Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will launch a nationwide review of neonatal (a) mortality rates and (b) unexplained deaths.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government has no current plans to launch a nationwide review of neonatal mortality rates and unexplained deaths. Professor Lord Darzi’s report on his independent investigation of the National Health Service in England has shone a light on the critical condition of the NHS, and the Government will continue to work closely with NHS England to ensure that women and babies receive safe, personalised, and compassionate care.
Neonatal mortality and neonatal unexplained deaths are measured by both the Office for National Statistics and the National Child Mortality Database. Since 2010, the neonatal mortality rate in England has decreased by 25% for babies with at least 24 weeks completed gestation. Since 2010, the number of babies who died unexpectedly in their first 28 days of life in England and Wales decreased from 40 to 29.
The NHS is working to further improve outcomes for babies and is rolling out the third version of the Saving Babies' Lives Care Bundle to all trusts. This provides maternity units with guidance and interventions to reduce stillbirths, neonatal brain injury, neonatal death, and preterm birth.
Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of means-testing Winter Fuel Payments on pensioner poverty in Harpenden and Berkhamsted constituency.
Answered by Emma Reynolds - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
No such assessment has been made, as statistics for the total number of people living in poverty are not available at a constituency level.
This Government is committed to pensioners – everyone in our society, no matter their working history or savings deserves a comfortable and dignified retirement.
Winter Fuel Payments will continue to be paid to pensioner households with someone receiving Pension Credit or certain other income-related benefits. They will continue to be worth £200 for eligible households, or £300 for eligible households with someone aged over 80.
Immediate support for pensioners includes our commitment to the Triple Lock, with over 12 million pensioners set to benefit through the course of this parliament, with the full yearly rate of the new State Pensions forecast to increase by around £1700.
The Warm Home Discount scheme in England and Wales provides eligible low-income households across Great Britain with a £150 rebate on their electricity bill. This winter, we expect over three million households, including over one million pensioners, to benefit under the scheme.
We are also providing support for pensioners through our Warm Homes Plan which will support investment in insulation and low carbon heating – upgrading millions of homes over this Parliament. Our long-term plan will protect billpayers permanently, reduce fuel poverty, and get the UK back on track to meet our climate goals.
The Household Support Fund is also being extended for a further six months, from 1 October 2024 until 31 March 2025. An additional £421 million will be provided to enable the extension of the HSF in England, plus funding for the Devolved Governments through the Barnett formula to be spent at their discretion, as usual.
Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she made of the implications for her policies of the document entitled General Election 2024: NSPCC priorities for manifestos and programmes for government, published in May 2024.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Nothing is more important than keeping children safe and the government is committed to protecting children experiencing, or at risk of experiencing, significant harm as well as tackling the underlying factors driving this. The department is interested in all reports, evidence and recommendations which can help it drive forward better outcomes for children and young people, and to that end, regularly engages the NSPCC and stakeholders across the children and families sector.
Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the rate of fines for parents and carers taking their children out of school during term times on encouraging school attendance.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Tackling absence is at the heart of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity. The government understands that reasons for absence are varied, which is why updated statutory attendance guidance sets out that schools, trusts and local authorities should always work together with other local partners to understand the barriers to attendance and establish strategies for removing them.
The government’s support-first approach is the right one. Penalty notices should only be used in cases where support is not appropriate, such as in cases of holidays taken in term-time, or where support has already been provided and has not been engaged with or has not worked.
Information about the rates of fixed penalty notices is published here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/parental-responsibility-measures.
Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of enabling alms houses to access section 106 funding and Community Infrastructure Levy in the same way as housing associations.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
It is up to local planning authorities to determine what contributions should be sought through Section 106 agreements, in line with statutory tests on their use set out in regulation 122 of the Community Infrastructure Regulations 2010.
Our consultation on proposed reforms to the National Planning Policy Framework seeks views on whether changes are needed to the definition of ‘affordable housing for rent’ to make it easier for organisations that are not Registered Providers, including almshouses, to develop new affordable homes. This is intended to inform our approach to National Development Management Policies. The consultation, which closes on 24 September, is published at the following link.