Every parliamentary written question tabled by Luke Evans this session, with the full answer and department. Back to the MP page.
Showing 661–680 of 865 · this parliament
Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 19 March 2025 to Question 37715, which (a) local authorities, (b) police forces and (c) animal welfare groups his Department has had discussions with on responsible dog ownership; and when he last held a meeting on this.
Defra continues to work with the police, local authorities and animal welfare groups to explore measures to reduce dog attacks and promote responsible dog ownership across all breeds of dog.
Pursuant to the Answer of 11 March 2025 to Question 35774 on Pension Credit: Staff, if she will make an estimate of the cost to the public purse of using (a) external providers and (b) external recruitment to process pension credit applications during Winter 2024-25.
My previous response (UIN 35775) advised we had deployed over 500 additional staff through a combination of internal redeployments, use of external providers and external recruitment. The 24/25 forecast cost of (a) external providers is £1.9 million, and (b) external recruitment is £2.2 million.
Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to formulate the National Youth Strategy.
We are co-producing the National Youth Strategy with young people and cross-sector experts. We have already conducted Ministerial roundtables with young people as well as in-person and online focus groups. We have also launched a national survey to ask young people about their worries and hopes for the future, and created an engagement toolkit so organisations or MPs can run their own workshops and discussions with young people. In addition, we have set up a Youth Advisory Group and an Expert Advisory Group to work alongside us throughout the development of the Strategy. We are also working closely with other Government Departments to ensure the Strategy is cross-cutting and better coordinates youth policy. We will be publishing an interim report this spring and the Strategy will be published this summer.
Whether staff seconded from NHS England to a transitional operations team in his Departent will focus solely on the transfer of responsibilities from NHS England to the Department for Health and Social Care; and what steps he is taking to ensure that the work ordinarily undertaken by the staff who have been seconded will be completed.
Ministers and senior Department officials will work with the new transformation team at the top of NHS England, led by Sir Jim Mackey, to determine the structure and requirements of the team required to support the creation of a new centre for health and care. The transition team will work across NHS England and the Department, bringing together the expertise and experience of both organisations.As we work to return many of NHS England’s current functions to the Department, we will continue to evaluate impacts of all kinds and take precautions to avoid disruption, including when staff have been moved to work on the transition.
What the cost to the public purse is of staff being made redundant from NHS England.
As we work to return many of NHS England’s current functions to the Department, we will ensure that we continue to evaluate impacts of all kinds, and will consider carefully how any information is published. At this stage it is too early to say what the upfront costs of integration are, including any redundancy, while we are scoping the programme.
What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the minimum tapered annual allowance on trends in the levels of extra work taken on by (a) GPs and (b) consultants.
From 6 April 2023, the standard annual allowance threshold increased from £40,000 to £60,000, giving individuals scope for greater tax-free pension growth. The tapered annual allowance further restricts the amount of tax-free pension saving available to the very wealthiest in society. The taper applies when taxable earnings reach £200,000.A range of factors may influence personal decisions around intentions to take on extra work, making it difficult to measure the unique impact of tax measures. There is no clear evidence from National Health Service payroll data that the annual allowance pension tax regime constrains the activity of the consultant workforce in aggregate. Given measurement difficulty, no assessment has been made on the impact of the annual allowance pension tax regime on general practice activity, or consultant activity at specialty level.Where NHS Pension Scheme members do incur annual allowance pension tax charges, these do not have to be met in the current tax year. The NHS Pension Scheme offers a Scheme Pays facility through which individuals can ask the scheme to pay the tax on their behalf in exchange for a fair reduction in the generous pension benefits paid at retirement.
What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the annual allowance threshold on trends in the levels of extra work taken on by (a) GPs and (b) consultants.
