Written questions by Platt.

How much funding his Department plans to allocate for research on ME and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome in the next (a) year and (b) five years.

The Department funds research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health and care, including post-acute infection condition such as myalgic encephalomyelitis, also known as chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), for which research funding is available. These applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money, and scientific quality, rather than designating an amount of funding for a particular condition. Welcoming applications on ME/CFS and other post-acute infection conditions to all NIHR programmes enables maximum flexibility both in terms of the amount of research funding a particular area can be awarded, and the type of research which can be funded.The NIHR Academy offers extensive support for early-career researchers through various fellowships, training awards, and mentoring structures. For instance, through the INSIGHT Programme, they work with universities to fund research masters studentships and to attract students into research. Through Academic Clinical Fellowships, for doctors and dentists, and Predoctoral Academic Fellowships, for other health professionals, the NIHR Academy supports healthcare practitioners in integrating research with clinical practice.Together with the Medical Research Council (MRC), which is part of UK Research and Innovation, we are actively exploring next steps in ME/CFS research, as outlined in the ME/CFS final delivery plan. This includes a new funding opportunity for a development award focussed on evaluating repurposed pharmaceutical inventions for post-acute infection syndromes and associated conditions, including ME/CFS. This funding opportunity is one component of our approach to improve evidence around the diagnosis, management, and treatment of post-acute infection conditions, including ME/CFS. We are also planning an NIHR and MRC hosted showcase event for post-acute infection conditions research, including for ME/CFS and long COVID, later this year to stimulate further research in this field.

If her Department will publish information on the planned role of Small and Medium Enterprises in the Industrial Strategy Council.

The Industrial Strategy Advisory Council (ISAC) supports the government's objective of delivering a long-term Industrial Strategy. Members have been appointed based on their expertise and wide-ranging experience and there is extensive business experience on the Council across a wide range of sectors and sizes of businesses, including small and medium-sized enterprises.The ISAC will make and publish recommendations on the development and implementation of the Industrial Strategy, including an annual report on its work.

What steps his Department is taking to support Small and Medium Enterprises in (a) manufacturing and (b) other sectors, as part of the Industrial Strategy.

The Industrial Strategy's Advanced Manufacturing Sector Plan sets out this government's plans to support manufacturers to grow and thrive, boosting jobs and increasing prosperity across the UK. SMEs will benefit from a range of policies, including skills, energy, scale-up and innovation, for example directly benefitting from the expansion of Made Smarter Adoption, with up to £99m of funding.The Industrial Strategy will complement the recently published SME Small Business Plan that will span this Government's whole approach to driving small business growth and productivity - from boosting scale-ups to supporting budding entrepreneurs.

What steps his Department is taking to support more women into the manufacturing industry.

The UK Government is aware of the current underrepresentation of women in manufacturing and is committed to advancing diversity within the sector. In the recently published Advanced Manufacturing Sector Plan we state our intent to improve the equality profile of the sector through a Make UK-led equalities taskforce and by sponsoring an Equality Charter. This will be co-developed with industry stakeholders, including the aim of achieving 35% representation of women in the UK manufacturing sector by 2035.

Innovation and Technology, if he will hold discussions with the Secretary of State fo Health and Social Care on the potential merits of funding a research hub to (a) coordinate research and (b) support early-career researchers working on ME and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) work closely together to coordinate research into Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS). Extensive support is provided to early-career researchers through the NIHR Academy and NIHR Infrastructure. ME/CFS is a priority area for UKRI’s Medical Research Council (MRC) and it has committed over £4,460,000 to ME/CFS research since 2020. NIHR has also committed approximately £3.7 million to this area across the 2019/20-2023/24 financial years. MRC recently awarded funding to PRIME, a £800,000 partnership to build new research infrastructure for ME/CFS research. PRIME will establish new research collaborations, bringing together researchers and private sector partners, to investigate the genetics, biomarkers and disease mechanisms of ME/CFS.

Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to introduce a national development management policy for older people's housing.

We will consult later this year on a suite of new national policies for decision-making. Further details will be set out in due course.

What steps her Department is taking to ensure schools in low-income communities can recruit and retain high-quality teachers.

Recruiting and retaining more qualified, expert teachers is critical to the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and boost the life chances for every young person.For the 2024/25 and 2025/26 academic years, the department is offering a targeted retention incentive worth up to £6,000 after tax for secondary teachers in shortage subjects in the first five years of their careers who choose to work in disadvantaged schools. In Leigh and Atherton Constituency, two out of five schools are eligible for this retention payment.The High Potential Initial Teacher Training Programme, currently delivered by Teach First, also recruits high quality candidates specifically for placement in schools serving low-income communities to help improve outcomes for pupils.Our investment is starting to deliver: the workforce has grown by 2,346 full time employed staff between 2023/24 and 2024/25 in secondary and special schools and vacancies have fallen to their lowest since 2020.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of updating the Licensing Act 2003 to provide Licensing Authorities with greater powers to respond effectively to issues linked to licensed premises.

