Written questions by Stephenson.

Whether he has made an assessment of the reasons for the difficulties in the recruitment of health staff in rural areas, in the context of his plans for a Neighbourhood Health Service.

We have found that people tend to settle and practice in areas where they train, as identified on page 209 of the Chief Medical Officer’s Annual Report 2021 – Health in Coastal Communities, which is available at the following link:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/60f98750e90e0703bbd94a41/cmo-annual_report-2021-health-in-coastal-communities-accessible.pdfA central part of the 10-Year Health Plan is our workforce and how we ensure that we train and provide the staff, technology and infrastructure the National Health Service needs to care for patients across our communities, including rural and coastal areas.

With reference to the policy paper entitled 10 Year Health Plan for England: fit for the future, published on 3 July 2025, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of new neighbourhood GP providers on patient choice.

The ambition for our Neighbourhood Health Service is to rebalance our health and care system so that it fits around people’s lives, moving away from a one-size-fits-all approach and giving people more power and choice over the care that they receive.Neighbourhood Health Services will bring together teams of professionals, including nurses, doctors, social care workers, pharmacists, and health visitors, closer to people’s home, to work together to provide comprehensive care in the community.This Government will bring back the family doctor for those who would benefit from seeing the same clinician regularly, for example, those living with chronic illness. In doing so, we will improve continuity of care, which is associated with better health outcomes and fewer accident and emergency department attendances. We will make sure the future of general practice is sustainable by training thousands more general practitioners and delivering a modern booking system.

If he will publish an impact assessment on the proposed creation of a Bedfordshire, Milton Keynes, Cambridgeshire, Peterborough and Hertfordshire ICB.

Integrated care boards (ICBs) should engage with all other organisations within their integrated care partnership, including with local authorities, to ensure they are involved where there are boundary changes.Clustering ICBs remain separate organisations and so must necessarily continue to duplicate some activities, which is unwieldy. Mergers allow those inefficiencies to be removed and brings stability for leaders, staff, and partners. It is not possible to estimate the difference in savings between clusters and mergers because these may vary in footprints, in starting points, and in transition arrangements.When NHS England decides on ICB mergers, it must take into account its wider duties, including duties relating to value for money and equalities. These will be considered in decision making, but NHS England is not required to publish impact assessments.

With reference to the policy paper entitled 10 Year Health Plan for England: fit for the future, published on 3 July 2025, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of restoring the village GP.

The Government is committed to bringing back the family doctor for patients who would likely benefit from seeing the same clinician regularly. In doing so, we will improve continuity of care, which is associated with better health outcomes and fewer Accident and Emergency attendances.Through our 10-Year Health Plan, it will be easier and faster to see a general practitioner. We will end the 8am scramble for appointments, train more doctors and guarantee consultations within 24 hours for those who need one. These measures will help practices offer both continuity where it’s needed and timely access for all patients.We will give integrated care boards as commissioners the power to determine what is best for their local population and will not gatekeep specific arrangements. We will work with the profession to ensure the benefits of at scale working and continuity are combined effectively.

With reference to page 139 of his Department's 10 Year Health Plan, published on 3 July 2025, whether bridging loan capabilities will be permitted in order to allow the provision of new GP surgeries prior to the receipt of Section 106 funding.

The Department of Health and Social Care continues to work closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to determine how developer contributions from new housing developments can be better used towards local health services and infrastructure.The primary care estate is a complex mix of general practice (GP) private ownership, third-party ownership and lease arrangements with approximately half of GP premises owned by general practitioners. The bridging loan capabilities referenced in the 10-Year Health Plan are based on powers that my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, has to provide financing to NHS trusts and foundation trusts and thus are not permitted to GP surgeries directly. We advise those schemes looking to utilise section 106 to work with their integrated care board (ICB), which can provide information on eligibility for bridging loan capabilities or alternatives to support delivery of health infrastructure in the area.ICBs are responsible for commissioning, including planning, securing, and monitoring, GP services within their health systems through delegated responsibility from NHS England. The National Health Service has a statutory duty to ensure that there are sufficient medical services, including GP services, in each local area. It should take account of population growth and demographic changes.

