Mark Pritchard MP: written questions 2024
83 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Bus Services: ConcessionsDepartment for TransportTabled 9 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 8117More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of offering free any time bus travel to disabled bus pass holders.
Answer: The English National Concessionary Travel Scheme (ENCTS) provides free off-peak bus travel to those with eligible disabilities and those of state pension age, currently sixty-six. Local authorities in England have the power to go beyond their statutory ob...
Answered 17 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordSpecial Educational Needs: Visual ImpairmentDepartment for EducationTabled 9 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 8116More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure schools make reasonable adjustments to support children with vision impairments.
Answer: The government’s ambition is that all children and young people receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life. The department is committed to improving inclusivity and expertise in mainstream schools, as well as ...
Answered 18 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordInsurance: Competition and MonopoliesTreasuryTabled 4 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 5969More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will take legislative steps to (a) increase competition and (b) reduce monopolies in the consumer insurance market.
Answer: The Government is committed to ensuring that the insurance industry operates on a fair and competitive basis. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), as the independent regulator, has a primary objective to ensure relevant markets are functioning well and ...
Answered 11 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordHealth Professions: Migrant WorkersDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 4 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 5968More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will improve checks on declared medical qualifications for international employees in the NHS.
Answer: There are currently no plans for my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, to improve checks on declared medical qualifications for international employees in the National Health Service. NHS trusts have robust recruitment poli...
Answered 11 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordAfghanistan: HazaraForeign, Commonwealth and Development OfficeTabled 4 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 5967More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will take steps with his international partners to help protect Hazara communities in Afghanistan.
Answer: The Government continues to call for the human rights of all Afghans to be protected, including those of Hazara communities, most recently in our statement at the UN Human Rights Council on 27 September. We condemn recent attacks against Hazaras. In line ...
Answered 14 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordFarms: TenantsMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 4 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 5966More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of allowing tenants in rented properties on working farms to have pets on (a) farm safety and (b) biosecurity.
Answer: The Renters' Rights Bill requires landlords not to unreasonably withhold consent when a tenant requests to have a pet in their home, with the tenant able to challenge a decision. The government will issue detailed guidance in due course to help landlords ...
Answered 14 Oct 2024
Original Parliament recordTyres: StandardsDepartment for TransportTabled 5 Sept 2024AnsweredUIN 4343More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will take steps with car manufacturers to agree a minimum stopping safety requirement for car tyres which are (a) manufactured in the UK and (b) imported.
Answer: All new tyres, both UK made and imported, require GB type approval before they are permitted for sale. To gain approval, manufacturers must demonstrate that they achieve a range of technical performance requirements. This includes a minimum wet grip perfo...
Answered 11 Sept 2024
Original Parliament recordHomicide: ChildrenHome OfficeTabled 3 Sept 2024AnsweredUIN 3953More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will publish data on the number of deaths of children through (a) murder and (b) manslaughter in England in (i) 2022 and (ii) 2023.
Answer: The Home Office Homicide Index holds information on the age of victims and whether the offence was initially classified as murder or manslaughter. The data are given in the table.Table 1: Offences currently recorded as homicide by initial classification o...
Answered 11 Sept 2024
Original Parliament recordNational Wildlife Crime Unit: FinanceDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 2 Sept 2024AnsweredUIN 3689More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will increase his Department's funding to the National Wildlife Crime Unit.
Answer: The National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU) helps prevent and detect wildlife crime by obtaining and disseminating intelligence, undertaking analysis which highlights local or national threats and directly assisting law enforcers in their investigations. Defr...
Answered 10 Sept 2024
Original Parliament recordProstate Cancer: ScreeningDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 2 Sept 2024AnsweredUIN 3688More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to improve early detection of prostate cancer through screening.
Answer: Screening for prostate cancer is currently not recommended by the UK National Screening Committees (UK NSC). This is because of the inaccuracy of the current best test Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA). A PSA-based screening programme could harm men as some...
Answered 9 Sept 2024
Original Parliament recordProstate Cancer: ScreeningDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 2 Sept 2024AnsweredUIN 3687More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he expects the UK National Screening Committee to conclude the prostate cancer screening evidence review it commissioned in November 2023.
Answer: The UK National Screening Committee’s (UK NSC) evidence review for prostate cancer screening is already underway and plans to report within the UK NSC’s three-year work plan. The evidence review includes modelling the clinical cost effectiveness of severa...
Answered 9 Sept 2024
Original Parliament recordHoliday Accommodation: FarmsTreasuryTabled 30 Aug 2024AnsweredUIN 2789More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will take steps to support farm owners to (a) diversify their businesses and (b) improve their financial security by providing accommodation for furnished holiday lettings on their farms.
Answer: The Government is supporting farmers and land managers to adapt their business models and access tailored support to do so through the agricultural transition, including through diversification. For example, farmers can access free business advice through...
Answered 9 Sept 2024
Original Parliament recordBrain: InjuriesDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 30 Aug 2024AnsweredUIN 2788More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help (a) raise awareness of the symptoms of brain aneurysms and (b) improve training for GPs to recognise those symptoms.
Answer: Through neurosurgery networks, NHS England will engage with referring clinicians to ensure that patients receive appropriate assessments, diagnostics, and referral pathways to a neuroscience centre when required.Moreover, the standard of medical training ...
