Written questions by Evans.

What steps he is taking to ensure that updates made to NHS England guidance help inform the NHS 10 Year Health Plan; and which stakeholders in the eating disorders sector have provided views in his Department's consultation processes.

The 10-Year Health Plan was developed jointly between the Department and NHS England. All relevant NHS England guidance has been considered as part of the development of the plan.We received 1,650 submissions to the 10-Year Health Plan from partner organisations. This included responses from the Faculty of Eating Disorders and BEAT, the eating disorder charity. We also received responses from 120 mental health organisations who may have an interest in eating disorders. However, this information is not held in a format that allows this interest to be identified separately.

Whether he has had discussions with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency on reducing overprescribing.

I have discussed with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) concerns raised by Members of Parliament about the adverse effects of antidepressant prescribing, and what the MHRA can do to improve communication on the risks of different medicines.

What steps he is taking to improve the quality of dementia diagnosis data.

To support recovery of the dementia diagnosis rates and implementation of the Dementia Care Pathway, we have developed a memory service dashboard for management information purposes. The aim is to support commissioners and providers with appropriate data and enable targeted support where needed. Commissioned by the Healthcare Quality Improvement Partnership and funded by NHS England and the Welsh administration, the National Audit of Dementia Memory Service Spotlight reports include data on aspects of the diagnostic process, including waiting times and variation in service delivery in terms of diagnosis speed, neuroimaging use, and post-diagnostic support. The aim is to aid commissioners and providers in planning and targeting improvement where appropriate. To enhance dementia diagnosis rate data further, dementia sub types have been included in the Core GP Contract data collection from April 2023 onwards. This plays an important role in improving diagnosis accuracy and care planning, enabling clinicians to refine diagnostic criteria and tailor treatments more effectively.To help address and reduce variation in dementia diagnosis rates, the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities’ Dementia Intelligence Network developed a data tool for local systems, which includes an assessment of population characteristics such as rurality and socio-economic deprivation. This enables systems to investigate local variation in diagnosis and take informed action to enhance their diagnosis rates.

Whether his Department plans to publish a national carers strategy.

The Government is committed to ensuring that families have the support that they need. The Government has heard the calls for a National Carers Strategy. This must be addressed in the wider context of the urgent need for a renewed vision for adult social care.We have launched an independent commission into adult social care as part of our critical first steps towards delivering a National Care Service. The commission will start a national conversation about what care and support working age adults, older people, and their families expect from adult social care, including exploring the needs of unpaid carers, who provide vital care and support.I also chair a cross-Government meeting, made up of ministers from the Department of Health and Social Care, the Department for Work and Pensions, the Department for Business and Trade, and the Department for Education, to consider how we can provide unpaid carers with the recognition and support they deserve.

If he will make an assessment of the potential merits of amending the NHS 2025/26 priorities and operational planning guidance to include a target on dementia diagnosis.

The Government remains committed to recovering the dementia diagnosis rate to the national ambition of 66.7% and agrees that timely diagnosis is vital to ensure that people with dementia can access the treatment and support they need. The Darzi Investigation found that there were too many targets set for the National Health Service, which made it hard for local systems to prioritise their actions or to be held properly accountable. This is why we have taken a new approach to NHS Planning Guidance this year, reducing the number of national directives from 32 to 18. We will only turn the NHS around by doing things differently. These are the first steps on our journey for long-term reform of the NHS. NHS Planning Guidance is not an exhaustive list of everything the NHS does, and the absence of a target does not mean it is not an area of focus.

Whether his Department plans to publish a dementia strategy.

The Government wants a society where every person with dementia receives high-quality, compassionate care from diagnosis through to the end of life.The 10-Year Health Plan will address the challenges diagnosed by Lord Darzi in his independent investigation into the National Health Service in England, and will set the vision for what good joined-up care looks like for people with a combination of complex health and care needs, including people living with dementia. We are carefully considering policies, including those that impact people with dementia, with input from the public, patients, health staff, and our partners, as we develop the plan.As part of this work, we will consider how best to meet the needs of people with dementia, including whether it is appropriate to develop a dementia strategy.

Whether he has carried out an impact assessment for the removal of the dementia diagnosis target from NHS planning guidance.