The Licensing Act 2003 provides licensing authorities with significant powers of review where problems associated with the licensing objectives occur, including those relating to the four licensing objectives: the prevention of crime and disorder; public safety; the prevention of public nuisance; and the protection of children from harm.Under Section 51 of the Act, a responsible authority, or any other person, may ask a licensing authority to review a licence because of a matter arising at the premises in connection with any of the four licensing objectives.Where a licensing authority considers that action under its statutory powers is appropriate, it may take any of the following steps:modify the conditions of the premises licence (which includes adding new conditions or any alteration or omission of an existing condition);exclude a licensable activity from the scope of the licence:remove the designated premises supervisor;suspend the licence for a period not exceeding three months, or;revoke the licence. In March this year a Licensing Taskforce was commissioned to undertake a rapid review of the Licensing Act 2003, to explore how we may ‘deliver a more proportionate, consistent and transparent licensing regime’. The report of that review will be published in due course. We keep the Licensing Act under careful review and will consider any relevant recommendations that arise from this review.

If he will make an assessment of the potential merits of working with Integrated Care Boards to ensure that (a) Admiral Nurses and (b) other dementia specialist nurses are included within each new neighbourhood health team.

The Neighbourhood Health Service will bring together teams of professionals closer to people’s homes to work together to provide comprehensive care in the community. We expect neighbourhood teams and services to be designed in a way that reflects the specific needs of local populations, and so they could include dementia specialist nurses. While we will be clear on the outcomes we expect, we will give significant licence to tailor the approach to local need. While the focus on personalised, coordinated care will be consistent, that will mean the service will look different in rural communities, coastal towns, or deprived inner cities. Provision of dementia health care services is the responsibility of local integrated care boards (ICBs). We would expect ICBs to commission services, which may include dementia specialist nurses/admiral nurses, based on local population needs, taking account of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines. NICE recommends providing people living with dementia with a single named health or social care professional who is responsible for coordinating their care. Under the 10-Year Plan, those living with dementia will benefit from improved care planning and better services.  We will deliver the first ever Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia to deliver rapid and significant improvements in quality of care and productivity. This will be informed by phase one of the independent commission into adult social care, expected in 2026.

What the core staffing requirements that the new neighbourhood health teams must fulfil are; and whether these staffing requirements will include a dementia specialist nurse.

The Neighbourhood Health Service will bring together teams of professionals closer to people’s homes to work together to provide comprehensive care in the community. We expect neighbourhood teams and services to be designed in a way that reflects the specific needs of local populations, and so they could include dementia specialist nurses. While we will be clear on the outcomes we expect, we will give significant licence to tailor the approach to local need. While the focus on personalised, coordinated care will be consistent, that will mean the service will look different in rural communities, coastal towns, or deprived inner cities. Provision of dementia health care services is the responsibility of local integrated care boards (ICBs). We would expect ICBs to commission services, which may include dementia specialist nurses/admiral nurses, based on local population needs, taking account of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines. NICE recommends providing people living with dementia with a single named health or social care professional who is responsible for coordinating their care. Under the 10-Year Plan, those living with dementia will benefit from improved care planning and better services.  We will deliver the first ever Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia to deliver rapid and significant improvements in quality of care and productivity. This will be informed by phase one of the independent commission into adult social care, expected in 2026.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of reforming the licence review process for off-licenses.

The Licensing Act 2003 provides licensing authorities with significant powers of review where problems associated with the licensing objectives occur, including those relating to the four licensing objectives: the prevention of crime and disorder; public safety; the prevention of public nuisance; and the protection of children from harm.Under Section 51 of the Act, a responsible authority, or any other person, may ask a licensing authority to review a licence because of a matter arising at the premises in connection with any of the four licensing objectives.Where a licensing authority considers that action under its statutory powers is appropriate, it may take any of the following steps:modify the conditions of the premises licence (which includes adding new conditions or any alteration or omission of an existing condition);exclude a licensable activity from the scope of the licence:remove the designated premises supervisor;suspend the licence for a period not exceeding three months, or;revoke the licence. In March this year a Licensing Taskforce was commissioned to undertake a rapid review of the Licensing Act 2003, to explore how we may ‘deliver a more proportionate, consistent and transparent licensing regime’. The report of that review will be published in due course. We keep the Licensing Act under careful review and will consider any relevant recommendations that arise from this review.