With reference to the guidance entitled Register of licensed sponsors: workers, published on 26 September 2025, how many and what proportion of organisations on the register have received an in-person inspection by her Department since 4 July 2025.

Routine reviews of the register of licensed sponsors are undertaken to check that sponsors are still classified as active.It is normal practice to contact a sponsor if we have any concerns over any individuals they have sponsored or are seeking to sponsor however, we do not hold any published data on this.Essential updates and reminders are sent periodically to those licensed sponsors currently on the register.We do not hold any data on licensed sponsors in receipt of public funding.We do not routinely publish data on in-person inspections.

Communities and Local Government, how many planning permissions were granted in each of the past five years.

My Department publishes the number of planning applications granted permission per quarter in our quarterly planning applications statistical release which can be found on gov.uk here. England level data can be found in live table 120 for all planning decisions, and for residential planning decisions in live table 120A.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 24 April 2025 to Question 44048 on Environmental Delivery Plans, whether measures that require permanent maintenance will be funded from the initial levy.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 44048 on 24 April 2025.

Communities and Local Government, if he will make an estimate of the amount of Section 106 funding returned to developers in each of the last five years; and what the most common infrastructure needs that funding had been allocated for are.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer to Question UIN 54059 on 6 June 2025.

Communities and Local Government, whether he plans to disapply the cap on council tax rises for 2026-27 as part of the fair funding review.

The Spending Review confirmed the government intends to maintain the referendum threshold at 3%, with 2% for the adult social care precept. This is in line with the threshold set up by the previous government. Final referendum principles will be confirmed at the local government finance settlement, subject to approval by the House of Commons, in the usual way.

What financial requirements there are to be granted a work visa related to charity work.

The financial requirements for the Charity Worker route are published in Appendix Temporary Work – Charity Worker of the Immigration Rules: Immigration Rules - Immigration Rules Appendix Temporary Work - Charity Worker - Guidance - GOV.UK.

How many and what proportion of employees in the average workforce of organisations listed on the register of licences sponsors (workers) are visa holders.

The Home Office does not hold any data on this matter. Obtaining the specific information requested would involve a breakdown of the workforce for each individual sponsor, which would require GDPR compliant agreements in place and only be obtained by disproportionate cost.

With reference to page 15 of the policy paper entitled 10 Year Health Plan for England: fit for the future, published on 3 July 2025, whether support to purchase wearables will be provided to patients outside areas where health need and deprivation are highest.

As set out in the 10-Year Health Plan, we will ensure fair and equitable access by making wearables available for patients that need them.We are exploring how wearable technology can best support prevention, early intervention, and the management of long-term conditions, while reducing health inequalities and improving outcomes across the country.The type of wearable technology provided will depend on the specific health need being addressed. The focus will be on deploying the most relevant and effective technology to support individual care pathways and improve patient outcomes.Any future decisions about wider support for the purchase or provision of wearables will be subject to evaluation findings, value-for-money assessments, and future spending review decisions.

Pursuant to the Answer of 4 August 2025 to Question 62005 on Care Workers: Migrant Workers, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of collecting data on visa status and ongoing employment in adult social care or UK residence.

Home Office immigration statistics show the numbers of Health and Care Worker visas granted under this category for the ‘Caring Personal Services’ occupation group (613), which broadly covers occupations across social care, over time, and for the specific “care workers and home carers” occupation code (6135) from the fourth quarter of 2024. Not all visa grants will result in a worker travelling to the United Kingdom. Skills for Care collects data on the adult social care workforce from employers on behalf of the Department of Health and Social Care, with the voluntary Adult Social Care Workforce Dataset data collection. From July 2024, it added a question about the Health and Care Worker visa status of employees, supplementing existing data on nationality and, for non-UK nationals, the year of entry to the UK. However, the uncertainty of any estimate of the total number of current workers with this status would depend on how many employers have chosen to respond to that question and whether their responses could be considered representative of the workforce in its entirety. Any estimate could not be directly compared to data on visa grants from the Home Office.

