Every parliamentary written question tabled by Danny Beales this session, with the full answer and department. Back to the MP page.
Showing 81–100 of 156 · this parliament
What recent estimate she has made of the potential legal costs for her Department of implementing the proposed EHRC Code of Practice for Services, Public Functions, and Associations.
No such estimates have been produced. Any financial implications of implementing the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s revised Code of Practice at MoJ HQ will be considered as part of the Department’s annual budgeting process.
What recent estimate she has made of the cost to prisons of implementing the Equality and Human Rights Commission's revised code of practice for services, public functions and associations.
No such estimates have been produced. Any financial consequences from implementing the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s revised code of practice in prisons will be considered as part of HM Prison and Probation Service’s annual budgeting cycle.
What recent estimate she has made of the cost to courts of implementing the Equality and Human Rights Commission's revised code of practice for services, public functions and associations.
No such estimates have been produced. Any financial consequences from implementing the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s revised code of practice in HM Courts and Tribunals Service will be considered as part of the agency’s annual budgeting cycle.
What recent estimate she has made of the cost to court infrastructure of implementing the Equality and Human Rights Commission's revised code of practice for services, public functions and associations.
No such estimates have been produced. Any financial consequences from implementing the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s revised code of practice in HM Courts and Tribunals Service will be considered as part of the agency’s annual budgeting cycle.
Communities and Local Government, which departments are contributing to ensuring that the distinct needs of young people are reflected in the development of the cross-governmental homelessness strategy.
Homelessness levels are far too high. This can have a devastating impact on those affected, including young people. We must address this and deliver long term solutions. The Deputy Prime Minister is leading cross-government work to deliver the long-term solutions we need to get us back on track to ending all forms of homelessness. This includes chairing a dedicated Inter-Ministerial Group, bringing together ministers from across government to develop a long-term strategy. We have also established an Expert Group to bring together representatives from across the homelessness and rough sleeping sector, local and combined authorities and wider experts. The role of this expert group is to provide knowledge, analysis and challenge to help Government understand what is working well nationally and locally and where improvements are needed. We will continue to meet with a range of stakeholders, including mayors and MPs, to make sure the strategy is informed by a range of expertise. As well as work on the Inter-Ministerial Group and Expert Group we are also working closely with the sector to deliver a number of lived experience forums to ensure that the voices of those with lived experience are reflected in the homelessness strategy.
What steps he is taking to update the existing regulations on (a) composition, (b) marketing and (c) labelling of commercial infant and toddler foods to ensure products are suitably nutritious.
Children’s early years provide an important foundation for their future health and strongly influences many aspects of wellbeing in later life.It is vital that we maintain the highest standards for foods consumed by babies and infants, which is why we have regulations in place that set nutritional and compositional standards for commercial baby food. The regulations also set labelling standards to ensure consumers have clear and accurate information about the products they buy. We continue to keep these regulations under review to ensure they reflect the latest scientific and dietary guidelines.
Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of including longer-term funding settlements for homelessness services in the (a) Comprehensive Spending Review and (b) Homelessness Strategy.
Future funding for homelessness services is subject to the outcome of phase 2 of the Spending Review. Councils can also draw from the wider local government finance settlement to help meet homelessness costs. We know that the sector has long called for long-term certainty on its budgets. That is why the government is committed to providing a multi-year funding settlement starting in 2026-27.
Food and Rural Affairs, what progress his Department has made on the trail hunting consultation; and if he will an assessment of the potential merits of (a) reviewing current exemptions within the Hunting Act to prevent exploitation, (b) introducing stronger deterrents to illegal hunting, and (c) enhancing protections for (i) deer and (ii) other wildlife from being hunted with dogs.
This is a devolved matter and the information provided therefore relates to England and Wales only. This government was elected on a mandate to introduce the most ambitious plans in a generation to improve animal welfare and that is exactly what we will do. As part of this, we are committed to banning trail hunting. Work to determine the best approach for doing so is ongoing. Further details will be set out on due course. The Hunting Act 2004 makes it an offence to hunt a wild mammal with dogs, except where it is carried out in accordance with the exemptions in the Act. Enforcement of the Hunting Act is an operational matter for the police.
Food and Rural Affairs, if he will set a timeline for publishing a consultation on the introduction of licensing regulations for animal sanctuaries and rehoming organisations.
This Government was elected on a mandate to introduce the most ambitious plans to improve animal welfare in a generation. The Department has initiated a series of meetings with key animal welfare stakeholders as part of the development of an overarching approach to animal welfare. We will be outlining more detail of our plans in due course.
Whether the NHS 10-year plan will include steps to improve (a) prevention of, (b) early diagnosis for and (c) treatment for lung conditions.
