Written questions by Joseph.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of funding levels for Kent Police.

This Government is committed to ensuring that the police have the resources they need to tackle crime effectively.Kent Police’s funding will be up to £431.5m in 2024-25. This is in addition to £4m provided for the 2024-25 pay award which has been allocated outside of the police funding settlement.As announced at the Autumn Budget 2024, the settlement will increase the core government grant for police forces and help support frontline policing levels across the country.Force level funding allocations for the financial year 2025-26 will be confirmed at the forthcoming police funding settlement. Funding for future years beyond 2025-26 will be set out in phase 2 of the Spending Review.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department has taken to clear up water ways in Ashford constituency.

The Government’s Water (Special Measures) Bill will the first important step in enabling wider, transformative change across the water sector, reducing pollution and cleaning up our waterways. The Government has also launched an Independent Commission into the water sector regulatory system, anticipated to form the largest review of the industry since privatisation. With respect to the Ashford constituency, this year Environment Agency (EA) officers have inspected four permitted water company assets, with more planned in the coming months as part an increased programme of regulatory visits. No significant issues have been found so far. Where significant permit breaches or issues are identified, the appropriate enforcement response will be pursued according to the EA’s enforcement policy. EA Agricultural Officers have been focusing their regulatory efforts in the Great Stour catchment this year. These inspections ensure farmers are operating in ways that reduce polluting inputs into watercourses. The EA is also an active participant of the Kentish Stour Catchment partnership which identifies and commissions projects to improve water quality and river habitats across the catchment.

What steps her Department is taking to support children diagnosed with dyslexia in Ashford constituency.

The department is committed to improving support for all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), including those with dyslexia and other neurodiverse conditions.Early identification of need and support is critical to improving outcomes for children and young people with SEND, including those with dyslexia. There is already a number of measures to help teachers do this, including the phonics screening check and statutory assessments at the end of key stage 2.Measures have also been introduced to support the effective teaching of reading, including for those at risk of falling behind. This includes the English Hubs programme, the publication of the Reading Framework and an updated list of high quality phonics programmes for schools.The English Hubs programme is dedicated to improving the teaching of reading, with a focus on supporting children making the slowest progress in reading. As part of the continuous professional development provided by the English Hubs, the Reading Ambition for All programme has been launched to improve outcomes for children who need additional support with reading, including those with SEND.Ashford’s local English Hub is Kingsnorth. Further information is available here: https://www.kingsnorth.kent.sch.uk/english-hub.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of the human rights situation in Balochistan.

The UK is deeply concerned about reports of human rights abuses and violations in Pakistan, including in Balochistan province. The British High Commission regularly raises these issues with the Government of Pakistan at a senior level. The UK will continue to urge the Government of Pakistan to guarantee the rights of all people as laid down in Pakistan's Constitution and in accordance with international standards.

What steps his Department is taking to enable GP surgeries to provide additional services in Ashford constituency.

Practices are able to provide additional services by opting in and will receive payment for these services separately to global sum payments. As commissioners of primary care, Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning additional services locally, which are not agreed nationally and can vary in scope and funding to fit local needs.

What steps his Department is taking to support the (a) recruitment and (b) retention of mental health specialists in the Kent and Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership Trust.

To fix the chronic workforce shortages in the mental health workforce we plan to recruit an additional 8,500 mental health workers, across both child and adult mental health services, to reduce waiting times and provide faster treatment across all areas of England, including Kent and Medway.We are working to consider options to deliver this expansion of the mental health workforce, including where they should be deployed to achieve maximum effect. NHS England is also working to improve retention through clearer career progression pathways.

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of social care capacity in Ashford constituency.

Local authorities are best placed to understand and plan for the needs of their population, which is why, under the Care Act 2014, local authorities are tasked with the duty to shape their care market to meet the diverse needs of all local people. In performing that duty, a local authority must have regard to current and likely future demand for such services and consider how providers might meet that demand.The Market Sustainability and Improvement Fund includes grant conditions which require each local authority to submit an adult social care capacity plan. These were submitted to the Department in June 2024. The member’s local authority, Kent, submitted their 2024/25 capacity plan, which is currently undergoing processing and quality assurance.

What steps his Department is taking to reduce GP waiting times in Ashford constituency.

We know that patients are finding it harder than ever to see a general practitioner (GP) and we are committed to fixing the the crisis in GPs to secure the long-term sustainability of the National Health Service. Ashford sits within the Kent and Medway Integrated Care Board (ICB), where the percentage of appointments delivered within two weeks of booking, 79.4%, is 3.2% lower than the national average, which is 82.6%.Our plan to restore GPs and improve the waiting times to see a GP will require both investment and reform. We have already invested £82 million to recruit over 1,000 newly qualified GPs through the Additional Roles Reimbursement scheme, which will continue to increase the capacity in GPs, as well as take pressure off those currently working in the system. We have committed to train thousands more GPs and finally end the 8:00am scramble for GP appointments by introducing a modern booking system.

