Written questions by Smart.

Whether his Department is taking steps to hold Capita accountable where it fails to provide GPs with accurate annual pension statements under the Primary Care Support England scheme.

Capita, who delivers Primary Care Support England (PCSE), does not issue pension statements to general practitioners (GPs), as this is the responsibility of NHS Pensions, which is managed by the NHS Business Services Authority (NHS BSA). PCSE updates GP pension records once the appropriate type one or type two annual certificate is submitted to PCSE for processing by the GP.In order for NHS Pensions to generate an annual pension benefits statement, it is necessary for the GP’s pension record to be up to date, with no missing annual certificate for prior years. NHS England works closely with PCSE and NHS Pensions to ensure that GPs are supported, through a series of webinars and guidance documents, to submit accurate information in a timely manner. NHS England tracks PCSE’s performance on a monthly basis against contractual performance targets. NHS England continues to work with PCSE, NHS Pensions, and GP representative bodies to rectify historical gaps in GP records.More generally, the importance of checking PCSE Online to ensure that all required type one or type two forms are showing as approved, and to submit certificates if there are any missing years to get records up to date, is highlighted in communications to GPs.

What steps her Department is taking to reduce the number of hate crimes against transgender people.

Transgender identity hate crimes are completely unacceptable and this Government is determined to tackle hate crime in all its forms. We have a robust legislative framework in place in England and Wales to respond to hate crimes, including those which target transgender people, and we back the police in taking strong action against the perpetrators of these offences.The Home Office collects and publishes information on the number of transgender hate crimes recorded by the police in England and Wales. In the year ending March 2024, transgender hate crimes decreased by 2% to 4,780 offences in 2023/24, when compared with the previous year (4,889).

What the most recent statistics for hate crimes against transgender people are.

Transgender identity hate crimes are completely unacceptable and this Government is determined to tackle hate crime in all its forms. We have a robust legislative framework in place in England and Wales to respond to hate crimes, including those which target transgender people, and we back the police in taking strong action against the perpetrators of these offences.The Home Office collects and publishes information on the number of transgender hate crimes recorded by the police in England and Wales. In the year ending March 2024, transgender hate crimes decreased by 2% to 4,780 offences in 2023/24, when compared with the previous year (4,889).

With reference to his Oral Statement of 11 December 2024 on Puberty-suppressing Hormones, Official Report, column 914-916, whether the clinical trial into the use of puberty suppressing hormones for gender incongruence will begin early this year; and when his Department intends to update parents and young people on the (a) timetable and (b) eligibility of the clinical trial.

The PATHWAYS study proposal, including the clinical trial of puberty-suppressing hormones, is going through all the usual review and approval stages. These include an independent academic peer review and consideration by the National Institute for Health and Care Research’s funding committee. The study will need to secure full ethical approval before it can be set up and recruitment can open. The design of the study, including the timetable and eligibility criteria, will be finalised as part of the approvals process. It is planned to commence this year. Subject to the study achieving the necessary approvals, the study protocol will be made available in the public domain, as is usual for publicly funded studies.

Whether her Department plans to introduce mandatory mental health support for police officers who have been exposed to distressing or traumatic incidents.

Chief Officers have a duty of care to manage their workforce effectively, including ensuring the wellbeing of all their officers and staff. This Government has been clear that the wellbeing of our police is a priority. We will continue to work with police partners to ensure that all police officers and staff have the appropriate support in place to thrive in their careers and deliver the best service to the public.We continue to fund the National Police Wellbeing Service. The Service provides evidence-based guidance, advice, tools and resources to support forces and individual officers, including guidance on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Policing. All officers receive pre-deployment mental health training and through the Police Covenant, and all forces now meet the new Occupational Health (OH) foundation level standards. Measures are also in place to ensure forces continually develop and improve their OH standards.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure that the process of issuing death certificates following the change to the responsibilities of medical examiners on 9 September 2024 does not lead to undue delays in families being able to arrange funerals.

The Government is monitoring the impact of the death certification reforms, including the Medical Certificate of Cause of Death Regulations 2024, which came into legal effect on 9 September 2024. Early data indicates the median time taken to register a death appears to have risen by one day, from seven days to eight days. This figure is for all deaths, as it includes those certified by a doctor and those investigated by a coroner. The average time taken to register has increased further over the recent Christmas weeks, but this was expected given increases are observed during this period every year; the average is expected to decrease again as more data becomes available for January and February 2025. The median time taken to register a death varies depending on the type of certification. Deaths certified by a doctor, that comprise approximately 80% of deaths registered each week, have typically had a median time to registration of seven days. We note that the medical examiner system was active on a non-statutory basis before the introduction of the statutory system on 9 September 2024, and this makes direct ‘before’ and ‘after’ comparisons challenging to draw conclusions from.The core purposes of the death certification reforms are to introduce scrutiny of the cause of death to detect and deter malpractice, to improve reporting, and crucially to put the bereaved at the centre of the process by offering a conversation with the medical examiner about the cause of death. The expectation on doctors and medical examiners is clear, that they should complete certification as quickly and efficiently as possible, and the Government is working with all stakeholders to make sure this is the case.

