Written questions by Hume.

Whether the Government plans to introduce a cap for social care costs.

His Majesty’s Government inherited a commitment to implement charging reforms, including a cap on personal care costs, in October 2025. Regrettably, funding for these reforms had not been guaranteed, preparations for full rollout were not on track, and thus it was impossible to deliver these reforms by next October.This government remains committed to reforming the adult social care sector; and we are launching an independent commission into adult social care as part of our critical first steps towards delivering a National Care Service.Chaired by Baroness Louise Casey and reporting to the Prime Minister, the Commission will be comprehensive and will build on the expert proposals of other reviews, including that of Sir Andrew Dilnot into care funding and support. It will be broader and wider than ever before, asking essential questions about the shape and future of the social care sector, including what long-term and sustainable funding solutions should look like.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the Youth Guarantee on young people in Scarborough and Whitby constituency.

The Youth Guarantee will ensure that all 18-21 year olds have access to education and training opportunities or support to find work. All young people will have access to the same core national offer and entitlements under the Youth Guarantee. However, we know that the needs of young people and the labour market vary in different areas across England, so it is important that local areas are able to tailor the Youth Guarantee, so it best meets those needs. As a first step, the Get Britain Working White Paper announced funding for 8 Youth Guarantee Trailblazer areas in England in 2025/26. Learning from the Trailblazers will inform our approach in the future.Our Youth Guarantee will ensure everyone aged 18-21 in England can access quality training, educational opportunities or help to find work - wherever they live. Work is underway on the design and delivery of the new Youth Guarantee. We are unable to make an official assessment of the potential impact of the Youth Guarantee on young people in Scarborough and Whitby constituency at this early stage.

What steps she is taking to support self-employed people to buy a bicycle.

The Department and Active Travel England will consider options for making cycles more accessible to all, including self-employed people, as it develops its future plans for active travel.

What assessment he has made of the potential merits of using cellular smart meters to create a fully functioning smart meter network in the north of England.

Under its licence, the Data Communications Company (DCC) is obligated to provide Wide Area Network (WAN) coverage to at least 99.5% of premises across its ‘North’ region.DCC's work on its Future Connectivity strategy includes consideration of a full range of technical solutions including cellular options.

What guidance his Department issues to energy suppliers on their statutory responsibilities for installing functioning smart meters in customers’ homes.

The Department is working closely with industry to make sure they are addressing meters that are not providing automatic readings. This work includes monitoring and sharing benchmarked performance data, sharing best practice and providing guidance on how to identify and resolve meter operation issues. Energy suppliers are obligated under their licence conditions to meet minimum annual installation targets and take all reasonable steps to ensure their customers’ smart meters are functional. The Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem) is responsible for regulating

What assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the smart meter network in the north of England.

The Government recognises that too many households across GB are currently unable to send automatic readings to their energy suppliers, including meters without access to WAN coverage. We will set out new plans to improve the rollout and the consumer experience, alongside Ofgem, in due course.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of providing targeted financial support to people with mobility impairments that are purchasing adapted bicycles.

The Government has announced an additional £100 million investment in cycling and walking infrastructure for the financial year 2025/26. As the Department develops its future plans for active travel, it will consider, alongside Active Travel England, options for enabling more disabled people to access adapted cycles. In the meantime, the Cycle to Work scheme already enables many people to access adapted cycles at a reduced cost.

How many people of state pension age were in receipt of (a) Working and (b) Child Tax Credit in (a) Scarborough and Whitby constituency and (b) North Yorkshire on 4 November 2024.

The information requested is not available for 4 November 2024.The latest relevant statistics, “Child and working tax credits statistics: provisional awards, April 2024” were published in July based on available data on 1 April 2024. These statistics can be found here: Child and Working Tax Credits Statistics: Provisional Awards - April 2024 - GOV.UKFrom further analysis of these statistics, the numbers requested are: Working Tax CreditsChild Tax CreditsScarborough and Whitby4030North Yorkshire22080These numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10 and include those recipients who are claiming both Working and Child Tax Credits.

How many people were in receipt of (a) income-related Employment and Support Allowance, (b) income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance, (c) Income Support, (d) Pension Credit and (e) Universal Credit in (i) Scarborough and Whitby constituency and (b) North Yorkshire on 4 November 2024.

Official statistics for the number of people in receipt of Employment and Support Allowance, Jobseeker’s Allowance, Income Support, Pension Credit and Universal Credit are published regularly on Stat-Xplore, with breakdowns available by various geographical areas, including Westminster parliamentary constituency. The latest statistics are available to September 2024 for Universal Credit, and February 2024 for the other benefits. Universal Credit statistics to October 2024 are due to be published on 12 November 2024, and for the other benefits to May 2024 on 28 November 2024. Users can log in or access Stat-Xplore as a guest and, if needed, can access guidance on how to extract the information required. There is also a Universal Credit Official Statistics: Stat-Xplore user guide.

What steps he is taking to improve service life for serving personnel and their families.

I recognise the urgent need to transform the way we support our people and their families. The men and women of our Armed Forces and those who support them are at the heart of our Defence planning. Since July this Government has delivered the largest pay rise for the Armed Forces in over 20 years and have committed to strengthening the Armed Forces Covenant by bringing it into law.

