Every parliamentary written question tabled by Steve Darling this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 161–180 of 599 · this parliament
With reference to his Department's plan Fit for the Future: 10 Year Health Plan for England, when he plans to publish more information about the intended reforms to the Better Care Fund.
As set out in the 10-Year Health Plan and in the 2025/26 Better Care Fund policy framework, we will reform the Better Care Fund from the 2026/27 financial year. An announcement with further detail on this reform will be made in due course.
How much and what proportion of the Better Care Fund will be spent on supporting unpaid family carers in the 2025-26 financial year; and how much was provided for (a) short breaks and (b) respite for carers in the 2022-23 financial year.
As set out in the 10-Year Health Plan and the 2025/26 Better Care Fund policy framework, we will reform the Better Care Fund from financial year 2026/27. An announcement with further detail on this reform will be made in due course. The reform will not impact on the level of funding intended to support unpaid carers in future financial years.In 2025/26, health and wellbeing boards were asked what the primary objective of each scheme was. In England, £222,515,273 was allocated to schemes with the primary objective of supporting unpaid carers. Primary objectives were not requested in previous years for comparison.Health and wellbeing boards are also asked to record information on scheme types. The most appropriate scheme type in 2025/26 was support to carers, including unpaid carers, which has a planned spend of £201,223,000. In previous years, the most appropriate scheme type was carers services. The following table shows the total planned spend on carers services for 2022/23, 2023/24, and 2024/25:YearTotal planned spend on carers services2022/23£156,863,0082023/24£211,660,3712024/25£216,884,174 There are no sub types for planned spend on unpaid family carers or short breaks. In 2022/23, £86,394,455, or 55%, of the total planned spend on carers services was spent on the sub type respite.Information on scheme types for carers broken down by health and wellbeing board has been published and is available for the year 2025/26 and for the years 2023 to 2025, respectively, at the following two links:https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/better-care-fund-2025-26-planning-data/https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/better-care-fund-2023-to-2025-planning-data/
If he will publish the evaluation commissioned by the National Institute for Health and Care Research on support for unpaid carers funded through the Better Care Fund undertaken in 2023-24.
The Department funds independent research through its research delivery arm, the National Institute of Health and Care Research (NIHR). This project is funded through the NIHR Policy Research Programme.The research undertaken in 2023/24 was a development phase, which is the preparatory stage for a larger research project, with findings available at the following link:https://www.lse.ac.uk/cpec/assets/documents/CPEC-Briefing-Note-2-Support-for-unpaid-carers.pdfThe second phase of the evaluation is ongoing. Findings from the second phase will be made publicly available after research is completed in July 2028.The publication of research is led by the research team and in line with NIHR commitments to the transparent and independent publication of high-quality research. The views expressed in research outputs are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the NIHR or the Department.
What was the cost to the public purse of supporting unpaid carers in England through the Better Care Fund in each of the last three financial years.
As set out in the 10-Year Health Plan and the 2025/26 Better Care Fund policy framework, we will reform the Better Care Fund from financial year 2026/27. An announcement with further detail on this reform will be made in due course. The reform will not impact on the level of funding intended to support unpaid carers in future financial years.In 2025/26, health and wellbeing boards were asked what the primary objective of each scheme was. In England, £222,515,273 was allocated to schemes with the primary objective of supporting unpaid carers. Primary objectives were not requested in previous years for comparison.Health and wellbeing boards are also asked to record information on scheme types. The most appropriate scheme type in 2025/26 was support to carers, including unpaid carers, which has a planned spend of £201,223,000. In previous years, the most appropriate scheme type was carers services. The following table shows the total planned spend on carers services for 2022/23, 2023/24, and 2024/25:YearTotal planned spend on carers services2022/23£156,863,0082023/24£211,660,3712024/25£216,884,174 There are no sub types for planned spend on unpaid family carers or short breaks. In 2022/23, £86,394,455, or 55%, of the total planned spend on carers services was spent on the sub type respite.Information on scheme types for carers broken down by health and wellbeing board has been published and is available for the year 2025/26 and for the years 2023 to 2025, respectively, at the following two links:https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/better-care-fund-2025-26-planning-data/https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/better-care-fund-2023-to-2025-planning-data/
With reference to his Department's plan Fit for the Future: 10 Year Health Plan for England, whether the plans to reform the Better Care Fund will impact on the level of funding intended to support unpaid carers in future financial years.