Whether her Department has specific time targets for processing Carer’s Allowance claims for individuals with an underlying entitlement.

The Department does not have any processing targets for Carer’s Allowance claims when there is an underlying entitlement element. The current average clearance time for all Carer’s Allowance claims is 16.5 working days. This includes claims when there is underlying entitlement.

If she will take steps with police forces to review the (a) effectiveness of policies to place police officers potentially experiencing mental ill-health on restricted duties and (b) adequacy of (i) the provision of psychological support and (ii) recovery time for those officers.

It is the responsibility of Chief Officers to effectively manage their workforce, including ensuring appropriate health and wellbeing support is in place for all officers and staff. The Government has been clear that the health and wellbeing of our police is a priority, and we continue to work with police partners to ensure that consistent standards apply across all forces.Police Regulations require forces to follow standard procedures in the management of officers placed on limited duties following a period of ill health and this includes for periods of recuperation. The College of Policing has also provided specific guidance for line managers on the use of reasonable adjustments, including a toolkit for forces, a Workplace Adjustment Toolkit and a disability passport.The Government continues to fund the National Police Wellbeing Service which provides evidence-based mental health guidance, advice, tools and resources to support forces and individual officers.

What steps her Department is taking to ensure that (a) childminders, (b) after-school clubs, (c) holiday clubs and schemes and (d) other childcare services are accessible to children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities.

Local authorities and early years providers, including early years childminders, have duties via the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) code of practice, the Equality Act 2010, and the early years foundation stage (EYFS) statutory framework to promote equality and inclusion for children with SEND, removing the barriers that prevent children from accessing early education. In addition, local authorities are required by legislation to provide sufficient childcare places for children in their area for children aged 0 to 14 or up to 18 for children with SEND. The local authority statutory guidance on early education and childcare sets out a clear requirement that local authorities must report annually to elected council members on how they are meeting their duty to secure sufficient childcare, including for children with SEND, and make this report available and accessible to parents. The National Wraparound Childcare Programme is helping local authorities discharge this duty with regard to after school clubs, by distributing funding on the basis of anticipated need. Local authorities across England can decide how best to use the funding to set up or expand wraparound childcare in their area to meet the needs of their local community, including children with SEND. Local authorities have been working in partnership with primary schools and private, voluntary and independent providers, including childminders. Since the programme began, the government has set clear expectations that all wraparound childcare delivered through the programme should be inclusive and accessible. The holiday activities and food (HAF) programme funding is primarily for school aged children from reception to year 11 (inclusive) who receive benefits-related free school meals (FSM). Local authorities have discretion to use up to 15% of their funding to provide free or subsidised holiday club places for children, who are not in receipt of benefits-related FSM, but who the local authority believe could benefit from HAF provision. The department encourages local authorities to engage with local and national organisations, including special schools with expertise in working with children with SEND or additional needs. Local authorities are obligated to include the numbers of children with SEND or additional needs who have participated in their programme in their post provision reporting to us.

Communities and Local Government, what discussions she has had with the Chief Land Registrar on ensuring that adverse possession claims are not granted for land designated as public open space or held for flood management purposes; and whether her Department plans to issue guidance to local councils on this matter.

HM Land Registry has operational responsibility for considering land registration applications based on adverse possession. It publishes guidance about this matter at gov.uk here and here.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the impact of land lost through adverse possession on local flood resilience.

The new National Flood Risk Assessment data published on 28 January 2025 uses the best currently available data to provide a single picture of current and future flood risk from rivers, the sea and surface water for England. The Environment Agency has not undertaken an assessment of the impact of land lost through adverse possession on flood resilience – this would need to be undertaken at a local level by the asset owners or interested parties. HM Land Registry has operational responsibility for considering land registration applications based on adverse possession and publishes guidance about this at GOV.UK here and here.

When the Minister for Health and Secondary Care plans to respond to the correspondence of 6 November 2024 from the hon. Member for Hazel Grove on funding for Stepping Hill Hospital.

I replied to the hon. Member on 29 January 2025.

With reference to Article 13(b) of the Hague Convention of 25 October 1980 on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction, what steps she is taking to ensure the definition in UK law of "grave risk of harm" includes domestic violence.

There is no legal definition of “grave risk of harm” in England and Wales. In the 1980 Hague Child Abduction Convention court cases about the return of a child where one of the parties seeks to demonstrate there is a grave risk of harm under Article 13(b) in the specific case, evidence of domestic abuse can be put before the court. It is a matter for the independent court hearing a case under the 1980 Hague Convention to assess the evidence put before the court and to decide if a grave risk of harm is established.

