Written questions by Cooper.

What recent estimate her Department has made of the number of people in employment who are living in poverty in Mid Cheshire constituency.

Statistics for the total number of people in employment living in relative and absolute poverty are not available at a constituency level.Statistics on the total number of people in employment living in relative and absolute poverty both before and after housing costs at regional level are published annually in the Households Below Average Income statistics Households below average income (HBAI) statistics - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)(opens in a new tab).

What recent estimate his Department has made of the number of (a) adults and (b) children in Mid Cheshire constituency who (i) are not registered with an NHS dentist and (ii) have been unable to access NHS dental treatment in each of the last five years; and what steps his Department is taking to improve access to NHS dentistry in Mid Cheshire constituency.

Patients in England are not registered with a National Health Service dental practice, although many NHS dental practices do tend to see patients regularly. There is no geographical restriction on which practice a patient may attend, allowing patients the choice of where they would like to receive a course of treatment. Therefore, we cannot provide the number of people who are not registered with an NHS dentist.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 Mid Cheshire constituency, this is the NHS Cheshire and Merseyside ICB.We do not hold information on the number of adults and children unable to access NHS dental treatment, but the GP Patient Survey (GPPS) gives information on the percentage of adults who tried to get an NHS dental appointment in the last two years but were not successful in doing so. The GPPS 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/The 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 to recruit new dentists to the 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 retaining NHS dentists.

If he will make an assessment of the potential merits of offering potential foster carers the required health assessment free of charge on the NHS.

Foster carers must undergo a full assessment and be approved by a fostering service provider before any child can be placed in their care. This includes a medical assessment. These assessments are not part of the GP contract with the National Health Service.When asked to assist with medical evidence reports, there are some letters, certificates, or reports that general practices may charge for, and other certificates that they must not charge for. This is set out in law through the General Medical Services and Personal Medical Services Regulations, which form the basis of the GP contract with the NHS.The Department for Education sets out National Minimum Standards for fostering, and costs for caring may be covered by local authorities or fostering agencies.

What (a) financial and (b) other steps her Department is taking to help prevent crime in (i) Mid Cheshire constituency, (ii) Cheshire, (iii) England.

The 2024-25 police funding settlement provides funding of up to £18.5 billion. Cheshire Police’s funding will be up to £264.2m in 2024-25. This is in addition to £2.5m provided for the 2024-25 pay award which has been allocated outside of the police funding settlement.Further funding has been provided through the Hotspot Response Programme, under which Cheshire has been allocated £1,000,000 for 2024/25 to deliver visible uniformed patrols in the streets and neighbourhoods worst affected by serious violence and Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB).In addition, this Government has put prevention front and centre of our plans to improve the lives of people across the United Kingdom. We have committed to rolling out a network of Young Futures Hubs which will bring together services to help improve the way young people can access the support they need. We will be engaging with local communities, the police, charities, and other key partners to support the design of the hubs and explore options for their delivery.Finally, the Home Secretary has also made a clear commitment to strengthen neighbourhood policing through the introduction of a Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee, which includes the addition of thousands more neighbourhood police personnel, as part of the Safer Streets mission. Funding for 2025/26 will be subject to the Spending Review.

Innovation and Technology, what recent estimate his Department has made of the number of households in (a) Mid Cheshire constituency, (b) Cheshire and (c) England that do not have (i) broadband and (ii) mobile internet access.

According to the independent website ThinkBroadband.com, 0.3% of premises in the Mid Cheshire constituency, 0.7% in Cheshire and 0.6% in England overall do not have access to broadband speeds in excess of the legal Universal Service Obligation (USO) of 10Mbps.Ofcom publishes mobile coverage data for premises through its Connected Nations Reports and does not distinguish between households and other premises. Ofcom’s most recent coverage reporting reports that 127,447 (0.5%) premises across England do not have indoor 4G mobile coverage from any mobile network operator (MNO). This falls to 10,382 (0.04%) premises for 4G outdoor coverage. Ofcom data does not enable us to make an assessment of the number of premises in Cheshire that do not have coverage from any MNO.

Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to tackle digital exclusion in (a) Mid Cheshire constituency, (b) Cheshire and (c) England.

Although the previous government did not update its digital inclusion strategy for ten years, digital inclusion is a priority for the new government, so that everyone has the access, skills, support and confidence to participate in a modern digital society, whatever their circumstances. Work is ongoing to develop our approach to tackling digital exclusion, and we will be working closely with the third sector and local authorities, many of whom have already implemented highly successful programmes, to ensure interventions are collaborative, targeted and effective.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of introducing a licensing regime for short-term lets.