As set out in the 10-Year Health Plan and the 2025/26 Better Care Fund policy framework, we will reform the Better Care Fund from financial year 2026/27. An announcement with further detail on this reform will be made in due course. The reform will not impact on the level of funding intended to support unpaid carers in future financial years.In 2025/26, health and wellbeing boards were asked what the primary objective of each scheme was. In England, £222,515,273 was allocated to schemes with the primary objective of supporting unpaid carers. Primary objectives were not requested in previous years for comparison.Health and wellbeing boards are also asked to record information on scheme types. The most appropriate scheme type in 2025/26 was support to carers, including unpaid carers, which has a planned spend of £201,223,000. In previous years, the most appropriate scheme type was carers services. The following table shows the total planned spend on carers services for 2022/23, 2023/24, and 2024/25:YearTotal planned spend on carers services2022/23£156,863,0082023/24£211,660,3712024/25£216,884,174 There are no sub types for planned spend on unpaid family carers or short breaks. In 2022/23, £86,394,455, or 55%, of the total planned spend on carers services was spent on the sub type respite.Information on scheme types for carers broken down by health and wellbeing board has been published and is available for the year 2025/26 and for the years 2023 to 2025, respectively, at the following two links:https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/better-care-fund-2025-26-planning-data/https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/better-care-fund-2023-to-2025-planning-data/
How much Better Care Fund funding has been provided to each health and wellbeing board to support unpaid carers in each of the last three financial years.
As set out in the 10-Year Health Plan and the 2025/26 Better Care Fund policy framework, we will reform the Better Care Fund from financial year 2026/27. An announcement with further detail on this reform will be made in due course. The reform will not impact on the level of funding intended to support unpaid carers in future financial years.In 2025/26, health and wellbeing boards were asked what the primary objective of each scheme was. In England, £222,515,273 was allocated to schemes with the primary objective of supporting unpaid carers. Primary objectives were not requested in previous years for comparison.Health and wellbeing boards are also asked to record information on scheme types. The most appropriate scheme type in 2025/26 was support to carers, including unpaid carers, which has a planned spend of £201,223,000. In previous years, the most appropriate scheme type was carers services. The following table shows the total planned spend on carers services for 2022/23, 2023/24, and 2024/25:YearTotal planned spend on carers services2022/23£156,863,0082023/24£211,660,3712024/25£216,884,174 There are no sub types for planned spend on unpaid family carers or short breaks. In 2022/23, £86,394,455, or 55%, of the total planned spend on carers services was spent on the sub type respite.Information on scheme types for carers broken down by health and wellbeing board has been published and is available for the year 2025/26 and for the years 2023 to 2025, respectively, at the following two links:https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/better-care-fund-2025-26-planning-data/https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/better-care-fund-2023-to-2025-planning-data/
Whether her Department is taking steps to expedite delayed biometric processing in Islamabad, Pakistan, for family members of people who assisted UK military operations in Afghanistan; and whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential risk of family members being deported to Afghanistan and identified by the Taliban.
The Home Office does not hold this information.
Pursuant to the Answer of 20 May 2025 to Question 51603, if he will provide an update on when the Pathways to Work White Paper will be published.
We have already put in place the equivalent of over 1000 full-time Pathways to Work advisers across Britain to support disabled people into work. We have also launched the Timms Review to ensure PIP is fair and fit for the future and are increasing the number of health assessments that are being conducted in person. We will be bringing forward other policy updates in due course.
If he will consider extending access to cardiac screening to people aged 14 to 35 who participate in sport.
In the United Kingdom, national screening programmes are introduced based on the recommendations of the UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC), an independent scientific advisory committee which advises ministers and the National Health Service in all four countries on all aspects of population and targeted screening and which supports implementation.The UK NSC last reviewed screening for sudden cardiac death (SCD) in people under the age of 39 years old in 2019 and concluded that population screening should not be offered. Further information is available at the following link:https://view-health-screening-recommendations.service.gov.uk/sudden-cardiac-death/The UK NSC is currently examining the evidence for SCD screening and will open a public consultation to seek comments from members of the public and stakeholders on this in due course.
