conditions of NHS staff on the Agenda for Change contract.

NHS England uprates national allocations in line with the pay rises for integrated care boards (ICBs). It is down to the local contractual arrangements whether this includes the increases for pay rises or not, which will help to determine what the hospice can afford. So, there is no single model which is consistent across England.

Additional funding for 2026/27 Pay Review Body awards will be provided to reflect the final pay award through an increase to ICB allocations and NHS Payment Scheme prices. Full guidance will be available in due course.

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 reduce the number of women waiting for NHS treatment in Harpenden and Berkhamsted constituency.

Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government is committed to prioritising women’s health, including in Harpenden and Berkhamsted. We will ensure that women get equal access to high quality elective care, including tackling long waits for gynaecology services.

The Elective Reform Plan sets out our approach to returning by March 2029 to the National Health Service constitutional standard that 92% of patients wait no longer than 18 weeks from referral to consultant-led treatment across all patient groups and specialities, including women waiting for gynaecological care.

Performance against this standard across gynaecology services is up more than 6% since the start of July 2024, and gynaecology waiting lists are down by over 35,000 over the same period. As at the end of March 2026, the number of gynaecology pathways waiting within 18 weeks was 65.4%, an improvement of 5.1% since July 2024.

We are implementing measures to improve gynaecology services and improve women’s access to care. This includes innovative models of care that offer care closer to home and in the community, piloting gynaecology pathways in community diagnostic centres for patients with post-menopausal bleeding, and increasing the relative funding available to incentivise providers to take on more gynaecology procedures.

We are also introducing an “online hospital”, NHS Online. From 2027, people on certain pathways, including severe menopause symptoms and menstrual problems that may be a sign of endometriosis or fibroids, will have the choice of getting the specialist care they need from their home, providing additional appointments to cut waiting times.

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 reduce inequalities in health outcomes in Harpenden and Berkhamsted constituency.

Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government is committed to reducing inequalities in health outcomes across the country, including in Harpenden and Berkhamsted, and to increasing the time people spend in good health.

We know everyday life poses greater health risks to the most disadvantaged in society, and that the current model of care works least well for those who already experience disadvantage and are far more likely to have complex needs. To help tackle this, we are reviewing the Carr-Hill formula so funding better reflects need.

We are acting on the wider causes of ill health through measures such as the Tobacco and Vapes Act, which will create the first smoke-free generation, and action to tackle childhood obesity, including restrictions on junk food advertising aimed at children on television and online.

We are also taking cross-Government action on the wider determinants of health, recognising that health outcomes are shaped by factors beyond healthcare alone. This includes measures such as Awaab’s Law, which will require landlords to address serious damp and mould hazards, and legislation for a new statutory health and health inequalities duty for strategic authorities.

Hertfordshire County Council delivers its statutory public health functions and wider health inequalities activity through a ring fenced Public Health Grant received annually from the Department. The Hertfordshire County Council Director of Public Health is responsible for the use of the grant in line with the grant conditions. For 2026/27 the value of the consolidated grant for Hertfordshire was £65 million.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of funding and support for unpaid carers in Harpenden and Berkhamsted to enable them to remain in employment and/or education.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government recognises the vital contribution made by unpaid carers, including those in Harpenden and Berkhamsted, and is committed to supporting carers to balance their caring responsibilities with employment and education.

The Department has not made a specific assessment of the adequacy of funding and support for unpaid carers in Harpenden and Berkhamsted. Under the Care Act 2014, local authorities have a duty to assess carers’ needs and, where eligible needs are identified, to provide support to help carers maintain their wellbeing, including participation in work, education and training.

The Government is reviewing the implementation of carer’s leave and looking at where any improvements may be needed to ensure that employment rights for unpaid carers are fit for the modern world of work. This includes a public consultation on employment rights for unpaid carers and parents of seriously ill children, which was launched on 9 June 2026. More information on the consultation is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/make-work-pay-employment-rights-for-unpaid-carers-and-parents-of-seriously-ill-children

In addition, we have raised the Carer’s Allowance weekly earnings limit in April 2025, and it increased again to £204 net earnings a week for 2026/27.

The Government is also making approximately £4.6 billion of additional funding available for adult social care in 2028/29 compared to 2025/26, to support the sector in making improvements. Local areas determine how the money is best used to support carers, depending on local need and with reference to their statutory responsibilities.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment his Department has made of the cost of energy bills in Harpenden and Berkhamsted.

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

No specific assessment has been made for Harpenden and Berkhamsted.

Tackling affordability is this government’s number one priority, and we are taking action. Our decisions at last year’s Budget took an average of £150 of costs off of energy bills. Decisions are now factored into bills for the years to come and mean the rise in the energy price cap from 1^st July is significantly lower than it would have been. In addition, the £150 Warm Home Discount has been expanded to cover around 6 million households across Great Britain.

NHS funding for mental health services

GP access

NHS dentistry

NHS maternity services

A&E corridor care

Palantir and the NHS

Risk of AI chatbots to children