What specialist dementia support will be available in neighbourhood health centres to support people with dementia in the community following a hospital stay.

The Neighbourhood Health Service will bring together teams of professionals closer to people’s homes to work together to provide comprehensive care in the community. We expect neighbourhood teams and services to be designed in a way that reflects the specific needs of local populations, and so they could include dementia specialist nurses. While we will be clear on the outcomes we expect, we will give significant licence to tailor the approach to local need. While the focus on personalised, coordinated care will be consistent, that will mean the service will look different in rural communities, coastal towns, or deprived inner cities. Provision of dementia health care services is the responsibility of local integrated care boards (ICBs). We would expect ICBs to commission services, which may include dementia specialist nurses/admiral nurses, based on local population needs, taking account of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines. NICE recommends providing people living with dementia with a single named health or social care professional who is responsible for coordinating their care. Under the 10-Year Plan, those living with dementia will benefit from improved care planning and better services.  We will deliver the first ever Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia to deliver rapid and significant improvements in quality of care and productivity. This will be informed by phase one of the independent commission into adult social care, expected in 2026.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of reforming the Licensing Act 2003 to tackle anti-social behaviour in town centres.

The Licensing Act 2003 provides licensing authorities with significant powers of review where problems associated with the licensing objectives occur, including those relating to the four licensing objectives: the prevention of crime and disorder; public safety; the prevention of public nuisance; and the protection of children from harm.Under Section 51 of the Act, a responsible authority, or any other person, may ask a licensing authority to review a licence because of a matter arising at the premises in connection with any of the four licensing objectives.Where a licensing authority considers that action under its statutory powers is appropriate, it may take any of the following steps:modify the conditions of the premises licence (which includes adding new conditions or any alteration or omission of an existing condition);exclude a licensable activity from the scope of the licence:remove the designated premises supervisor;suspend the licence for a period not exceeding three months, or;revoke the licence. In March this year a Licensing Taskforce was commissioned to undertake a rapid review of the Licensing Act 2003, to explore how we may ‘deliver a more proportionate, consistent and transparent licensing regime’. The report of that review will be published in due course. We keep the Licensing Act under careful review and will consider any relevant recommendations that arise from this review.

If he will take steps to introduce a National Services Framework for dementia.

Our health system has struggled to support those with complex needs, including those with dementia. Under the 10 Year Plan, those living with dementia will benefit from improved care planning and better services.We will deliver the first ever Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia to deliver rapid and significant improvements in quality of care and productivity. This will be informed by phase one of the independent commission into adult social care, expected in 2026.The Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia will seek to reduce unwarranted variation and narrow inequality for those living with dementia, and will set national standards for dementia care and redirect National Health Service priorities to provide the best possible care and support.

When she plans to introduce legislation to implement the Government’s response to the consultation entitled Child Maintenance: Improving the Collection and Transfer of Payments, published on 23 June 2025.

Primary legislation is required to make the change to remove Direct Pay and reform the collection fee structure, meaning these changes will be subject to detailed parliamentary scrutiny. Our intention is to implement these changes as soon as parliamentary time allows.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the Child Maintenance Service’s approach to domestic abuse on the Government’s mission to halve violence against women and girls.

DWP is engaged in cross-government work to support the Home Office led Safer Streets Mission, which includes the ambition to halve Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) within the next decade. DWP has a key role to play in halving VAWG. We are committed to ensuring that victims and survivors of domestic abuse get the help and support they need to use the CMS safely and have outlined in the consultation work the department is undertaking to support victims and survivors of domestic abuse to use the service safely. The CMS have updated and refreshed DA learning, taking views and feedback from a roundtable held with external stakeholders in November 2023. All caseworkers have received upskilling to help identify abuse and can provide signposting to support. A Domestic Abuse Plan is in place to support caseworkers having these conversations. All colleagues (apart from those who joined and received Domestic Abuse Learning since April 2024) are undertaking refresher training. This is due to complete in summer 2025. It is acknowledged that the current system can create opportunities for maintenance payments to be used as a tool of coercive behaviour and domestic abuse. The changes to replace Direct Pay will represent a significant improvement to victims and survivors of domestic abuse using the CMS, by reducing contact with the other parent and reducing the paying parent’s ability to financially control the receiving parent by paying too little or too late, as is currently the case on Direct Pay.

With reference to the Government’s response to the consultation entitled Child Maintenance: Improving the Collection and Transfer of Payments, published on 23 June 2025, what steps she is taking to prevent non-compliant paying parents from exploiting exemptions to the 20% non-compliance fee.