What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Wait 45 policy on (a) ambulance release times and (b) levels of corridor care in hospitals.
The Department has not made a specific assessment. However, ambulance handover delays have improved since last year, and monthly average national handover times have been under 30 minutes since May 2025.As part of the preparations for winter, the Department and NHS England have asked all services to develop and test winter plans, including specific actions to improve flow through hospitals and making progress on eliminating corridor care.
Innovation and Technology, pursuant to the Answer of 24 October 2025 to Question 82424 on Animal Experiments, which experiments does the alternative methods strategy include timelines for phasing out.
The Labour Manifesto commits to “partner with scientists, industry, and civil society as we work towards the phasing out of animal testing”, which is a long-term goal.The government will publish a strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods later this year and will outline targets and timelines for the phasing out of some specific applications of animal testing.
Innovation and Technology, what quality assurance is in place to ensure that when a licence is issued for small-scale digital deployment, the coverage delivered aligns with the planned coverage; and how her Department works with operators to ensure an appropriate level of service is maintained.
Localised networks, such as private mobile networks, are delivered by a wide range of providers to support connectivity for particular users, for example, for business and organisations in sectors such as manufacturing and healthcare. This is different from the coverage provided by the Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) through their national networks, for which we have set the national ambition. For these localised networks, coverage and service levels are typically agreed between the service provider and its customers, and this will vary significantly between different uses. As such, coverage and service levels are not routinely monitored.
Innovation and Technology, what discussions she has had with Ofcom on ensuring that there is adequate telecommunications coverage across the South West region.
Ofcom publishes figures on mobile and fixed broadband coverage across the UK twice a year in their Connected Nations report. The full report for 2025 is expected to be published by the end of this year.Ofcom does not publish aggregate coverage figures at a regional level in their Connected Nations reports but does do so at a Local Authority and Westminster constituency level. There have already been mobile coverage uplifts across the South West from the Shared Rural Network programme, with further improvements to come in the region from the publicly funded element of the programme in Dartmoor and Exmoor.Additionally, to improve gigabit broadband coverage, Openreach, Wildanet, Gigaclear and Wessex Internet are delivering a number of Project Gigabit contracts across the South West.
What steps her Department is taking to help ensure that independent fostering agencies receive adequate support to provide high-quality fostering services.
The department’s priority is to recruit and retain more foster carers so there is a choice of stable, loving foster homes for children in care.The government is committed to ensuring a fostering system that meets the needs of children and young people and works for everyone involved. We have clear regulations and rigorous inspection frameworks to ensure these high standards are achieved.All private independent fostering agencies must meet the legal requirements set out in the Fostering Services (England) Regulations 2011. These regulations, alongside the fostering services: national minimum standards, are used by Ofsted when inspecting fostering agencies to ensure that they are offering the right support to children and foster families.The department encourages local authorities and independent fostering agencies to collaborate and welcome sector efforts such as the National Fostering Model Contract, which was co-produced by local authorities and independent fostering agencies, which aim to improve commissioning processes.
Communities and Local Government, when he plans to announce the prospectus for round 4 of the local authority housing fund.
We aim to publish the prospectus for Round 4 by the end of this year, to allow local authorities sufficient time to prepare for delivery to begin in April 2026.The £950 million fourth round of Local Authority Housing Fund will primarily support local authorities in England to increase the supply of better-quality temporary accommodation and drive down the use of Bed and Breakfasts for families with children.It will also provide safe and suitable housing for those on the Afghan Resettlement Programme (ARP), to fulfil the UK’s humanitarian duties to assist those who assisted British efforts in Afghanistan and are at risk of homelessness.
What assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of introducing specialist support measures to support unpaid carers into employment.