What steps her Department is taking to advocate reform of the Hague Convention of 25 October 1980 on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction to better protect victims of domestic violence.

The UK supports the work of the Hague Conference on Private International Law on their multilateral Conventions, including the 1980 Hague Child Abduction Convention, and works with other States Party to that Convention to improve its operation. The UK is taking a leading role in working with the Hague Conference to consider the impact of allegations and evidence of domestic abuse in judicial decision-making under the 1980 Hague Convention.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will require landowners to remove invasive plant species including those listed under schedule 9 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 from their land.

The Government takes invasive species seriously and has legislated to tackle the spread of invasive plants. The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 does not impose an explicit obligation for landowners to manage plant species listed under Schedule 9 not introduced onto their land by their own actions. However, they should prevent them from spreading off their land. It is also an offence to intentionally cultivate, or release plants listed under the Invasive Alien Species (Enforcement and Permitting) Order 2019. This means landowners cannot intentionally plant listed species or intentionally cause existing listed plants to spread. Landowners should treat or dispose of listed plants where possible. The Government is not currently considering adding additional requirements for landowners, but funding is available for invasive plant species control and management through Defra’s Environmental Land Management (ELM) Countryside Stewardship scheme.

What steps his Department is taking to (a) support and (b) encourage Integrated Care Boards to prescribe semaglutide for weight management.

Obesity medicines can be effective for some patients living with obesity when prescribed alongside diet, physical activity, and behavioural support. Exactly what is most appropriate for an individual is down to health care professionals to advise, in discussion with patients, and considering relevant clinical guidance.The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence recommended semaglutide as an option for weight management, alongside a reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity, for adults that meet the eligibility criteria, and only if it is used within a specialist weight management service providing multidisciplinary management of overweight or obesity.Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for arranging the provision of health services within their area in line with local priorities, considering population need and relevant guidance. This includes the commissioning of NHS specialist weight management services.National Health Service organisations, including ICBs, are continuing to look at the best way to manage access to treatments for obesity.

What steps his Department is taking to increase the supply of semaglutide in Hazel Grove constituency.

The Department monitors and manages medicine supply at a national level so that stocks remain available to meet regional and local demand. Information on stock levels within individual constituencies is not held centrally. The Department is not aware of any current supply issues for semaglutide. Ozempic and Wegovy, injectable forms of semaglutide, are currently available, and Rybelsus, an oral tablet containing semaglutide, is also available. The Department continues to monitor the situation, ensuring that medicines remain available for new patients with type 2 diabetes, as well as those unable to obtain their existing treatment. The General Pharmaceutical Council, General Medical Council, Health and Care Professions Council, Nursing and Midwifery Council, and Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland have also issued a joint statement stressing the importance of health and care professionals meeting regulatory standards in relation to these medicines. The guidance is clear, that medications licensed to treat type 2 diabetes should not be prescribed for weight loss, except where specifically licenced for this use. Any patient who is worried about their condition, or access to these medications, should speak to their clinician in the first instance.

What steps her Department is taking to reduce delays in processing times for Deputyship applications by the Court of Protection.

HM Courts & Tribunals Service is focused on increasing outputs to reduce the overall timeliness on all types of applications and to reduce delays in processing times. HMCTS has implemented a number of different measures which includes a targeted action plan to increase resources to meet the higher demand and the training and upskilling of new staff. HMCTS has also implemented new digital ways of working together with a new case management system which will support the reduction in overall end to end processing times.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what diplomatic steps he is taking to help support the rights of women in Afghanistan.

We condemn the Taliban’s destruction of nearly every element of women and girls’ freedoms. FCDO officials engage with the Taliban to urge them to reverse their barbaric decisions and we work with our international partners to maintain collective pressure. The UK uses its prominent position in multilateral forums, such as the UN Security Council, to hold the Taliban to account for their deeply repressive policies.

Whether he plans to include Annatto (E160b) on the list of allergens that must be labelled under UK food labelling regulations.

There are many potential food ingredients that may cause an allergic reaction to sensitised people. The current 14 regulated allergens are recognised as being the most common and potent allergens of public health concern across Europe.   Further information is available at the following link:https://www.food.gov.uk/business-guidance/allergen-guidance-for-food-businessesThe prevalence of allergy to the additive Annatto (E160b) is currently unknown in the United Kingdom. The Food Standards Agency (FSA) is currently working with the British Society for Allergy and Clinical Immunology and other stakeholders on gathering information on hidden and emerging food allergens which will help in assessing the need for further research and work in this area. If further information is received on the prevalence of Annatto as an allergy we will review this evidence. The FSA continues to monitor the situation closely but has no current recommendations to Ministers on amending the list of 14 regulated allergens.The FSA continues to work to make it easier for people with food hypersensitivities, namely allergies, intolerances, and coeliac disease, to have access to clear and accurate information which is a fundamental part of their work. Their research is available at the following link:https://www.food.gov.uk/research/food-hypersensitivity