The Government remains committed to recovering the dementia diagnosis rate to the national ambition of 66.7% and agrees that timely diagnosis is vital to ensure that people with dementia can access the treatment and support they need. The Darzi Investigation found that there were too many targets set for the National Health Service, which made it hard for local systems to prioritise their actions or to be held properly accountable. This is why we have taken a new approach to NHS Planning Guidance this year, reducing the number of national directives from 32 to 18. We will only turn the NHS around by doing things differently. These are the first steps on our journey for long-term reform of the NHS. NHS Planning Guidance is not an exhaustive list of everything the NHS does, and the absence of a target does not mean it is not an area of focus.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 4 June 2025 to Question 57372 on Chagos Islands: Sovereignty, what the costs to his Department were of the Agreement concerning the Chagos Archipelago including Diego Garcia.

The payments to Mauritius will be split between the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and Ministry of Defence. They will be published in the normal manner alongside other departmental spend in the annual accounts.

Pursuant to the Answer of 4 June 2025 to Question 57372 on Chagos Islands: Sovereignty, what the costs were to his Department of the Agreement concerning the Chagos Archipelago including Diego Garcia.

As set out by the Secretary of State in his statement on 22 May 2025, the Agreement is at a cost of less than 0.2% of the annual defence budget and secures a base which is vital for UK national security for over a century. It represents good value for UK taxpayers. A bill to implement the Treaty was introduced by the Government to the House of Commons on 15 July 2025.

Whether he has made an assessment of the adequacy of the recovery pathways for the care of sudden cardiac arrest survivors.

In December 2024, to support local systems to commission high quality cardiac rehabilitation, NHS England published the document, Commissioning standards for cardiac rehabilitation, which is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/commissioning-standards-for-cardiovascular-rehabilitation/These standards of care complement the British Association of Cardiovascular Prevention and Rehabilitation’s Standards and Core Components document, published in 2023, to support the delivery of high-quality care and adherence to evidenced-based practice.The NHS Long Term Plan committed to improve community first response and build defibrillator networks to help save 4,000 lives by 2028. This is being supported by educating the public, including young people of school age, about how to recognise and respond to out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.NHS England is also working with partners such as the British Heart Foundation to harness new technology and ensure the public and emergency services can rapidly locate this life saving equipment in an emergency.Patients who survive cardiac arrest and their families are supported through referral to local services within the National Health Service; this will include rehabilitation such as cardiac and neurological rehabilitation and mental health services for psychological support.There are different pathways for cardiac arrest survivors, depending on the severity of the damage caused by the cardiac arrest. For people being discharged from secondary care and those with ischemic heart disease, namely myocardial infarction, cardiac rehabilitation services are available in every region.

Whether he has had recent discussions with the Royal Pharmaceutical society on reducing overprescribing.

The Department has had no recent discussions with either the Royal Pharmaceutical Society or the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence on reducing overprescribing.

Whether he has had recent discussions with NICE on reducing overprescribing.

The Department has had no recent discussions with either the Royal Pharmaceutical Society or the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence on reducing overprescribing.

Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with (a) animal sanctuaries and (b) rescue and rehoming centres on the challenges faced in providing for the welfare needs of animals.

Defra regularly engages with a range of stakeholders with an interest in animal welfare, including charities and regulatory agencies. We continue to explore opportunities to improve coordination and information sharing where appropriate.

Food and Rural Affairs, what progress his Department has made on ensuring the continued transportation of milling wheat for food production; and what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of collaboration with industry and other government departments on this.

Defra maintains regular engagement with industry and other Government departments to monitor potential risks to the food supply. This includes extensive, regular and ongoing engagement in preparedness for, and response to, issues with the potential to cause disruption to food supply chains. In addition, Defra works closely with the Department for Transport’s Road Haulage team to ensure transport policies fully consider the needs of the food sector, including the critical movement of milling wheat.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the enforcement powers available to enable local authorities to tackle fly-tipping.

We have committed to forcing fly-tippers to clean up the mess they have created as part of a crackdown on anti-social behaviour. This will build on the sanctions already available which include fixed penalty notices of up to £1000, seizing and crushing of vehicles and prosecution which can lead to a significant fine, community sentence or even imprisonment. Sentencing is a matter for the courts. The Defra chaired National Fly-tipping Prevention Group has produced a guide on how local authorities, and others, can present robust cases to court. This is available at https://www.keepbritaintidy.org/national-fly-tipping-prevention-group. We encourage councils to make good use of their enforcement powers, and we are currently seeking powers to provide statutory guidance on fly-tipping enforcement. We have also announced a review of their powers to seize and crush vehicles of suspected fly-tippers, to identify how we could help councils make better use of this tool.