Unpaid carers play a vital role in our communities, and we all owe them a debt of gratitude. We know that for the vast majority of people, care begins at home with their families. Many people wish to play a role in caring for their friends and family, and we recognise that for some this can be a significant commitment. We are committed to supporting carers to balance unpaid care with paid work where this is feasible. Customers providing care for fewer than 35 hours a week receive personalised support through their Jobcentre Plus work coach to help them find work and their work expectation is tailored to fit caring responsibilities. Support includes identifying skills gaps and referral to skills training, careers advice, job search support, volunteering opportunities and access to the Flexible Support Fund to aid job entry. Unemployed customers who require more intensive employment support can also be referred to the Restart programme. DWP also provides information to help carers and potential unpaid carers make informed decisions about combining work and care through their JobHelp Care choices site. The Get Britain Working White Paper sets out our ambition to reform Jobcentre Plus and create a new service across Great Britain that will enable everyone, to access good, meaningful work, and support them to progress in work, including through an enhanced focus on skills and careers. The new Jobs and Careers Service will be universal to all - regardless of their barriers to work - and the principles of accessibility and inclusivity will be core to service design.
What steps his Department is taking to support unpaid carers into paid employment.
The Government is committed to supporting carers to balance unpaid care with paid work where this is feasible. Eligible carers may still receive benefits while working, allowing them to increase their overall income. Support includes identifying skills gaps and referral to skills training, careers advice, job search support, volunteering opportunities and access to the Flexible Support Fund to aid job entry. Unemployed customers who require more intensive employment support can also be referred to the Restart programme. Customers providing care for fewer than 35 hours a week receive personalised support through their Jobcentre Plus work coach to help them find work and their work expectation is tailored to fit caring responsibilities. For unpaid carers who are entitled to Carer’s Allowance, we have introduced the largest increase in the earnings limit since Carer’s Allowance was introduced in 1976. The earnings limit is now 16 hours work at National Living Wage levels and over 60,000 additional people will be able to receive Carer’s Allowance between 2025/26 and 2029/30. DWP also provides information to help carers and potential unpaid carers make informed decisions about combining work and care through their JobHelp Care choices site.
What estimate his Department has made of the potential impact of supporting unpaid carers into employment on the economy.
Unpaid carers play a vital role in our communities, and we all owe them a debt of gratitude. We know that for the vast majority of people, care begins at home with their families. Many people wish to play a role in caring for their friends and family, and we recognise that for some this can be a significant commitment. We are committed to supporting carers to balance unpaid care with paid work where this is feasible. Whilst there is no formal impact assessment of the impact of supporting unpaid carers into employment on the economy, unpaid carers who claim DWP benefits and provide care for fewer than 35 hours a week receive personalised support through their Jobcentre Plus work coach to help them find work and their work expectation is tailored to fit caring responsibilities. DWP also provides information to help carers and potential unpaid carers make informed decisions about combining work and care through their JobHelp Care choices site.
How many unpaid carers have been supported into work through his Department's employment support programmes in the last 12 months.
The Government is committed to supporting carers to balance unpaid care with paid work where this is feasible. Eligible carers may still receive benefits while working, allowing them to increase their overall income. The information requested is currently not available. However, support provided by the department includes identifying skills gaps and referral to skills training, careers advice, job search support, volunteering opportunities, localised support and access to the Flexible Support Fund to aid job entry. Unemployed customers who require more intensive employment support can also be referred to the Restart programme or Connect to Work. DWP also provides information to help carers and potential unpaid carers make informed decisions about combining work and care through their JobHelp Care choices site. The Get Britain Working White Paper sets out our ambition to reform Jobcentre Plus and create a new service across Great Britain that will enable everyone, to access good, meaningful work, and support them to progress in work, including through an enhanced focus on skills and careers. The new Jobs and Careers Service will be universal to all - regardless of their barriers to work - and the principles of accessibility and inclusivity will be core to service design.
What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of reducing funding for International Baccalaureate qualifications on trends in the difference in academic results between state and private schools.
The department has made significant investments into 16 to 19 education funding. The base rate of funding per student has increased to £5,105 in 2025/26, up over 5% in comparison to last year. But we must make this funding work hard, tilting it towards key priorities. That is why the department has announced that we will focus large programme uplift funding, which is on top of the base funding, on those large programmes which include mathematics, further mathematics and other high value A levels. 16 to 19 funded institutions have the freedom to decide how they use their funding for the provision they offer, including whether they offer the International Baccalaureate. The impact of the scenarios referred to in the questions will depend on choices made by institutions.