From 6 April 2023, the standard annual allowance threshold increased from £40,000 to £60,000, giving individuals scope for greater tax-free pension growth. The tapered annual allowance further restricts the amount of tax-free pension saving available to the very wealthiest in society. The taper applies when taxable earnings reach £200,000.A range of factors may influence personal decisions around intentions to take on extra work, making it difficult to measure the unique impact of tax measures. There is no clear evidence from National Health Service payroll data that the annual allowance pension tax regime constrains the activity of the consultant workforce in aggregate. Given measurement difficulty, no assessment has been made on the impact of the annual allowance pension tax regime on general practice activity, or consultant activity at specialty level.Where NHS Pension Scheme members do incur annual allowance pension tax charges, these do not have to be met in the current tax year. The NHS Pension Scheme offers a Scheme Pays facility through which individuals can ask the scheme to pay the tax on their behalf in exchange for a fair reduction in the generous pension benefits paid at retirement.
If he will publish modelling outlining the estimated cost of staff being made redundant from NHS England.
As we work to return many of NHS England’s current functions to the Department, we will ensure that we continue to evaluate impacts of all kinds, and will consider carefully how any information is published. At this stage it is too early to say what the upfront costs of integration are, including any redundancy, while we are scoping the programme.
Pursuant to the Answers of 21 March 2025 to Question 38389 on NHS England and Question 38390 on NHS England: Redundancy Pay, if he will publish modelling outlining (a) how the short-term upfront costs will be recouped; and (b) in which financial year those costs will be recouped.
As we work to return many of NHS England’s current functions to the Department, we will ensure that we continue to evaluate impacts of all kinds, and will consider carefully how any information is published. At this stage it is too early to say what the upfront costs of integration are, including any redundancy, while we are scoping the programme.
Pursuant to the Answers of 21 March 2025 to Question 38389 on NHS England and Question 38390 on NHS England: Redundancy Pay, what the short-term upfront costs of integrating NHS England and his Department will be.
As we work to return many of NHS England’s current functions to the Department, we will ensure that we continue to evaluate impacts of all kinds, and will consider carefully how any information is published. At this stage it is too early to say what the upfront costs of integration are, including any redundancy, while we are scoping the programme.
What estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of the abolition of NHS England.
We recognise that there may be some short-term upfront costs as we undertake the integration of NHS England and the Department, but these costs and more will be recouped in future years as a result of a smaller, leaner centre. By the end of the process, we estimate that these changes will save hundreds of millions of pounds a year, which will be reinvested in frontline services.
Media and Sport, what (a) statutory and (b) non-statutory bodies her Department has consulted on opportunities for grassroots music collaboration as part of the national youth strategy.
We are developing a new National Youth Strategy with young people and cross-sector experts, and have set up a Youth Advisory Group and Expert Advisory Group as part of this engagement. Members of our Expert Advisory Group have a range of different professional and academic expertise related to young people and work in different fields including: youth work, music, creative skills industries, funding, policy development and sport. We are also in contact with a wide range of other stakeholders working with young people across relevant sectors.
Whether he has plans to use external consultants to support the transfer of NHS England responsibilities to his Department.
Ministers and senior Department officials will work with the new transformation team at the top of NHS England, led by Sir Jim Mackey, to determine the structure and requirements of the team required to support the creation of a new centre for health and care.
Communities and Local Government, whether she has made an assessment of the contribution of statutory planning consultees in protecting the role of playing fields for sports and exercise.
I refer the hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement made on 10 March 2025 (HCWS510).
What steps he is taking to increase the (a) recruitment and (b) retention of speech and language therapists.
Decisions about recruitment are matters for individual National Health Service employers. NHS trusts manage their recruitment at a local level, ensuring they have the right number of staff in place, with the right skill mix, to deliver safe and effective care.NHS England is leading the National Retention Programme to drive a consistent, system-wide approach to staff retention across NHS trusts. This ensures trusts have access to proven retention strategies, data-driven monitoring, and can foster a more stable, engaged, productive, and supported workforce.
With reference to the Written Statement of 3 March 2025 on the Outcome of the 25-26 GP Contract consultation, HCWS486, which 32 targets will his Department remove from GPs.
For the 2025/26 GP Contract year, the 32 Quality and Outcomes Framework indicators that were income-protected for 2024/2025 have been permanently retired. The 32 permanently retired indicators are listed in Annex B at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/changes-to-the-gp-contract-in-2025-26/
Pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2025 to Question 33084 on Pharmacy: Finance, when he plans to publish the independent economic analysis of National Health Service pharmacy funding.