Answered 11 Sept 2024
Original Parliament recordDevelopment Aid: Armed ConflictForeign, Commonwealth and Development OfficeTabled 30 Aug 2024AnsweredUIN 2787More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to help improve access to (a) clean drinking water and (b) sanitation in fragile and conflict affected states and regions.
Answer: The UK is committed to improving access to water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) for people in the developing world. The FCDO WASH programmes that are in fragile and conflict affected states including in Chad, DRC, Ethiopia and Mozambique. One example is t...
Answered 9 Sept 2024
Original Parliament recordEnergy: PricesDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 30 Aug 2024AnsweredUIN 2786More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will commission research into reducing consumer energy prices through locational energy consumption.
Answer: Through the Review of Electricity Market Arrangements, we are exploring several ways to reduce energy bills by making more efficient use of the energy infrastructure we are building. As part of this we are considering zonal pricing, alongside options for ...
Answered 6 Sept 2024
Original Parliament recordAbkhazia: RussiaForeign, Commonwealth and Development OfficeTabled 30 Aug 2024AnsweredUIN 2785More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will join his EU counterparts in making representations to the Russian Federation over the construction of a naval base in Abkhazia.
Answer: We have repeatedly condemned Russia's illegal military presence and the Russification of Abkhazia, including through the proposed Russian naval base at Ochamchire, most recently in a UN Security Council Statement on the 16th Anniversary of Russia's invasi...
Answered 9 Sept 2024
Original Parliament recordAsian Longhorned TickDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 30 Aug 2024AnsweredUIN 2784More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to protect (a) the food supply chain, (b) livestock and (c) public health from the Asian longhorned tick.
Answer: The UKHSA has been running a tick surveillance scheme (TSS) since 2004 which encourages people to send in ticks for identification. The Animal and Plant Health Agency and our veterinary investigation centres are part of this scheme, particularly through o...
Answered 12 Sept 2024
Original Parliament recordIntegrated Care Boards: General PractitionersDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 30 Aug 2024AnsweredUIN 2783More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will put in place oversight of integrated care boards that frequently commission services from GP practices that regularly underperform in patient satisfaction surveys.
Answer: We recognise that despite the hard work of general practice teams, patients are still struggling to access care from general practitioners (GPs). We know that GPs are delivering record numbers of appointments, however, patient satisfaction has dropped nat...
Answered 10 Sept 2024
Original Parliament recordChildren: DrowningsDepartment for EducationTabled 30 Aug 2024AnsweredUIN 2782More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will publish an action plan to reduce deaths of minors from drowning.
Answer: Swimming and water safety is a vital life skill and that is why pupils are taught how to swim and be safe in and around water at primary school. Swimming and water safety are compulsory elements of the Physical Education (PE) National Curriculum at Key St...
Answered 9 Sept 2024
Original Parliament recordUndocumented MigrantsHome OfficeTabled 30 Aug 2024AnsweredUIN 2781More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the activities of hostile states on levels of illegal immigration.
Answer: The Government’s first duty is to protect our national security and keep our country safe. We keep potential threats to the UK under constant review and, where necessary, we use all the tools at our disposal to mitigate these threats including at the bord...
Answered 9 Sept 2024
Original Parliament recordSocial Media: ViolenceDepartment for Science, Innovation and TechnologyTabled 30 Aug 2024AnsweredUIN 2780More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to introduce fines for social media companies for failure to remove online material which incites violence.
Answer: The Online Safety Act 2023 places duties on user to user services to proactively mitigate the risk that their services are used for illegal activity or to share illegal content. This includes content that incites violence and content which stirs up religi...
Answered 9 Sept 2024
Original Parliament recordArmed Forces: CompensationDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 26 Jul 2024AnsweredUIN 1911More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will end the treatment of military compensation as income for the purpose of welfare benefit means tests.
Answer: I refer the honourable member to the answer to question UIN 500, given on the 25 July 2024.
Answered 2 Aug 2024
Original Parliament recordMaternity Services: NursesDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 26 Jul 2024AnsweredUIN 1910More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to increase the number of neonatal nurses in (a) England and (b) Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin integrated care system.
Answer: NHS England is establishing over 550 new neonatal nurse posts across England, including in the Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin Integrated Care System (ICS), since publishing Implementing the Recommendations of the Neonatal Critical Care Transformation Revi...
Answered 6 Aug 2024
Original Parliament recordPancreatic Enzyme Replacement TherapyDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 26 Jul 2024AnsweredUIN 1909More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure adequate supplies of pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy medication.
Answer: The Department has been working with suppliers to address current supply issues with pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy (PERT), including Creon, used in the treatment of cystic fibrosis and certain cancers, including pancreatic cancer. The supply issue...
Answered 5 Aug 2024
Original Parliament recordPancreatic Cancer: Health ServicesDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 26 Jul 2024AnsweredUIN 1908More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to improve the early (a) diagnosis and (b) treatment of pancreatic cancer.
Answer: NHS England is delivering a range of interventions that are expected to improve early diagnosis and treatment for patients with suspected and diagnosed pancreatic cancer. For early diagnosis, this includes providing a route into pancreatic cancer surveill...
Answered 1 Aug 2024
Original Parliament record
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