What steps his Department is taking to improve access to dental services in Ashford constituency.

The Government plans to tackle the challenges for patients trying to access National Health Service dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. To rebuild dentistry in the long term and increase access to NHS dental care, we will reform the dental contract, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.The responsibility for commissioning primary care dentistry to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to the integrated care boards (ICBs) across England. ICBs are responsible for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry, to meet the needs of the local populations and to determine the priorities for investment. For the Ashford constituency, this is the NHS Kent and Medway ICB.

What (a) funding her Department is providing and (b) steps her Department is taking to help prevent crime in (i) Ashford constituency and (ii) Kent.

The 2024-25 police funding settlement provides funding of up to £18.5 billion for the policing system in England and Wales. Kent Police’s funding will be up to £431.5m in 2024-25. This is in addition to £4m provided for the 2024-25 pay award which has been allocated outside of the police funding settlement. Across all rounds of the Safer Streets Fund, and the Safety of Women at Night Fund, the Kent police force area has received just under £3.5 million, supporting 12 projects. This includes just over £760,000 through the latest, fifth round of funding to deliver three projects across various locations, including in Folkestone, Chatham, Sittingbourne and Sheerness, which have a focus on preventing anti-social behaviour, violence against women and girls and neighbourhood crime. The Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) in Kent has been allocated £1,568,614 to deliver the Hotspot Response programme in 24-25. This programme is a combination of additional, high visibility patrols targeted to the exact locations where they are needed most (‘hotspots’), and funding of problem-oriented policing tactics. Problem oriented policing aims to tackle the underlying drivers of crime using a comprehensive menu of policing interventions. More broadly, this Government will treat tackling violence against women and girls as a national emergency and we will use every tool to target perpetrators and address the root causes of violence.As part of the Government’s Safer Streets mission, the Home Secretary has made a clear commitment to strengthen neighbourhood policing through the introduction of a Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee, which includes getting thousands of neighbourhood police personnel back on the beat, giving local people a names officer who they can turn to when things go wrong, and cracking down on the street crime, shop theft and anti-social behaviour which makes communities feel less safe.

What steps she is taking to reduce the backlog of court cases in Kent.

We have taken your question to mean what steps are being taken to tackle the outstanding caseload across all jurisdictions. We are pursuing a number of measures at a national level that will contribute to the reduction of cases in Kent.Criminal Courts More than 90 per cent of all criminal cases are dealt with at the magistrates’ courts, where cases continue to be completed swiftly. The outstanding caseload in the magistrates’ court reduced following the pandemic; however the caseload has increased over the last year, as a result of more cases entering the criminal courts. We continue to invest in the recruitment of more magistrates, aiming to recruit 2,000 new and diverse magistrates this year and similar numbers of each of the next couple of years.The Crown Court outstanding caseload remains one of the biggest challenges facing the Criminal Justice System and we are committed to reducing the caseload and bringing waiting times down. We want to make sure every victim has the swift access to justice they deserve - however, we recognise that some cases currently take longer to conclude. That is why we have committed to fast-tracking rape cases through the courts, ensuring timely and effective justice for victims and will say more on this in due course.More widely, as part of our efforts to hear more cases, we have increased funding so that 106,500 sitting days can be sat at the Crown Court this year - more than six out of the last seven years - and 500 days more than the 106,000 agreed by the previous government in June. In Kent specifically, they are on track to sit nearly 3,000 sitting days this financial year across Canterbury and Maidstone Crown Court.Alongside this, we consistently invest in the recruitment of c.1,000 judges and tribunal members across all jurisdictions annually alongside continuing to use 18 Nightingale courtrooms across eight venues to hear more cases.Most recently, we have announced plans to allow magistrates’ courts to hand down custodial sentences of up to 12 months for a single triable either way offence – doubling their current powers – from mid-November. Allowing magistrates to deal with more cases will save up to 2,000 sitting days in the Crown Court.Civil courts With regards to civil cases, we are taking action to ensure those that do need to go to trial are dealt with quickly. We have a significant volume of judicial recruitment underway for District and Deputy District Judges, are digitising court processes and holding more remote hearings, and are increasing the use of mediation.The requirement for small claims in the county court to attend a mediation session with the Small Claims Mediation Service will start this spring and is expected to help parties resolve their dispute swiftly and consensually without the need for a judicial hearing.The HMCTS Reform Program has introduced technology that delivers simplified and transformed digital ways of working for civil court users and judges such as the online money claims process and the damages claims service, offering accessible and responsive services.TribunalsWe are working to reduce the outstanding caseload in the First-tier Tribunal and the Upper Tribunal including the Employment Tribunal and Employment Appeal Tribunal. Reducing outstanding caseloads is the key measure to bringing down the waiting times for tribunal hearings.HMCTS continues to invest in improving tribunal productivity through the recruitment of additional Judges, deployment of Legal Officers to actively manage cases, the development of modern case management systems and the use of remote hearing technology.Data on Tribunals performance is published by the Ministry of Justice on a quarterly basis. Receipts, disposals and the outstanding caseload for individual Chambers in the First-tier Tribunal and Upper Tribunal, the Employment Tribunal and the Employment Appeal Tribunal can be found at the link below: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/tribunals-statistics.Family Court In the family courts, partners across the system are working together to drive forward a range of measures to improve timeliness of both public and private law cases.In March 2024, the Family Justice Board agreed a new set of priorities for the family justice system, with a clear focus on closing the longest running cases and increasing the proportion of public law cases concluding within the 26-week statutory timeline. These targets are informing planning and delivery at a national and local level, with partners across the system taking steps to improve performance and share best practice.The Government recognises the importance of supporting separating families, and where appropriate, helping them resolve their issues quickly and without the need to come to court. The Family Mediation Voucher Scheme continues to provide £500 towards the cost of mediation. To date, over £15 million of vouchers have helped 34,300 separating parents to access mediation.We are also exploring new ways to address the longest delays in public law cases, by investing £10 million to develop and implement innovative initiatives in local areas.

What recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of levels of neighbourhood policing in (a) Ashford constituency and (b) Kent.

The 2024-25 police funding settlement provides funding of up to £18.5 billion for the policing system in England and Wales. Kent Police’s funding will be up to £431.5m in 2024-25. This is in addition to £4m provided for the 2024-25 pay award which has been allocated outside of the police funding settlement. Across all rounds of the Safer Streets Fund, and the Safety of Women at Night Fund, the Kent police force area has received just under £3.5 million, supporting 12 projects. This includes just over £760,000 through the latest, fifth round of funding to deliver three projects across various locations, including in Folkestone, Chatham, Sittingbourne and Sheerness, which have a focus on preventing anti-social behaviour, violence against women and girls and neighbourhood crime. The Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) in Kent has been allocated £1,568,614 to deliver the Hotspot Response programme in 24-25. This programme is a combination of additional, high visibility patrols targeted to the exact locations where they are needed most (‘hotspots’), and funding of problem-oriented policing tactics. Problem oriented policing aims to tackle the underlying drivers of crime using a comprehensive menu of policing interventions. More broadly, this Government will treat tackling violence against women and girls as a national emergency and we will use every tool to target perpetrators and address the root causes of violence.As part of the Government’s Safer Streets mission, the Home Secretary has made a clear commitment to strengthen neighbourhood policing through the introduction of a Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee, which includes getting thousands of neighbourhood police personnel back on the beat, giving local people a names officer who they can turn to when things go wrong, and cracking down on the street crime, shop theft and anti-social behaviour which makes communities feel less safe.

What steps her Department is taking to help tackle street crime against women and girls in (a) Ashford constituency and (b) Kent.

The 2024-25 police funding settlement provides funding of up to £18.5 billion for the policing system in England and Wales. Kent Police’s funding will be up to £431.5m in 2024-25. This is in addition to £4m provided for the 2024-25 pay award which has been allocated outside of the police funding settlement. Across all rounds of the Safer Streets Fund, and the Safety of Women at Night Fund, the Kent police force area has received just under £3.5 million, supporting 12 projects. This includes just over £760,000 through the latest, fifth round of funding to deliver three projects across various locations, including in Folkestone, Chatham, Sittingbourne and Sheerness, which have a focus on preventing anti-social behaviour, violence against women and girls and neighbourhood crime. The Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) in Kent has been allocated £1,568,614 to deliver the Hotspot Response programme in 24-25. This programme is a combination of additional, high visibility patrols targeted to the exact locations where they are needed most (‘hotspots’), and funding of problem-oriented policing tactics. Problem oriented policing aims to tackle the underlying drivers of crime using a comprehensive menu of policing interventions. More broadly, this Government will treat tackling violence against women and girls as a national emergency and we will use every tool to target perpetrators and address the root causes of violence.As part of the Government’s Safer Streets mission, the Home Secretary has made a clear commitment to strengthen neighbourhood policing through the introduction of a Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee, which includes getting thousands of neighbourhood police personnel back on the beat, giving local people a names officer who they can turn to when things go wrong, and cracking down on the street crime, shop theft and anti-social behaviour which makes communities feel less safe.

Communities and Local Government, what recent discussions her Department has held with Natural England on the effect of nutrient neutrality rules on new housebuilding projects in the River Stour catchment area in Kent.

I refer my Hon Friend to the answer given to Question UIN 3644 on 9 September 2024.

What discussions she has had with local authorities on tackling youth unemployment in Ashford constituency.