While recognising the benefits that short-term lets can have for local economies, the Government appreciates that excessive concentrations in some areas of the country can impact on the availability and affordability of homes to buy and rent as well as having a detrimental impact on local services.The Government is committed to the introduction of a short-term let registration scheme and to abolishing the furnished holiday lets tax regime to remove the tax incentive that short-term let owners have over long-term landlords. In addition, we are considering what additional powers we might give local authorities to enable them to better manage excessive concentrations of such properties.

If he will make an estimate of the proportion of households in (a) Mid Cheshire constituency, (b) Cheshire and (c) England that spent more than 10% of their income on energy costs in each of the last three years.

The latest statistics for the number of households in fuel poverty (using the Low Income Low Energy Efficiency fuel poverty metric) in parliamentary constituencies in England, can be found in the published sub-regional fuel poverty statistics, in Table 4: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/sub-regional-fuel-poverty-2023-2021-data The latest official Fuel Poverty Statistics for England were published in February 2024 here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/fuel-poverty-statistics#2023-statistics Annex D of the report and table 20 of the Trends tables include statistics from 2010 to 2024 using an affordability measure of the number of households required to spend more than 10 per cent of their income on domestic energy. Affordability measure estimates are not held at sub-national level.

How many residential properties in Mid Cheshire constituency have been purchased in preparation for HS2 Phase 2b; and what proportion of those properties have been void for longer than six months.

HS2 Ltd currently holds 51 residential properties on the Managed Portfolio in the Mid Cheshire constituency, of which 31 are let and 20 are vacant. 9 of these properties have been vacant for 6 months or more. The majority of vacant properties in Mid Cheshire are currently being actively marketed or prepared for letting, though only where such expenditure provides value for money to the taxpayer.

What recent estimate he has made of the number of people in (a) Mid Cheshire constituency, (b) Cheshire and (c) England who have unmet care needs; and what steps his Department is taking to help ensure those care needs are met.

Local authorities are responsible for assessing individuals’ care and support needs and, where eligible, for meeting those needs. Where individuals do not meet the eligibility threshold, they can get support from their local authorities in making their own arrangements for care services, as set out in the Care Act 2014.We recognise that there are challenges in adult social care, with people needing to fight a complicated system or go without the care they need. Lord Darzi’s report indicated a growing gap between requests and those receiving publicly funded care, and the number of people receiving long term care decreased between 2015/16 and 2022/23. There is limited information on self-funders who arrange their own care.Long-term reform is needed in adult social care. We will work with the sector to build consensus for a National Care Service, based on consistent national standards, to support people in living independent and dignified lives.In the interim, Care Quality Commission (CQC) local authority assessments consider the performance of the delivery of the Care Act 2014 duties, including the timeliness of assessing care needs. If the CQC identifies that a local authority has failed or is failing its functions to an acceptable standard, my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has powers to intervene. The CQC has published its first nine local authority ratings and reports.

What steps he is taking to improve patient access to primary care in (a) Mid Cheshire constituency, (b) Cheshire and (c) England.

We are committed to fixing the crisis in primary care to secure the long-term sustainability of the National Health Service and increase access to local services across the country.We are also committed to moving towards a Neighbourhood Health Service, with more care delivered in local communities to spot problems earlier. We will trial Neighbourhood Health Centres to bring together a range of services under one roof, ensuring healthcare is closer to home and that patients receive the care they deserve.We have pledged to train thousands more general practitioners (GPs) to increase capacity, and additional funding of £82 million has now been made available to include newly qualified GPs in the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme over 2024/25.

Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to support first-time buyer households in (a) Mid Cheshire constituency, (b) Cheshire (c) and England.

The affordability challenges facing prospective first-time buyers mean that too many people are now locked out of homeownership. In addition to increasing the supply of homes of all tenures, we have committed to introduce a permanent, comprehensive mortgage guarantee scheme and to give first-time buyers the first chance to buy homes.

What steps her Department is taking to improve the (a) recruitment and (b) retention of teachers in (i) Mid Cheshire constituency, (ii) Cheshire and (iii) England.