The 10-Year Health Plan will deliver the three big shifts our National Health Service needs to be fit for the future: from hospital to community; from analogue to digital; and from sickness to prevention. All of these are relevant to improving respiratory health in all parts of the county.More tests and scans delivered in the community to allow for earlier diagnosis, better joint working between services, and greater use of apps and wearable technology will all help people manage their long-term conditions, including respiratory conditions, closer to home. Earlier diagnosis of conditions will help people manage their conditions, prevent deterioration, and improve survival rates. Taking action to reduce the causes of the biggest killers, such as enabling a smoke free generation, can further help prevent lung conditions.
Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to improve the regulation of wastewater treatment processes to reduce the levels of (a) pharmaceuticals, (b) microplastics and (c) per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances entering the (i) environment and (ii) food chain.
The Environment Agency works with the water industry on the Chemicals Investigation Programme (CIP). This is funded through the water industry price review and considers chemicals in sewage effluent, including some pharmaceuticals and Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The fourth CIP has just started. Regulation does not currently cover microplastics from treated wastewater. 99% of microplastics are removed by sewage treatment processes. The EA and water industry are commencing six investigations under CIP considering generation of microplastics within wastewater treatment works through attrition of plastic equipment, emerging sewage treatment technologies and path of microplastics from biosolids applied to land to soils and groundwater. The EA sits on the Pharmaceuticals in the Environment Group. Pharmaceuticals are not required to undergo an environmental impact assessment, but a few have ecotoxicological thresholds that inform an assessment of potential risk. The EA Is currently investigating potential ecological risks of mixtures of pharmaceuticals in the aquatic environment. CIP4 is looking at PFAS from wastewater treatment works. CIP2 identified domestic sewage as a significant source of PFAS. On-going work includes identifying sources of or Perfluorooctanesulfonic Acid (PFOS), a type of PFAS, in catchments to inform approaches to permitting discharges, and to reduce/eliminate PFOS at source.
What assessment her Department has made of the potential economic impact of introducing the Youth Guarantee Scheme on (a) Greater London and (b) the UK.
As announced in the “Get Britain Working” White Paper, we are launching a new Youth Guarantee for all young people aged 18-21 in England to ensure that they can access quality training opportunities, an apprenticeship or help to find work. The Youth Guarantee will build upon and enhance existing entitlements and provisions with the aim of tackling the rising number of young people who are not participating in education, employment or training. This spring we will be launching trailblazers in eight Mayoral Strategic Authorities, one of which is the Greater London Authority, and will use the learning from the Trailblazers to inform the future design and development of the Youth Guarantee as it rolls-out across the rest of England. The additional employment, and education and training in which young people will participate, as a result of the Youth Guarantee, will bring economic benefits to the young people themselves and to wider society through earnings, economic output and through increased skills which open the way to longer term sustained employment.
What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the NICE Late Stage Assessment on intermittent catheters on the ambition to move more healthcare out of hospitals and into the community.
The Department commissions the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to undertake Late-Stage Assessments (LSAs) to help commissioners, clinicians, and patients identify the most effective products that offer the best value for the National Health Service.The NICE’s LSA of intermittent urethral catheters for chronic incomplete bladder emptying focuses on urethral catheters used in primary care and community settings. This will ensure that as more healthcare is delivered in community settings, commissioners, clinicians, and patients will be better informed when identifying the most effective and best value for money intermittent catheters in a crowded market.
Whether he plans to take steps to allow doctors to prescribe Abiraterone.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body responsible for developing authoritative, evidence-based recommendations for the National Health Service on whether new, licenced medicines represent a clinically and cost-effective use of resources. The NHS in England is legally required to fund medicines recommended by the NICE for eligible patients in line with its recommendations.The NICE has published guidance recommending abiraterone for the treatment of metastatic hormone-relapsed prostate cancer before chemotherapy is indicated and for castration-resistant metastatic prostate cancer previously treated with a docetaxel-containing regimen. NHS England funds abiraterone for these indications of prostate cancer in line with the NICE’s recommendations, making it routinely available for clinicians to prescribe to eligible patients.NHS England considered abiraterone as an off-label treatment for hormone sensitive, non-metastatic prostate cancer through its clinical policy development process in 2024/25. Through this process, NHS England confirmed that there was sufficient supporting evidence to support the routine commissioning of abiraterone in this indication and it was ranked in the highest priority level. However, NHS England could not identify the necessary recurrent funding to support commissioning of abiraterone, or any other treatments within the prioritisation round. Ministers are considering further advice on this issue.
If he will ensure that the review of Part IX of the Drug Tariff is aligned to the Life Sciences Sector Plan.
