Written questions by Roca.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the resident doctors pay settlement on waiting lists for elective care.

Resident doctor strikes have cost the taxpayer over £1.7 billion, with almost 1.5 million appointments being rescheduled, increasing waiting times for patients.The previous Health Secretary hadn’t met with junior doctors since March 2023. My Right Honourable Friend the Secretary of State, called them on day 1, met them on week 1 and resolved the pay dispute in week 3.Now resident doctors can get on with their work and we will deliver an extra 40,000 appointments per week to bring down waiting lists.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will appoint a special envoy for arbitrarily detained persons.

Providing consular support to British nationals abroad, particularly in cases involving arbitrary detention, is a vital public service and one of the FCDO's top priorities. The Government is reviewing how to strengthen that support, including by considering the appointment of a new envoy.

What steps she plans to take to support Cheshire East council improve local transport across Macclesfield constituency.

Improving local transport services is a key part of this government’s growth mission, and the government has set out plans to deliver better bus services, grow passenger numbers and drive opportunity to under-served regions. As announced in the King’s Speech on 17 July 2024, the government will introduce a Buses Bill later this session. This will put the power over local bus services back in the hands of local leaders right across England, including in Cheshire East, to ensure networks meet the needs of the communities who rely on them. The Bill will increase powers available to local leaders to choose the model that works best in their area, whether that be franchising, high-quality partnerships with private operators or local authority ownership. Government will continue working closely with local leaders and bus operators to deliver on the government’s ambitions.

What steps she plans to take to help Cheshire East Council scrutinise the performance of local bus companies.

Improving local transport services is a key part of this government’s growth mission, and the government has set out plans to deliver better bus services, grow passenger numbers and drive opportunity to under-served regions. As announced in the King’s Speech on 17 July 2024, the government will introduce a Buses Bill later this session. This will put the power over local bus services back in the hands of local leaders right across England, including in Cheshire East, to ensure networks meet the needs of the communities who rely on them. The Bill will increase powers available to local leaders to choose the model that works best in their area, whether that be franchising, high-quality partnerships with private operators or local authority ownership. Government will continue working closely with local leaders and bus operators to deliver on the government’s ambitions.

Whether she plans to make an assessment of the effectiveness of the use of prosecutions for low level offenses by rail operators.

I am aware of the recent coverage of a number of prosecutions undertaken by one rail operator. It would be inappropriate to comment on the details of individual cases, but we expect operators to ensure their policy on ticketing is clear and fair for passengers at all times and have instructed the operator to review the details of these cases urgently. Ticketing has become far too complicated which is why we plan to simplify it as part of the biggest overhaul of our railways in a generation.

Whether she plans to introduce VAT on school fees for vocational music and dance schools where the funding is provided by the Music and Dance Scheme.

On 29 July, the Government announced that, as of 1 January 2025, all education services and vocational training provided by a private school in the UK for a charge will be subject to VAT at the standard rate of 20 per cent. This includes vocational music and dance schools where funding is provided by the Music and Dance Scheme. Where parents or families are paying fees for their child to attend a private music or dance school, they will pay VAT on those fees following this change. The right time to consider any changes to schemes like the Music and Dance Scheme is at the Spending Review.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had recent discussions with his counterpart in Israel on that country's policy on a two-state solution.

The Foreign Secretary most recently spoke to Israeli Foreign Minister Katz on 2 October. We advocate publicly and privately the need for a long-term political solution, that will include the implementation of a two-state solution. An immediate ceasefire must be agreed but is just the first step towards a lasting solution to this crisis. We continue to work to support progress towards a two-state solution with a safe and secure Israel alongside a viable and sovereign Palestinian state.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to help ensure the release of unlawfully detained British nationals abroad.

FCDO consular staff are currently providing consular assistance in over 1600 cases relating to arrest or detention abroad. The UK Government cannot interfere in judicial proceedings in other countries. However, with the consent of the individual we will raise individual cases with the relevant overseas authorities where there are welfare or human rights concerns, such as allegations of torture or mistreatment or fair trial concerns, highlighting the detaining state's obligations under international human rights law.

With reference to the recommendations of the International Monetary Fund in its report entitled New Perspectives on Quantitative Easing and Central Bank Capital Policies, published on 17 May 2024, whether she plans to review the treatment of QE/QT profits and losses.

The Asset Purchase Facility (APF) is indemnified by HM Treasury so that all profits and losses accrued in the APF are owed to, or borne by, HM Treasury. This is in line with its financial relationship with the Bank and supports the Bank’s operational independence by allowing the MPC to make decisions on asset purchases without being constrained by the financial risk of the operations. The advantages of HM Treasury’s indemnity arrangements were outlined in the Autumn Statement 2023 in Box 1.E, and are in line with best practice as set out in a recent IMF working paper. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/financial-relationship-between-the-treasury-and-the-bank-of-england https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/autumn-statement-2023 https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WP/Issues/2023/06/02/Quasi-Fiscal-Implications-of-Central-Bank-Crisis-Interventions-534076 Excess cash from asset purchases between 2009 and 2012 initially accrued in the APF. When it became clear that asset purchases under QE were being held for longer and at a larger scale than initially envisaged, the government decided to normalise the cash management arrangements such that any excess cash would be transferred to the Treasury on a quarterly basis. The cash transfers from the APF to the Treasury that took place until 2022 helped reduce the government’s cash requirement and the amount of gilts that would need to be issued by the DMO, therefore reducing the government’s future debt interest costs and supporting the overall position of the public finances. Cashflows were always expected to reverse as quantitative easing is unwound and gilts are sold back into the market.

Communities and Local Government, what steps she plans to take to help support high streets in Macclesfield constituency.

This Government is fully committed to rejuvenating our high streets and supporting the businesses and communities that make our town centres successful.MHCLG has provided £11.5 million from the core UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) to Cheshire East Council. The Council have developed a number of schemes that local businesses and communities can apply to for support. The Council are also funding at least two UKSPF projects in Macclesfield that aim to enliven the town centre, as well as refurbishing the indoor market.More broadly through the English Devolution Bill we will introduce a strong new ‘right to buy’ empowering local communities to reclaim and revitalise empty shops, pubs, and community spaces.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure young people on waiting lists for gender affirming care are transitioned to adult waiting lists when they turn 18.

NHS England published a new service specification in August 2024 for the referral pathway of Children and Young People’s Gender Services. The service specification sets out that young people are removed from the waiting list for Children and Young People’s Gender Services once they reach the age of 17 years and nine months.NHS England has determined that it is not clinically appropriate to directly transfer a young person onto the waiting list of an adult service. This is because, as a commissioner of health services rather than a provider, it has no direct knowledge of the aims and intentions of the individual young person in regard to their gender identity and how these may have changed while they were on the national waiting list.Those who are removed from the national waiting list are advised to seek advice from their general practitioner, who is best placed to support the young person in considering the appropriateness of a referral to an adult Gender Dysphoria Clinic. Should a referral be made to the adult service, the original referral date to the children's service will be honoured for this purpose. As NHS Children and Young People’s Gender Services expand, this approach will be regularly reviewed.In August, NHS England published an implementation plan detailing how it intends to implement recommendations from Dr Cass’s report. This includes establishing a follow through service for people aged between 17 and 25 years old. NHS England has started to explore with potential partner organisations the feasibility of establishing this service. The planning assumption is that this follow-through service will become operational no sooner than April 2025. Further development of the design of this part of care will be informed by NHS England’s systemic review of adult gender services.