The forthcoming Youth Guarantee is testament to our commitment to do more to help young people achieve their potential and how we intend to maximise the role of as wide a range of local partners as possible in helping us to achieve this goal. Ashford Jobcentre has had several meetings with Ashford Borough Council with the Welfare team and the Economic Development Manager where they have been discussing the developments in Ashford and changes in the labour market and how the youth cohort can find employment. Recent examples of positive collaboration in Ashford include strong support for Southeastern rail apprenticeships to close the skill gaps in that sector, and the Jobcentre is also looking for solutions with the local authority around transportation links.

What steps she is taking to help reduce levels of child poverty in Ashford constituency.

Delivering our manifesto commitment to tackle child poverty is an urgent priority for this Government, and the Ministerial Taskforce is working to publish the child poverty strategy in the Spring. Our publication on 23 October ‘Tackling Child Poverty: Developing our Strategy’ sets out how we will develop the Strategy, harnessing all available levers to deliver a reduction in child poverty this Parliament. The Strategy will look at levers across four key themes of increasing incomes, reducing essential costs, increasing financial resilience; and better local support especially in the early years. This will build on the reform plans underway across government and work underway in Devolved Governments. The Taskforce will hear directly from experts on each of the Strategy’s themes including children and families living in poverty and work with leading organisations, charities, and campaigners. To support struggling families, we have already boosted the Household Support Fund by a further £421 million in England. The vital work of the Taskforce comes alongside our commitments to roll out free breakfast clubs at all primary schools, create 3,000 additional nurseries, as well as deliver our plan to make work pay to turn the minimum wage into a real living wage.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of ensuring that people aged between 65 and 70 who turned 65 before 1 September 2023 can access the shingles vaccine as soon as possible.

I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 26 July 2024 to Question 1397.

What steps she is taking to help reduce driving test waiting times in Ashford constituency.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA’s) main priority is to reduce car practical driving test waiting times, whilst upholding road safety standards. DVSA continues to take measures to increase test availability. These include the recruitment of driving examiners (DEs), conducting tests outside regular hours, including at weekends and on public holidays and buying back annual leave from DEs. DVSA currently employs 7.33 full-time equivalent DEs at Ashford, Canterbury and Folkestone driving test centres (DTCs). It has made offers of employment to a further eight potential new DEs who, if successful in training, will join these DTCs.In total DVSA has made offers to 15 potential new DEs in Kent. DVSA launched its latest recruitment campaign in September 2024. From this campaign DVSA aims to recruit a further eight DEs in the Kent area.

What steps she is taking to improve bus services for rural communities in Kent.

Good local bus services are an essential part of prosperous and sustainable communities. As announced in the King’s Speech on 17 July 2024, the government will introduce a Buses Bill later this parliamentary session, which will put decision-making into the hands of local leaders, including in Kent and other rural areas right across England. This will allow local areas to determine how best to design their bus services so that they have control over routes and schedules. The government has also committed to increasing accountability by providing safeguards over local networks across the country and empowering local transport authorities through reforms to bus funding.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of the provision of SEND services in Ashford constituency.

Following the inspection of Kent’s special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) services by Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in January 2019, inspectors reported nine significant areas of weakness, requiring the local area to produce a Written Statement of Action.A revisit by Ofsted and CQC took place in September 2022. The report was published on 9 November 2022 and judged that the local area had not made sufficient progress in addressing any of its significant weaknesses, which were:(i) A widely held concern of parents that the local area is not able, or in some cases not willing, to meet their children’s needs.(ii) A variable quality of provision and commitment to inclusion in schools.(iii) That parents and carers have a limited role in reviewing and designing services for children and young people with SEND.(iv) An inability of current joint commissioning arrangements to address known gaps and eliminate longstanding weaknesses in services.(v) Poor standards achieved and poor progress made by too many children and young people with SEND.(vi) The inconsistent quality of the education, health and care (EHC) plan process.(vii) Weak governance of SEND arrangements across the EHC system at strategic and operational level.(viii) Unacceptable waiting times for children and young people to be seen by some health services.(ix) A lack of effective systems to review and improve outcomes for those children and young people whose progress to date has been limited by weaknesses in provision. Every child and young person with SEND should have access to high quality services. Where a council does not meet requirements to provide appropriate support for these children, the department will take action to prioritise their needs and bring about rapid improvement. That is why Kent County Council (KCC) was issued with an Improvement Notice in March 2023, setting out the steps expected of them to raise standards in their SEND services.After reviewing the actions that KCC has taken to improve its SEND services, the department lifted its Improvement Notice in August 2024 on the basis that KCC has met the conditions set out within it. The department continues to maintain close oversight of services and the further improvements KCC must make to ensure every child and young person with SEND has access to high quality services, including through regular review meetings, close working with NHS England, and the continued support of a department commissioned SEND Advisor.