Written questions by Hodgson.

If she will publish a passenger focused plan on train travel post rail-reform which includes recommendations on ensuring the safety of women and girls on trains.

Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) is a priority for the Government. We have set ourselves the ambitious target to halve VAWG offences in the next decade using every lever available to us. My Department and the rail industry, including the British Transport Police are committed to ensuring the safety of women and girls on trains. As we deliver rail reform, we will ensure that plans are in place to build on the good work being done by the rail industry to improve the safety of the rail network for all who use it.

What assessment she has made of the potential merits of expanding the Holiday Activities and Food programme to all (a) families in receipt of Universal Credit and (b) children and young people living in areas of high multiple deprivation.

The holiday activities and food programme (HAF) supports disadvantaged children and their families during the Easter, summer and Christmas holidays with enriching activities, providing them with healthy food, helping them to learn new things, improving socialisation and benefiting their health and wellbeing during school holidays.The HAF programme guidance sets out that: “While the majority of funding that local authorities receive should be used for holiday club places for children in receipt of 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”.

Whether she plans to expand free school meal eligibility as part of the work of the child poverty strategy.

The government is committed to delivering an ambitious strategy to reduce child poverty by tackling the root causes and giving every child the best start in life. To support this, a new Ministerial taskforce has been set up to develop a Child Poverty Strategy. The taskforce will consider a range of policies, assessing what will have the greatest impact in driving down rates of child poverty. As with all policies, the government keeps the approach to free school meals under review.

Media and Sport, whether she has plans to meet with representatives of faith communities to discuss the potential impact of the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme on freedom of religious practice in England and Wales.

On the 22nd of January, I was pleased to announce that the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme would continue from March 2025 to March 2026 with a budget of £23m. Further details can be found in this Written Statement.Both myself and my officials have met with a range of stakeholders since July 2024 and discussed as part of those meetings the future and impact of the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme. The Department also received and responded to a large number of correspondence on the scheme including from representatives from faith communities sharing their views.

What assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of the frequency of sunburn in children and young people under 18.

The Department continues to advise patients to follow National Health Service guidance on sun protection. This advice is available publicly on the NHS.UK website, which is available at the following link:https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/seasonal-health/sunscreen-and-sun-safety/It includes guidance on the extra care that should be taken for babies and children.

Whether the NHS 10-year-plan will include measures to address excessive exposure to ultraviolet radiation.

We have committed to develop a 10-year plan to deliver a National Health Service fit for the future. The engagement process has been launched, and as we work to develop and finalise the plan, I would encourage those concerned about excessive exposure to ultraviolet radiation to engage with that process so we can identify what the potential solutions are. Further information is available at the following link:https://change.nhs.uk/en-GB/

How much his Department has spent on skin cancer awareness campaigns in each of the last three financial years .

The Department continues to advise patients to follow National Health Service guidance on reducing the risk of skin cancer. This advice is available publicly on the National Health Service website, at the following link:https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/melanoma-skin-cancer/ The Department is not taking any additional steps, currently or within the last three years, to specifically fund skin cancer awareness campaigns.NHS England run Help Us Help You campaigns to increase knowledge of cancer symptoms and address the barriers to acting on them, to encourage people to come forward as soon as possible to see their general practitioner. The campaigns focus on a range of symptoms as well as encouraging body awareness to help people spot symptoms across a wide range of cancers at an earlier point.

Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make it her policy to introduce mandatory food waste reporting urgently.

In our manifesto, the Government committed to reducing waste by moving to a circular economy. The Secretary of State has convened a Small Ministerial Group on Circular Economy and a Circular Economy Taskforce of experts across government, industry, academia, and civil society has been established to help develop a Circular Economy Strategy for England and a series of roadmaps detailing the interventions that the Government will make on a sector-by-sector basis. Preventing food waste will be a key part of this work and we will consider the evidence for action right across the economy to evaluate what interventions may be needed as we develop the strategy.

What information his Department holds on the number of people who developed secondary breast cancer after completing the 10-year recommended hormone therapy in the latest period for which data is available.

The National Disease Registration Service (NDRS) in NHS England, as the national cancer registry, collects diagnosis and treatment data on cancer patients in England. The NDRS does not hold data on the number of people who developed secondary breast cancer after completing the 10-year recommended hormone therapy. Further information on the NDRS is available at the following link:https://digital.nhs.uk/ndrs

What information his Department holds on whether there are ongoing trials to assess whether continuing hormone therapy indefinitely after a primary breast cancer diagnosis would prevent this cohort of patients from going on to develop secondary breast cancer.