By replacing Direct Pay, we will tackle non-compliance, reduce opportunities for domestic abuse and lift children out of poverty. As part of this, we will require all those parents who are non-compliant to pay a 20% collection fee. We do not envisage there being any exceptions to the fee for parents who refuse to pay what they owe.

With reference to the Government’s response to the consultation entitled Child Maintenance: Improving the Collection and Transfer of Payments, published on 23 June 2025, what steps she plans to take to ensure compliance from paying parents in receipt of benefits who are exempt from the 20 per cent non-compliance fee.

The CMS believes that all parents have an obligation to support their children regardless of their financial situation. The CMS is able to deduct £8.40 a week towards ongoing maintenance or arrears from certain prescribed benefits. When a paying parent is in receipt of benefits, CMS will send a request to set up a Deduction from Benefit (DfB) to collect ongoing maintenance. This means that where benefit levels allow, maintenance will be paid. The overall cap for Universal Credit (UC) deductions was reduced from the current 25% of the standard allowance to 15% from April 2025. Alongside this, child maintenance deductions moved higher up the priority order.

With reference to the Government’s response to the consultation entitled Child Maintenance: Improving the Collection and Transfer of Payments, published on 23 June 2025, what the eligibility criteria will be for the most complex domestic abuse cases under the specialist domestic abuse named caseworker service; and how she will assess the impact of those eligibility criteria on victim-survivors requiring access to that service.

The Government is committed to ensuring that victims and survivors of domestic abuse get the help and support they need to use the Child Maintenance Service (CMS) safely. The CMS has a Specialist Case team delivering targeted support to parents subject to the most challenging or complex domestic abuse. All caseworkers are trained to identify and refer appropriate cases within the Collect and Pay service to the team. Customers who are potential victims and survivors of domestic abuse can be identified, and referred to the Specialist Case team in the following ways: If a customer is already under the care of the Department for Work and Pensions Advanced Customer Support due to a domestic abuse issue, or if either the CMS or the customer has involved the police because of a domestic abuse concern, a referral should be made.If a caseworker has spoken with a customer who mentions or seeks assistance related to any actual or threatened physical violence, coercive control, or financial control, andIf the caseworker has concerns for the customer's safety that have not been resolved by the conversation or signposting, andIf the caseworker believes there is a significant threat or risk to the customer, then they should refer the case to the Specialist Case Team.All cases in enforcement, where the most intensive contact between the CMS and customers is needed, have a single person managing the enforcement action on their case, with other action on the case completed by the ‘named caseworker’. These steps ensure the safety and well-being of customers, addressing any indications of domestic abuse effectively. Eligibility criteria will be reviewed as intake increases and following awareness sessions due to take place over the next few months. Cases remain with the Specialist Case team until closure. In cases where the victim-survivor advises that there is no longer ongoing domestic abuse, the case can be referred for removal with the guiding principle is that if there is any doubt about a customer’s safety, the case must remain in the Specialist Case team.

With reference to the Government’s response to the consultation entitled Child Maintenance: Improving the Collection and Transfer of Payments, published on 23 June 2025, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of working with economic abuse organisations to (a) develop and (b) deliver specialist training for Child Maintenance Service staff responsible for (i) identifying and (ii) supporting parents experiencing economic abuse.

This government is committed to ensuring that victims and survivors of abuse get the help and support they need to use the Child Maintenance Service (CMS) safely. In our response to the consultation, we explained how the CMS has updated and refreshed domestic abuse training over the past 18 months to include economic abuse. We developed our training with customer representation groups, drawing on their expertise and experience, and will maintain an open dialogue as we plan our transition to the new service.Our response also outlined our plans to remove Direct Pay. This will benefit victims and survivors of domestic abuse in a number of ways, such as by preventing unwanted contact between parents and removing an opportunity for perpetrators of economic control and coercion to use those behaviours in the context of the service. It also removes the need for the receiving parent to report non-compliance as is currently the case on Direct Pay, which some parents may not feel comfortable doing because of the risk of provoking retaliation.The CMS has access to a list of resources which helps caseworkers provide signposting to supporting organisations, and a Domestic Abuse plan which includes clear steps to follow in order to support customers who are experiencing abuse. The list of resources and Domestic Abuse Plan is regularly reviewed.The CMS has a specialist team in place who deliver targeted support to parents subject to the most challenging and complex abuse.The CMS reviews its domestic abuse training regularly with input from external stakeholders to ensure caseworkers are equipped to support parents in vulnerable situations.