NHS England commissioned Frontier Economics to undertake an independent economic analysis of National Health Service pharmacy funding in 2024. This report was published on 28 March 2025. We have taken necessary decisions to fix the foundations in the public finances at the Autumn Budget, and this enabled the Spending Review settlement of a £22.6 billion increase in resource spending for the Department from 2023/24 outturn to 2025/26. The Department considered the increases in National Insurance contributions and the National Living Wage when consulting on the funding arrangements for community pharmacy. We have now agreed with Community Pharmacy England to increase the community pharmacy contractual framework to £3.073 billion from April 2025. This deal represents the largest uplift in funding of any part of the NHS, at over 19% across 2024/25 and 2025/26. This shows a first step in delivering stability for the future, and a commitment to rebuilding the sector.
If he will make an estimate of the cost to community pharmacies of the proposed increase in the National Living Wage from April 2025.
NHS England commissioned Frontier Economics to undertake an independent economic analysis of National Health Service pharmacy funding in 2024. This report was published on 28 March 2025. We have taken necessary decisions to fix the foundations in the public finances at the Autumn Budget, and this enabled the Spending Review settlement of a £22.6 billion increase in resource spending for the Department from 2023/24 outturn to 2025/26. The Department considered the increases in National Insurance contributions and the National Living Wage when consulting on the funding arrangements for community pharmacy. We have now agreed with Community Pharmacy England to increase the community pharmacy contractual framework to £3.073 billion from April 2025. This deal represents the largest uplift in funding of any part of the NHS, at over 19% across 2024/25 and 2025/26. This shows a first step in delivering stability for the future, and a commitment to rebuilding the sector.
If she will make an estimate of the cost to community pharmacies of the proposed increase in employer National Insurance contributions from April 2025.
NHS England commissioned Frontier Economics to undertake an independent economic analysis of National Health Service pharmacy funding in 2024. This report was published on 28 March 2025. We have taken necessary decisions to fix the foundations in the public finances at the Autumn Budget, and this enabled the Spending Review settlement of a £22.6 billion increase in resource spending for the Department from 2023/24 outturn to 2025/26. The Department considered the increases in National Insurance contributions and the National Living Wage when consulting on the funding arrangements for community pharmacy. We have now agreed with Community Pharmacy England to increase the community pharmacy contractual framework to £3.073 billion from April 2025. This deal represents the largest uplift in funding of any part of the NHS, at over 19% across 2024/25 and 2025/26. This shows a first step in delivering stability for the future, and a commitment to rebuilding the sector.
What steps he is taking to support the retention of GPs.
We are investing an additional £889 million through the GP Contract to reinforce the front door of the National Health Service, bringing total spend on the GP Contract to £13.2 billion in 2025/26. This is the biggest increase in over a decade.Under recently announced changes to the GP Contract in 2025/26, the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS) will become more flexible to allow primary care networks (PCNs) to respond better to local workforce needs. The two ARRS pots will be combined to create a single pot for reimbursement of patient facing staff costs. There will be no restrictions on the number or type of staff covered, including GPs and practice nurses.In a drive to recruit GPs via the ARRS and to bring back the family doctor, the salary element of the maximum reimbursement amount that PCNs can claim for GPs will be increased from £73,113 in 2024/25, the bottom of the salaried GP pay range, to £82,418, an uplift of £9,305, representing the lower quartile of the salaried GP pay range, as some GPs will be entering their second year in the scheme. Proportionate employer on-costs will also be included within the overall maximum reimbursement amount which PCNs will be able to claim.Our commitment to growing the GP workforce includes addressing the reasons why doctors leave the profession, and encouraging them to return to practice. We know that high workloads can be a key driver for GPs reducing their contracted hours or leaving the profession altogether. That’s why we are tackling morale through drivers such as growing the workforce and reducing bureaucracy through our Red Tape Challenge, to improve job satisfaction and reduce the risk of burnout.