Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the answer of 15 October 2025 to Question 75367 on Cabinet Office: Equality, which diversity networks in his Department are eligible for diversity network time.
Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The Cabinet Office has a number of diversity networks listed below. Currently only chairs of diversity networks are offered up to 10% of their time for network related actvities.
Diversity Networks
All Ages Network- EngAge
Carers network
Christian Network
Disability Network (ABLE)
Faith and Belief Forum
Women in Digital network
Flexible Working network
LGBT+ network
Gender Equality network
Menopause network
Neurodiversity network
Race Equality (CORE) Network
Parental Support Network
Social Mobility Network
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
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 increasing levels of research into the (a) causes of and (b) treatment pathways for endometriosis.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), the research delivery arm of the Department, funds and supports a range of research to support women’s health conditions, including endometriosis. These awards seek to improve outcomes for women with endometriosis by better understanding the condition, enabling earlier diagnosis, and evaluating current and emerging treatment options.
Ongoing NIHR funded research includes a £2.1 million trial to look at the effectiveness of keyhole surgery to treat endometriosis, with a new £2.4 million NIHR funded research programme on pain management for endometriosis due to start in March 2026. Further information on both of these studies is available, respectively, at the following two links:
https://fundingawards.nihr.ac.uk/award/NIHR129801
https://fundingawards.nihr.ac.uk/award/NIHR169738
The NIHR continues to welcome funding applications for research into endometriosis. 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.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
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 the National Maternity Taskforce includes balanced representation between (a) professional bodies and (b) families with lived experience of maternity services.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Maternity and Neonatal Taskforce, chaired by my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, will be made of up a breadth of expertise. This will include people who bring clinical and international perspectives, those who can speak to the inequalities within maternal health, workforce representatives, and families with lived experience.
We are currently engaging with families, including service user representatives, as well as other individuals and organisations in the maternity and neonatal sector, on the make-up of the taskforce and its terms of reference, and we will carefully consider their feedback.
My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care is committed to ensuring the voices of women and families are at the heart of improving maternity and neonatal care.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what payments to asylum seekers are delivered via the Asylum Support Payments contract.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Home Office has a legal obligation to meet the essential living needs of destitute asylum seekers. Support is usually provided in the form of accommodation and a weekly allowance, which is reviewed each year to ensure it covers essential living needs.
The standard weekly level of allowance for individuals in self-catered accommodation will remain at £49.18. For individuals in catered accommodation, the standard weekly allowance is £9.95.
Additional support is also available to pregnant women, young children, and individuals who can show they have exceptional needs.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to coordinate with allies, including Japan and the United States, to uphold peace and security in the Taiwan Strait.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK's longstanding position on Taiwan has not changed. The UK has a clear interest in peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and considers the Taiwan issue one to be settled by people on both sides of the Strait through constructive dialogue, without the threat or use of force or coercion in any context. We support all actions to de-escalate tensions that are not conducive to peace and stability.
Asked by: Julian Lewis (Conservative - New Forest East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 25 November 2025 to Question 92953 on State Retirement Pensions: Women, if he will make an estimate of the number of women born in the 1950s who have died since the publication of the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman's findings (HC 638) on 21 March 2024.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) and National Records Scotland (NRS) publish annual data on deaths by sex and age group on their websites.
Asked by: Lord Krebs (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the demographic groups with the biggest barriers to the objectives laid out in the third cycling and walking investment strategy, published on 3 November.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Active Travel England has commissioned a range of evidence assessments which reference barriers to walking, wheeling and cycling for different demographic groups, including women, socio-economically disadvantaged groups such as those on low incomes, and people with disabilities.
The National Travel Survey (NTS) has also historically undertaken research in this area. The results of which can be found online.
The public consultation on the development of the third Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy is open until 15th December 2025. The Department for Transport is also holding stakeholder engagement workshops with organisations representing disabled and older people, children and younger people, and local authorities which will supplement the public consultation.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has had recent discussions with families who have experienced baby loss on their experience of (a) maternity services and (b) other healthcare provision.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has held a series of meetings with harmed and bereaved families from across the country to hear about their experiences of maternity care and the wider healthcare system, most recently meeting with families failed by maternity care at Leeds Teaching Hospital Trust. He has also twice visited Nottingham to meet with families involved in the ongoing independent review of maternity services at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust.
The Hon. Member and other local constituency MPs were invited to a meeting. However, the Hon. Member was unable to attend.
The Secretary of State has committed to ensuring the voices of women and families are at the heart of improving standards.
Asked by: Charlotte Nichols (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to NHS England's plan entitled Cervical cancer elimination by 2040 – plan for England, published on 28 March 2025, if his Department will set out (a) who is responsible for each of the actions in that plan, (b) when those actions will be delivered by and (c) what the metrics are for success.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to improving vaccine uptake and access across all immunisation programmes by exploring new and innovative delivery models, including expanding routes such as community pharmacies, as set out in the NHS Vaccination Strategy and the 10-Year Health Plan for England.
In June, the UK National Screening Committee, which advises ministers on all aspects of screening, recommended a human papilloma virus (HPV) self-sampling option to women and people with a cervix who never or rarely attend routine cervical screening appointments. From early in 2026, they will receive home testing kits if they have not responded to a cervical screening invitation for a period of time. This will help tackle deeply entrenched barriers that keep some away from life-saving screening.
The World Health Organisation’s cervical cancer elimination targets will be used as the basis for ongoing monitoring, along with the regular assessment of cervical cancer rates.
NHS England will be monitoring and evaluating the success of all the individual activities included within its elimination plan, as well as new initiatives as they are developed and implemented.
Asked by: Catherine West (Labour - Hornsey and Friern Barnet)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps his Department is taking to (a) safeguard and (b) improve workplace rights for women.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Plan to Make Work Pay and Employment Rights Bill illustrate the government’s commitment to supporting women at work.
Key measures include reviewing the parental leave system, making it more likely flexible working requests are accepted, ending exploitative zero hours contracts and strengthening protections against workplace sexual harassment.
The government is committed to tackling pregnancy and maternity discrimination and supporting women to stay in work. We are currently consulting on legislation which will make it unlawful to dismiss pregnant women, mothers on Maternity Leave, and mothers for at least six months after they return to work – except in specific circumstances.