Written questions by Thomas.

Whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of amending the list of medical conditions which provide exemption from the prescription charges to include aplastic anaemia.

Awaiting answer.

What estimate his Department has made of the number of rare cancer patients unable to access treatment options due to standard NHS funding limitations; what steps he is taking to address treatment barriers, and what steps he is taking to increase funding into rare cancer research.

Awaiting answer.

What steps her department is taking to ensure all schools have the necessary resources to maintain comfortable indoor temperatures during hot weather thereby preventing any disruption to studies.

Awaiting answer.

Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to stop illegal gambling apps that are using registration; and what support will be put in place for victims of these apps.

Awaiting answer.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of the time taken for DBS check processing in Bromsgrove constituency; and what steps she is taking to help reduce that time.

As an Executive Non-Departmental Public Body of the Home Office, the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) is operationally independent and responsible for the service it provides.DBS does not collate data on processing times by local area or constituency....

What assessment has been made of the potential impact of processing times for DBS on the trends in the number of carers in the sector.

As part of the Department’s commissioned research, Understanding recruitment to the adult social care workforce, undertaken by the King’s Fund, Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks are referenced in relation to recruitment and retention challenges....

Innovation and Technology, when she plans to respond to the correspondence from the hon. Member for Bromsgrove dated 11 November 2025.

The Department apologies for the significant delay in responding to this correspondence. I provided a full response on 24 June.

If his department will consider introducing a short respite service for unpaid carers that they can access yearly.

Responsibility for commissioning respite services rests with local authorities and it is based on their assessment of the needs of their local populations. Through the Better Care Fund, integrated care boards and local authorities are encouraged to work ...

With reference to the Westminster Hall debate led by the hon. Member for Bromsgrove on 11 September 2025, what progress has been made on the introduction regulations for non-surgical cosmetic and a

In August 2025 the Government announced its plans to introduce legal restrictions which will ensure that the highest risk cosmetic procedures are brought into Care Quality Commission regulation and can only be performed by specified regulated healthcare p...

What assessment she has made of trends in the level of crimes targeting lorries at motorway services; what consideration her Department has given to mandating the introduction of security by motorway service pr

Crime recording falls under the remit of the Home Office. Police‑recorded crime data does not separately identify freight crime or its location; therefore, no assessment can be done on the number of incidents at motorway services or analysis of trends ove...

(a) what assessments have been carried out on the potential health risks of BPS-coated receipts for workers handling large volumes, including hospitality and retail staff, and (b) what measures are

Awaiting answer.

What estimate he has made of the number of additional heat pumps installed in homes in the financial year 2025/26 as a direct result of the Clean Heat Market Mechanism.

The Clean Heat Market Mechanism is designed to support the development of the retrofit heat pump market as a whole, alongside and complementary to other measures such as the Boiler Upgrade Scheme. There was a 24% increase in supported heat pump installati...

With reference to the Benefit and Pension Rates 2026-27, updated on 16 February 2026, for what reason his Department has agreed a 4.8% uplift to the maximum weekly allowance for additional spouses; and

State pension and benefit rates are reviewed annually as part of the Secretary of State’s statutory up-rating duty. For 2026/27, Pension Credit-related amounts, including the Standard Minimum Guarantee, were increased by 4.8 per cent in line with the grow...

What steps he is taking to (a) promote the use of made in Britain labelling on products and (b) prevent that labelling being used when a large part of the production process has been outside of the UK.

Aside from certain specified products such as food there is no requirement for goods to be labelled with their country of origin. The government does not have plans to introduce such a requirement on behalf of consumers.Under the Digital Markets, Competit...

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking with the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government to support Wildlife Crime Officers and National Wildlife Crime Units to charge develop

In England, a range of legislation provides strong protections for wildlife species and their habitats. Key frameworks such as the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (WCA) and the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 make it an offence to ...

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of criminal court delays on civil proceedings awaiting those judgements.

The Government inherited a record and rising Crown Court backlog, with victims facing intolerable delays for justice. We asked Sir Brian Leveson to undertake an Independent Review of the Criminal Courts. In response the Government is delivering record fin...

What steps he is taking to ensure equitable access to testing for prostate cancer in Bromsgrove constituency.

The Government is committed to improving outcomes for people with prostate cancer and reducing inequalities in access to diagnosis across England, including in Bromsgrove.The National Cancer Plan for England, published in February 2026, sets out action to...

What assessment he has made of the level of current appointment waiting times for community paediatric referrals for neurodiverse children in Bromsgrove and the villages; and what steps he is takin

We have set clear ambitions for community health services through our Medium Term Planning Framework and for the first time, we have set a target for systems to reduce long waits for community health services. By 2028/29, at least 80% of community health ...

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of increasing the VAT registration threshold on small businesses; and if she will consider raising the VAT registration threshold to support entrepreneurs.

At £90,000, the UK has a higher VAT registration threshold than any EU country and the joint highest in the OECD. This means the majority of UK businesses are not in the VAT system at all. Any consideration of changes to the threshold would have to carefu...

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of waiting times for ADHD medication reviews in Bromsgrove constituency; what steps he is taking to reduce those waiting times to ensure patients are not

It is the responsibility of integrated care boards (ICBs) to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including provision of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) services.In respect of AD...