What progress her Department has made on improving the UK's international train connectivity.

The Government fully supports thriving and competitive international rail passenger services and freight markets, given the benefits this can bring, including potentially greater choice, new service offers and lower fares for passengers and more sustainable option for the movement of freight. DfT Officials are actively engaging with relevant international partners and industry counterparts, including prospective operators, to help facilitate new routes or services where possible, particularly where there is a commercial proposition to do so.

Food and Rural Affairs, which organisations from the food and drink sector has he met to discuss the Food Labelling Consultation since July 2024; and what the dates were of those meetings.

I regularly meet with key food and drink sector stakeholders such as the Food and Drink Federation, the National Farmers' Union, UK Hospitality, and the British Retail Consortium to discuss food system issues including relevant Government consultations such as the Fairer Food Consultation. Defra officials also engage regularly with a range of key food and drink stakeholders, including as part of the ongoing development of the Government's food and animal welfare strategies. Additionally, I am pleased to let the Hon. Member know that the Summary of Responses and Government Response to the consultation have now been published.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of existing enforcement powers for tackling fly-tipping.

We have committed to forcing fly-tippers to clean up the mess they have created as part of a crackdown on anti-social behaviour. This will build on the sanctions already available which include fixed penalty notices of up to £1000, seizing and crushing of vehicles and prosecution which can lead to a significant fine, community sentence or even imprisonment. Sentencing is a matter for the courts. The Defra chaired National Fly-tipping Prevention Group has produced a guide on how local authorities, and others, can present robust cases to court. This is available at https://www.keepbritaintidy.org/national-fly-tipping-prevention-group. We encourage councils to make good use of their enforcement powers, and we are currently seeking powers to provide statutory guidance on fly-tipping enforcement. We have also announced a review of their powers to seize and crush vehicles of suspected fly-tippers, to identify how we could help councils make better use of this tool.

Pursuant to the Answer of 9 June 2025 to Question 54607 on Anti-social Behaviour: North East Somerset and Hanham, what steps she is taking to help ensure that intelligence gained by the dedicated lead officer for anti-social behaviour is not lost if the perpetrators of anti-social behaviour move between force areas.

On 10 April, the Prime Minister announced the details of the Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee.Tackling anti-social behaviour (ASB) and the harm it causes is a top priority for this Government and a key part of our Safer Streets Mission. As part of the Neighbourhood Policing Grant, £200 million has been allocated to forces for 2025/26 to support the Government’s commitment to deliver additional personnel into neighbourhood policing.This includes ensuring that every force area will have a dedicated lead officer for anti-social behaviour who will work with communities to develop an action plan to reduce and prevent ASB. I am closely monitoring the delivery of this commitment across the 43 police forces in England and Wales.Forces are expected to engage with communities to develop their action plan which should cover the entire force area. Larger forces may decide to have more than one Action Plan if they consider it appropriate for different geographical areas within the force.We will continue to work closely with forces once the dedicated lead officers commence their roles from July 2025, setting out further detail on expectations of their ASB Action Plans, including how they will ensure they work across force boundaries where necessary.

Pursuant to the Answer of 9 June 2025 to Question 54607 on Anti-social Behaviour: North East Somerset and Hanham, whether she has had recent discussions with police forces on initiating the recruitment of a dedicated lead officer to develop local anti-social behaviour action plans.

On 10 April, the Prime Minister announced the details of the Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee.Tackling anti-social behaviour (ASB) and the harm it causes is a top priority for this Government and a key part of our Safer Streets Mission. As part of the Neighbourhood Policing Grant, £200 million has been allocated to forces for 2025/26 to support the Government’s commitment to deliver additional personnel into neighbourhood policing.This includes ensuring that every force area will have a dedicated lead officer for anti-social behaviour who will work with communities to develop an action plan to reduce and prevent ASB. I am closely monitoring the delivery of this commitment across the 43 police forces in England and Wales.Forces are expected to engage with communities to develop their action plan which should cover the entire force area. Larger forces may decide to have more than one Action Plan if they consider it appropriate for different geographical areas within the force.We will continue to work closely with forces once the dedicated lead officers commence their roles from July 2025, setting out further detail on expectations of their ASB Action Plans, including how they will ensure they work across force boundaries where necessary.