Research is crucial in tackling cancer, which is why the Department invests over £1.5 billion per year in health research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). NIHR research expenditure for all cancers was £133 million in 2023/24. Cancer is a major area of NIHR spend, reflecting its high priority. The NIHR has commissioned three current studies relevant to this issue, specifically:Improving outcomeS for Women diagnosed with early breast cancer through adhErence to adjuvant Endocrine Therapy (SWEET);Medication brand changes in hormone therapy for breast cancer. A community pharmacy intervention development to improve patients’ adherence and quality of life. ENABLE; andPOSNOC - POsitive Sentinel NOde: adjuvant therapy alone versus adjuvant therapy plus Clearance or axillary radiotherapy: A randomised controlled trial of axillary treatment in women with early stage breast cancer who have metastases in one or two sentinel nodes. The NIHR's Biomedical Research Centres (BRCs) are networks of experts that work collaboratively between the National Health Service and internationally renowned universities. They facilitate early-stage experimental medicine research and support the translation of scientific discoveries. The BRCs are currently supporting a further two relevant studies:Supporting Women With Adherence To Hormone Therapy Following Breast Cancer; andUnirad: Randomized, Double-blind, Multicentre Phase Iii Trial Evaluating The Safety And Benefit Of Adding Everolimus To Adjuvant Hormone Therapy In Women With Poor Prognosis, Er+ And Her2- Primary Breast Cancer Who Remain Free Of Disease After At Least 1 Year Of Adjuvant Hormone Therapy. The NIHR continues to encourage and welcome funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including cancer. 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.

What recent estimate he has made of the number of cases of late diagnoses of bowel cancer in emergency NHS settings; and what steps he is taking to reduce this number.

No recent estimate has been made. Data is only available up to 2020 from the National Disease Registration Service. The data for the year 2020 highlights that 24.4% of bowel cancer patients were diagnosed through emergency presentation.It is a priority fo...

What steps he is taking to resolve the data challenges encountered in the NHS audit from 2006-2011 of the retrospective audit of pelvic mesh.

The Department accepted the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review’s recommendation to undertake a selective retrospective audit of a defined cohort of women who have undergone mesh procedures. NHS Digital, now NHS England, has audited al...

When he expects the retrospective audit of all pelvic floor surgery completed between 2006 and 2011 to be published by NHS England.

The Department accepted the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review’s recommendation to undertake a selective retrospective audit of a defined cohort of women who have undergone mesh procedures. NHS Digital, now NHS England, has audited al...

What steps he is taking to improve access to initial diagnostic blood tests for coeliac disease in primary care settings.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has guidance on the recognition, assessment, and management of coeliac disease, which is available at the following link:https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng20The guidance outlines a number of symptoms ...

What steps he is taking to raise awareness of the average waiting time of 13 years for a diagnosis of coeliac disease.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has guidance on the recognition, assessment, and management of coeliac disease, which is available at the following link:https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng20The guidance outlines a number of symptoms ...

What assessment he has made of the impact of diagnostic delays on the long-term health of patients with undiagnosed coeliac disease; and what steps he is taking to reduce those delays.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has guidance on the recognition, assessment, and management of coeliac disease, which is available at the following link:https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng20The guidance outlines a number of symptoms ...

With reference to paragraph 69 of the House of Lords Preterm Birth Committee report entitled Preterm Birth: reducing risks and improving lives, HL 30, published on 14 November 2024, if his Departme

We welcome the House of Lords’ Preterm Birth Committee’s report focused on reducing risks and improving lives. We thank all the individuals and organisations that gave evidence to the Inquiry, and the committee members for their detailed examination of th...

Whether she has had recent discussions with the food and drink wholesale sector on the classification of wholesale premises as online retail warehouses in the Transforming Business Rates Policy Paper; and what asses

HM Treasury releases a quarterly record of Ministers’ meetings with external individuals and organisations. This can be found online: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmt-ministers-meetings-hospitality-gifts-and-overseas-travel. The Transforming ...

If he will take steps to ensure that Start for Life services in Sunderland are funded beyond 1 April 2025.

The Family Hubs and Start for Life programme is central to the Government’s commitments to give every baby the best start in life, and to deliver the healthiest generation ever.The Prime Minister’s Plan for Change outlined that we will give children the b...

Whether she plans to include provisions on the protection of wholesale workers in the Crime and Policing Bill.

Shop theft continues to increase at an unacceptable level, up 29% on year up to June 2024, with more and more offenders using violence and abuse against shopworkers to do this. We won’t stand for this.Everybody has a right to feel safe on the job and this...