Through the Life Sciences Sector Plan and the wider industrial strategy, the Government will take targeted, concerted, and aggressive action to unlock growth. The plan will focus on enabling world-class research and development, making the United Kingdom one of the best places in the world to start, scale, and invest in life sciences, and driving healthcare innovation and reform. This approach will support high-growth businesses, deliver better health outcomes, and cement the UK’s global leadership in life sciences. Backed by deep engagement with industry, the plan will tackle barriers head-on and lay the foundations for long-term, sustainable growth. The reforms to Part IX of the Drug Tariff and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s (NICE) late-stage assessments align with this approach by supporting the adoption of innovation. The Part IX reforms include a new two-year temporary listing mechanism so that innovative products can be made available for patients more quickly. The NICE’s late-stage assessments are a central element of the NICE’s lifecycle approach to evaluation, valuing incremental innovation in transformative products once they have become established or widely available to the National Health Service. The assessments will provide guidance on value, especially where there are claims of improvements and innovation over time, to support NHS commissioners, procurement teams, patients, and clinicians to select the most effective and cost-effective products, from those available on the market.
What steps his Department is taking to ensure that the review of Part IX of the Drug Tariff supports the NHS 10 Year Plan in shifting care from (a) hospital to the community, (b) treatment to prevention and (c) analogue to digital.
Part IX of the Drug Tariff covers medical technology products prescribed in the community. In 2025, the Department is updating the product categorisation and listing process, following extensive engagement with patient groups, the National Health Service, and industry. The updated categorisation will support the NHS to prescribe the right products for patients. The new listing process will, for the first time, include the patient’s voice and clinical subject matter experts in the decision-making process, and a new temporary listing process will support early access for patients of innovative products able to support the three big shifts.
Pursuant to the Answer of 28 February 2025 to Question 32770 Employment: Special Educational Needs, whether her Department has identified West London as one of the trailblazer areas for the Youth Guarantee scheme.
The Youth Guarantee Trailblazers will test a new, more localised delivery framework to help young people access education, training and employment support, providing important learnings to inform the future development of the Youth Guarantee in England. The Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Education are working closely with Mayoral Strategic Authorities to begin delivery of Youth Guarantee Traiblazers in the following areas: the West of England, Tees Valley, East Midlands, Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, Liverpool City Region, West Midlands and two areas within the Greater London Authority. This will include parts of West London.
Whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of NICE’s Late Stage Assessments on the attractiveness of the UK for inward investment from medtech companies.
The Department commissioned the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to undertake Late-Stage Assessments (LSAs) to help commissioners, clinicians, and patients identify the most effective products that offer the best value for the National Health Service. LSAs benefit health technology manufacturers by giving all manufacturers a transparent, robust, and evidence-based process for demonstrating the added value of their products.
What steps he is taking to help reduce inequalities in prostate cancer outcomes.
The Government understands that more needs to be done to improve outcomes for all people with prostate cancer. To address disparities and find ways to better detect prostate cancer earlier, we have invested £16 million in the United Kingdom-wide TRANSFORM trial, aimed at helping find the best ways of detecting prostate cancer in men, even if they are not displaying any symptoms. This research will aim to address some of the inequalities that exist in prostate cancer diagnosis by targeting black men in trial recruitment, ensuring that one in ten participants are black men. We have also asked the National Screening Committee to review the evidence for prostate cancer screening, including for high-risk groups. The NHS England Cancer Programme also commissions clinical cancer audits, which provide timely evidence for cancer service providers of where patterns of care in England may vary, increase the consistency of access to treatments, and help stimulate improvements in cancer treatment and outcomes for patients, including those with prostate cancer.Following publication of the 10-Year Health Plan, we will develop a new National Cancer Plan. The plan will seek to improve outcomes and address disparities for all cancers, including for prostate cancer. A call for evidence, seeking contributions from individuals and organisations, including ideas on how to improve outcomes and reduce inequalities for prostate cancer, is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/calls-for-evidence/shaping-the-national-cancer-plan/shaping-the-national-cancer-plan
What assessment his Department has made of how the NICE Late-Stage Assessment programme aligns with the ambitions of the upcoming Life Sciences Sector Plan.
Through the Life Sciences Sector Plan and the wider industrial strategy, the Government will take targeted, concerted, and aggressive action to unlock growth. The plan will focus on enabling world-class research and development, making the United Kingdom one of the best places in the world to start, scale, and invest in life sciences, and driving healthcare innovation and reform. This approach will support high-growth businesses, deliver better health outcomes, and cement the UK’s global leadership in life sciences. Backed by deep engagement with industry, the plan will tackle barriers head-on and lay the foundations for long-term, sustainable growth. The reforms to Part IX of the Drug Tariff and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s (NICE) late-stage assessments align with this approach by supporting the adoption of innovation. The Part IX reforms include a new two-year temporary listing mechanism so that innovative products can be made available for patients more quickly. The NICE’s late-stage assessments are a central element of the NICE’s lifecycle approach to evaluation, valuing incremental innovation in transformative products once they have become established or widely available to the National Health Service. The assessments will provide guidance on value, especially where there are claims of improvements and innovation over time, to support NHS commissioners, procurement teams, patients, and clinicians to select the most effective and cost-effective products, from those available on the market.