​​​​​​High quality teaching is the factor that makes the biggest difference to a child’s education. There are now 468,693 full-time equivalent teachers in state-funded schools in England, but the government must do more to ensure it has the workforce needed to provide the best possible education for every child in all parts of the country. This is why the government has set out the ambition to recruit 6,500 new expert teachers and retain our excellent school staff.The first crucial steps towards achieving this are to ensure teaching is once again an attractive and respected profession and to reset the relationship with the teaching profession. As part of this, it is important that teachers get the pay they deserve, which is why this government is fully funding, as recommended by the School Teachers’ Review Body, the 5.5% pay award for teachers and leaders in maintained schools. Additionally, from 1 September 2024 schools are no longer required to use performance related pay (PRP) as the basis for appraisals and decisions related to pay progression.This government is providing schools with almost £1.1 billion in additional funding in the 2024/25 financial year to support schools with overall costs. This matches what we have calculated is needed to fully fund, at a national level, the teacher pay award, and the support staff pay offer in the 2024/25 financial year, after accounting for the overall available headroom in schools’ existing budgets.​Alongside teacher pay, the department is making £200 million available for bursaries and scholarships annually, with shortage subject trainees eligible in 2023/2024 for the highest bursaries of £28,000 and £30,000 for scholarships. The department will shortly be announcing the trainee incentives for the 2025/26 academic year.To help with retention, new teachers of mathematics, physics, chemistry and computing in the first five years of their careers can also receive a targeted retention incentive if working in disadvantaged schools. 6 schools in Mid Cheshire are eligible for payments to teachers of up to £6,000 after-tax.​​The department has published a range of resources to help address teacher workload and wellbeing, including its ‘improve workload and wellbeing for school staff’ service and the ‘education staff wellbeing charter’. Additionally, effective use of technology can automate tasks and help manage workload for teachers. For example, high quality AI tools have the potential to reduce the amount of time that teachers spend marking, whilst supporting effective feedback and tailored teaching which drive pupil progress.​In August 2024, the department announced a £1 million fund to support innovators to develop proof of concept AI tools to support teachers with marking and providing feedback. Oak National Academy has also recently launched a sector-leading AI lesson planning assistant which enables teachers who choose to use it to create personalised and tailored lesson plans and resources in minutes.​​The department is committed to supporting schools to implement flexible working practices including taking planning, preparation and assessment (PPA) time remotely, to improve recruitment and retention of teachers. The department is also funding bespoke support provided by flexible working ambassador schools and multi-academy trusts. Schools in Mid Cheshire can access support on flexible working here: https://www.flexibleworkingineducation.co.uk/.​The department has established teaching school hubs across the country, which provide approved high quality professional development to teachers at all stages of their careers. Cheshire Teaching School Hub is a centre of excellence supporting teacher training and development across Cheshire East, Cheshire West and Chester.

Whether her Department plans to revise the (a) limits on earnings and (b) number of hours that can be worked for people in receipt of Carer’s Allowance.

The Government recognises the challenges unpaid carers are facing and is determined to provide them with the help and support they need and deserve. It is looking closely at how the benefit system currently does this. The Secretary of State undertakes a statutory annual review of benefit and pensions, and the level of the Carer’s Allowance earnings limit will be considered as a part of this review.

What recent assessment her Department has made of the implications for her policies of trends in the level of child poverty in (a) Mid Cheshire constituency, (b) Cheshire and (c) England.

Tackling child poverty is at the heart of this Government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and improve the life chances of every child. The Child Poverty Taskforce has started work to publish the Child Poverty Strategy in Spring and will explore all available levers to drive forward short and long-term actions across government to reduce child poverty. The Strategy will be published in the Spring and will be UK-wide. In September, the Taskforce heard from local leaders about the challenges faced in their communities, and how they can best work with Mayors, local authorities and other bodies to develop innovative solutions to tackle child poverty. This marked the first of a series of thematic sessions with key organisations, charities and experts on specific topics that will help to shape the Strategy. The vital work of the Taskforce comes alongside the Government’s commitments to roll out free breakfast clubs at all primary schools, setting every child up at the start of the day ready to learn, expanding childcare to deliver work choices for parents and life chances for children, provide stronger protection for families who rent privately as well as deliver our plan to make work pay.

What support her Department provides to older jobseekers in (a) Mid Cheshire constituency, (b) Cheshire and (c) England who are looking to (i) reskill and (ii) change careers.

Improving employment support and employment outcomes for people of all ages, including older jobseekers will play an important part in the government’s growth mission. We will reform jobcentres, so they match people to the right job and combine employment, skills and career focused support to help individuals build their careers. A new national jobs and careers service will also help get more people into work and we will set out further detail in the upcoming Labour Market White Paper.77 50PLUS Champions are working in all Districts across England, Wales and Scotland, to support older workers, including helping customers to reskill or change career.

What the average waiting time was for mental health treatment in (a) Mid Cheshire constituency, (b) Cheshire and (c) England in each of the last three years.

A table showing the average waiting time for mental health treatment for the Mid Cheshire constituency, Cheshire, and England for those aged over 18 years old, and another table for those aged under 18 years old, for each of the last three years, is attached.

What recent estimate his Department has made of the level of household debt in (a) Mid Cheshire constituency, (b) Cheshire and (c) England.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. A response to the Hon Gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 4th October 2024 is attached.

What plans his Department has to address differences in ticket prices between regulated and un-regulated rail lines.

Under the current system, each train operating company offers a range of fares, some of which are regulated by Government. Train operating companies have flexibility in how they set the prices of unregulated fares; however, in practice, many closely follow the change in regulated fares.This Government acknowledges that the current fares system is overcomplicated and can be confusing to passengers. We have therefore committed to reviewing it with a view to simplifying it.