Pursuant to the Answer of 4 August 2025 to Question 62005 on Care Workers: Migrant Workers, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of collecting that information.

Home Office immigration statistics show the numbers of Health and Care Worker visas granted under this category for the ‘Caring Personal Services’ occupation group (613), which broadly covers occupations across social care, over time, and for the specific “care workers and home carers” occupation code (6135) from the fourth quarter of 2024. Not all visa grants will result in a worker travelling to the United Kingdom. Skills for Care collects data on the adult social care workforce from employers on behalf of the Department of Health and Social Care, with the voluntary Adult Social Care Workforce Dataset data collection. From July 2024, it added a question about the Health and Care Worker visa status of employees, supplementing existing data on nationality and, for non-UK nationals, the year of entry to the UK. However, the uncertainty of any estimate of the total number of current workers with this status would depend on how many employers have chosen to respond to that question and whether their responses could be considered representative of the workforce in its entirety. Any estimate could not be directly compared to data on visa grants from the Home Office.

With reference to the press release entitled UK launches global talent drive to attract world-leading researchers and innovators, published on 22 June 2025, if he will publish his Department’s impact assessment for this decision.

The Global Talent Taskforce (GTT) is a delivery-focused unit actively developing a pipeline of highly talented individuals who are considering laying down roots and investing in the UK. It provides tailored account management to support these individuals in support of the UK’s Industrial Strategy priority sectors. The Department for Science and Technology-led (DSIT) Global Talent Fund is a £54 million fund, administrated by UKRI and delivered by research organisations, which covers 100% of eligible costs, including relocation and research expenses, with no requirement for match funding from research organisations. DSIT and UKRI are working with GTF ROs to maximise delivery impact in line with government ambitions to attract global talent to the UK. No, the Department for Business and Trade does not plan to publish an impact assessment in relation to the launch of the Global Talent Taskforce as it wouldn’t be required or appropriate for a Taskforce.

Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 30 June 2025 to Question 61248 on Green Belt: Maps, if he will list the local authorities that have received funding.

The government has provided 133 local planning authorities with £70,000 of pump priming funding each to contribute towards the costs of carrying out Green Belt reviews in their areas. Eligible local authorities submitted an Expression of Interest (EOI) form requesting a share of this funding. The EOIs were reviewed, and funding has been awarded. Further details, along with a list of successful local authorities, can be found on gov.uk here.

If she will make an estimate of the number of migrants who have arrived illegally in the UK since 4 August 2025.

By its very nature, it is not possible to know the exact number of people who arrive to the UK illegally, and so we do not seek to make any official estimates of this. In June 2019, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) published a note on ‘measuring illegal migration’.However, the Home Office does publish statistics on detected irregular arrivals to the UK in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on detected irregular arrivals by method of entry is published in table Irr_D01 of the ‘Irregular migration to the UK detailed datasets’, with the latest data up to the end of June 2025. Data for July to September 2025 will be published on 27 November 2025. Data on daily small boat arrivals is published at: Small boat activity in the English Channel - GOV.UK.

What checks her Department undertakes to ensure that holders of (a) Religious Worker and (b) Minister of Religion visas are performing religious work.

The information regarding eligibility to sponsor religious workers or Ministers of Religion is not currently available from published statistics and the relevant data could only be collated and verified for the purpose of answering this question at disproportionate cost.Checks are carried out on visa applications to verify they meet the published requirements of the individual routes, genuineness of a role and compliance checks may be conducted as well to satisfy that the roles involve religious work.The Immigration Rules contain details on financial requirements for all visas and these are updated regularly.

Communities and Local Government, if he will make an estimate of the amount of Section 106 funding that was not drawn down and subsequently lost in each of the past ten years.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer to Question UIN 54059 on 6 June 2025.