If he will make an estimate of the number and proportion of (a) adults and (b) children that do not have access to an NHS dentist in Scarborough and Whitby constituency.

The responsibility for commissioning primary care, including dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to all integrated care boards (ICBs) across England. For the Scarborough and Whitby constituency, this would be the NHS Humber and North Yorkshire ICB. According to the 2024 General Practice Patient Survey (GPPS), 25% of adults who tried to get a National Health Service dentist appointment in the last two years in the NHS Humber and North Yorkshire ICB were unsuccessful, compared to 23% in England. This data is sourced from the GP Patient Survey Dental Statistics, which is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/2024/07/11/gp-patient-survey-dental-statistics-january-to-march-2024-england/Data on the number of adults and children who do not have access to an NHS dentist is not available. However, the GPPS gives us an insight into how many people are unsuccessfully attempting to get a dentist appointment. The equivalent data for children is not available.

What steps he is taking to help ensure the adequacy of patient access to (a) Creon and (b) other pancreatic enzyme replacement medications; and whether he has had recent discussions with (i) NHS England and (ii) pharmaceutical companies on supplies of such medication.

The Department has been working with suppliers to address current supply issues with Creon, which is used by patients with conditions such as cystic fibrosis and certain cancers including pancreatic cancer. The supply issues with Creon are impacting countries throughout Europe and have been caused by limited availability of raw ingredients and manufacturing capacity constraints to produce volumes needed to meet demand. These issues have resulted in knock-on supply disruptions of alternative pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy medications. The Department is continuing to work with all suppliers of pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy to help resolve the supply issues in the short and longer term. This includes asking that they expedite deliveries, source stock from other markets, and increase production.The supplier of Creon has advised that they expect to have regular supplies released each month going forward and are working to increase the quantities released. Serious Shortage Protocols are in place for Creon 10,000 and 25,000 capsules which pharmacists can use to restrict supply to one month at a time to ensure more patients have access to it whilst stock is limited.We have worked closely with colleagues in NHS England to issue comprehensive guidance to healthcare professionals about these supply issues and encourage sharing of local solutions. The guidance provides advice on how to manage patients whilst there is disruption to supply and is being kept under review, with updates made as necessary.

What steps he is taking with (a) NHS England and (b) pharmaceutical companies to ensure that patients have sufficient supplies of ADHD medication.

The Department monitors and manages medicine supply at a national level so that stocks remain available to meet regional and local demand. Information is not collected on a local level.The Department has been working hard with industry and NHS England to help resolve supply issues with some attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medicines, which are affecting the United Kingdom and other countries around the world. As a result of intensive work, some issues have been resolved and all strengths of lisdexamfetamine, atomoxetine capsules, and guanfacine prolonged-release tablets are now available.We are continuing to work to resolve supply issues where they remain, for methylphenidate prolonged-release tablets. We are engaging with all suppliers of methylphenidate prolonged-release tablets to assess the challenges faced and their actions to address them. We are also directing suppliers to secure additional stocks, expedite deliveries where possible, and review plans to further build capacity to support continued growth in demand for the short and long-term. We anticipate intermittent regional supply disruptions to continue, and we expect supply to improve in the UK from October 2024.In parallel, the Department has worked with specialist clinicians, including those within the National Health Service, to develop management advice for NHS clinicians to consider prescribing available alternative brands of methylphenidate prolonged release tablets or available alternative ADHD medicines. We would expect ADHD service providers and specialists to follow our guidance, which includes offering rapid response to primary care teams seeking urgent advice or opinion for the management of patients, including those known to be at a higher risk of adverse impact because of these shortages.To aid ADHD service providers and prescribers further we have widely disseminated our communications, and continually update a list of currently available and unavailable ADHD products on the Specialist Pharmacy Service website, helping ensure that those involved in the prescribing and dispensing of ADHD medications can make informed decisions with patients.

If he will make an estimate of the number of dentistry practices in Scarborough and Whitby constituency accepting new (a) adult and (b) child NHS patients on the (i) most recent date for which figures are available and (ii) same date in 2010.

While the data is not held for 2010, as of 9 October 2024, there were 15 open dentistry practices in the Scarborough and Whitby constituency, two of which were showing as ‘accepting new adult patients when availability allows’ and four of which were showing as ‘accepting new child patients when availability allows’. This data is sourced from the Find a Dentist website, and is matched to constituencies based on the postcode data shown on the website, which is available at the following link:https://www.nhs.uk/service-search/find-a-dentist

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of dental care provision in Scarborough and Whitby constituency; and whether he plans to take steps to help improve that provision.

Dental Statistics - England 2023-24, published by the NHS Business Services Authority on 22 August 2024, is available at the following link:https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/statistical-collections/dental-england/dental-statistics-england-202324The data for NHS Humber and North Yorkshire Integrated Care Board, which includes the Scarborough and Whitby constituency, shows that 42% of adults were seen by a National Health Service dentist in the previous 24 months, compared to 40% in England; and 60% of children were seen by an NHS dentist in the previous 12 months, compared to 56% in England.This Government is committed to tackling the challenges for patients trying to access NHS dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to areas that need them most. To rebuild dentistry in the long term, we will reform the dental contract, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.The responsibility for commissioning primary care dentistry to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to integrated care boards (ICBs) across England. ICBs are responsible for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry, to meet the needs of the local populations and to determine the priorities for investment.